Top Android App Development Fundamentals

Have you ever wondered how many times a day you use your phone? Or how much time do you spend searching for a specific mobile application.?

Chances are you have not done the mathematics to find out how much time you dedicate to the applications to see which one suits you the best.

But it would be interesting to know that there are more than 2.9 million applications available on the Google play store.

Some of them are made for making our life easier and the others are gaming apps. But the important question here, is that who develops these apps and how?

If you are curious about how and why this great number of applications is created and you are willing to keep up with the flow of world going digital, this article is written for you.

Here, we are going to mention some of the most important fundamentals for beginners who are interested in this field and give a brief explanation for each one.

1.Master at list one language

Just as the first and foremost step for communicating with different people in the world is learning their languages, for android app development you should first become a proficient in languages as well.

In fact, having an acceptable knowledge of one or two official languages in developing android applications, is the most important requirement every android developer must meet.

The main programming languages for android development, include Java, XML (Extension Markup Language), Kotlin, C++ and Python.

The most important difference between XML and Java or Kotlin, is that the XML as a frond-end deals with blueprint, layouts, presentation, design, etc. but at the other hand, Java and Kotlin as a back- end deal with how buttons work, variables, storing, etc.

Below, we have talked about the most important ones a bit more.

Java

It can be said that Java is the most popular android app development language among the rest of them. One of the main reasons for this popularity, is that Google supports it. So the majority of apps on the Google play store are designed and developed using this language.

The big advantage that comes with Java, is its online community that supports any problem newcomers may face. But at the other hand, it may be a bit complicated for beginners, because it includes null pointer exceptions, constructors, concurrency and checked expectations.

If you are willing to develop complicated mobile apps using this language, Java requires experience in the language. Thus, going for complex applications in android app development using Java, is not recommended.

By having experience in Java, we mean to be comfortable with following concepts:

🔰 Packages

🔰 Objects & classes

🔰 Inheritance & interfaces

🔰 Strings and numbers, generics

🔰 Collections

🔰 Concurrency

🔰 JDK documents

Kotlin

Another android app development language is called Kotlin. Kotlin counts as a cross-platform programming language and most of the android app developers use it as a substitute for Java language.

As you might know, in 2019 Google declared it as the new official language for android app development. Kotlin runs in the Java Virtual Machine and can incorporate with Java.

If you are a newcomer to this field and you are looking for a language to start android app development for beginners, Kotlin language is a more suitable choice for you compare to Java.

The reason is behind its notable difference with Java, which is Kotlin removes unnecessary features used in Java, as null pointer extensions. So starting android app development with this language, newcomers are more likely to deliver a better result.

You must be aware that even Kotlin has its own challenges to develop apps with. For instance, you must have an advanced understanding of these concepts:

·Object-oriented fundamentals

·Variables

·Lists

·Loops

C++

C++ is another language that beginners should be aware of in android fundamental. This language is less flexible compare to the last 2 languages we mentioned above, making it more complex to develop apps with and is hard to set up.

It also worth mentioning that apps cannot be created and developed only using C++ language. Developers need NDK (Android Native Development Kit) to execute the parts of the app in C++ native code.

Python

The last language we want to explain in the basics of android app development, is python language.

The important tip to consider about this language, is that although the native android does not support it, developers are able to use it for app development.

There are also different tools that let you convert python apps to run on android devices.

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⏺️ Related: top 9 Python GUI Frameworks to Create Desktop, Web, and Even Mobile Apps

2.Understand the environment and android development tools

Start developing apps without having enough knowledge of environment and tools, sounds like travelling to a foreign country without having any information about popular places, hotels and etc.

Since nobody likes to get lost in a foreign world, it is a must to familiarize yourself with android app development tools and environment.

Some of the most popular android app development tools to consider include:

·Android Studio IDE

·Eclipse

·Xamarin

·Sencha

·Appcelerator

·Ionic

·Framework 7

Using one of these tools as your second step toward turning into a professional android app developer, helps you learn the fundamentals and improve your code.

You are also able to utilize the Get Pocket guide to gain a familiarity with the basic concepts.

3.Understand the application components

The third step for you to master android app development, is understanding the building blocks of mobile app development.

By building blocks, we mean application components which are entry points when system or users start using your app.

Although some of these components exist as a dependent one and play their own role, many of them depend on each other.

The four basic components in android app development include:

·Activity: activity refers to user’s entry point for a single screen. For example, messenger apps have an activity for showing notifications.

·Services: these components run in the application’s background and perform the work for a remote process or long running processes.

·Content provider: this is the component which provides the possibility of sharing data with other apps. Without this component, it would be difficult to get data from other apps.

·       Broadcast receivers: broadcast receivers replay to system-wide broadcast messages. Although these components do not display a UI, they are able to create a status bar notification.

4.Understand android fragmentation

 The fourth step for turning into a professional in android web development, is understanding android fragmentation.

As you might know, android counts as a fragmented market with a number of devices and operating systems. You must be aware that if your device is able to support more than one device or version, then it requires more maintenance and testing.

And that’s why it would be best to have appropriate fonts, assets and layouts to make sure you are delivering the best possible results.

One important tip to make sure you are delivering a perfect UI, is to make sure your services are perpetually working in background. Because almost all android applications have more than one application class, fragments and activities.

5.Making the right choice over essential tools

Another important action you need to take in android app development, is to choose the right tools.

As there are multiple tools available in the market for android developers, it might be somehow hard to choose the right ones among them.

Some of the free android development tools are listed below:

·A mac or Windows PC

·Any type of Linux

·Eclipse

·ADT Plugin

·Android SDK

Before going for one of these free or the other tools available, it would be the best to consider a few parameters:

·Resources: it refers to the mechanism which forces the device to perform correctly, despite the battery manager is warning. This is known as Wake-lock. Keep in mind that Wake-lock must be used carefully.

·Responsiveness: this is another vital parameter in android app development. Because if your app takes so much time to load, users are likely to lose their temper and leave the app.

·Performance: performance is such an important parameter in app developing that no matter how advanced your app, it fails if it is not able to perform as user wishes.

6.Your app must be user-friendly

Another important tip that worth mentioning in android app development, is that being user friendly is a must for you application.

Think of your target audience. What kind of audience are you developing the app for? What type UI can be considered to please them?

At the other hand, no matter who your customer is, you must consider an easy to use navigation menu so users are able to find their desired service or product.

Be aware that the more complex your app is, the more users get confused and no confusing app could grab user’s attention. To fulfill user’s expectations:

·Consider relative product images

·Make descriptions easy to understand

·Avoid implementing too much colors

All in all, you should be trying to create an application which is as easy to use as possible. To do that, that would be the best to put yourself in user’s shoes and see what they would think about your app.

Conclusion

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