Pro Android 5

Pro Android 5 shows you how to build real-world and fun mobile apps using the Android 5 SDK. This book updates the best-selling Pro Android and covers everything from the fundamentals of building apps for smartphones, tablets, and embedded devices to advanced concepts such as custom components, multi-tasking, sensors/augmented reality, better accessories support and much more.

• Using the tutorials and expert advice, you’ll quickly be able to build cool mobile apps and run them on dozens of Android-based smartphones.
• You’ll explore and use the Android APIs, including those for media and sensors.
• And you’ll check out what’s new in Android, including the improved user interface across all Android platforms, integration with services, and more.

By reading this definitive tutorial and reference, you’ll gain the knowledge and experience to create stunning, cutting-edge Android apps that can make you money, while keeping you agile enough to respond to changes in the future.

What you’ll learn

• How to use Android to build Java-based mobile apps for Android smartphones and tablets
• How to build irresistible user interfaces (UIs) and user experiences (UXs) across Android devices
• How to populate your application with data from data sources, using Content Providers
• How to build multimedia and game apps using Android’s media APIs
• How to use Android’s location-based services, network-based services, and security
• How to use key Android features, such as Fragments and the ActionBar

Who this book is for

This book is for professional software engineers and programmers looking to move their ideas and applications into the mobile space with Android. It assumes a passable understanding of Java, including how to write classes and handle basic inheritance structures.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Hello, World
Chapter 2 Introduction to Android Applications
Chapter 3 Basic User Interface Controls
Chapter 4 Adapters and List Controls
Chapter 5 Making Advanced UI Layouts
Chapter 6 Adding Menus and ActionBar
Chapter 7 Styles and Themes
Chapter 8 Fragments
Chapter 9 Responding to Configuration Changes
Chapter 10 Dialogs: Regular and Fragment
Chapter 11 Working with Preferences and Saving State
Chapter 12 Compatibility Library
Chapter 13 Exploring Packages, Processes, Components, Threads and Handlers
Chapter 14 Working with Services
Chapter 15 Advanced Async Task & Progress Dialogs
Chapter 16 Exploring Broadcast Receivers and Long Running Services
Chapter 17 Exploring the Alarm Manager
Chapter 18 Unveiling 2D Animation
Chapter 19 Exploring Maps and Location Services
Chapter 20 Understanding the Media Frameworks
Chapter 21 Home Screen Widgets
Chapter 22 Touchscreens
Chapter 23 Drag and Drop
Chapter 24 Using Sensors
Chapter 25 Understanding Content Providers
Chapter 26 Understanding the Contacts API
Chapter 27 Loaders
Chapter 28 Security and Permissions
Chapter 29 Google Cloud messaging and services
Chapter 30 Deploying Your Application: Google Play Store and Beyond