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Android Studio Cookbook
Android Studio Cookbook

Android Studio Cookbook: Design, test, and debug your apps using Android Studio

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Android Studio Cookbook

Chapter 2. Applications with a Cloud-based Backend

This chapter will teach you how to build an app that does not need a backend of its own but uses a cloud-based solution instead.

In this chapter, you will learn the following recipes:

  • Setting up Parse
  • Consuming data from the cloud
  • Submitting data to the cloud

Introduction

Many applications require a backend solution, allowing users to communicate with a server or with each other like in social apps, for example, and which application is not social today? You can also think of a business app, for example, one for logistic purposes.

Sure, we can write our own API, host it somewhere, and write some Android code to communicate with it, including querying, caching, and all other functionalities that our application needs to support. Unfortunately, developing all this could be a very time-consuming process, and since this is often the most valuable asset, there must be another way to do this.

The good news is that you do not have to do all these things yourself. There are a couple of ready-made mobile backend solutions available on the Internet, such as QuickBlox, Firebase, Google App Engine, and Parse to mention just a few of the most well-known ones.

Each of these solutions do particular things well; although, one solution will be more suitable than...

Setting up Parse

Think of a scenario that goes like this: at a central point, orders are being collected and will be prepared for transport. Goods need to be delivered and customers need to sign in the app once they receive the goods that they have ordered. Each driver has a mobile device and an app to support this process digitally.

This is the process for which we will provide the next three recipes and we will be using Parse for it, as it is the most suitable backend for the solution that we are going to create.

The upcoming recipe describes how to set up Parse, how to consume data from Parse into your Android app, and how to send data, such as a signature, from the app to Parse.

Getting ready

To go through this recipe, you will need Android Studio up and running and Internet access. That's all folks.

How to do it...

Let's create an app that connects to a Parse backend first so that we have a fundament on which we can build our app. Let's name our app CloudOrder. The further...

Consuming data from the cloud

We have our Parse-based app up and running. Now, let's see how we can get the orders from Parse into our app and display them in a list.

Getting ready

To go through this recipe, you will need to have the previous recipe up and running, Internet access, and some coffee, although I must admit that last one is not strictly necessary. Tea will be just as fine.

How to do it...

Let's see how we can extend our CloudOrder app by consuming orders from the Parse backend and display them using a list view with the help of the following steps:

  1. In the last step in the Setting up Parse recipe, we were looking at the newly created Parse entity and the data in there. Entities can be created or extended on the fly from your app like we did, but we can also define columns and add data here on the webpage. Click on the +Col button to add a new column to the CargoOrder entity.
  2. In the modal, display Add a column, choose String from Select a type, and name the new column address...

Submitting data to the cloud

Now that we have completed the previous recipes and the driver that will be using our CloudOrder app knows where to go to for a particular order, it would be great if, once the goods are delivered, he (or she) will be able to select that order and have it signed for delivery by the customer on the device.

In this last recipe, we will implement code to make the customer draws his or her signature on the device. The signature will be sent to Parse as an image and the CloudOrder record will be updated.

Getting ready

To go through this recipe, you will need to have the previous recipes up and running.

How to do it…

  1. Create a new class and name it SignatureActivity.
  2. Create a new layout and name it activity_signature.xml.
  3. Switch the layout to Text. Add the TextView and the Button widget to the layout. Make sure that the layout looks like this:
    <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
    <LinearLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android...
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Key benefits

  • See what Material design is about and how to apply it your apps
  • Explore the possibilities to develop apps that works on any type of device
  • A step-by-step practical guide that will help you build improved applications, change their look, and debug them

Description

This book starts with an introduction of Android Studio and why you should use this IDE rather than Eclipse. Moving ahead, it teaches you to build a simple app that requires no backend setup but uses Google Cloud or Parse instead. After that, you will learn how to create an Android app that can send and receive text and images using Google Cloud or Parse as a backend. It explains the concepts of Material design and how to apply them to an Android app. Also, it shows you how to build an app that runs on an Android wear device. Later, it explains how to build an app that takes advantage of the latest Android SDK while still supporting older Android versions. It also demonstrates how the performance of an app can be improved and how memory management tools that come with the Android Studio IDE can help you achieve this. By the end of the book, you will be able to develop high quality apps with a minimum amount of effort using the Android Studio IDE.

