Beginning Android

OBTAINING THE REQUIRED TOOLS

Naturally, you are anxious to get your hands dirty and start writing some applications! Before you write your first tablet application, however, you need to download the required tools and SDKs.

For Android development, you can use a Mac, a Windows PC, or a Linux machine. All the tools needed are free and can be downloaded from the Web. All the examples provided in this book will work fine with the Android emulator.

NOTE This book uses a Windows 7 computer to demonstrate all the code samples. If you are using a Mac or a Linux computer, the screenshots should look similar; minor differences may be present, but you should be able to follow along without problems.

So, let the fun begin!

Java JDK

The Android SDK makes use of the Java SE Development Kit (JDK). Hence, if your computer does not have the JDK installed, you should start off by downloading the JDK from www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/downloads/index.html and installing it prior to moving to the next section.

Eclipse

The first step toward developing any applications is obtaining the integrated development environment (IDE). In the case of Android, the recommended IDE is Eclipse, a multi-language software development environment featuring an extensible plug-in system. It can be used to develop various types of applications, using languages such as Java, Ada, C, C++, COBOL, Python, and others. ...