Professional Android 2 Application Development (Wrox Programmer to Programmer) Review

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Professional Android 2 Application Development (Wrox Programmer to Programmer) ReviewAndroid 2 is pretty new (as of March 2010) so having an Android 2 book on the market that is good quality was unexpected. I have not read all chapters, but here are my impressions so far:
Pro's
=====
- Author's style is neither dull or exciting, just to the point. Most explanations are clear and thorough.
- I definitely feel I have a good resource to complement the online Android docs. There have been a variety of topics I've tried to answer using Android docs (and Google searches) without much luck that this book covered clearly.
- There are a lot of good topics covered. Space is not wasted on reprinting information readily available online. Instead, author regularly refers reader to web links.
- And, finally, I appreciate the well-edited index.
Con's
=====
- The book is very weak in the illustration department. For example, instead of showing an image of a NinePatch bitmap, the author explains how a NinePatch should be constructed. This is chintzy and unforgivable for a book about a heavily visual technology.
- Occassionally, concepts are introduced without providing context. 'Kinda like when you walk into a meeting and the speakers clearly know their material but forget that 90% of the others in the room need to be brought up to speed before instructing.
- Some conspicuous omissions. For instance, no information on fonts.
Professional Android 2 Application Development (Wrox Programmer to Programmer) OverviewUpdate to the bestseller now features the latest release of the Android platform
Android is a powerful, flexible, open source platform for mobile devices and its popularity is growing at an unprecedented pace. This update to the bestselling first edition dives in to cover the exciting new features of the latest release of the Android mobile platform.
Providing in-depth coverage of how to build mobile applications using the next major release of the Android SDK, this invaluable resource takes a hands-on approach to discussing Android with a series of projects, each of which introduces a new feature and highlights techniques and best practices to get the most out of Android.
The Android SDK is a powerful, flexible, open source platform for mobile devices
Shares helpful techniques and best practices to maximize the capabilities of Android
Explains the possibilities of Android through the use of a series of detailed projects
Demonstrates how to create real-world mobile applications for Android phones
Includes coverage of the latest version of Android

Providing concise and compelling examples, Professional Android Application Development is an updated guide aimed at helping you create mobile applications for mobile devices running the latest version of Android.
Note: CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook file.

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Professional Android Application Development (Wrox Programmer to Programmer) Review

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Professional Android Application Development (Wrox Programmer to Programmer) ReviewThe author clearly and concisely explains the fundamental aspects of Android programming. The coverage of Android topics is pretty comprehensive and the depth of coverage was just right for my needs. Mr. Meier provides some background information about mobile programming platforms in general, so the only real prerequisite for this book is familiarity with Java programming. The examples are also very informative and build new features incrementally, which keeps the focus on the most recently covered material, and reflects modern incremental development practices. This book, in conjunction with the excellent materials available online from Google, anddev.org and elsewhere, provide an effective staring point for developers looking to get started quickly on the Android platform.Professional Android Application Development (Wrox Programmer to Programmer) OverviewA hands-on guide to building mobile applications, Professional Android Application Development features concise and compelling examples that show you how to quickly construct real-world mobile applications for Android phones. Fully up-to-date for version 1.0 of the Android software development kit, it covers all the essential features, and explores the advanced capabilities of Android (including GPS, accelerometers, and background Services) to help you construct increasingly complex, useful, and innovative mobile applications for Android phones.
What this book includes
An introduction to mobile development, Android, and how to get started.
An in-depth look at Android applications and their life cycle, the application manifest, Intents, and using external resources.
Details for creating complex and compelling user interfaces by using, extending, and creating your own layouts and Views and using Menus.
A detailed look at data storage, retrieval, and sharing using preferences, files, databases, and Content Providers.
Instructions for making the most of mobile portability by creating rich map-based applications as well as using location-based services and the geocoder.
A look at the power of background Services, using threads, and a detailed look at Notifications.
Coverage of Android's communication abilities including SMS, the telephony APIs, network management, and a guide to using Internet resources
Details for using Android hardware, including media recording and playback, using the camera, accelerometers, and compass sensors.
Advanced development topics including security, IPC, advanced 2D / 3D graphics techniques, and user–hardware interaction.

Who this book is forThis book is for anyone interested in creating applications for the Android mobile phone platform. It includes information that will be valuable whether you're an experienced mobile developer or making your first foray, via Android, into writing mobile applications. It will give the grounding and knowledge you need to write applications using the current SDK, along with the flexibility to quickly adapt to future enhancements.

