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  • The history and versions of android are interesting to know. The code names of android ranges from A to J currently, such as Aestro, Blender, Cupcake, Donut, Eclair, Froyo, Gingerbread, Honeycomb, Ice Cream Sandwitch, Jelly Bean, KitKat and Lollipop. Let's understand the android history in a sequence.

     

    1) Initially, Andy Rubin founded Android Incorporation in Palo Alto, California, United States in October, 2003.

     

    2) In 17th August 2005, Google acquired android Incorporation. Since then, it is in the subsidiary of Google Incorporation.

     

    3) The key employees of Android Incorporation are Andy Rubin, Rich Miner, Chris White and Nick Sears.

     

    4) Originally intended for camera but shifted to smart phones later because of low market for camera only.

     

    5) Android is the nick name of Andy Rubin given by coworkers because of his love to robots.

     

    6) In 2007, Google announces the development of android OS.

     

    7) In 2008, HTC launched the first android mobile.

     

    Android Versions, Codename and API

     

    Let's see the android versions, codenames and API Level provided by Google.

     

    Version Code name API Level
    1.5 Cupcake 3
    1.6 Donut 4
    2.1 Eclair 7
    2.2 Froyo 8
    2.3 Gingerbread 9 and 10
    3.1 and 3.3 Honeycomb 12 and 13
    4.0 Ice Cream Sandwitch 15
    4.1, 4.2 and 4.3 Jelly Bean 16, 17 and 18
    4.4 KitKat 19
    5.0 Lollipop 21
    6.0 Marshmallow 23
    7.0 Nougat 24-25
    8.0 Oreo 26-27

    android architecture or Android software stack is categorized into five parts:

     

    1. linux kernel
    2. native libraries (middleware),
    3. Android Runtime
    4. Application Framework
    5. Applications

     

    Let's see the android architecture first.

    android software stack, architecture

    1) Linux kernel

     

    It is the heart of android architecture that exists at the root of android architecture. Linux kernel is responsible for device drivers, power management, memory management, device management and resource access.

     

     

    2) Native Libraries

     

    On the top of linux kernel, their are Native libraries such as WebKit, OpenGL, FreeType, SQLite, Media, C runtime library (libc) etc.

     

    The WebKit library is responsible for browser support, SQLite is for database, FreeType for font support, Media for playing and recording audio and video formats.

     

     

    3) Android Runtime

     

    In android runtime, there are core libraries and DVM (Dalvik Virtual Machine) which is responsible to run android application. DVM is like JVM but it is optimized for mobile devices. It consumes less memory and provides fast performance.

     

     

    4) Android Framework

     

    On the top of Native libraries and android runtime, there is android framework. Android framework includes Android API's such as UI (User Interface), telephony, resources, locations, Content Providers (data) and package managers. It provides a lot of classes and interfaces for android application development.

     

     

    5) Applications

     

    On the top of android framework, there are applications. All applications such as home, contact, settings, games, browsers are using android framework that uses android runtime and libraries. Android runtime and native libraries are using linux kernal.

     

    Answered By:
    arvin

  • Before learning all topics of android, it is required to know what is android.

     

    Android is a software package and linux based operating system for mobile devices such as tablet computers and smartphones.

     

    It is developed by Google and later the OHA (Open Handset Alliance). Java language is mainly used to write the android code even though other languages can be used.

     

    The goal of android project is to create a successful real-world product that improves the mobile experience for end users.

     

    There are many code names of android such as Lollipop, Kitkat, Jelly Bean, Ice cream Sandwich, Froyo, Ecliar, Donut etc which is covered in next page.

    Open Handset Alliance (OHA)

     

    It's a consortium of 84 companies such as google, samsung, AKM, synaptics, KDDI, Garmin, Teleca, Ebay, Intel etc.

     

    It was established on 5th November, 2007, led by Google. It is committed to advance open standards, provide services and deploy handsets using the Android Plateform.

    Features of Android

     

    After learning what is android, let's see the features of android. The important features of android are given below:

     

    1) It is open-source.

     

    2) Anyone can customize the Android Platform.

     

    3) There are a lot of mobile applications that can be chosen by the consumer.

     

    4) It provides many interesting features like weather details, opening screen, live RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds etc.

     

    It provides support for messaging services(SMS and MMS), web browser, storage (SQLite), connectivity (GSM, CDMA, Blue Tooth, Wi-Fi etc.), media, handset layout etc.

    Categories of Android applications

     

    There are many android applications in the market. The top categories are:

     

    • Entertainment
    • Tools
    • Communication
    • Productivity
    • Personalization
    • Music and Audio
    • Social
    • Media and Video
    • Travel and Local etc.

     

     

    Answered By:
    arvin

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