Hey,
As most of you know, I am the sole owner of touch innovation. I have done alot to this website (and I still have more to come). THe problem is, over the next half year I have alot of work ahead of me, that affects my future. But I don't particulary want to go into it.
I want someone that can look after and keep the site going for up to 6 months. I know you're thinking "What's the point in this, what do I get out of it?". Well, you get experience.
You'll get a weekly number of emails, submissions etc from people that use the website, you can monitor these, and help out there questions.
You can add programs from here etc.
Why Am I asking this?
I have spent months and months of coding this website (considering the website is only 4 months old, it's a lot of work). And I've hit a niche in the market, people want a website like this, and I am supplying them with one, but I need it to be updated while I am gone. Maybe some marketing (aka advertising) as well, so everything is running peak, and more users are coming.
This is a non-profit organisation, I make no money out of it.
I will pay the guy at the end (maybe), dependant on how much they have done to the website. And I want them to take it upon them self to make any adjustments. The site will potentially be yours for the half year (I will be checking up on it, and If there are some changes that are iffy, I will contact you about it).
It's good experience, and maybe helping me + the community out for a while.
Thanks guys,
-------------------
Okay, another idea, A team of people can request to be part of the team, and keep the site running well and keep it updated for the time I'm gone
Touch Innovation team (to-be's):
nir36
jackkkkk
Kenshino
jdiperla
AkshayGenius
Hannigan174
churka
Thanks for anyone who helps in advance, I will be up for giving a little price tag at the end, dependant on whether they've applied effort to maintain the site
No one?
I think it would be awesome to have this opportunity but I have no experience in html coding. Just the basics.
I thought I had replied to this :/
Erm, you dont need any html coding skills. You just need to know how to keep a website updated (using xda, and others) using my simple but easy and clever admin panel. Also advertise to keep hits up etc.
Napbree, I would gladly take this website, but i'm MEGAbusy with studies and work.
I suggest that instead of granting this website to another "sole" person, you create users in your admin panel and grant them to a few people who will keep it updated. I build websites and I can tell you that there's no way i'd be able to handle even one of those i've built, myself.
If a group of people are willing to help, I will be one of them.
I'll also try creating commercial opportunities for the website - profitwise.
I'd usually say "This is not the place to post these kind of posts.. use the Q&A section".. which comes naturally nowadays..
but considering the importance of this... I think we need this thread bumped up until you manage to get what you wish for.
Yes, that would be great. You've given me an awesome idea. A team of people that can mointor and keep the site up and running well, and content updated etc.
I'll start making a list of people who want to become part of the team
And if you could get a commercial opportunity, that would be amazing. I'd be up for selling it as well (maybe). It's just I want to keep the site of my hands for a while. Because my dad died only a week ago, and i'm entering a state of depression, and I need to get out into the world and keep myself busy.
Thanks
Someone?
I really like this site, and would like to see it continue.
Nathan has done such great job on developing this site, it would be shame, to see it gone waste!
So anyone who has motivation and some time to take this site under ownership, please contact nathan!
Ps. I'm one of admins of this site, and can tell you that it's really easy to update site, because of the nathan's clever admin panel. I would do it myself if i had the time, but my studies and and other projects takes too much time.
All friends of this site, let's get this thread bumped until we get some help for nathan
Firstly.. i'm sorry. Be well.
Secondly, I have some connections.. I can't promise anything but i might be able to get some advertisments going.. we'll see how it goes.
Also, if manage to get some time off .. sometime.. I'll create flash banners and put them up.
COUNT ME IN.
Thank you allevant
And nir36 thanks again, that would be mucho appreciated! very generous
I'm willing to help...
But I'm not sure if I got any use thou as I got no tech experiences or running a website.
My best experience is being a gaming forum moderator and basic computer/pda knowledge.
But, if you think I'm a good canadiate please let me know as I would like to help in anyways.
You don't really need experience in running a site. As long as you can spend some time on the admin panel to add content, it's all good.
I've added you to the to-be team , hope you don't mind.
Thanks! future for the site is looking brighter this is just a bump post
I'll bump your bump
Dear Napbree,
I am an Application Consultant and actually my job consists of making corporate websites for government entities.
Websites I've done include (not exhaustive list)
http://www.infocommsingapore.sg/industry/
and
http://www.infocommsingapore.sg/games
Same domain but totally different things.
So do count me in if you need help running the website.
I am certified in JAVA (Have Sun Certified Java Programmer and Developer certs) and am proficient in both JSP and Applications.
Currently I am writing CMS based websites using PHP, CSS, HTML and Javascript.
I can definitely write some code to add more cool functionality to your website
I'll bumb your bumbing my bumb
Hi Kenshino,
Application consultant heh, nice!
