An Android Developer's Top 10 Gripes

Jan 12, 2010, 18:02 (0 Talkback[s])
(Other stories by Chris Haseman)

"1. Open Source
Leave it to Google to place all the code for their handset platform in the hands of the masses. Not only does this mean anyone can download and roll a new version of their phone firmware, but it also means absolutely any maker can roll its own Android device. I'm looking forward to an Android-powered toaster oven any day now. What's worse is Google knows how to protect valued code; Its Maps, Gmail, and Store applications aren't open source. Figuring out when it's okay to include one of those in your own application requires a crack legal team with a hotline to the EFF. This is the most benign on this list, and it's only here because now everyone and their brother is going to make a new "Android-powered" device.

"2. The Tyranny of the Activity
Through the Activity, Android forces developers to build apps in smaller, bite-sized chunks. For example, in their sample text editor code, they have one Activity for picking from a list of editable files and another Activity for actually editing a file's contents. Android also encourages developers to communicate among their Activities using Intents (more on why I hate those later)."

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