ANDROID – A SMART PHONE OPERATING SYSTEM by GOOGLE

Android is a software stack for mobile devices that includes an operating system, middleware and key applications. Android is a software platform and operating system for mobile devices based on the Linux operating system and developed by Google and the Open Handset Alliance. It allows developers to write managed code in a Java-like language that utilizes Google-developed Java libraries, but does not support programs developed in native code.

The unveiling of the Android platform on 5 November 2007 was announced with the founding of the Open Handset Alliance, a consortium of 34 hardware, software and telecom companies devoted to advancing open standards for mobile devices. When released in 2008, most of the Android platform will be made available under the Apache free-software and open-source license.

Open – Android allows  to access core mobile device functionality through standard API calls. All applications are equal – Android does not differentiate between the phone’s basic and third-party applications — even the dialer or home screen can be replaced SDK contains what  need to build and run Android applications, including a true device emulator and advanced debugging tools.

THE BIRTH OF ANDROID

In July 2005, Google acquired Android Inc., a small startup company based in Palo Alto, CA. Android’s co-founders who went to work at Google included Andy Rubin (co-founder of Danger), Rich Miner (co-founder of Wildfire Communications, Inc), Nick Sears (once VP at T-Mobile), and Chris White (one of the first engineers at WebTV). At the time, little was known about the functions of Android Inc. other than they made software for mobile phones.

1. Open Handset Alliance Founded

On 5 November 2007, the Open Handset Alliance, a consortium of several companies which include Google, HTC, Intel, Motorola, Qualcomm, T-Mobile, Sprint Nextel and NVIDIA, was unveiled with the goal to develop open standards for mobile devices. Along with the formation of the Open Handset Alliance, the OHA also unveiled their first product, Android, an open source mobile device platform based on the Linux operating system.

2. Hardware

Google has unveiled at least three prototypes for Android, at the Mobile World Congress on February 12, 2008. One prototype       at the ARM booth displayed several basic Google

Features of Android OS:

1.Application framework enabling reuse and replacement of components

2.Dalvik virtual machine optimized for mobile devices

3.Integrated browser based on the open source WebKit engine

4.Optimized graphics powered by a custom 2D graphics library; 3D graphics based on the OpenGL ES 1.0 specification (hardware acceleration optional)

5.SQLite for structured data storage

6.Media support for common audio, video, and still image formats (MPEG4, H.264, MP3, AAC, AMR, JPG, PNG, GIF)

7.GSM Telephony (hardware dependent)

8.Bluetooth, EDGE, 3G, and WiFi (hardware dependent)

Android Architecture:

The following diagram shows the major components of Android

Figure 1: Architecture of Android OS