Beginning Android

Learn how to develop applications for Android mobile devices using simple examples, ready to run with your copy of the SDK. Author and Android columnist, writer, developer, and community advocate Mark L Murphy shows you what you need to know to get started on programming Android applications-everything from crafting GUIs to using GPS, accessing web services, and more!

The Android development platform, created by Google and the Open Handset Alliance, is a platform in its truest sense, encompassing hundreds of classes beyond the traditional Java classes and open source components that ship with the SDK. Some Android books race through the material, trying to cover as much ground as possible in as few pages as possible. Experienced writer and community advocate Mark Murphy shows you how to develop Android applications simply and with care.

The book includes dozens of sample projects, ready to run with your copy of the SDK-not just one huge project where you have difficulty finding the specific examples of the technique you are looking for. You can even get these sample programs online at Apress.com.

What you'll learn

• Discover what Android is and how to use Android to build Java-based mobile applications for Google Phones G1 and more phones as they hit the market
• Work with the new Android 1.x SDK
• Create user interfaces using both the Android Widget framework and the built-in WebKit-powered web browser components
• Use scripting with BeanShell
• Work with menu inflation, fonts, SDK tools, rotation events, and more
• Work with TabActivity, MyLocationOverlay, DDMS, and more
• Utilize the distinctive capabilities of the Android engine including maps, Internet access, integrated search, media playback, and more
• Use and create similar sample Android applications for services, content providers, mapping, and location-based services/events

Who this book is for

This book is aimed at people new to mobile development, perhaps even to Java itself.

Table of Contents

1. The Big Picture
2. Project Structure
3. Inside the Manifest
4. Creating a Skeleton Application
5. Using XML-Based Layouts
6. Employing Basic Widgets
7. Working with Containers
8. Using Selection Widgets
9. Getting Fancy with Lists
10. Employing Fancy Widgets and Containers
11. Applying Menus 
12. Fonts
13. Embedding the WebKit Browser
14. Showing Pop-Up Messages
15. Dealing with Threads
16. Handling Activity Lifecycle Events
17. Using Preferences
18. Accessing Files
19. Working with Resources
20. Managing and Accessing Local Databases
21. Leveraging Java Libraries
22. Communicating via the Internet
23. Creating Intent Filters
24. Launching Activities and Sub-Activities
25. Finding Available Actions via Introspection
26. Handling Rotation
27. Using a Content Provider
28. Building a Content Provider
29. Requesting and Requiring Permissions
30. Creating a Service
31. Invoking a Service
32. Alerting Users Via Notifications
33. Accessing Location-Based Services
34. Mapping with MapView and MapActivity
35. Handling Telephone Calls
36. Searching with SearchManager
37. Development Tools
38. Where Do We Go From Here?