Programming Android: Java Programming for the New Generation of Mobile Devices

Get thoroughly up to speed on Android programming, and learn how to create up-to-date user experiences for both handsets and tablets. With this books extensively revised second edition, youll focus on Android tools and programming essentials, including best practices for using Android 4 APIs. If youre experienced with Java or Objective-C, youll gain the knowledge necessary for building well-engineered applications.

Programming Android is organized into four parts:

• Part One helps programmers with some Java or iOS experience get off to a fast start with the Android SDK and Android programming basics.
• Part Two delves into the Android framework, focusing on user interface and graphics class hierarchies, concurrency, and databases. Its a solid foundation for understanding of how the most important parts of an Android application work.
• Part Three features code skeletons and patterns for accelerating the development of apps that use web data and Android 4 user interface conventions and APIs.
• Part Four delivers practical coverage of Androids multimedia, search, location, sensor, and account APIs, plus the Native Development Kit, enabling developers to add advanced capabilities.

This updated edition of Programming Android focuses on the knowledge and developer priorities that are essential for successful Android development projects.

What does it take to build well-engineered Android applications? Explore Android's core building blocks and APIs in depth with this authoritative guide (updated to cover the Ice Cream Sandwich version of Android), and learn how to create compelling apps that work on a full range of Android devices. You'll work with proven approaches to app design and implementation—including application frameworks that you can use as a starting point for your own projects.

Delve into sensors, native development, 3D graphics, and many other topics, and discover how to build apps on the platform of your choice. If you're an intermediate to advanced programmer, you'll learn how to make great Android apps.

• Learn how to use the Android SDK with the Eclipse IDE
• Apply advanced Java concepts regardless of your experience with the language
• Create an Android user interface that's captivating and easy to navigate
• Use the Fragment API for tablet user interfaces
• Make your application compatible with Honeycomb and earlier versions
• Understand Android's unique database design issues and the role of SQLite
• Use sensors and gestures to expand your app's input beyond just tapping and scrolling
• Explore Android APIs for multimedia, location, communication, NFC, and other applications

Zigurd Mednieks is a consultant to leading OEMs, enterprises, and entrepreneurial ventures creating Android-based systems and software. Previously he was Chief Architect at D2 Technologies, a voice-over-IP (VoIP) technology provider. There he lead engineering and product definition work for products that blended communication and social media in purpose-built embedded systems and on the Android platform.

Laird Dornin is a mobile development architect with extensive experience in Java, Android, J2ME, SavaJe, and the webkit browser library. He was a member of the J2SE development team at Sun Microsystems specializing in java.rmi and Jini technology. Laird is currently a Senior Engineer at a major wireless carrier, where he provides Android architectural guidance and Network API support to members of the carrier's developer community.

Blake Meike, Senior Software Development Engineer at Amazon, has more than 10 years of experience with Java. Hes developed applications using most of the GUI toolkits and several of the Java mobile device platforms.

With over a decade of software engineering experience, Masumi Nakamura has worked in various positions within the mobile technology arena, from building out mobile infrastructure to founding his own mobile company. He was one of the primary Android developers of the Where Android app and now is Principal Architect for the Big Data and Recommendations Group at Where, Inc. Outside of coding, he spends his time practicing Ba Gua Zhang and caring for his two cats.