At the moment, I will be able to code up new sections for the site, for example, the new update that will come sooner or later (when I have time to finish it), has live submission, which means users can instantly add applications, as long as it applies with a few of my automated checks.
But if you have any ideas, and you want to code them up, you can definately! But I wouldn't be able to give source code, but you can code it seperately and then I can incoroporate it nicely
Thank you lots for your interest
Nathan
Hey, I volunteer too. I am a PC administrator and had had success in hosting my own sites in the past as well as prior administration duties to games like http://www.swcombine.com
Sounds great
Added you to the list, I will contact you all in the future, once I have a nice big list of contributors
Thanks
let's keep this on top.
This is me: college kid, no developing experience whatsoever (unless you could a basic HTML course in like 9th grade... lol), relatively intelligent, interested in technology.
What do I need to learn?
I found a "java 101" article to read here: Learn Java from the ground up - JavaWorld
Is android just Java or is there any other kind of language..? I've heard something about C++? or is that part of Java?
As you can tell, I'm a noob lol.
Then I read that I need Eclipse (what does that do again?), which one should I get (I'm on a Mac): Eclipse IDE for Java EE Developers, Eclipse IDE for Java Developers, or Eclipse Classic 3.6?
Is this a bad idea considering I know nothing? Like am in way over my head?
Any other ideas or links anyone can share?
I made this same post on a different forum, and someone told me that XDA was a great place to learn programming and such.
Any help is appreciated. Thanks!
Oh and can I program without a problem from OS X or should I use bootcamp and do it all under Windows 7?
This is me: high school kid who is a noob Java programmer.
1. Learn Java. That's what Android apps are written in (I think).
2. C++ is a different language. Don't think it's of use here.
3. Eclipse for Java Dev.
4. Embrace your Mac.
I'm in much the same boat you are. I went and grabbed a book called, "Android Application Development" from my local book store tonight (oreilly.com). I am not endorsing the book yet as I'm only a few pages in and it was the only Android book at the store. There was not a single book on Java. I'll be turning to the many many web sites available for that until I get a solid recommendation for a book from someone.
The only thing I've ever done that's even remotely close is built SQL databases, reports and queries which I now manage as a cardiac researcher. I have no classes or anything else useful other than I know my way around PCs enough to build them and install my own OS's.
The advice in the book for the dev environment is:
1. JDK 5 or 6 and the book says that OSX comes with 5.
2. Eclipse IDE for Java Developers for your OS. Get the latest version (which defaulted as such for me for Vista 64).
3. The Android SDK.
After the above, there are some steps to take a look at on the Android SDK site. Follow those and read it all. I'm pretty sure I'm just a person of average intelligence and I think I have a handle on getting to where I can start working and the Hello World bit seems to make sense right now. We'll see how things go as I learn more of the Java syntax.
Good luck!
I would love any advice on sites/books for a non-programmer to start to get a grip on Java and creating an Android app in general. I have some plans for some specific medical uses for my job and I have always been interested in writing programs. Seems like a great time to start.
For Java, a good place to start (other than the Sun site itself) is JavaRanch. I'm too new to post links, but the URL is easy to figure out, and a quick search would turn it up as well. The site has lots of information, links to book reviews for Java, forums and so on. It was a good resource when I was studying Java in college!
Good luck!
nebulosity said:
For Java, a good place to start (other than the Sun site itself) is JavaRanch. I'm too new to post links, but the URL is easy to figure out, and a quick search would turn it up as well. The site has lots of information, links to book reviews for Java, forums and so on. It was a good resource when I was studying Java in college!
Good luck!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks much! I found an Intro to Programming with Java class at the local community college here but it doesn't start until Sept. =/ That site looks good though, hopefully I can find a book that seems to fit.
(edit: the following assumes you've more or less mastered Java already; I really don't know what to recommend for someone who's trying to learn Java AND Android programming simultaneously. I suspect part of the reason for the lack of books for THAT niche is due to the fact that it's more or less impossible to take any programming class in college that doesn't either involve Java or have it as a non-negotiable prerequisite, even if Java per se isn't directly relevant. It's just part of the baseline cultural background noise).
If you buy nothing else, buy "Beginning Android 2" by Mark Murphy. If you're not totally broke, buy "Pro Android 2" by Sayed Hashimi while you're at it. Don't try to skip the first and go straight to the second... there's a lot of medium-level stuff that's covered thoroughly in "Beginning" that's barely touched upon in "Pro".
Those two books aren't great if you like to jump around and learn things in random order as need arises, but they're probably the gold standard right now for books that comprehensively teach Android Programming in a sensible order from start to finish.
