Book Image

Xamarin Mobile Development for Android Cookbook

By : Matthew Leibowitz
Book Image

Xamarin Mobile Development for Android Cookbook

By: Matthew Leibowitz

Overview of this book

Xamarin is used by developers to write native iOS, Android, and Windows apps with native user interfaces and share code across multiple platforms not just on mobile devices, but on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. Developing apps with Xamarin.Android allows you to use and re-use your code and your skills on different platforms, making you more productive in any development. Although it’s not a write-once-run-anywhere framework, Xamarin provides native platform integration and optimizations. There is no middleware; Xamarin.Android talks directly to the system, taking your C# and F# code directly to the low levels. This book will provide you with the necessary knowledge and skills to be part of the mobile development era using C#. Covering a wide range of recipes such as creating a simple application and using device features effectively, it will be your companion to the complete application development cycle. Starting with installing the necessary tools, you will be guided on everything you need to develop an application ready to be deployed. You will learn the best practices for interacting with the device hardware, such as GPS, NFC, and Bluetooth. Furthermore, you will be able to manage multimedia resources such as photos and videos captured with the device camera, and so much more! By the end of this book, you will be able to create Android apps as a result of learning and implementing pro-level practices, techniques, and solutions. This book will ascertain a seamless and successful app building experience.
Table of Contents (20 chapters)
Xamarin Mobile Development for Android Cookbook
Credits
About the Author
About the Reviewers
www.PacktPub.com
Preface
Index

Introduction


All apps have one thing in common: they all have some sort of user interface. Whether it is a rich set of controls or just a simple notification that something happened, all apps present the user with a means to consume information or provide data.

Users desire an interface that is easy to use and beautiful to look at. Often, the simplest way to improve the interface is to add a transition between states. This provides a way to move the user from one state to another, but without a sharp and sudden change.

In order to move the user between states or allow the user to initiate such a movement, the app needs to provide a set of actions or navigation points. As navigation through the app is often not the primary function of the app, these controls should be placed within easy reach but should not obstruct the real functionality.

Animations and transitions do not change the functionality of an app, but they do make the user experience more enjoyable. Navigation is often the most jarring...