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Developing Android Applications with Flex 4.5 Review

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Developing Android Applications with Flex 4.5 ReviewI am the curious minded and for me, looking to play with the Android SDK has been on my to-do-list for a while. I did review an Android book by O'Reilly a few weeks back, but it was through the use of Java and the Android SDK officially. As a Flex developer by background, I have been eagerly awaiting this book,Developing Android Applications with Flex 4.5 by Rich Tretola, as it gives me the chance to experiment with Flash Builder 4.5 and creating Android applications with the more familiar Flex.
This book is quite concise, in fact lets you get rolling right away, which is great, considering the amount of concise and centralised information for Flex Mobile 4.5 is hard to come by, they are mostly scattered, and yeah we are still in the infancy of building Flex mobile apps. Nevertheless, this book gives you great gusto starting with the first chapter which gets you starter, then progresses to how to lay out the application, working with various UI controls, then getting hooked into the physical attributes of the phone, such as GPS, Accelerometer and Camera Roll, and concluding with how to publish the app finally.
I enjoyed this book, it's a concise reference and I hope there will be more development in the Flex sphere, to allow this to be a genuine stream of Android development. I actually hope there is an iOS version of this book, using Flex, which would be a great complement. But otherwise, this book get's my tick of approval, really great, enjoyable to read and for the busy man that I am, finished it in a day! Wohah.Developing Android Applications with Flex 4.5 Overview
Ready to put your ActionScript 3 skills to work on mobile apps? This hands-on book walks you through the process of creating an Adobe AIR application from start to finish, using the Flex 4.5 framework. Move quickly from a basic Hello World application to complex interactions with Android APIs, and get complete code examples for working with Android device components—GPS, camera, gallery, accelerometer, multitouch display, and OS interactions. No matter how much Flex experience you have, this book is the ideal resource.

Use Flash Builder 4.5 to create and debug a Flex Mobile project
Choose a layout option to determine which files Flash Builder auto-generates
Select permissions that control which devices can install your app from the Android Market
Explore APIs that enable your app to interact with specific Android OS features
Learn how to read and write text files, browse the file system for media files, and create and write to an SQLite database
Use the URLRequest class to open your app in the browser, place calls, and create emails and text messages
Load web and video content into your app with StageWebView
Publish your app to an Android installer file with Flash Builder


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Android Application Development For Dummies Review

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Android Application Development For Dummies ReviewI'm going to preface this review by saying that I have been programming for about 15 years, and have been working professionally as a developer for almost 3 years. My background is in VB, C#, Javascript, HTML, and even a little dabbling in C/C++. With that in mind, my Java knowledge was essentially everything I had learned from C# (which is very similar), and the tutorials on Google's Android development website. You could argue Javascript may help, but they're so different that I don't think it counts as experience.
I finished all of the tutorials on Google's site and still felt like I wasn't really grasping the concept of Android development. For those of you who have developed in C#/VB for Windows or Windows Mobile, you may understand what I mean when I say that going from something so straight-forward as using Visual Studio and .NET languages to something a little more complex and code-heavy like C++ or Java while using an unfamiliar IDE like Eclipse can be a little daunting at first. Google's tutorials, while full of great examples, don't really take the time to explain the "why" and then "what" of Android development, and instead have a more confusing approach of "Step 1: Type all this code in; Step 2: That code you just type does [this]; Step 3: Run your application".
The first half of this book is incredibly informative, and after reading only a couple short paragraphs on things I've already tried to learn and failed, I really understood it this time. The author's tone and descriptions make even the most complicated topics very easy to understand. The author also likes to commonly encourage the reader, writing that we are "experts", and making assumptions that we understand what we just read, even after it was some insanely complicated thing that was described in detail across four pages. It seems like this approach might be little odd, but I liked it. It kept my confidence up as I was reading.
The second half of the book, while also great, starts a little on the fast track. There are other reviews that mention this, and although I partially agree, it's also worth mentioning that a lot of the things that are flown through quickly come together a little later in the book. However, the pace does seem to go from a "one line at a time" methodology into a "type these 60 lines of code in and I'll explain it later" sort of teaching. While I don't prefer this, and I think it's a bit messy, the information IS there; it's just harder to soak it all in than it was in the first half of the book. The application you are building at the end is quite large, and I have tried to think of an easier way the author could have filled me with the knowledge instead of the approach taken, but I really couldn't think of a better way, mainly due to the way the code has to be written for the particular task at hand.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I think it was a great introduction to Android development, and is leaps and bounds above Google's documentation, at least for a beginner. I wish the book was a little longer, and I wish the author didn't frequently say things like "I could write an entire book on [subject], so I won't go into detail about this. If you want to learn more, read the documentation at [Google link]." For these reasons, I gave it four stars instead of five. The fundamentals do exist in this book, but I would have liked to have seen more.
I would recommend this book for anyone with any sort of programming background looking to get into Android development. I would probably not recommend it to someone who has no programming background whatsoever.
Android Application Development For Dummies OverviewThe fun and friendly guide to creating applications on the Android platform
The popularity of the Android market is soaring with no sign of slowing down. The open nature of the Android OS offers programmers the freedom to access the platform's capabilities and this straightforward guide walks you through the steps for creating amazing Android applications. Android programming expert Donn Felker explains how to download the SDK, get Eclipse up and running, code Android applications, and submit your finished products to the Android Market. Featuring two sample programs, this introductory book explores everything from the simple basics to more advanced aspects of the Android platform.
Takes you soup through nuts of developing applications for the Android platform
Begins with downloading the SDK, then explains how to code Android applications and submit projects to the Android Market
Written by Android guru Donn Felker, who breaks every aspect of developing applications for the Android platform into easily digestible pieces

No matter your level of programming experience, Android Application Development For Dummies is an ideal guide for getting started with developing applications for the Android platform.

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