There's a special file path for the assets.
SmileyBitmap.Initialize(File.DirAssets, "smiley.gif") 'load the smiley file
You can't change the type of a variable once it's declared but you can assign one type to another and Basic4Android will try to convert it.
Dim d As Double
Dim i As Int
Dim s
d = 123
s = d ' s contains "123.0" due to a floating point string conversion
i = d
s = i ' s contains "123" as it's an integer conversion