"Professional Android 2 Application Development" by Reto Meier is a great complement to those books, because it IS more of a "jump around and grab important details as the need to learn them arises" book. I refer to all three on a regular basis.
"Hello, Android" is one of those books that you'll probably never look at again two weeks after you first start reading it... but if cash isn't really a problem, it's a nice tutorial for brand new Android developers.
Content-wise, the pdf commonsware.com books by Mark Murphy (yeah, the same Mark Murphy who wrote the Apress book) are probably the best of all, because they literally ARE updated regularly as typos & bugs get found (every book has 'em, few books ever usefully fix 'em) and new versions of Android get released. The problem is, unless you have an ebook reader, let's be honest... ebooks kind of suck. Sometimes, a real book is nice to have. So, I'd say Murphy's books kind of break new ground between online articles and real books... they go into a lot more depth, more coherently, than any one online source of info about Android programming... but unfortunately, because they're ebooks, they're about as pleasant to casually read as those same online articles.
18 months from now, when Android tablets with 1280x720(*) displays or better are common and relatively cheap, eBooks are going to be the norm for Android books going forward, because THEN they'll let you have the best of all worlds -- the coherent editing and comprehensive content of "real" books, the up-to-date accuracy of the best online sources of info, and a reading experience that doesn't kind of suck. Five years from now (when the eBook experience has finally become civilized), I'll be shocked if programming books even exist anymore in printed form, aside from maybe books like "${Language}: How to Program" that deal with topics that don't really change radically from month to month and are more or less universal as college textbooks. Programming and system administration are the kind of topics that are really too volatile for paper books, and for they most part they've ALWAYS been... there just hasn't really been a civilized alternative to them. IMHO, Android tablets will be what finally make it a civilized experience, because for the first time normal people (meaning developers who don't work for huge corporate entities like Amazon and Sony) will be able to develop ebook apps with their own UI experiments. Right now, all we have are devices optimized for reading mass-market top-20 fiction... devices that largely suck for the specific task of reading (and referring to) programming books (where you generally flip around a lot, and 700ms latency every time you change a page will drive you insane in 3 minutes).
So, in summary, here's my recommended buying order:
If cash is abundant and you want a nice intro: Hello, Android (latest edition)
Absolutely mandatory: Beginning Android 2
Equally mandatory, but maybe a few weeks later: Pro Android 2
then, it's a toss-up between a commonsware "Warescription" for Murphy's other books (which gives you access to the latest and greatest versions of them for a year, plus perpetual ownership the last copies you downloaded before the year ran out) and Meier's book (if you really hate ebooks). Personally, I'd recommend the Warescription AND Meier's book
(*)1280x720 is the rock-bottom minimum resolution viable for comfortably reading an O'Reilly-Manning-sized book in pdf form two pages at a time. 800x480 is just a hair below the resolution you really need to comfortably read ONE O'Reilly-Manning sized page at a time.
bitbang3r said:
<snip>
18 months from now, when Android tablets with 1280x720(*) displays or better are common and relatively cheap, <snip>
So, in summary, here's my recommended buying order:
If cash is abundant and you want a nice intro: Hello, Android (latest edition)
Absolutely mandatory: Beginning Android 2
Equally mandatory, but maybe a few weeks later: Pro Android 2
then, it's a toss-up between a commonsware "Warescription" for Murphy's other books (which gives you access to the latest and greatest versions of them for a year, plus perpetual ownership the last copies you downloaded before the year ran out) and Meier's book (if you really hate ebooks). Personally, I'd recommend the Warescription AND Meier's book
(*)1280x720 is the rock-bottom minimum resolution viable for comfortably reading an O'Reilly-Manning-sized book in pdf form two pages at a time. 800x480 is just a hair below the resolution you really need to comfortably read ONE O'Reilly-Manning sized page at a time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The bolded above is the exact reason I am learning. I need to be able to write my own app for the upcoming tablets. We are planning to move a lot of document work to tablets over the next few years in the medical industry and the existing product lines are hilariously and prohibitively expensive. Since I already work extensively with our privacy laws and and regulations, I'm fairly sure that I can get a working solution for us over the next three years instead of investing millions of dollars in proprietary systems.
Thank you SO much for this advice. I'm ordering Beginning Android tonight and will pick up the other suggestions about halfway through the first book. My class will start in September. If you happen to have any other suggestions that might ease my way into programming concepts in general I would also appreciate those. Again, thanks a ton for the great advice.
