Google Releases Android 4.1 SDK 58
hypnosec writes "Google has released the full SDK for its latest edition of Android, Jelly Bean, which was unveiled during Google I/O. Google has already released the source code of Jelly Bean earlier. Google announced through a blog post that developers can develop application against the API level 16 using the new Jelly Bean APIs. Developers would be able to develop apps that will run on Nexus 7 tablets. Jelly Bean is touted as one of the best from Google and it promises a smoother and more responsive UI across the system."
Cart before the horse? (Score:2)
Wouldn't it have been traditional for them to make the SDK available before the OS dropped, to make sure there was a base of current apps in place when devices started shipping?
I can only imagine the SDK was available to certain select developers for months, while the Nexus 7 was in testing and such-like.
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Also, consider that this device has access to entire Android market ( the Fire is severely limited in comparison) - Google probably felt the existing Market is good enough until devs get things rolling.
Old Horses and New Carts (Score:2)
While the Jelly Bean supposed to be for gadgets that have yet to reach market, hundreds of millions of older Android Devices are already at the hands of the consumers
My question is - is it hard for average geek to install Jelly Bean on older crop of Android Devices ?
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Well, yes and no. You can't just take the code they've released and put it on your phone, since that lacks a lot of the hardware drivers and such that are needed to make it compatible with each phone. It's possible for developers to get it to work on most phones, but it takes some time. At the moment, pretty much the only phones which you can put a fully functioning Jelly Bean ROM are the Nexus phones. A lot other recent phones have already got people working on JB ROMs, and many of them have beta versions
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This is confusing. The Jelly Bean SDK has been out for a while now (since around Google IO). The "blog" link is wrong (correct url: http://android-developers.blogspot.com/2012/07/getting-your-app-ready-for-jelly-bean.html). My dev tools already had API 16 installed and the Google APIs are the only thing that saw any updates (rev 2).
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The release order changed when Google's need to give certain manufacturers exclusive early access outweighed the community's need to have the SDK prior to the OS release. This isn't that much of an impairment for most developers, and it's a cheap incentive to win over some hardware manufacturers.
However it is funny how the two closed source mobile operating systems give their developer base early access to their upcoming SDKs.
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Perhaps they needed to run it past their lawyers to check that Apple hadn't patent if or case statements.
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If the Oracle case is any indication, the existence of the patent wouldn't stop Google, and the invalidity of the patent wouldn't stop Apple (like it didn't stop Oracle).
There isn't stopping patent litigation any more than there's stopping street mugging. If you look like something the thug wants, and the thug thinks he can take you, there's gonna be trouble. And in the tech IP world, there are no "safe neighborhoods" except maybe the EU.
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everybody else will get 4.1 in a year or so.
I doubt it - most good vendors and carriers are preparing for 4.1 rollouts already.
Even Telstra looks like they'll play ball, which is a remarkable achievement...
http://www.telstra.com.au/mobile-phones/mobile-phones/smartphones/ [telstra.com.au]
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Wouldn't it have been traditional for them to make the SDK available before the OS dropped, to make sure there was a base of current apps in place when devices started shipping?
I can only imagine the SDK was available to certain select developers for months, while the Nexus 7 was in testing and such-like.
One would presume so but my, admittedly non-Android, developer impression is that this was a thoroughly 'Black Project', so the only devs with a 'Need-To-Know' would have been at ASUS. Of interest to me is how much tablet manufacturer and developer uptake occurs now that it is out, not that this is a major issue. I would buy it right now, warts and all, without either occurring, which marks a first in the tablet market to date.
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Paying horse before the cart before the free people chained up at the back
The latest version of Android is closed for 6 months unless you pay out the ass, launch a Nexus branded device, or agree to lock people in to Google's services.
By the time the SDK comes out and the latest version is opened up, the next significant release is already in alpha.
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Actually, there was a beta of the SDK that was released during the IO conference - so prior to the Nexus 7 becoming available.
But I do have concern about the general beta quality of all of their stuff (actually I think that Android 4.0.0 was more like alpha).
