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bryantran24 edited this page Mar 13, 2026 · 8 revisions

Setup

This guide walks you through setting up the development environment for the RCOS Shuttle Tracker Android app, including Git, Android Studio, and Google Maps API configuration.

1. Prerequisites

1.1 Install Android Studio

Download Android Studio here: https://developer.android.com/studio.

During setup:

  • Click Next on the setup pages unless you want to change default settings
  • Click Finish and allow the installation to complete (this may take some time)

1.2 Set up WSL (Windows only)

If you are on Windows, install Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL): https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wsl/install

1.3 Install Git

Open your Ubuntu / WSL terminal and run: apt-get install git or if prompted, use: sudo apt-get install git

Next, sign in to https://www.github.com, or sign up if you do not have an account. Make sure to remember the username you give, this will be important for later.

Configure Git with your username and email:

git config --global user.name "your_username"
git config --global user.email "your_emailid"

These commands will link your username and email to your computer, so GitHub knows who authored your commits.

2. Git & Repository Setup

2.1 Clone the repository

Run the following command in your terminal:

git clone https://github.com/wtg/Shuttle-Tracker-Android.git

The code will be downloaded into a folder named Shuttle-Tracker-Android.

2.2 Open the project in Android Studio

  1. Open Android Studio
  2. Click Open and navigate to and select the Shuttle-Tracker-Android folder

3. Google Maps API Key Setup

3.1 Generate a Google Maps API key

Get your own custom google maps API key. Here's a guide that details how to get one for yourself: Here.

If you have trouble obtaining your debug SHA-1 this might help 
Run this in a terminal (WSL users on Windows):

keytool -list -v \
-keystore /mnt/c/Users/<YOUR_WINDOWS_USERNAME>/.android/debug.keystore \
-alias androiddebugkey \
-storepass android \
-keypass android

3.2 Insert your API key

Open the local.properties in your project level directory, and then add the following code.

MAPS_API_KEY=YOUR_API_KEY

4. Running the Virtual Android Device

  1. In Android Studio, open the Device Manager, click the + button, and select Create Virtual Device.
  2. Choose Pixel 5. When prompted to select a system image, choose API level 31 (Android S).
  3. Select the Pixel 5 emulator as your run configuration.
  4. Click Run.

After completing these steps, the virtual Android device should launch and Google Maps should load correctly.

If you complete steps 1 through 4 and you are receiving the build tools is corrupted issue, use this link to Stack Overflow to solve the problem and put yourself back on track because of an error on Google's part: Here.

Once that's all done, congrats. You are now ready to start development for the RCOS Shuttle Tracker Android app.

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