Who is this book for?

This book is for developers that are already familiar with programming concepts and have already started creating apps for the Android platform, for example, by using the Eclipse IDE. It is for developers who intend to use Android Studio as their primary IDE or want to use Android Studio more efficiently.

What you will learn

  • Develop Android Studio applications using Genymotion
  • Apply the concepts of Material design to your applications
  • Use memory monitoring tools to tweak performance
  • Build applications for Android Wearable
  • Capture images, video, or audio within your Android app
  • Use content providers to display data
  • Build apps with a cloud-based backend
  • Create media-related apps that will run on phones, phablets, tablets, and TVs

Product Details

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Publication date, Length, Edition, Language, ISBN-13
Publication date : Oct 30, 2015
Length: 232 pages
Edition : 1st
Language : English
ISBN-13 : 9781785286186
Vendor :
Google
Category :
Languages :

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Product Details

Publication date : Oct 30, 2015
Length: 232 pages
Edition : 1st
Language : English
ISBN-13 : 9781785286186
Vendor :
Google
Category :
Languages :

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Table of Contents

11 Chapters
1. Welcome to Android Studio Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
2. Applications with a Cloud-based Backend Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
3. Material Design Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
4. Android Wear Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
5. Size Does Matter Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
6. Capture and Share Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
7. Content Providers and Observers Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
8. Improving Quality Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
9. Improving Performance Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
10. Beta Testing Your Apps Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Index Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Customer reviews

Rating distribution
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Half star icon 4.5
(4 Ratings)
5 star 75%
4 star 0%
3 star 25%
2 star 0%
1 star 0%
Fabio Radin Nov 29, 2015
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
The book by Mike van Drongelen is really well written and will guide you through the latest IDE provided by Google: Android Studio.Once downloaded, installed and configured Android Studio (argument of the first chapter of the book), you are put in the battlefield very quickly. The cookbook style is really powerful in my experience and in this case, too. You can jump from one recipe to the other without any worries about having "lost something". In any case, you could jump back to something skipped before, in case you need it...Android Studio could be a bit confusing if you came from Eclipse. There are so much features in the IDE and a core (based on gradle) that could confuse a beginner or someone used to Eclipse. To simplify the approach, a very simple technique is used in the book: it does not talk about it! It simply show you in every chapter something new, but talking about something else. In this way, you are introduced to the Material Desing, to Android Wear, to powerful fragments and so on, using the IDE and very nice examples, but without speaking "directly" of the IDE.A couple of items must be highlighted: the first one is the information provided about emulators. Everyone using Eclipse and the standard Android Emulator knows how heavy and slow it could be. Mike will show you some alternatives (explaining you pros and cons of all of them!) in order to reach the target: emulate and Android device without needing a NASA supercomputer. The second item is the (short) introduction he gives about beta testing in the Google Play Store environment. I found it very useful for anyone who have intention to publish his application on the market!In my opinion this is one of the best book written on the Android Studio IDE. I will wait for the book explaining all the gradle features!
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Leonardo Jardim Marques Dec 23, 2015
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
Great book to make the jump from Android Eclipse programming to the new Android studio.If provides a great way to get used to your new Android developing environment with relevant and current examples like Android Wear.It guides you through the process of getting used too the environment, designing an app, testing it and deploying. It goes beyond Android Studio and would even be acceptable as an introductory Android programming book.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Paul Morris Dec 09, 2015
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
This book is an excellent way to acquaint yourself with Android development. From beginning steps to getting data from and writing to the cloud, to theming, to wearables, even consuming web services, this book will give you a well rounded experience. When finished reading you will be able to develop full-featured real-world applications for the Android platform. One of the most useful programming books I have ever purchased.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
kp Jan 04, 2018
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Empty star icon Empty star icon 3
It was not as good as know not good for who knows beginning
Amazon Verified review Amazon
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