Android Platform Differences and Free and Open Source Next Generation

Android is hailed as “the first complete, open, and free mobile platform.”

1. Complete: The designers took a comprehensive approach when they developed the Android platform.They began with a secure operating system and built a robust software framework on top that allows for rich application development opportunities.

2. Open: The Android platform is provided through open source licensing. Developers have unprecedented access to the handset features when developing applications.

3. Free: Android applications are free to develop.There are no licensing or royalty fees to develop on the platform. No required membership fees. No required testing fees. No required signing or certification fees.Android applications can be distributed and commercialized in a variety of ways.

Android is an open source platform. Neither developers nor handset manufacturers pay royalties or license fees to develop for the platform. The underlying operating system of Android is licensed under GNU General Public License Version 2 (GPLv2), a strong “copyleft” license where any third-party improvements must continue to fall under the open source licensing agreement terms.The Android framework is distributed under the Apache Software License (ASL/Apache2), which allows for the distribution of both open and closed source derivations of the source code.

Commercial developers (handset manufacturers especially) can choose to enhance the platform without having to provide their improvements to the open source community. Instead, developers can profit from enhancements such as handset-specific improvements and redistribute their work under whatever licensing they want. Android application developers have the ability to distribute their applications under whatever licensing scheme they prefer. Developers can write open source  freeware or traditional licensed applications for profit and everything in between.

Although Android has many innovative features not available in existing mobile platforms, its designers also leveraged many tried-and-true approaches proven to work in the wireless world. It’s true that many of these features appear in existing proprietary platforms, but Android combines them in a free and open fashion, while simultaneously addressing many of the flaws on these competing platforms.

Familiar and Inexpensive Development ToolsUnlike some proprietary platforms that require developer registration fees, vetting, and expensive compilers, there are no upfront costs to developing Android applications.
 
Freely Available Software Development Kit 
The Android SDK and tools are freely available. Developers can download the Android SDK from the Android Web site after agreeing to the terms of the Android Software Development Kit License Agreement.

The Android mascot is a little green robot, shown in Figure.You’ll see this little guy (girl?) often used to depict Android-related materials. Android is the first in a new generation of mobile platforms, giving its platform developers a distinct edge on the competition.Android’s designers examined the benefits and drawbacks of existing platforms and then incorporate their most successful features. At the same time,Android’s designers avoided the mistakes others suffered in the past.

Android Familiar Language, Familiar Development Environments

Developers have several choices when it comes to integrated development environments (IDEs). Many developers choose the popular and freely available Eclipse IDE to design and develop Android applications. Eclipse is the most popular IDE for Android development and there is an Android plug-in available for facilitating Android development. Android applications can be developed on the following operating systems:

- Windows XP or Vista
- Mac OS X 10.4.8 or later (x86 only)
- Linux (tested on Linux Ubuntu 6.06 LTS, Dapper Drake)