Google Developer Podcast Episode Twelve: Android with Dianne Hackborn and Jason Parks

By Dion Almaer, Google Developer Programs

As soon as Android and the Open Handset Alliance was out in the wild, we were chomping at the bit to talk with some of the people behind the platform to discuss the developer-related information.

Using iTunes?

We were lucky enough to get some time from Dianne Hackborn and Jason Parks, who have been doing this work for a long time. They used to be at Be, and PalmSource, and you will hear how that experience has come through to Android. In fact, you will see how the Android team has engineers from many other platforms (Linux, Danger, and Windows Mobile).

Dick Wall himself is an advocate on Android, and you can hear how excited he is to talk about this!

What will you learn on this podcast?

• Some history behind the project
• The high level architecture of Android. For example, how Linux processes handle the VM and manage security (the VM doesn't handle it)
• Details on the Dalvik VM and how it is optimized for small devices
• The architecture: From Intents to Views to Permissions and more
• How XML is slow, but the tools convert the XML to a nicer format for you
• The tooling and steps for building an application on Android
• How so many objects have a URL, and how the environment is like a mini-SOA (Services across processes instead of across the network)
• Thoughts on how you program for small devices, and things to watch out for if you move from the desktop
• The control, or lack of control that you have over the application lifecycle
• "Everything you do drains the battery"
• The thread story: they exist, you don't have to deal with them if you don't want too, and the UI
• Using XMPP for messaging

You can download the episode directly, or subscribe to the show (click here for iTunes one-click subscribe).

Want to learn more about Android? Read the book or watch the movie depending on how you are feeling!