Android Experiments

This tutorial walks through a small Android experiment in FIREWHEEL. We will launch a Pixel 9a emulator, install the Kiwix Android APK, load a subset of Wikipedia data onto the phone, automate the app with Maestro, and collect application data for inspection after the experiment.

Kiwix is a useful tutorial target because it can work with offline content. Once the APK and saved resources are staged, the experiment does not need external network access for the application workflow. The goal is to learn the Android/FIREWHEEL workflow, not to make a specific claim about Kiwix.

Prerequisites:

• FIREWHEEL is installed.

• The Android model component INSTALL steps have completed successfully.

• The FIREWHEEL node can download the Kiwix APK and ZIM file, or those files are otherwise accessible.

• Optional: If desiring to use manual interaction, scrcpy is required.

• Creating an Android Experiment
  • Create the Model Component
  • Prepare the APK and ZIM Resources
  • Create the Initial Plugin
  • Launch and Verify the Initial Experiment
• Automation and Reviewing Outputs
  • Create the Maestro Kiwix Flow
  • Update the Plugin
  • Relaunch the Experiment
  • Review Maestro Artifacts
  • Review Collected Application Data
  • Manual Debugging with scrcpy
  • Troubleshooting
  • Next Steps
• Post-Experiment Analysis
  • Inspecting the File Tree
  • Setting Up Python Analysis
  • Discover the SQLite Databases
  • Inspect Kiwix History State
  • Inspect Shared Preferences
  • Important Limitations