MOBILE
TECHNOLOGY
ANDROID APPS
DEVELOPMENT
#2
2
Objectives
In this chapter, you learn to:
Develop a user interface using the TextView,
ImageView, and Button controls
Create an Android project that includes a
Button event
Select a Linear of Relative layout for the user
interface
Create multiple Android Activities
Add activities to the Android Manifest file
Add a Java class file
3
Objectives
Write code using the onCreate method
Display content using the setContentView
command
Open a second screen using a Button event
handler
Use an OnClickListener to detect user interaction
Launch a second screen using a startActivity
method
Correct errors in Java code
Run the completed app in the emulator
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Designing an Android App
Designing apps is like constructing a building
The Big Picture
Follow these steps:
Create the user interface for every screen
Create an Activity for every screen
Update the Android Manifest file
Code each Java class with objects and actions
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Using the Android User
Interface
The interface is a window on the screen of any
mobile device
The layout is designed with XML code
Special
Android-formatted XML code is extremely
compact
Linear Layouts and Relative Layouts
A Linear Layout organizes layout components in a
vertical column or horizontal row
Objects are placed directly below each other
Can be switched from vertical to horizontal
orientation
Linear layout is the default layout
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Using the Android User Interface
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Using the Android User
Interface
A Relative Layout organizes layout components in
relation to each other
Provides more flexibility in positioning than Linear
layouts
Must be changed from the linear default
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Using the Android User Interface
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Using the Android User Interface
Android Text Properties
Text Property – changes the text written in
the control
Text Size Property- can be adjusted in
inches, millimeters, pixels, density-
independent pixels, and scaled-
independent pixels
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Using the Android User Interface
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Using the Android User Interface
Adding a File to the Resources Folder
Before you can use images, they must be placed in
the resources folder
Res folder contains three subfolders
All folder names begin with drawable
hdpi (resources for high-density screens)
mdpi (resources for medium-density screens)
ldpi (resources for low-density screens)
Android supports three graphic formats
.png (preferred), .jpg (acceptable), .gif(discouraged)
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Using the Android User Interface
Adding an ImageView Control
An ImageView control displays icons or graphics
on the Android screen
Adding a Button Control
There are three types of Buttons
Button (buttons that perform a function)
ToggleButton (buttons that can be on or off)
ImageButton (buttons that have a picture on them)
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Using the Android User Interface
Planning a Program
Gather and analyze program requirements
Design the user interface
Design the program processing objects
Code the program
Test the program
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Creating Activities
Each screen is considered an activity
Constructed using XML layout files and a Java class
Creating an XML Layout file
All layout files are placed in the res/layout directory
Adding a Class File
A class describes a group of objects and serves as a
blueprint, or template, for creating those objects
An object is a specific, concrete instance of a class
When you create an object, you instantiate it;
meaning you define one particular variation of the
object
15
Creating
Activities
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The Android Manifest File
The Android Manifest file contains:
the name of the Java application
a listing of each activity
permissions needed to access other Android
functions (like accessing the Internet)
the minimum level of the Android APL
Addingan Activity to the Android
Manifest
When applications have more than one
activity, the Manifest must have an intent to
navigate among multiple activities
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The Android Manifest File
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Coding the Java Activity
– A method is a set of Java statements that can be
included inside a Java class
– Methods perform specific tasks
• Coding an onCreate Method
public void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
}
– Note the use of Curly braces { that begin and end
the method code and the use of the semi-colon ;
– SetContentView(R.layout.main); is added to
display the screen
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Coding the Java Activity
Displaying the User Interface
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Coding the Java Activity
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Coding the Java Activity
Creating a Button Event Handler
An event handler is part of a program coded to
respond to a specific event
Tapping the button is called a click event
Java code must contain the following sections
Class property to hold a reference to the Button
object
onClickListener() method to await the button click
action
onClick() method to respond to the click event
Code Syntax:
Button b=(Button)findViewById(R.id.btnRecipe);
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Coding the Java Activity
When you import the Button type as an Android
widget, the button package becomes available
throughout the app
An import statement makes more Java functions
available to your app
A stub is a code placeholder module
b.setOnClickListener(new OnClickListener() {
public void onClick(View v) {
// TODO Auto-generated method stub
}
});
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Coding the Java Activity
Coding a Button Event Handler
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Coding the Java Activity
Correcting Errors in Code
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Coding the Java Activity
Saving and Running the Application
Testing the App automatically saves it
The Save All button will save the project
Select Android Application from the dialog
window the first time an app runs
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Summary
Linear layouts arrange screen components in a
vertical column or horizontal row
Relative layouts arrange components freely on
the screen
Text Property and TextSize property are used
when creating text
To display graphics (pictures and icons), use the
ImageView control
An Activity is when the app makes contact with
the user and is a core component of the app
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Summary
Each screen in your app is an Activity
Every app has an Android Manifest file
containing the name of the app and a list of
each activity
When an app has more than one activity, it
must have an intent so the app can navigate
among multiple activities
A method is a set of Java statements included
in a Java class
The onCreate method initializes an Activity
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Summary
The setContentView command displays the
content on the screen
Tapping or clicking a button invokes the event
listener and runs the code in that button
Use the startActivity() method to start an
Activity in an app that has multiple Activities
The intent contains a context - initiating Activity
class is making the request - and the name of
the Activity
Red error icons and red curly lines indicate
errors
