CHAPTER 4ANDROID

Android was released by Google in 2007 as their mobile platform, supporting a wide array of devices that now includes mobile phones, tablets, netbooks, TVs, and other electronic devices. Android has experienced tremendous growth since then, currently making up 68 percent of the global smartphone market (as of this writing), making it the most popular mobile platform.

The Android source code is open source, meaning that anyone interested can download and build their own Android system (see source.android.com/source/downloading.html for more details). Not all parts of Android are open, however; the Google apps included with most Android phones are closed source. Many device manufacturers and carriers modify the Android source code ...

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