Android Phone Development

Lizada, Ranier Albert A.

Table of Contents
Introduction 1
History of Android 2
The Android Platform 4
Android Architecture
Development Tools !
"sin# Hard$are Devices !
%ource Codes &
o 'etronome 1(
o )adar 1&
o Any Cut *4
o Do$nloader 4!
o Trian#le +,
Introduction
What is Android?
Android is an open source mobile operating system that merges
and builds upon parts of many diverse open source projects.
What does this mean to you as a developer? You have access to
the source code of the platform that is running on the phone.
his can help you better recognize ho! interface controls and
the different other pieces !or". #f you happen to come across a
bug, you can also submit a patch for the issue, though this is
a more highly developed practice.
$oogle has also pulled together a large group of companies
%called the &pen 'andset Alliance( that mutually contribute to
and use the Android &) in their hard!are devices. his means
that there is industry*!ide support for $oogle+s &), promising
e,tensive acceptance across distinguished vendors.
History of Android
-ctober 2((* . Android/ Inc0 $as founded in Palo Alto/
California by Andy )ubin/ )ich 'iner/ 1ic2 %ears/ and
Chris 3hite0
Au#ust 2(( . 4oo#le ac5uired Android/ Inc0

th
of 1ovember/ 2((, . The -pen Handset Alliance/ a
consortium of several companies/ $as formed
12
th
of 1ovember/ 2((, . Android 6eta %D7 $as released
o -..-/ World!ide Android 0ar"et )hare
2*
rd
of %eptember/ 2((! . Android 10( featured in the first
Android device/ the HTC Dream8419
o #ntegration !ith $oogle )ervices
o Web 1ro!ser to sho!, zoom, and pan full '0L and
2'0L !eb pages3 0ultiple pages sho! as !indo!s
o Android 0ar"et app do!nloads and updates
o 0ultitas"ing, #nstant 0essaging, Wi*4i, and 1luetooth
&
th
of :ebruary/ 2((& . Android 101 update $as released for
T;'obile 41
*(
th
of April/ 2((& . 6ased on <inu= 2ernel 20+02,/ the
official Android 10 8Cupca2e9 update $as released
o Ability to record and !atch videos through camcorder
mode
o 5ploading videos to Youube and pictures to 6icasa
directly from the phone
o A ne! soft*"eyboard !ith te,t*prediction
o 1luetooth A786 and A9R:6 support
o Ability to automatically connect to a 1luetooth
headset !ithin a certain distance
o ;e! !idgets and folders that can populate the 'ome
screens
o Animated screen transitions
1
th
of %eptember/ 2((& ; 6ased on <inu= 7ernel 20+02&/ the
10+ 8Donut9 %D7 $as released
o <uic" )earch 1o, and 9oice )earch
o #ntegrated camera, camcorder, and gallery, toggle
bet!een still and video capture modes
o 1attery usage indicator
o :80A )upport
o 0ultilingual te,t*to*speech function
2+
th
of -ctober/ 2((& . 6ased on <inu= 7ernel 20+02&/ the
20( 8>clair9 %D7 $as released
o 0ultiple accounts for email and contact
synchronization
o 0icrosoft =,change )upport for syncing of email
o 1luetooth 7.> support
o ;e! bro!ser 5ser #nterface and support for '0L.
o ;e! calendar features
o #mproved $oogle 0aps ?.>.7
o 1uilt in flash support for :amera
o 8igital @oom
o 0otion=vent class enhanced to trac" multi*touch
events.
*
rd
of December/ 2((& . 20(01 %D7 $as released
o ?.A-/ World!ide Android 0ar"et )hare
12
th
of ?anuary/ 2(1( . 201 %D7 $as released
2(
th
of 'ay/ 2(1( . 6ased on <inu= 7ernel 20+0*2@4A/ 202
8:royo or :roBen Co#urt9 %D7 $as released
o >B.B-/ World!ide Android 0ar"et )hare
o 'otspot support
o Adobe 4lash >-.>
+
th
of December/ 2(1( ; the 20* 84in#erbread9 %D7 $as
released
o )upport for bigger screens !ith up to Wide 2$A
%>?CCDBCE( resolution.
o )upport for Web0 video playbac".
o ;ear 4ield :ommunication %;4:(
22
nd
of :ebruary/ 2(11 ; 6ased on <inu= 7ernel 20+0*/
20*0* $as released
22
nd
of :ebruary/ 2(11 ; 6ased on <inu= 7ernel 20+0*+/ *0(
8Honeycomb9 %D7 $as released for tablets
1(
th
. 11
th
of 'ay/ 2(11 . 40( 8Ice Cream %and$ich9 $as
announced at 4oo#le ID-
1!
th
of ?uly/ 2(11 . *02 %D7 $as released
1ovember or December 2(11 . tentative date for the release
of Android 40( %D7
The Android Platform
With AndroidFs breadth of capabilities, it !ould be easy to
confuse it !ith a des"top operating system. Android is a
layered environment built upon a foundation of the Linu,
"ernel, and it includes rich functions. he 5# subsystem
includesG
Windo!s
9ie!s
Widgets for displaying common elements such as edit bo,es,
lists, and drop*do!n lists
Android includes an embeddable bro!ser built upon WebHit, the
same open source bro!ser engine po!ering the i6honeFs 0obile
)afari bro!ser.
Android boasts a healthy array of connectivity options,
including Wi4i, 1luetooth, and !ireless data over a cellular
connection %for e,ample, $6R), =8$=, and ?$(. A popular
techniIue in Android applications is to lin" to $oogle 0aps to
display an address directly !ithin an application. )upport for
location*based services %such as $6)( and accelerometers is
also available in the Android soft!are stac", though not all
Android devices are eIuipped !ith the reIuired hard!are. here
is also camera support.
'istorically, t!o areas !here mobile applications have
struggled to "eep pace !ith their des"top counterparts are
graphicsJmedia, and data storage methods. Android addresses the
graphics challenge !ith built*in support for 7*8 and ?*8
graphics, including the &pen$L library. he data*storage burden
is eased because the Android platform includes the popular open
source )<Lite database. 4igure > sho!s a simplified vie! of the
Android soft!are layers.
Android Architecture
Application :rame$or2
As mentioned, Android runs atop a Linu, "ernel. Android
