5 Android App Development Fundamentals for Beginners

Android apps are known for the exceptional user experience these deliver.

The more ease it offers at the front end, more work is done at the backend.

This work at the backend is the outcome of mastery of fundamentals of Android app development.

If you want to provide Android app development services and are at the start of the affairs, you must know about these fundamentals which your client expects you to master.

5 Android App Development Fundamentals for Beginners

Android app development is coding and designing in equal parts. The developers should have a clear idea of expectations from the app, and accordingly, they build the code for the same.

Thus, the large part is design thinking, where the developers visualize how the app will respond to the user requirements and function appropriately. To achieve this, they must be thorough with the fundamentals like:

1. Language
2. Tools for the app development
3. Components of application
4. Fragmentation, Threads, Loaders and Tasks
5. Tools requirements

1. Language

Programming language is the primary and the most important tool that can help you achieve the objectives of app development.

You must know that Android app development mostly employs the programming languages like – Java and XML. If we talk about Java, mastering it means knowing all these:

• Objects & classes
• Strings, numbers, generics
• Packages
• Inheritances & interfaces
• Concurrency
• Collections

Almost similar components of XML are to be mastered to become capable of using the programming languages correctly for making an Android app.

The mobile app development company may give a small programming language test to check the proficiency and may also ask to explain any project based on these languages that you developed in the past.

Thus, prepare for the expected questions as a beginner, when you want to work as an Android app developer.

However, the language is just one part of the story. Apart from the language, you also require to be suitably conversant with the tools and technologies.

Companies hire Android app developers who are comfortable with the tools of various types.

2. Tools for the app development

The function of tools is to improve and enrich the code developed using the languages above.

The tools also help automate the app development process. Sometimes, the tools become a big source of relief when the app developers are looking for some drag-and-drop kind of functionality support for the development.

For example, Android App Studio is a fully enriched tool that not only allow you learn the basics but also help you improve the code.

Other such tool is Eclipse. Some of the code enrichment supporters are:

• Apache Maven
• Gradle
• Apache Ante

Apart from the tools, you also need certain source code control tools. Thus, to get the job easily, you must also gain knowledge of GIT and how to create a git-source repository.

3. Components of application

This is largely the designing part. The app designing learners must know what to create too, to put the knowledge into the application’s looks and functionalities.

The features or components of an application define the look and functionalities of an application.

Thus, knowledge about the components allows developers to know the time that will go into the app making process and related expenses. Some of the crucial must-know components are:

Activities

What the user will do on the app defines the activities of an app. For example, in a social media app, the user needs to write a post, share the post, enrich the post with insertion of media components like pictures and videos, and also comment box to comment and reply to comments.

Similarly, a chat application requires status, settings, typing box, chat reading box, tools for inserting media and sharing files over the chat and so on.

Thus, to start the development process, the developers need to make a list of the sought-after components and define the functionalities accordingly.

Content providers

This constitutes app data. The information can be stored in a file system, on a web server or using a database management tool like SQLite.

This component is also employed for storing the data that is private and exclusive to the app under making.

The permission to use other content providers is also has to be in place when there is any requirement of modification or handling of a query.

Services

Some apps continue to operate at the background and such features functioning in an interface-less manner continue to show their presence through desktop notifications or they continue to play some music when the user leaves them temporarily to do other work on their device.

4. Fragmentation, Threads, Loaders and Tasks

An app can work in various devices. If the device is a part of a network of other devices connected with each other or working in response to each other, the requirements of maintenance and additional cost come forth.

The developers have to pay attention to responsiveness factor in UI to ensure that the various screen characteristics are complementing the app.

Additionally, the knowledge about continuous working of thread, asynchronous working of long operations in the background are a prime requirement.

That is where the concurrency element of the coding language proves its utility.

5. Tools requirements

Once you have understood the coding, the app environment and its ensuing relationships with the other devices along with its crucial components, it is time to be conversant with the hardware requirements of making and testing an app.

For example, you have to be thorough with the functioning of devices like Mac, and of operating systems like Linux, iOS, etc. Main features of these tools you must know are:

• The apps have to respond within seconds to any user input
• The lags should not be more than 100ms
• Limitations: Activation of wake-locks, etc.

To conclude

There are hardly any tech-savvy users who are not in possession of any smartphone or similar device.

Thus, to reach the customers on these devices, the businesses need to have a repertoire of tools like mobile or desktop apps.

So, why not be a master of your income generation plan? Your demand in the market will be quite high if you have app development skills mentioned on your resume.

Get the relevant courses done and start an Android app development company. It does act as a ticket to your journey as an entrepreneur.