Yeah i hear ya man. I took Java Programming in my senior year of highschool and got an A in it. So i know im capable for doing android, but im still finding my way around. hopefully one day i can actually do it! I hope!
bitbang3r said:
(edit: the following assumes you've more or less mastered Java already; I really don't know what to recommend for someone who's trying to learn Java AND Android programming simultaneously. I suspect part of the reason for the lack of books for THAT niche is due to the fact that it's more or less impossible to take any programming class in college that doesn't either involve Java or have it as a non-negotiable prerequisite, even if Java per se isn't directly relevant. It's just part of the baseline cultural background noise).
If you buy nothing else, buy "Beginning Android 2" by Mark Murphy. If you're not totally broke, buy "Pro Android 2" by Sayed Hashimi while you're at it. Don't try to skip the first and go straight to the second... there's a lot of medium-level stuff that's covered thoroughly in "Beginning" that's barely touched upon in "Pro".
Those two books aren't great if you like to jump around and learn things in random order as need arises, but they're probably the gold standard right now for books that comprehensively teach Android Programming in a sensible order from start to finish.
"Professional Android 2 Application Development" by Reto Meier is a great complement to those books, because it IS more of a "jump around and grab important details as the need to learn them arises" book. I refer to all three on a regular basis.
"Hello, Android" is one of those books that you'll probably never look at again two weeks after you first start reading it... but if cash isn't really a problem, it's a nice tutorial for brand new Android developers.
Content-wise, the pdf commonsware.com books by Mark Murphy (yeah, the same Mark Murphy who wrote the Apress book) are probably the best of all, because they literally ARE updated regularly as typos & bugs get found (every book has 'em, few books ever usefully fix 'em) and new versions of Android get released. The problem is, unless you have an ebook reader, let's be honest... ebooks kind of suck. Sometimes, a real book is nice to have. So, I'd say Murphy's books kind of break new ground between online articles and real books... they go into a lot more depth, more coherently, than any one online source of info about Android programming... but unfortunately, because they're ebooks, they're about as pleasant to casually read as those same online articles.
18 months from now, when Android tablets with 1280x720(*) displays or better are common and relatively cheap, eBooks are going to be the norm for Android books going forward, because THEN they'll let you have the best of all worlds -- the coherent editing and comprehensive content of "real" books, the up-to-date accuracy of the best online sources of info, and a reading experience that doesn't kind of suck. Five years from now (when the eBook experience has finally become civilized), I'll be shocked if programming books even exist anymore in printed form, aside from maybe books like "${Language}: How to Program" that deal with topics that don't really change radically from month to month and are more or less universal as college textbooks. Programming and system administration are the kind of topics that are really too volatile for paper books, and for they most part they've ALWAYS been... there just hasn't really been a civilized alternative to them. IMHO, Android tablets will be what finally make it a civilized experience, because for the first time normal people (meaning developers who don't work for huge corporate entities like Amazon and Sony) will be able to develop ebook apps with their own UI experiments. Right now, all we have are devices optimized for reading mass-market top-20 fiction... devices that largely suck for the specific task of reading (and referring to) programming books (where you generally flip around a lot, and 700ms latency every time you change a page will drive you insane in 3 minutes).
So, in summary, here's my recommended buying order:
If cash is abundant and you want a nice intro: Hello, Android (latest edition)
Absolutely mandatory: Beginning Android 2
Equally mandatory, but maybe a few weeks later: Pro Android 2
then, it's a toss-up between a commonsware "Warescription" for Murphy's other books (which gives you access to the latest and greatest versions of them for a year, plus perpetual ownership the last copies you downloaded before the year ran out) and Meier's book (if you really hate ebooks). Personally, I'd recommend the Warescription AND Meier's book
(*)1280x720 is the rock-bottom minimum resolution viable for comfortably reading an O'Reilly-Manning-sized book in pdf form two pages at a time. 800x480 is just a hair below the resolution you really need to comfortably read ONE O'Reilly-Manning sized page at a time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow, thanks a ton! I'll be sure I pick up those 4 things later on.
Since I wrote the original post in this thread a couple days ago, I've spent some time trying to learn Java. As a total noob to programming, this has proven to be quite a challenge. Just about every book or eBook I see (A couple "java for dummies", "eclipse for dummies", "thinking in java", and I'm about halfway through the free sample of VTC's Java: Introduction to the Java Programming Language, which is an audio/video presentation thing) says that prior programming knowledge is necessary or that I should have some basis in C or something like that.
Also, there's command line as well as all of the different IDEs.. I'm assuming that these are all mainly interchangeable or what?
Should I just continue trying to learn Java and once I think I've figured it out just move on to Android or do you guys think I won't be able to get by without taking some sort of a programming class in school?
Thanks for all your help guys! By the way, how long do you think it might take to go from a noob to someone who can actually write an Android app?
for those of us that might be a bit hard up on cash http://developer.android.com/index.html
has a wealth of free information and sample programs. CHECK IT OUT!
