Beginning Android

Chapter 1

Getting Started with Android Programming for Tablets

WHAT YOU WILL LEARN IN THIS CHAPTER

• What is Android?
• Android versions and its feature set
• The Android architecture
• The various Android devices on the market
• The Android Market application store
• How to obtain the tools and SDK for developing Android applications
• How to develop your first Android application

Welcome to the world of Android! When I was writing my first book on Android (which was just a couple of months ago), I stated that Android was ranked second in the U.S. smartphone market, second to Research In Motion’s (RIM) BlackBerry, and overtaking Apple’s iPhone. Shortly after the book went to press, comScore (a global leader in measuring the digital world and the preferred source of digital marketing intelligence) reported that Android has overtaken BlackBerry as the most popular smartphone platform in the U.S.

Indeed. With Google’s recent introduction of Android 3.0, code-named Honeycomb, it’s a perfect time to start learning about Android programming. In my first book, Beginning Android Application Development (Wrox, 2011), I focused on getting readers started with the building blocks of Android programming, with particular emphasis on developing applications for Android smartphone applications. With the release of Android 3.0, Google’s focus in this new SDK is the introduction of several new features designed for wide-screen devices, specifically tablets. This focus was the impetus behind the book you ...