When developing a Progressive Web App (PWA) with an intention to convert it into an Android app, PWABuilder is an excellent tool that simplifies this process. But if you’re hosting your PWA on GitHub Pages, there are a few nuances you need to be aware of. This guide will walk you through the process and provide solutions to common challenges.
PWABuilder: A Brief Overview
PWABuilder is a tool that helps developers transform their PWAs into native apps for various platforms, including Android. It wraps your PWA into an APK (Android’s application package file) suitable for submission to the Google Play Store.
Does the Android App Show a Browser Navigation Bar?
One common concern developers have is whether the converted Android app will display a browser navigation bar, making it look more like a web page rather than a native app. The answer is no. When you use PWABuilder, it utilizes Trusted Web Activities (TWA) for the Android app, ensuring your PWA runs full screen without any browser navigation bars. This provides a more immersive and native-like experience for your app users.
Hosting on GitHub Pages: The .well-known Folder Issue
If you’re hosting your PWA on GitHub Pages, there’s a tricky issue you might encounter related to the .well-known folder. This folder is essential for several web services, including the PWA manifests and service workers that are crucial for PWABuilder.
By default GitHub Pages uses Jekyll to process repositories. And Jekyll ignores folders that start with a dot (e.g., .well-known). This means your .well-known folder won’t be published, causing potential problems for your PWA.
The Solution: Adding a .nojekyll File
To overcome this limitation, you need to tell Jekyll (and thereby GitHub Pages) to bypass its default behavior. This can be achieved by adding a .nojekyll file to the root of your repository. Here’s how:
- Create a new file in the root of your GitHub repository.
- Name this file
.nojekyll(with no file extension). - Ensure the file is committed and pushed to your GitHub repository.
By adding this file, you’re instructing GitHub Pages not to use Jekyll, ensuring your .well-known folder gets published as expected.
Wrapping Up
I recently published the Android game Dungeon Crawler on Demand with this exact steps.
Publishing an Android app with PWABuilder while hosting on GitHub Pages requires attention to some unique challenges. By understanding these issues and their solutions, you can ensure a smooth deployment of your PWA and its Android app counterpart. Happy coding!