Hello all, nice conversation that hasn't been diverted yet so I think I shall make a small contribution to this.
Programming courses and books that you can buy are a good way of learning but is not always an option due to mainly money constraints luckily we have this thing called internet , it has never been easier to learn programming than it is at the moment the plethora of resources available is absolutely incredible the only problem might be in finding things in a structured and well ordered way.
One of the tricks I've used in the past is to look up books that either get recommended or you like the look of and then find the index listing for that book which is usually given away free by sites selling books, then all you need to do is Google for the given topics =o)
As for learning Java to get started on the path to Android application building I think the biggest issue most people will be facing is that they find Java books but none of them seem to be making anything exciting, the problem is to make exciting things you really need to know a fair bit more about developing.
So that having been said I think as a short check list for someone looking to go from zero programming experience to developing their first android apps I would recommend something like this:
1. Go and read about Object Oriented Programming model
You won't fully grasp all the concepts straight away without having done any programming but it is good idea to get this stuff into your head straight away as it will start making more sense once you've learned a bit and then makes it easier to later on come back to this and get the lovely eureka! moments. Good place to start could be something as simple as Wikipedia.
2. Write console applications
By this I mean little java applications that you will be running from the command line on your computer. This is where most people I think get discouraged as they can't see how this relates to Android development.
Forget about graphics, user input, mobile devices etc for now, you can learn so much by writing these:
-Basic types & Variables
-Arrays
-Basic arithmetic and working with strings
-Loop structures
-Logic such as IF statements
-Creating new classes and objects
-Calling functions and returning values
Now all of the above will be used over and over and over again no matter whatever you are writing and the good thing is that it can all be learned by learning 1 additional non android specific thing: how to print out text to command line.
A good example application that you can write that uses most of the above would be a simple application you run from the command line, it fills an array with randomly generated integers between 1 and 20, lets say it generates 10 of them and then displays them to you in the order of smallest to highest.
No user input required, no graphics required etc, its not the most exciting thing but it will get you using all the basic building blocks.
3. Revisit the object oriented model
Do this again as it is pretty vital you understand it and after completing step 2 it will start making a whole lot more sense.
4. Install Eclipse and complete the Hello World tutorial on the android site:
There are plenty of guides on how to install the Android SDK and Eclipse environment and the best ones are from Google themselves. Follow them, if something doesn't work, try and figure out why it doesn't and then search for it, chances are that someone has already figured out why and you've just missed something.
Then complete this tutorial: http://developer.android.com/resources/tutorials/hello-world.html
5. Modify the Hello World tutorial:
Don't get ahead of yourself and start writing your killer app now, start slowly modifying the Hello World tutorial, learn how to display a piece of text from your application.
Now do everything you did with Step 2 but do it all on the Android app.
Visit this list but don't get too stuck with it:
http://developer.android.com/resources/faq/commontasks.html
6. Complete the Notepad tutorial:
If you've blindly followed my steps/similar steps this will be difficult and you should spend a good while dissecting all of it. The tutorial is actually excellent and touches on everything you pretty much need to write a fully functioning application. Don't go for the way of downloading sample source blindly following the tutorial, compiling in the end and then checking this as done.
I bet there are million things you won't understand about it so just keep going through it line by line and when you understand how it works, make it your own, start adding features to it, just silly things but do it =o)
7. Read, Read, Read & Start small.
You should now be at a point where you can start thinking about why you originally wanted to develop for android, if its a simple app you wanted to make start reading about topics that are specific to your app. Also this is a perfect time now to pick up an android application development book, up until this point all the free information has been as good as if not better than books.
If you want to make a game...be prepared to be spending atleast 2-3 times as long as you have to this point before it becomes even viable.
And final piece: Start small, for your first app don't start writing a full fledged facebook killer android social networking location based interactive photo editing physics calculator, do something simple and gradually build up to bigger projects...trust me on that =o(.
Anyhoo bored at work as you can probably tell, hope the above is a good outline for someone thinking of undertaking Android development if they have no previous experience. I don't mean to put people off just be prepared to spend a LONG time with this, it's not overly difficult but if you haven't done development before the sheer amount of new concepts you will have to understand from early on and WELL is very daunting.
.FxN
1. Install required components
* For Java use the latest version
* Android SDK
Once downloaded extract the folder to one of the PATH for example E: \ android_sdk_windows
* To Eclipse used Eclipse 3.5 (Galileo)
2. Add the Android platform and other packages needed to SDK
* SDK Run Setup.exe
* In the Available Packages menu to select all the packages downloaded
* select Install Selected and then select the Accept All to accept the selected packages
* select Install Accepted , Choose Install to install packages that we want to SDK
* Set the path to the Android SDK directory, by opening the Control Panel and then click on mycomputer system or right click and select Properties. Then on the Advanced tab select Environment Variables, click Edit on the path then input the Android SDK directory path
3. Install Android Development Tools (ADT)
fxn said:
Hello all, nice conversation that hasn't been diverted yet so I think I shall make a small contribution to this.
