Unable to get files in Android assets directory

I am trying to find files located in assets. I have .txt, .gif, and .db files that are there in an eclipse android project but do not display when I run the following code:

AssetManager am = getAssets();
try {
    String list[] = am.list("/");
    I=0;
    Str="";
    while (list[] != null) {
        Str=Str+"\r\n"+list[I];
        I++;
    }
}
catch(exception e){
}

I get this list:

AndroidManifest.xml
META-INF
assets
classes.dex
com
res
resources.arsc

This list does not include any of the files in assets.

Project properties is currently set to not include assets folder in the build path. When I do include the assets folder in the build path, it gives me the same list with ".." as the first file.

I have tried changing "/" in the third line to "/assets/" but get nothing returned.

Changing the Android Project Build Target between Android 2.3.1 and Android 2.1-update1 appears to have no effect.

Is there a setting in the project properties that is required for files in assets to be included in the build? Is there a different name for the assets directory using AssetManager?

Copyright Notice：Content Author:「Bob Sands」，Reproduced under the CC 4.0 BY-SA copyright license with a link to the original source and this disclaimer.
Link to original article：https://stackoverflow.com/questions/7232385/unable-to-get-files-in-android-assets-directory