applications are !ritten in the Kava programming language, and
they run !ithin a virtual machine %90(. #tFs important to note
that the 90 is not a K90 as you might e,pect, but is the 8alvi"
9irtual 0achine, an open source technology.
An Android application consists of one or more of the
follo!ing classificationsG
Activities
An application that has a visible 5# is implemented
!ith an activity. When a user selects an application from
the home screen or application launcher, an activity is
started.
%ervices
A service should be used for any application that
needs to persist for a long time, such as a net!or"
monitor or update*chec"ing application.
Content providers
You can thin" of content providers as a database
server. A content providerFs job is to manage access to
persisted data, such as a )<Lite database. #f your
application is very simple, you might not necessarily
create a content provider.
#f youFre building a larger application, or one that
ma"es data available to multiple activities or
applications, a content provider is the means of accessing
your data.
6roadcast receivers
An Android application may be launched to process a
element of data or respond to an event, such as the
receipt of a te,t message.
An Android application, along !ith a file called
Android0anifest.,ml, is deployed to a device.
Android0anifest.,ml contains the necessary configuration
information to properly install it to the device. #t includes
the reIuired class names and types of events the application is
able to process, and the reIuired permissions the application
needs to run.
<ibraries
Android includes a set of :J:LL libraries used by various
components of the Android system. hese capabilities are
e,posed to developers through the Android application
frame!or". )ome of the core libraries are listed belo!G
%ystem C library * a 1)8*derived implementation of the
standard : system library %libc(, tuned for embedded
Linu,*based devices
'edia <ibraries * based on 6ac"et9ideoFs &pen:&R=3 the
libraries support playbac" and recording of many popular
audio and video formats, as !ell as static image files,
including 06=$M, '.7CM, 06?, AA:, A0R, K6$, and 6;$
%urface 'ana#er * manages access to the display subsystem
and seamlessly composites 78 and ?8 graphic layers from
multiple applications
<ib3ebCore * a modern !eb bro!ser engine !hich po!ers both
the Android bro!ser and an embeddable !eb vie!
%4< * the underlying 78 graphics engine
*D libraries * an implementation based on &pen$L =) >.-
A6#s3 the libraries use either hard!are ?8 acceleration
%!here available( or the included, highly optimized ?8
soft!are rasterizer
:reeType * bitmap and vector font rendering
%E<ite * a po!erful and light!eight relational database
engine available to all applications
Android )untime
Android includes a set of core libraries that provides most of
the functionality available in the core libraries of the Kava
programming language.
=very Android application runs in its o!n process, !ith its o!n
instance of the 8alvi" virtual machine. 8alvi" has been !ritten
so that a device can run multiple 90s efficiently. he 8alvi"
90 e,ecutes files in the 8alvi" =,ecutable %.de,( format !hich
is optimized for minimal memory footprint. he 90 is register*
based, and runs classes compiled by a Kava language compiler
that have been transformed into the .de, format by the included
Nd,N tool.
he 8alvi" 90 relies on the Linu, "ernel for underlying
functionality such as threading and lo!*level memory
management.
<inu= 7ernel
Android relies on Linu, version 7.C for core system services
such as security, memory management, process management,
net!or" stac", and driver model. he "ernel also acts as an
abstraction layer bet!een the hard!are and the rest of the
soft!are stac".
Development Tools
he chief tools for developing Android apps are designed to be
used !ith the =clipse #ntegrated 8evelopment =nvironment, !hich
is a general #8= for Kava applications. =clipse is free to
do!nload, as are the tools essential to build and test Android
applications. he necessary tools include the Android )oft!are
8evelopment Hit and the Android 8eveloper ools. hese grant
everything crucial to develop Android applications, including
programming, designing, compiling, testing and e,porting final
applications.
"sin# Hard$are Devices
You can use !hichever Android*po!ered device as an environment
for running, debugging, and testing your applications. he
tools incorporated in the )8H ma"e it easy to install and run
your application on the device each time you compile. You can
install your application on the device directly from =clipse or
from the command line !ith A81. #f you donFt yet have a device,
chec" !ith the service providers in your area to determine
!hich Android*po!ered devices are available.
#f you !ant a )#0*unloc"ed phone, then you might consider
either an Android 8ev 6hone or the $oogle ;e,us ). hese are
)#0*unloc"ed so that you can use them on any $)0 net!or" using
a )#0 card. he Android 8ev 6hones also feature an unloc"ed
bootloader so you can install custom system images %great for
developing and installing custom versions of the Android
platform(.
)eferences
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develJOibm*pcon
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development.html
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httpGJJdeveloper.android.comJguideJbasicsJ!hat*is*android.html
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