Programming courses and books that you can buy are a good way of learning but is not always an option due to mainly money constraints luckily we have this thing called internet , it has never been easier to learn programming than it is at the moment the plethora of resources available is absolutely incredible the only problem might be in finding things in a structured and well ordered way.
One of the tricks I've used in the past is to look up books that either get recommended or you like the look of and then find the index listing for that book which is usually given away free by sites selling books, then all you need to do is Google for the given topics =o)
As for learning Java to get started on the path to Android application building I think the biggest issue most people will be facing is that they find Java books but none of them seem to be making anything exciting, the problem is to make exciting things you really need to know a fair bit more about developing.
So that having been said I think as a short check list for someone looking to go from zero programming experience to developing their first android apps I would recommend something like this:
1. Go and read about Object Oriented Programming model
You won't fully grasp all the concepts straight away without having done any programming but it is good idea to get this stuff into your head straight away as it will start making more sense once you've learned a bit and then makes it easier to later on come back to this and get the lovely eureka! moments. Good place to start could be something as simple as Wikipedia.
2. Write console applications
By this I mean little java applications that you will be running from the command line on your computer. This is where most people I think get discouraged as they can't see how this relates to Android development.
Forget about graphics, user input, mobile devices etc for now, you can learn so much by writing these:
-Basic types & Variables
-Arrays
-Basic arithmetic and working with strings
-Loop structures
-Logic such as IF statements
-Creating new classes and objects
-Calling functions and returning values
Now all of the above will be used over and over and over again no matter whatever you are writing and the good thing is that it can all be learned by learning 1 additional non android specific thing: how to print out text to command line.
A good example application that you can write that uses most of the above would be a simple application you run from the command line, it fills an array with randomly generated integers between 1 and 20, lets say it generates 10 of them and then displays them to you in the order of smallest to highest.
No user input required, no graphics required etc, its not the most exciting thing but it will get you using all the basic building blocks.
3. Revisit the object oriented model
Do this again as it is pretty vital you understand it and after completing step 2 it will start making a whole lot more sense.
4. Install Eclipse and complete the Hello World tutorial on the android site:
There are plenty of guides on how to install the Android SDK and Eclipse environment and the best ones are from Google themselves. Follow them, if something doesn't work, try and figure out why it doesn't and then search for it, chances are that someone has already figured out why and you've just missed something.
Then complete this tutorial:
5. Modify the Hello World tutorial:
Don't get ahead of yourself and start writing your killer app now, start slowly modifying the Hello World tutorial, learn how to display a piece of text from your application.
Now do everything you did with Step 2 but do it all on the Android app.
Visit this list but don't get too stuck with it:
6. Complete the Notepad tutorial:
If you've blindly followed my steps/similar steps this will be difficult and you should spend a good while dissecting all of it. The tutorial is actually excellent and touches on everything you pretty much need to write a fully functioning application. Don't go for the way of downloading sample source blindly following the tutorial, compiling in the end and then checking this as done.
I bet there are million things you won't understand about it so just keep going through it line by line and when you understand how it works, make it your own, start adding features to it, just silly things but do it =o)
7. Read, Read, Read & Start small.
You should now be at a point where you can start thinking about why you originally wanted to develop for android, if its a simple app you wanted to make start reading about topics that are specific to your app. Also this is a perfect time now to pick up an android application development book, up until this point all the free information has been as good as if not better than books.
If you want to make a game...be prepared to be spending atleast 2-3 times as long as you have to this point before it becomes even viable.
And final piece: Start small, for your first app don't start writing a full fledged facebook killer android social networking location based interactive photo editing physics calculator, do something simple and gradually build up to bigger projects...trust me on that =o(.
Anyhoo bored at work as you can probably tell, hope the above is a good outline for someone thinking of undertaking Android development if they have no previous experience. I don't mean to put people off just be prepared to spend a LONG time with this, it's not overly difficult but if you haven't done development before the sheer amount of new concepts you will have to understand from early on and WELL is very daunting.
.FxN
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Oh wow. This is great! Thanks a ton for taking the time to write all of that, I'm gonna go get started
I've already touched upon many of those things thanks to free ebooks and youtube tutorials and such, but now I know exactly what to do
Quick question though: what's the "notepad tutorial" ?
thanks again!
and @learnandroid, thank you as well for the instructions. i have eclipse set up now
A nice java book that I recommend is called Java Programming, comprehensive edition.
fichdak said:
Quick question though: what's the "notepad tutorial" ?
