At over 3,200 pages, this book covers everything from introductory steps all the way to very advanced topics. More importantly, this book is continuously updated to reflect changes in Android itself, with new material being added every couple of months.



This edition, licensed under Creative Commons, is version 5.0 (2013), and may be significantly out of date. Android keeps advancing, and these books will refer to classes, tools, and techniques that are no longer available or recommended. You are strongly encouraged to obtain other Android development knowledge — whether from CommonsWare or somebody else — that is more current to go along with anything you obtain from here.



With a "Warescription", available from Commonsware, you are assured of having current Android programming information at your fingertips.



The book is divided into core chapters plus the trails.



The core chapters — representing ~800 pages — are set up as a typical programming guide, covering the basics of getting an Android app up and running. The book includes material on setting up your development tools, constructing a user interface, loading data from a local database or the Internet, handling the differences between phones and tablets, and much more.



The core chapters also include an integrated set of 19 tutorials, offering you step-by-step guides for creating an Android application from scratch. Hence, whether you "learn by reading" or "learn by doing", you have the material in the core chapters to accomplish your goal.



The rest of the book comprises the trails. These are linked sets of chapters covering advanced topics, organized by theme. However, while the core chapters are designed to be read in sequence, the trails are designed to be read on an as-needed basis, when you want to dive into those specific topics.