O'Reilly has published a book about Android programming. Android Application Development by Rick Rogers, John Lombardo, Zigurd Mednieks, and Blake Meike covers both the operating system and SDK, and provides a working example that demonstrates Android architectural features and APIs, says the publisher.

O'Reilly's 334-page guide offers an introduction to the Android programming environment, architecture, and tools, providing all the "concepts and code you need to develop software with Android," says the publisher. A modular application that makes use of Android's UI elements is provided for the open source Linux/Java mobile device platform, starting with a core module, and then adding additional modules in subsequent chapters.

Book cover showing an Eastern quoll, an  endangered Tasmanian marsupial (Click to enlarge)

Billed as a complement to Google's existing Android documentation, Android Application Development: Programming with the Google SDK shows how to design, build, and test Android applications for mobile devices. Concepts and architecture analysis are provided for views, maps, location-based services, persistent data storage, 2D and 3D graphics, media services, telephony services, and messaging, says O'Reilly. Advanced topics are said to include security, custom views, performance analysis, and internationalization.

The authors include long-time Linux writer John Lombardo, who wrote the essential guide Embedded Linux back in 2001. The other three authors include Zigurd Mednieks, chief user interface architect at D2 Technologies, Java expert Blake Meike, and Rick Rogers, an embedded software engineer who has worked for Compaq, Intel, and Marvell Semiconductor.

Early reviews on Amazon have been mixed, with some saying the book offers the most in-depth look at Android offered in book form to date. Others, meanwhile, complain that the sample application has serious problems, and that it's already out of date since it doesn't cover the new Android 1.5 "Cupcake" release. To let readers judge for themselves, O'Reilly posts program examples on the site, here, and Amazon offers a table of contents, index, and the first six pages of the book, here.

Availability

Android Application Development: Programming with the Google SDK is available now for $40, or $32 for the ebook version, says O'Reilly. More information may be found here.

 
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