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I can't yet post links, but just Google "Android notepad tutorial" - it's the first hit.
They take you through 3 different versions of the app, each slightly more complicated than the last. Definitely worth going through if you're new.
XDA has always been a fantastic community and you guys are the reason. Thank you for the thoughtful and very much appreciated advice and help.
I'm having a great time already. I really hope I can get into the class but it's already full with a waiting list. The books, tutorials and great resources are of course great but I have always liked to do new stuff with groups. I tend to learn more with some group goals involved along with the focused study.
Thanks again guys.
http://www.linuxclassroom.com/
This guy in San Antonio started an Android programming class for 8th graders and posted all of his lesson plans online. Might be a good place to start.
fichdak said:
Quick question though: what's the "notepad tutorial" ?
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Sorry forgot to post the link: http://developer.android.com/resources/tutorials/notepad/index.html
.FxN
Great Thread full of info.
I have tried learning C# and Java on my own in the past but I could never grasp the concept and gave up.
I had an opportunity to go back to school full-time with programming in mind. I started last spring taking Software Development which teaches basic concepts of programming. Now I am starting my second semester in the fall taking intro to Java and c++ followed by advanced Java and c++ in the spring .
I hope I can transfer the knowledge from school along with the info provided in this Thread to build quality android applications in the future.
Thanks
-Bri
I know it's geographically limited to a small subset of the people here, but I'm pretty sure I remember reading somewhere that UC Santa Cruz actually has courses in Android Development (part of their certificate in embedded software development curriculum). However, I think it's safe to assume that a solid background in Java (including objects and threading) is a prerequisite. Anyone who lives within sane driving distance of Silicon Valley might want to check them out...
I definitely have to agree that if you're literally just starting with Java, don't even *think* about touching Swing until you're comfortable writing console apps. It's really easy to get overwhelmed by Swing. For the most part, Android programming isn't really harder than good Swing programming... the difference is, with Swing, you can still get away with doing some things that are bad, but will kind of work anyway (like blocking operations by a UI thread). Android simply won't tolerate or allow you to even *try*. It's good in the long run (I guess), but makes writing your first few real programs a lot harder than you probably expect it to be.
For example, Android won't allow classic "Modal" dialog boxes (where everything grinds to a halt until the user clicks something). Period, end of story. You really shouldn't do it anyway, but being allowed to do it in Swing makes it easier to take your first few baby steps and see your program (sort of) work. With Swing, you can staple the shell of your program together with bad things, then fix them and make them nice once the logic is worked out. With Android, you have to Do It Right the First Time, because it won't allow you to do it any other way.
Hello. I was wondering how the developers here managed to learn how to code in Java? Im studying a book and trying to get a couple of my friends to learn how to do it also, and was thinking it would be awesome to have the perspective of current developers.
Perhaps a skilled developer could compile a guide as well? I think that might be a bit too much, but I am, too, curious on how to really get started. How about some guidelines on what we should learn and some easy examples to copy for practice?
i would like to learn also... im dying on making my own rom for my sensation
I'm starting to learn to develop apps for android too.
Any ideas for 'simple' apps to write as a starting point. Not after 'original' apps, just something with a use to get started. I'm currently thinking of doing a to-do list kinda app, don't think it would be too complicated and hopefully it'll get me going. Any other ideas? (Purely for my benefit - wouldn't release them or anything)
About 130 hours of college should do it...at least to start with
Sorry, I'm just one of those that believe in formal training. Sure, I can read a book on plumbing and do some tasks around the house. Does that make me a plumber?
It's just not that easy to learn how to write good and I"m talking clean, efficient, bug-free, well documented, easy to maintain (by me or others) code.
Now, don't get your panties in a bunch; it CAN be done. Be prepared for a lot of hours of reading, writing code, debugging code (getting massively frustrated) and then doing it again.
I have 2 degrees in CS, been a professional programmer for 15 years and I'm still learning.
Ok, now that I'm off my soapbox , back to OP. Learn about your variable types: int, float, the String class. Write short, simple programs (enter 2 numbers, add them and display results etc.)
Learn about program flow: sequential statements, if/else, do/while, while/do, for/next constructs.
Learn about your data structures as a program is only as good as how you can store, manipulate, display and save data. Stacks, queues, arrays, vectors, maps, sets, trees, linked lists (single and double). I can not stress enough how important these are
Learn how to get information into a program (user input, database, files) and how to save it...a payroll program isn't much good if you can't save John's last paycheck's data!
Learn by Doing. Thats the best way.
From something awesome
killersnowman said:
Learn by Doing. Thats the best way.
