Book Image

Android UI Design

By : Jessica Thornsby
Book Image

Android UI Design

By: Jessica Thornsby

Overview of this book

<p>Great design is one of the key drivers in the adoption of new applications, yet unfortunately design considerations are often neglected in the face of “will it work,” “can we make it quicker,” or “can we get more people using it”?</p> <p>This book seeks to redress this balance by showing you how to get your PM to start treating the design phase of your project seriously. This book is focused entirely on the development of UI features, and you’ll be able to practically implementing the design practices that we extol throughout the book.</p> <p>Starting by briefly outlining some of the factors you need to keep in mind when building a UI, you’ll learn the concepts of Android User Interface from scratch. We then move on to formulate a plan on how to implement these concepts in various applications. We will deep dive into how UI features are implemented in real-world applications where UIs are complex and dynamic.</p> <p>This book offers near complete coverage of UI-specific content including, views, fragments, the wireframing process, and how to add in splash screens—everything you need to make professional standard UIs for modern applications. It will then cover material design and show you how to implement Google's design aesthetic in a practical manner. Finally, it ensures the best possible user experience by analyzing the UI using various tools, and then addressing any problems they uncover.</p> <p>By the end of the book, you’ll be able to leverage the concepts of Android User Interface in your applications in order to attract new customers.</p>
Table of Contents (16 chapters)
Android UI Design
Credits
About the Author
About the Reviewer
www.PacktPub.com
Preface

The Material Design ethos


Material Design is based on the idea of translating the physical properties of real-world materials into the virtual screen, and it takes much of its inspiration from paper, ink, and print techniques.

Material Design encourages designers and developers to create on-screen objects that seem to possess the same qualities as real-world objects. This means using techniques such as shadows, light, and elevation to create a sense of depth and edges.

The way Material Design objects move also mimics how objects move in the physical world; for example, two real-world objects cannot occupy the same space simultaneously or pass through one another, so your on-screen objects shouldn't either.

To help you create this illusion, Material Design introduces the concept of a simulated 3D space where all UI objects possess XY, and Z coordinates. The Z coordinate is particularly important, as the positive Z axis extends outward toward the user, creating that sense of depth that's so...