I'm pleased that, so far, my Nexus 7 seems to be very solid. Hopefully this means they are starting to focus more on quality.
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Yeah, this is just rev. 2 of the 4.1 SDK. The title and summary are highly misleading.
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i have a transformer tablet running ics 4.04. It seems solid enough. It is easily as reliable as cyanogen 7 on my phone. the only issue I have had is with apex launcher, which the latest update seems to want to crash and force me to wade through to the applications from the settings menu and close it. Oh well. Really, I've had no complaints. I just wish everything worked. Lots of games for 2.x phones don't want to work. (Gameloft...looking at YOU) Tegra 3 should play everything on the market flawlessly, but
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I've had the SDK installed since Google I/O - this is just a "final" revision to it. Really, not that big of a news item. I've gotten tons of updates on my phone that appear to be JB related - which is probably just the dev's targeting this release and testing it still works (And fixing what's required, which was probably pretty minimal)
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Wouldn't it have been traditional for them to make the SDK available before the OS dropped, to make sure there was a base of current apps in place when devices started shipping?
The base of current apps was already there.
A 4.1 Android phone can run any app 1.5 and onward.
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Well, eventually 99% of the devices will run ICS or later, so time spent developing for it is never going to be a "waste."
However, WHEN you should develop for it is a different matter. An app that REQUIRES ICS is only going to be commercially successful maybe a few months from now when a fair number of phones actually run it - and ICS is already nine months old.
It seems like adoption follows release by around a year or so with Android. Don't get me wrong, I love android, but lack of updates is maddening.
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The article is wrong. Android 4.1 SDK has been released three weeks ago [google.com]
Malicious site? (Score:2)
Interesting. The first link is blocked by my work filter as a "malicious site". Normally I can click thru the blocked stuff but this one won't let me. I think it thinks that site is hosting malware.
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Probably has to do with this crap on Parity News:
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It's pretty vanilla social media crap.
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Indeed, and if you sideload the Flash Player apk file it works fine. Adobe just decided to stop further development and pull it from the store.
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It's not available on the Play store in JB, or installed by default, but you can still install the APK manually, and it still works in browsers that support it. (Firefox, Opera, Dolphin. Not sure if the stock browser still does on JB)
Besides, if people cared about Flash that much then the iPhone/iPad wouln't be so popular. It's nice having the option of Flash on my phone, but I didn't even realise until last week that I didn't have it installed, after having my current phone for 3 months. It's rare that I h
Google released the SDK at IO (Score:1)
What kind of article is this? The SDK was ALREADY RELEASED at I/O.
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You do know that android releases are named after desserts/treats in alphabetical order, right? Last release was I (ice cream sandwich), this was J (jelly bean), next is K (Key lime pie). I can't think of too many treats that aren't brand names and begin with J.
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The days of Android are numbered.Once they hit 'Zucchini Lemon Muffins' they will have nowhere else to go.
OSX will run out of cool wild cats before Android runs out alphabet.
OSX Ocelot FTW
Have they fixed the simulator speed? (Score:3)
That thing is horribly slow.
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Launch speed is still slow, but there is now Intel support for the emulator so it runs faster. Also released today is rev. 2 of the "Intel Hardware Accelerated Execution Manager" which may include some performance enhancements.
http://software.intel.com/en-us/articles/intel-hardware-accelerated-execution-manager/ [intel.com]
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There's not much they can do, short of writing a better ARM VM. You want it to emulate ARM so you can test native code.
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I meant to add that you could just get a device and use that to test your code. That would be how most devs do it. I think google might still sell a dev phone to you if you ask nicely.
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That's been way faster for a while. Try the Intel x86 ones (which are very fast), or the GPU acceleration option for the ARM ones.
And don't get me started on freakin' Gummi Worm! (Score:1)
GOD DAMN IT!
My droid hasn't even self-upgraded to Cherry Pop Tart With Icing, yet. >:-(
How about Nordic wordlists? (Score:2)
That the 4.1 release is out is all good and well, but I'm still waiting for the Swedish wordlist for my 4.0 Galaxy Nexus. Much can be said about Apple, but at least the think about the customers in a way Google apparently never will.