appium / appium/python-client

Feature Request: Add support for external activity discovery tools (e.g. activity_finder)

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Dominant language
Python
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Description

Hi Appium team,

I would like to propose a feature enhancement that may improve Android automation debugging and activity handling.

I have developed a lightweight open-source tool called activity_finder:
https://github.com/jaxonister/activity_finder

Problem

In real-world Appium automation, especially on Android, one common challenge is discovering:

  • current foreground activities
  • available activities in an app
  • activity transitions during testing

This often requires multiple adb commands or manual inspection, which slows down debugging and test development.

Proposal

The tool activity_finder provides a simple way to:

  • list and detect Android activities
  • identify current running activity
  • help quickly locate target activity for automation scripts

It could be useful if Appium could:

  • integrate similar activity discovery capability
  • or provide a plugin / hook interface for external tools
  • or expose a standardized API for activity inspection
Why this matters

Better activity visibility would significantly improve:

  • test stability
  • debugging efficiency
  • onboarding for new automation engineers
Optional integration idea

Even a simple command or extension like:

  • driver.getCurrentActivity()
  • driver.listActivities()

would help bridge this gap.

Conclusion

I believe this feature could improve Android automation workflows in Appium ecosystem, and I would be happy to contribute or discuss implementation ideas further.

Thanks for your time 🙌

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First steps

  1. Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
  2. Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
  3. Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
  4. Open a pull request that references the issue number.

Research direction

No files, tests, or entry points are identified in the issue. First clarify whether the goal is an Appium client API, plugin or hook interface, or external-tool integration, then define the supported Android behavior and tests that would establish completion.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
android, python
Domain
mobile
Issue type
Feature
Difficulty
5/5
Estimated time
Over a week
Activity status
Quiet
Clarity
Needs clarification
Newbie friendliness
25/100

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