Building Android Apps with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, 2nd Edition

Preface

Thanks to mobile phones, we have moved from virtually no one having access to information to virtually everyone having access to the vast resources of the Web. This is arguably the most important achievement of our generation. Despite its overarching importance, mobile computing is in its infancy. Technical, financial, and political forces have created platform fragmentation like never before, and it’s going to get worse before it gets better.

Developers who need to engage large and diverse groups of people are faced with a seemingly impossible challenge: “How do we implement our mobile vision in a way that is feasible, affordable, and reaches the greatest number of participants?” In many cases, the answer is web technologies. The combination of advances in HTML5 and mobile devices has created an environment in which even novice developers can build mobile apps that improve people’s lives on a global scale.

Google’s Android operating system is a compelling addition to the mobile computing space. In true Google fashion, the platform is open, free, and highly interoperable. The development tools are full-featured and powerful, if a bit geeky, and run on a variety of platforms.

Carriers and handset manufacturers have jumped on the Android bandwagon. The market is beginning to flood with Android devices of all shapes and sizes. This is a double-edged sword for developers. On one hand, more devices mean a bigger market. On the other hand, more devices mean more fragmentation. As ...