VerifyError deploying on API 1.6

Question

I've come across a backwards compatibility issue when deploying my application on android 1.6. Im getting a VerifyError on this piece of code:

if(android.os.Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= 11) {
    getActionBar().setBackgroundDrawable(getResources().getDrawable(R.drawable.actionbar_bg));
}

This is not unexpected since getActionBar() doesn't exist pre API 11, however post-1.6 (API 5 and higher?) builds all semi-gracefully go around this according to the logcat message im getting when deploying for example on a API level 8 device;

06-27 16:47:04.333: INFO/dalvikvm(11529): Could not find method com.me.app.MyActivity.getActionBar, referenced from method com.me.app.MyActivity.init
06-27 16:47:04.333: WARN/dalvikvm(11529): VFY: unable to resolve virtual method 1090: Lcom.me.app.MyActivity;.getActionBar ()Landroid/app/ActionBar;
06-27 16:47:04.333: DEBUG/dalvikvm(11529): VFY: replacing opcode 0x6e at 0x004f
06-27 16:47:04.333: DEBUG/dalvikvm(11529): VFY: dead code 0x0052-005f in Lcom.me.app.MyActivity;.init (Z)V

1.6 and earlier wont do this but instead throw a VerifyError:

06-27 16:23:45.561: ERROR/dalvikvm(427): Could not find method com.me.app.MyActivity.getActionBar, referenced from method com.me.app.MyActivity.init
06-27 16:23:45.561: WARN/dalvikvm(427): VFY: unable to resolve virtual method 1090: Lcom/me/app/MyActivity;.getActionBar ()Landroid/app/ActionBar;
06-27 16:23:45.561: WARN/dalvikvm(427): VFY:  rejecting opcode 0x6e at 0x004f
06-27 16:23:45.561: WARN/dalvikvm(427): VFY:  rejected Lcom/me/app/MyActivity;.init (Z)V
06-27 16:23:45.561: WARN/dalvikvm(427): Verifier rejected class Lcom/me/app/MyActivity;
06-27 16:23:45.561: WARN/dalvikvm(427): Class init failed in newInstance call (Lcom/me/app/MyActivity;)
06-27 16:26:44.841: ERROR/AndroidRuntime(427): Uncaught handler: thread main exiting due to uncaught exception
06-27 16:26:44.941: ERROR/AndroidRuntime(427): java.lang.VerifyError: com.me.app.MyActivity
06-27 16:26:44.941: ERROR/AndroidRuntime(427):     at java.lang.Class.newInstanceImpl(Native Method)
06-27 16:26:44.941: ERROR/AndroidRuntime(427):     at java.lang.Class.newInstance(Class.java:1472)
06-27 16:26:44.941: ERROR/AndroidRuntime(427):     at android.app.Instrumentation.newActivity(Instrumentation.java:1097)
06-27 16:26:44.941: ERROR/AndroidRuntime(427):     at android.app.ActivityThread.performLaunchActivity(ActivityThread.java:2316)
06-27 16:26:44.941: ERROR/AndroidRuntime(427):     at android.app.ActivityThread.handleLaunchActivity(ActivityThread.java:2417)
06-27 16:26:44.941: ERROR/AndroidRuntime(427):     at android.app.ActivityThread.access$2100(ActivityThread.java:116)
06-27 16:26:44.941: ERROR/AndroidRuntime(427):     at android.app.ActivityThread$H.handleMessage(ActivityThread.java:1794)
06-27 16:26:44.941: ERROR/AndroidRuntime(427):     at android.os.Handler.dispatchMessage(Handler.java:99)
06-27 16:26:44.941: ERROR/AndroidRuntime(427):     at android.os.Looper.loop(Looper.java:123)
06-27 16:26:44.941: ERROR/AndroidRuntime(427):     at android.app.ActivityThread.main(ActivityThread.java:4203)
06-27 16:26:44.941: ERROR/AndroidRuntime(427):     at java.lang.reflect.Method.invokeNative(Native Method)
06-27 16:26:44.941: ERROR/AndroidRuntime(427):     at java.lang.reflect.Method.invoke(Method.java:521)
06-27 16:26:44.941: ERROR/AndroidRuntime(427):     at com.android.internal.os.ZygoteInit$MethodAndArgsCaller.run(ZygoteInit.java:791)
06-27 16:26:44.941: ERROR/AndroidRuntime(427):     at com.android.internal.os.ZygoteInit.main(ZygoteInit.java:549)
06-27 16:26:44.941: ERROR/AndroidRuntime(427):     at dalvik.system.NativeStart.main(Native Method)

Is there a way to fix this elegantly and have backwards compatibility to 1.6?

Edit: So I ended up creating a HoneycombHelper class with static methods:

public class HoneycombHelper {
    public static void setActionBarBackgroundDrawable(Activity a, Drawable d) {
        a.getActionBar().setBackgroundDrawable(d);
    }
    ...
}

Not sure if this is the most elegant way, but it does seem to work.

Answer 1

When Dalvik compiles your class/function from bytecode into native machine code, it compiles all statements, even those that are inside if conditions. On Android 1.6 virtual machine tries to resolve (verify) getActionBar function, and since there is no such function, Dalvik throws VerifyError.

You can do next trick:

class ActionBarHelper{
   void setBackground(){
      getActionBar().setBackgroundDrawable(...);
   }
}

...

if(android.os.Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= 11) {
   new ActionBarHelper().setBackground();    
}

This way ActioBarHelper class will only be compiled/verified when you're running on SDK 11+. This will in turn allow calling getActionBar function without using reflection (reflection is another possible solution to this problem).