8 key messages from the Google Developer conference

16 Goolge Conference

Another year of the Google developer Conference. This time, Google released a series of announcements, including its entry into the field of intelligent assistants, but also released several of the ancient spirit of the equipment and applications. However, Google has given only a few details and has not opened API permissions for developers. So we'll do the reporting later. If you want to know more, you can check the Google Developer Conference Official blog post.

Android N has a lot of new features, including the author's favorite (User-centric) features: Seamless updates (inspired by ChromeOS) and Instant (JIT) compilation (Say Goodbye to "Android is updating").

But this article will focus on new features released at the conference that are relevant to the current development effort, and how you should proceed with it.

The article will cover a lot of aspects, ready to explore the world of Android!

1. Android Studio 2.2

The author has always loved Android Studio, and its upcoming release will also bring many new features to enhance the Android developer experience. By the time you download the new SDK, you will find that Android studio has finally downloaded them in the background.

Speed

The latest version of Android Studio has improved the instant-on functionality, but the 2.2 version claims to be further refined to make it 10 times times more efficient. Simulator speed is also faster, Google propaganda now the simulator speed will be faster than some real machine.

Test Recorder

This is a great feature. It allows you to run your app in debug mode, automatically write espresso test scripts for UI events, and then run those scripts in a local or remote test lab.

I wanted to record a video of the feature. However, in the preview version downloaded by the author, this option does not appear in the menu. It was a bit disappointing, or maybe I missed it.

A better Build

Open your app and enter a world full of possibilities. Android Studio now supports the CMake and Ndk-build tools and can support Java 8. This also means writing code in C + + without the NDK library, and the mix of C + + and Java code will be better. This is thanks to the new features of the Clion IDE from JetBrains.

If you insist on using cradle, here is a new menu item, file---Project Structure (which needs to be enabled in the Experimental pane in preferences), which will alert you when an expired dependency occurs, allowing you to update, Install them and help you write to the Gradle file.

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For those who are trying to migrate their app permissions to the new M and N modes, simply select an old permission method and select the refactor-to-Convert to Android System permissions menu item to implement your idea.

Layout

The tools for interface design in Android studio still lag behind Xcode, But version 2.2 has improved: we have a better drag-and-drop feature (especially a menu), a new blueprint pattern for the user to check the overall layout, a restricted layout for designing a cross-device interface (like iOS AutoLayout), and a new build detector to display the run-time details of the extra calculations.

Better coding

To help you better write code, version 2.2 adds new annotations for checking API versions, threading, and other uses. It adds a sample browser to help users find examples of methods for a particular symbol. It also provides an APK parser that tracks memory issues and gives recommendations for reducing file size based on the size of the final compiled application. You can find this parser from the build-Analyze apk menu item.

You can also see the instant Run feature in the APK.

The new manifest merge view can tell you which items from other resources are included in the manifest file. For example, in the following Google Maps demo app, resources from the play service and Firebase are added to the manifest:

2. Instant Application

One of the most exciting/curious/questionable announcements is that, in the future, Android users will need to be able to open the app without having to install it in some way. Users simply click on a link to the app and the Play store will start downloading the required code. This is the use of the Activity concept of Android. KitKat above can support Android version. That's a funny thing. Not sure how it will change the app installation, and how will it comply with these limits when the user sets a traffic limit?

3. Play and ChromeOS

Are hundreds of millions of potential users of Android devices not enough to be your user base group? Google said it had sold 2 million chrome-based devices in the first quarter of 2016 (the message was confirmed by the International Data Center). This sales data beats Apple's Mac sales, and the Play Store can be installed on Mac.

To achieve this, Google used a combination of Linux namespaces to separate the Android and Chrome operating systems, but shared some important resources between the two systems. Without impersonation or virtualization, a complete Android system can be run in ChromeOS.

Most features can run smoothly in ChromeOS without additional effort. However, keep in mind that many features do not need to be run on Chrome. For example, you won't be running with Chromebook.

Click here to see more details and suggestions.

4. Virtual reality daydreaming

Cardboard is the first attempt by Google to enter the VR market, and the response was quite successful, thanks largely to its simplicity. But you and I both know that to make VR and Android more successful, we need more things.

"Daydream" (Daydream) will become part of Android N (not to be confused with "Daydream Mode"), but requires the support of a daydream device available, which limits the number of users. But Google says it will have "hundreds of millions of" users using the platform. The recommended new headphones and controllers are also in the conceptual design phase. But cardboard can still be used.

Daydream's homepage is interesting: a futuristic, immersive interface that allows users to choose from a wide variety of content and media services, including Netflix, Hulu, YouTube and The New York Times (a bit odd).

Since the development process requires a Nexus 6P device, I am temporarily unable to test it myself. If you have a device, click here to start the installation. There are also SDK versions that support unity and iOS.

5. Android Wear 2.0

The new version of the Android wearable device will be released later this year and will introduce many new features, the following are the author's favorite:

• The surface content is fully customizable. Data from any third-party app can be displayed on the surface.

• Amazingly, the operating system features handwriting recognition and provides a keyboard that uses the IMF.

• Supports stand-alone mode, where applications can run independently on wearable devices without pairing devices.

• For Android Wear, there is now an official version of the material Design guide available for viewing.

For more information please see here if you eagerly want to start developing applications for wear 2.0, click here to preview.

6. Android Auto

Bundling your car with an Android device seems more and more feasible. Although there are not many big announcements, some minor updates may be of interest to developers. If you've never tried to develop any apps for Android Auto, SitePoint recently published an article that tells you how to get started.

• Waze plugin: There are new map data, but developers can do less. But if you are familiar with (and are using) the Waze API, it will be another platform for you to work on.

• You don't need a compatible car: Over the years, we've been trying to get the car panel to move closer to the mobile interface, but after the second half of the year, you don't even need a car. You can switch your phone to "car mode" and then enjoy the huge, easy-to-use (voice-controlled) interface directly on your phone.

7. Firebase joins the family

Google acquired Firebase in 2014, which complements Google's core business, with two companies benefiting from each other's experience and product lineup. As Facebook announces the shutdown of the parse service, Firebase seems to have met a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to fill the gaps in the market, and Google seems happy to do so.

This time, most of the improvements involve the integration of various firebase tools and better integration into Google's ecosystem.

These improvements and tools include application analysis, crash reporting, information framework, user growth tools, and more. Most importantly, Android Studio 2.2 will enable these tools by default, so you can more easily configure your application and code with plugins, or you can drag snippets yourself.

One of the most useful improvements based on existing Google services is that by leveraging the AdMob platform, firebase data can be imported into bigquery for analysis and the bill transferred to Google's Central cloud billing platform, which makes accounting easier. On this basis, the future of Google and Firebase will be more closely linked.

8. "Name" by you

Google claims that they are trying to name the n version, and they have invited the public to participate. I think people might think it's a crappy propaganda stunt, and most of the names you submit will be ignored. But I believe that there will always be someone to stand out, take out a Google recognized name.

The challenges Google poses

Oh! It's a great event! I was excited to see the release of so many new features, and I was thrilled to see that there were more and more perfect tools to realize these functions and to see the growing sophistication and consolidation of the Android/Google ecosystem.

8 key messages from the Google Developer conference