Chapter 1: Voilà!
Meet the Android
Meet the Android
• Smartphones
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Can browse the Web
Allow you to play games
Use business applications
Check e-mail
Play music
Record video
Map locations with GPS
Oh yes, make phone calls and send text messages
Android Boot Camp for Developers using Java
2
Meet the Android
(continued)
– Android phone platform runs a free, open-source
operating system from Google
– Open Handset Alliance
• 80 companies that develop standards for mobile
devices
• Android Phone Device
– Most popular are EVO, Droid, Galaxy, Echo, etc.
– OS also powers tablets, netbooks, e-readers, MP4
players and Internet TVs
Android Boot Camp for Developers using Java
3
Meet the Android
(continued)
• Features of the Android
– Flash support - Flash video plays within the Android
Web browser. (The iPhone does not support Flash
capabilities.)
– Power management - Android identifies programs
running in the background using memory and
processor resources.
– Optimized gaming - Android supports the use of
gyroscope, gravity, barometric sensors, linear
acceleration, and rotation vector.
Android Boot Camp for Developers using Java
4
Meet the Android
(continued)
• Features of the Android (continued)
– Onscreen keyboard - Spell-check, predictive text,
voice-input mode.
– Wi-Fi Internet tethering - Allows a phone to be
used as a wireless or wired hot spot.
– Multiple language support - Android supports
multiple human languages.
– Front- and rear-facing cameras
– Voice-based recognition for calling, texting, and
navigating with the phone.
Android Boot Camp for Developers using Java
5
Meet the Android
(continued)
• Features of the Android (continued)
– 3D graphics - The interface can support 3D
graphics for a 3D interactive game experience or 3D
image rendering.
– Facial recognition - Android provides this high-level
feature for automatically identifying or verifying a
person’s face from a digital image or a video frame.
Android Boot Camp for Developers using Java
6
Meet the Android
(continued)
• Writing Android Apps
– Java is the language of choice for Android Apps
– Object-oriented programming languages allow for
good software engineering practices
• Eclipse
– The most popular tool (IDE) for writing Java
programs
– Can also be used to develop applications in other
languages
– XML is used to assist in the layout of the Android
emulator
Android Boot Camp for Developers using Java
7
Meet the Android
(continued)
• Android Emulator
– Design, develop, prototype, and test Android apps
without using a physical device
– Mimics almost every feature of a real Android
handset, except placing phone calls
– Current version is Ice Cream Sandwich – all
versions named after dessert items (in alphabetical
order)
– Previous versions include Cupcake, Donut, Éclair,
Froyo (frozen yogurt), Gingerbread, and Honeycomb
Android Boot Camp for Developers using Java
8
Meet the Android
(continued)
• Getting Oriented with Market Deployment
– Platform consists of the Android OS, application
development tools, and a marketplace Apps are
compiled into package files with an .apk extension
– Android Market (http://market.android.com) sells
and deploys all apps
– Programs must meet minimum standards
– Apps are free or paid (70/30 split between developer
and wireless carrier)
– Also sold through Amazon (amazon.com/appstore)
and iTunes (both charge a $99 registration fee)
Android Boot Camp for Developers using Java
9
First Venture into the Android World
• Building the User Interface
– Must be intuitive
– Interface must not distract from functionality
– Java code or XML layout files are needed
• XML method is preferred
• Can design interface without writing large amounts of
code
Android Boot Camp for Developers using Java
10
(cont’d)
First Venture into the Android World
• Taking a Tour of the Package Explorer
– Src folder – contains Java source code
– Gen folder – contains automatically generated Java
files
– Android 4.0 library – contains all class libraries
– Assets folder – contains asset files
– Res folder – contains images, music, and video
– Android Manifest.xml – contains information about
the application that Android needs to run
Android Boot Camp for Developers using Java
11
(cont’d)
First Venture into the Android World
• Designing the user Interface Layout
– Layout – a container that holds as many widgets as
needed
– Widget– a single element on the screen (Button,
Text Box, etc.)
• Also called an object
Android Boot Camp for Developers using Java
12
(cont’d)
First Venture into the Android World
Figure 1-10 Layout Displayed in Eclipse Window
Android Boot Camp for Developers using Java
13
(cont’d)
First Venture into the Android World
(cont’d)
• Adding a Form Widget to the User Interface Layout
Figure 1-12 TextView form widget in the emulator
Android Boot Camp for Developers using Java
14
First Venture into the Android World
(cont’d)
• Adding a Form Widget to the User Interface Layout
Figure 1-14 Changing the TextView control text
Android Boot Camp for Developers using Java
Figure 1-15 Displaying the revised text in the
emulator
15
First Venture into the Android World
• Testing the Application in the Emulator
Figure 1-16 Run As Dialog Box
Android Boot Camp for Developers using Java
16
(cont’d)
First Venture into the Android World
• Testing the Application in the Emulator
Figure 1-17 Android main screen and lock icon
Android Boot Camp for Developers using Java
Figure 1-18 Message in the Android Emulator
17
(cont’d)
First Venture into the Android World
• Opening a Saved App in Eclipse
Figure 1-19 Import dialog box
Android Boot Camp for Developers using Java
Figure 1-20 Project and directory selected
18
(cont’d)
Summary
• Android OS is released under Apache license
allowing anyone to get the full open-source for free
• Android OS powers all types of mobile devices
• To write apps, you can use Eclipse, an IDE used
for building applications
• The Android emulator lets you design, develop
prototype, and test Android applications
• The Android platform consists of the Android OS,
the Android application development platform, and
the Android marketplace
Android Boot Camp for Developers using Java
19
Summary
(continued)
• Android supports both Java code and XML layout
files, although XML is preferred
• The Package Explorer contains folders for an
Android project
• To design a user interface for an Android app, you
can create a layout containing widgets (objects)
• The Android emulator allows you to test an
application and make sure it runs correctly
Android Boot Camp for Developers using Java
20