Stitch Counter (Android)

Solo-built Android app for tracking knitting and crochet projects. It supports single and double counters, project photo history, theme customization, and local zip backup/restore (no cloud).

This repo is a rewrite of the older Stitch Counter project.

Project highlights

• Engineering focus: CI/CD, Jetpack Compose, Room/DataStore, Hilt, unit testing
• MVVM + repository flow: UI in feature/* talks to ViewModels. Persistence flows through repositories into Room. Import/export and zip backup run through data/backup and domain use cases. Theme and launcher icon updates are coordinated from feature/theme.

CI/CD status

Success Metrics

• Early usage signal: 50+ users in Google Play internal testing
• Stability signal: 0 crashes in Google Play Console (Android vitals) for the current early-stage release
• Quality signal: JVM unit tests in app/src/test; line coverage on Codecov

Backup and restore reliability

• Backups complete without errors in real use
• Restore recreates project data correctly
• Photos remain preserved and readable after restore
• Works across app restarts, devices, and app versions
• Verified between iOS and Android devices
• Import/export pipeline is covered by unit tests (ImportLibraryTest, ExportLibraryTest)

Live links

• Play open testing: Stitch Counter open track
• LinkedIn: Anna Harrison
• Portfolio: harrisonsoftware.dev
• Contact: harrisonsoftware.dev/contact

Screenshots

Counter
Project library (light)
Project library (dark)
Theme settings
Backup & restore

Requirements & how to run

• Use Android Studio Koala Feature Drop 2024.1.2+ (or any setup with JDK 17 and Android SDK 36)
• Open the project root, wait for Gradle sync, then run the app configuration on API 24+
• CLI debug build: ./gradlew :app:assembleDebug
• CLI unit tests: ./gradlew :app:testDebugUnitTest

Key engineering decisions

• Compose + Material 3: UI built with modern Android patterns and responsive layouts for phone/tablet and portrait/landscape.
• Room + DataStore: Structured project persistence in Room, lightweight preference storage in DataStore.
• Local backup (no cloud): Projects can be exported to zip with metadata and images, then restored on another device. The app does not sync to cloud services; data stays on the device unless you export it yourself.
• Hilt + feature separation: Dependencies are injected with Hilt and features are separated by domain area for maintainability.

Tech stack

Area	Choices
Language	Kotlin
UI	Jetpack Compose, Material 3
Min / compile / target SDK	24 / 36 / 36
DI	Hilt
Navigation	Compose Destinations, Navigation-Compose
Local data	Room (SQLite), DataStore Preferences
Images	Coil; JPEG compress + max dimension in ImageStorageUtils
Serialization	Kotlinx Serialization (backup/metadata)
Tooling	KSP, Compose compiler plugin, AGP 8.9.x, Kotlin 2.0.x (see gradle/libs.versions.toml)

Features

• Single and double counter project modes for stitches and/or rows
• Library of saved projects with Room
• Six Material 3 color themes with light/dark mode; selection is saved in DataStore and can update the launcher icon
• Responsive Compose layouts for phones and tablets, portrait and landscape
• Up to 6 photos per project; images are compressed JPEGs in app-internal storage and loaded with Coil
• Backups are zip files with metadata + images, so projects can move between devices without cloud sync or accounts
• No in-app analytics; personal data stays on device (see in-app privacy policy URL in Constants.kt)

Accessibility

The Compose UI targets screen readers and system text settings:

• TalkBack: Interactive elements use contentDescription / Modifier.semantics with dedicated strings (cd_* in strings.xml) for navigation, counters, adjustment controls, library rows, bottom sheets, settings, and image actions. Decorative visuals use contentDescription = null where they add no meaning.
• Live regions: The main counter value uses a polite live region so count changes can be announced without searching the layout (see shared counter composables).
• Semantics roles: Controls use appropriate roles where it helps (e.g. adjustment chips as a radio group, switches for toggles).
• Library rows: Project rows in the library support custom accessibility actions (e.g. delete, multi-select, open details) from a single focused row. Related content is sometimes merged so it reads as one unit.
• Font scaling: Counter text scales with system font size via sp-based sizing (ResizableText and typography).
• Theme: Light/dark themes and Material 3 semantic colors support readable contrast in both modes.

Project layout (high level)

Kotlin sources live under app/src/main/java/dev/harrisonsoftware/stitchCounter/.

stitchCounter/
├── feature/           # UI: library, single/double counter, project detail, settings, stats, support, navigation shell
├── data/              # Room (`ProjectDao`, entities, migrations), backup zip pipeline, repository implementations
├── domain/            # Models, validation, import/export use cases
├── di/                # Hilt modules (database, backup, etc.)
├── ui/theme/          # Material 3 theme, typography, colors
├── logging/           # File + logcat sinks, retention, bug-report packaging
├── MainActivity.kt
└── StitchCounterApp.kt

Engineering guardrails

• CI runs JVM unit tests and publishes line coverage to Codecov

Release guide

Signed Play Store AAB

1. Create keystore.properties in the project root:
   • storeFile=/absolute/path/to/upload-keystore.jks
   • storePassword=YOUR_STORE_PASSWORD
   • keyAlias=upload
   • keyPassword=YOUR_KEY_PASSWORD
2. Build the signed AAB:
   • Android Studio task: :app:buildPlayReleaseAab
   • CLI: ./gradlew :app:buildPlayReleaseAab

• buildPlayReleaseAab runs release unit tests before packaging
• AAB output path: app/build/outputs/bundle/release/app-release.aab

Release automation (GitHub Actions)

Workflow: .github/workflows/play-internal-cd.yml

• Push to main: After CI passes for a push to main, Play internal CD bumps version, builds :app:bundleRelease, uploads to Play internal, and commits updated gradle/version.properties with [skip ci]
• Manual run: GitHub -> Actions -> Play internal CD -> Run workflow
• If the version-bump push is blocked, allow GitHub Actions (or a scoped token) to push to main

Workflow secrets:

• PLAY_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_JSON - Google Play Developer API service account JSON (invited in Play Console for this app)
• RELEASE_KEYSTORE_BASE64 - Base64 of the upload keystore .jks used locally
• RELEASE_KEYSTORE_PASSWORD - Keystore storePassword (matches keystore.properties)
• RELEASE_KEY_PASSWORD - Signing keyPassword (matches keystore.properties)
• RELEASE_KEY_ALIAS - Signing keyAlias (matches keystore.properties)

Roadmap

• Accessibility: More assistive features and polish are planned for upcoming releases (this area is under active development).
• Stats: This page will provide the user with app usage statistics based on data stored in the Room db