Learning Android

Description

Want to build apps for Android devices? This book is the perfect way to master the fundamentals. Written by an expert who's taught this mobile platform to hundreds of developers in large organizations, this gentle introduction shows experienced object-oriented programmers how to use Android’s basic building blocks to create user interfaces, store data, connect to the network, and more.

 You'll build a Twitter-like application throughout the course of this book, adding new features with each chapter. Along the way, you'll also create your own toolbox of code patterns to help you program any type of Android application with ease.

* Get an overview of the Android platform and discover how it fits into the mobile ecosystem
* Learn about the Android stack, including its application framework, and the structure and distribution of application packages (APK)
* Set up your Android development environment and get started with simple programs
* Use Android’s building blocks-Activities, Intents, Services, Content Providers, and Broadcast Receivers
* Learn how to build basic Android user interfaces and organize UI elements in Views and Layouts
* Build a service that uses a background process to update data in your application
* Get an introduction to Android Interface Definition Language (AIDL) and the Native Development Kit (NDK)

CONTENTS:

Preface; What’s Inside; Conventions Used in This Book; Using Code Examples; Safari(R) Books Online; How to Contact Us; Acknowledgments; Chapter 1: Android Overview; 1.1 Android Overview; 1.2 History; 1.3 Android Versions; 1.4 Summary; Chapter 2: The Stack; 2.1 Stack Overview; 2.2 Linux; 2.3 Native Libraries; 2.4 Dalvik; 2.5 Application Framework; 2.6 Applications; 2.7 Summary; Chapter 3: Quick Start; 3.1 Installing the Android SDK; 3.2 Hello, World; 3.3 The Emulator; 3.4 Summary; Chapter 4: Main Building Blocks; 4.1 What Are Main Building Blocks?; 4.2 A Real-World Example; 4.3 Activities; 4.4 Intents; 4.5 Services; 4.6 Content Providers; 4.7 Broadcast Receivers; 4.8 Application Context; 4.9 Summary; Chapter 5: Yamba Project Overview; 5.1 The Yamba Application; 5.2 Design Philosophy; 5.3 Project Design; 5.4 Part 1: Android User Interface; 5.5 Part 2: Preferences, Filesystem, Options Menu, and Intents; 5.6 Part 3: Android Services; 5.7 Part 4: Working with Databases; 5.8 Part 5: Lists and Adapters; 5.9 Part 6: Broadcast Receivers; 5.10 Part 7: Content Providers; 5.11 Part 8: System Services; 5.12 Summary; Chapter 6: Android User Interface; 6.1 Two Ways to Create a User Interface; 6.2 Views and Layouts; 6.3 Starting the Yamba Project; 6.4 The StatusActivity Layout; 6.5 The StatusActivity Java Class; 6.6 Logging in Android; 6.7 Threading in Android; 6.8 Other UI Events; 6.9 Adding Color and Graphics; 6.10 Alternative Resources; 6.11 Optimizing the User Interface; 6.12 Summary; Chapter 7: Preferences, the Filesystem, the Options Menu, and Intents; 7.1 Preferences; 7.2 The Options Menu; 7.3 Shared Preferences; 7.4 The Filesystem Explained; 7.5 Summary; Chapter 8: Services; 8.1 The Yamba Application Object; 8.2 UpdaterService; 8.3 Looping in the Service; 8.4 Pulling Data from Twitter; 8.5 Summary; Chapter 9: The Database; 9.1 About SQLite; 9.2 DbHelper; 9.3 First Example; 9.4 Update UpdaterService; 9.5 Refactoring Status Data; 9.6 Summary; Chapter 10: Lists and Adapters; 10.1 TimelineActivity; 10.2 Basic TimelineActivity Layout; 10.3 About Adapters; 10.4 TimelineAdapter; 10.5 ViewBinder: A Better Alternative to TimelineAdapter; 10.6 Updating the Manifest File; 10.7 Base Activity; 10.8 Summary; Chapter 11: Broadcast Receivers; 11.1 About Broadcast Receivers; 11.2 BootReceiver; 11.3 The TimelineReceiver; 11.4 Broadcasting Intents; 11.5 The Network Receiver; 11.6 Adding Custom Permissions to Send and Receive Broadcasts; 11.7 Summary; Chapter 12: Content Providers; 12.1 Creating a Content Provider; 12.2 Using Content Providers Through Widgets; 12.3 Summary; Chapter 13: System Services; 13.1 Compass Demo; 13.2 Location Service; 13.3 Updating Yamba to Use the Location Service; 13.4 Intent Service; 13.5 Sending Notifications; 13.6 Summary; Chapter 14: The Android Interface Definition Language; 14.1 Implementing the Remote Service; 14.2 Implementing the Remote Client; 14.3 Summary; Chapter 15: The Native Development Kit (NDK); 15.1 What Is and Isn’t the NDK For?; 15.2 Problems Solved by the NDK; 15.3 An NDK Example: Fibonacci; 15.4 Summary; Colophon;