Why should I care to Android?
Wednesday, August 6th, 2008Android is a recently-announced, open source mobile-phone operating system and development platform from Google.
If you think that cell phones should be used only for making calls, Android will make a difference for you.
Google says Android will have a browser capable of handling any type of Web content that a desktop computer’s Web browser can handle.
Android is a software stack for mobile devices that includes an operating system, middleware and key applications. It consists of a Linux kernel, a set of core libraries that provides most of the functionality available in the core libraries of the Java programming language, a set of C/C++ libraries, an application framework and a set of core applications. Android also features an integrated browser based on the open-source WebKit browser engine.
Google is showing new features for its Android mobile phone software, including touch-screen technology and compass capabilities.
Android is having the eye-candy touch screen. Android demonstrated the touch-screen capabilities by using a swiping gesture to light up dots on the demo phone in the form of a “G” to unlock the phone for use. Users could set up whatever gesture they wanted to serve as a “password” to unlock the phone.
The new compass features of the technology where the Street View screen followed the direction of the user and turned left or right with the person holding the phone.
Imagine that today you are going on vacation to another country. With Android you can erase everything from your phone and put on new features. You will be able to capturing some scenery on video and add video recording feature as well. We can also downloading some maps of the area to make it easier to find destinations. By clicking few buttons you can easily upload your videos when u back.
Android phone is also having some attractive and favorite games for you. Wi-Fi Army and Spacebugs are some of the examples. Android breaks down the barriers to building new and innovative applications. For example, a developer can combine information from the web with data on an individual’s mobile phone – such as the user’s contacts, calendar, or geographic location – to provide a more relevant user experience. With Android, a developer could build an application that enables users to view the location of their friends and be alerted when they are in the vicinity giving them a chance to connect.
Android does not differentiate between the phone’s core applications and third-party applications. They can all be built to have equal access to a phone’s capabilities providing users with a broad spectrum of applications and services.
Open software architecture will allow software developers more flexibility in creating features. One of the key features of the open handsets that run Google’s operating system is their ability to run applications and services from third-party providers. OHA members say the goal is to maximize handset functionality while keeping system specs as low as possible.
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