Application over other apps

frewwy

Hello guys! Is there any tutorial that shows how can I run a layout over other apps? For example, Messenger uses it. I want something like Floating Action Button. The user sees it for example in the right corner, and can interact with it. Thank you!

ClintStLaurent

Huh? You want to float your entire app over someone else's app? Sounds like an attempt to fool the user into entering their details into your app instead of their real banking app.

frewwy

I want to develop a "legal hack" app for a famous game. Nothing serious, just a little bit of help. My idea is unique and I want to try to sell it if it will be finished. The app would display informations on the top of the screen. I was searching a lot, but unfortunetly I didn't find any solution for that.

ClintStLaurent

For example, Messenger uses it.

Where? Got a screen shot showing that?

frewwy

Thanks for your reply!
Maybe I expressed myself wrongly. When you tap on a Messenger "head" (the profile picture of your friend) then your conservation with her/him shows up on a layout. I would need something like that, but with a smaller layout-size. Musixmatch also use it in their floating lyrics feature.

ClintStLaurent

That's just a popup within one's own app. No big deal. rg.plugins.popups

But your original question says you want to put a popup over someone else's app - is that still the case?
You want your app to display UI elements over someone else's game?
That would be a massive security risk. Like I said, it would be a way to capture information... redirect users to other sites... you wouldn't be able to trust anything on your screen is actually the topmost app you thought you were working with.

frewwy

Well, you are right. In the old times when I was playing with my Xperia U a lot i used some root-only gametools like CheatEngine. That was the motivation behind my idea. Of course i don't want to "break"/hack someone else's app, but the app would memorise your opponent's movements and could show tips on my own app's layout. It's not actually a hack, just a tool for lazy people, you can replace the functionally of the app with human attention. Do you think it is still illegal?

ClintStLaurent

I can't speak to 'illegal' - but I sure wouldn't want something like that on my phone.
I would also be highly upset to find out that someone even could do something like that. If you have one app reaching inside another app to the point of being able to see that level of detail, its basically say there is zero memory partitioning going on and no security between apps, whatsoever.

Are you saying you do have a way, right now, that you've successfully confirmed, that lets your app go into someone else's game and study it like that? On a modern normal phone like Andriod or iOS.

JamesLavery

On my Android Samsung A3 the phone app minimises to an icon-sized view which sits on top the foreground app. So it looks like it's possible to have a view from one app on top of another, but this is probably a special case. I have not investigated.

ClintStLaurent

That sounds like something they are doing at an OS level with special permissions for OEM app only. Apple does something like that too where only their app can do x, y, z. But its not a feature open to the general public.

JamesLavery

@ClintStLaurent I agree - it's unlikely to be available to general apps via the OS API.

KevinScheidt

Facebook Messenger has Chat heads, which allows an image and notification to appear over other applications as an overlay.

I believe he wants something different, but i'm looking for something like:
www.androidhive.info/2016/11/android-floating-widget-like-facebook-chat-head/