Android-Fu: Awesome Apps for Ice Cream Sandwich and Beyond

In this session you'll learn why you can't consider UX and design an optional extra when designing mobile apps for Android, how to tell an awesome app from a terrible app, and the basics of both designing and coding for the latest and greatest Android platform (Android 4.0 and beyond). Stylish apps aren't just for that other mobile platform, and Android is surprisingly easy to get started with.

Come and learn how to build apps for Ice Cream Sandwich (and beyond!) This workshop is for existing object-oriented programmers, but you don’t necessarily need to know Java. (we’ll teach you just enough to be dangerous). Learn the Android SDK, how to be efficient in Eclipse and everything you need to know to pretend you’re a UX and Interaction Design guru.

Existing programmers of almost any language will learn the ins and outs, philosophies and ideologies, loopholes and drawbacks and quirks (and there are many) of the Android Ice Cream Sandwich platform. Attendees will come away confident with the skills to build an application for Android that rivals apps for that other phone platform in usability and look. You’ll come away with a functional app that looks pretty and works great on the latest phones and tablets.

Tiny computers in our pocket are part of the glorious reality that we live in! Build apps and conquer the world. This session is not 100% programming, it’s 50/50 UX and programming – and the programming we work on is going to give you a taste of what you can do and why you should do it, not dive into every facet of the Android SDK (we don’t have time for that!)

Topics covered will include:

• Why, as a programmer, you need to understand interaction design when building for mobile
• The core features, capabilities and limitations of the Java Android SDK (Ice Cream Sandwich Android-Fu)
• Java, and why it doesn’t suck on Android
• Resource constraints, and how to remember that they exist on a TINY FREAKIN’ COMPUTER