Book Image

Android Programming for Beginners - Second Edition

By : John Horton
Book Image

Android Programming for Beginners - Second Edition

By: John Horton

Overview of this book

Are you trying to start a career in programming, but haven't found the right way in? Do you have a great idea for an app, but don't know how to make it a reality? Or maybe you're just frustrated that in order to learn Android, you must know Java. If so, then this book is for you. This new and expanded second edition of Android Programming for Beginners will be your companion to create Android Pie applications from scratch. We will introduce you to all the fundamental concepts of programming in an Android context, from the basics of Java to working with the Android API. All examples use the up-to-date API classes, and are created from within Android Studio, the official Android development environment that helps supercharge your application development process. After this crash course, we'll dive deeper into Android programming and you'll learn how to create applications with a professional-standard UI through fragments and store your user's data with SQLite. In addition, you'll see how to make your apps multilingual, draw to the screen with a finger, and work with graphics, sound, and animations too. By the end of this book, you'll be ready to start building your own custom applications in Android and Java.
Table of Contents (35 chapters)
Android Programming for Beginners - Second Edition
Contributors
Preface
Other Books You May Enjoy
Index

Frequently asked questions


Q- What is wrong with this method definition?

doSomething(){
   // Do something here
}

A- No return type is declared. You do not have to return a value from a method, but its return type must be void in this case. This is what the method should look like:

void doSomething(){
   // Do something here
}

Q- What is wrong with the following method definition?

float getBalance(){
   String customerName = "Linus Torvalds";
   float balance = 429.66f;
   return userName;
}

A- The method returns a string (userName), but the signature states that it must return a float. With a method name like getBalance, this code is what was likely intended:

float getBalance(){
   String customerName = "Linus Torvalds";
   float balance = 429.66f;
   return balance;
}

Q- When do we call the onCreate method? Trick question alert!

A- We don't. Android decides when to call onCreate, as well as all the other methods that make up the life cycle of an Activity. We just override the ones that are useful...