From something awesome
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This. Doing actual coding on a high level is the best way to get started. Go to the Android SDK site and browse the tutorials. Make small apps that do very basic stuff. Study code, learn what the methods do. As you progress you will better understand how to put stuff together in your head, or on paper and then actually code it.
Look up tutorials for things that you are interested in doing. There is a wealth of knowledge just from Googling basic things. Learning keywords and technical terms (queue, array, etc.) is also helpful when searching for tutorials or help.
Most importantly as killersnowman pointed out, just keep coding when ever you can and you will slowly build up your skills. Taking courses is always a plus.
I am presently looking into courses in my area as well. It has been too long since I have played with code and I really need to start working on my own apps.
I've tried App Inventor, and also I am playing with Basic4Android. My goal is to be able to be able to interface my phone or tablet with robots. Then from there I want to move onto useful apps.
These two places are enough to master app-development on Android:
http://developer.android.com/index.html
And
http://download.oracle.com/javase/tutorial/reallybigindex.html
Please note that there are a lot of concepts in the Java tutorial that aren't applicable for Android. So the chapter "Trail: Learning the Java Language"
is probably enough
But in addition to these places you really should have some kind of fun learning project that really motivates you to learn all this. It is more fun and easier to learn what you actually need for your app.
The best way is to have an idea of what you want to make. Start doing the tutorials and eventually move towards actually implementing your idea. It will act as a good motivator for learning.
Hello Developers,
The reason I am calling for some Developers is because I am creating a solution
(for both personal and Commercial) for Android Cloud VM's using AOSP.
Some of you might be thinking, well why would someone need that? why not just use a physical device? or even just host your own VM?
Well here is what I am doing with this project:
1. Anroid Cloud VM's can come in handy with products not open to I-devices.
Using an Android VM on say an iPod Touch or iPhone would spare the trouble of hacking or even buying a second device.
2. Maybe you cannot afford such a device because you just spent all your money on an iphone or blackberry and need access to an android device.
3. on a personal/business Smart phone, you can install this cloud device and use it for its oppiste use. (E.G on a business phone, use the VM to run personal apps, like email, web browsing, and other personal related stuff.)
The list goes on but you get the idea.
What I need to start off this project is:
-an iPhone/ iOS developer
-An android Developer (I only know Visual Basic so It is hard for me to learn a new language.)
-Some beta testers for when the team plans to release said software.
-Might need a C# or another VB.net or even a PC Java developer
In return for developers I can give per person (Sorry no teams as far as specific development.)
Following:
Depending on sales of the application(s) and other related items I can offer:
- 5% <--> 10% of sales Untaxed per developer. (depends on how many sales and how many developers.)
-Might be able to, depending on sales, donate devices.(Dev's Choice.)
-Unlimited access to said Cloud VM's. (I think that's a given yeah?)
I already have the plan laid out. I just need the resources.
If you seem interested and are willing to take the risk with me, PM with contact information (I am comfortable with IRC, Texting, or Phone calls.)
If you do not want to give away such information but still want to inquire about this project, Google Voice a free nubmer and send that number to me so I may contact you.
NOTE: Mods, I put this post here in hopes of finding a dev quickly, If I have in anyway posted to the wrong part of the forum, please move and contact me so I know.
Thank you.
Reserved
Reserved- Q/A
Having some experience in large operations like this. I offer this input.
First. You are taking on a huge project. You will need some sort of financial backing to provide the back end server hardware for all of this. Second. Licensing. Third. I cannot see something like this being completed easily or in the near future with one dev per section. You will definitely need teams. Your biggest of which will be setting up the remote system. Plan of action should either be cutting down on the need for so many Devs to make it more beneficial to the dev. Shoot me a pm if you would like more info or help.
Not saying its not possible. definitely a lot to consider tho
Sent from my Verizon Galaxy S3 running CyanogenMod 10.1 Nightlies
atc3030 said:
Having some experience in large operations like this. I offer this input.
First. You are taking on a huge project. You will need some sort of financial backing to provide the back end server hardware for all of this. Second. Licensing. Third. I cannot see something like this being completed easily or in the near future with one dev per section. You will definitely need teams. Your biggest of which will be setting up the remote system. Plan of action should either be cutting down on the need for so many Devs to make it more beneficial to the dev. Shoot me a pm if you would like more info or help.
Not saying its not possible. definitely a lot to consider tho
Sent from my Verizon Galaxy S3 running CyanogenMod 10.1 Nightlies
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Well, I have the hardware, AOSP is opensource and seeing as I am not selling android to consumers, but instead offering a service of which they can access said Software, which to my understanding is under GPL. But I could be wrong, on any note, I will PM you because it seems you a knowlegdable on this kind of topic.