Unit testing is an essential part of any development lifecycle. Writing unit test cases can come in handy when we want to make sure that our code still works as expected even after code changes have been implemented.In Android, we have two types of unit tests that we can write:
JUnit Test Cases
Android Instrumentation Test Cases
JUnit test cases are test cases that can run on the JVM. It is preferred to write JUnit test cases as they can run directly on the JVM and are much faster. While writing local unit test cases, if there is any dependency on the Android system, those dependencies can be mocked using a mocking framework like Mockito.
Android Instrumentation test cases, on the other hand, need the Android system to run. They need an actual Android device to run on. They should be used if the test cases rely heavily on the Android system like the Android UI. As they first need to be deployed on an Android device before they can run, they are usually slower than local unit tests.
In this blog, I will talk about how we can write basic Espresso test cases to test the Android UI.
Espresso has 4 main components which are:
Espresso – It is the entry point for any interaction with views (using onView() and onData()). It also exposes certain APIs that are not specifically linked with any view, like pressBack().
ViewMatchers – They are a collection of objects implementing the Matcher <? super View> interface. One or more matchers can be passed to the onView() method to find a view inside the current view’s hierarchy. In case the view that we are trying to match is not present in the view hierarchy, Espresso throws a NoMatchingViewException.
ViewActions – They are a collection of actions (ViewAction) that can be passed as an argument to the ViewInteraction.perform() method to perform some action on the view, such as click().
ViewAssertions – They are a collection of assertions (ViewAssertion) that can be passed as an argument to the ViewInteraction.check() method to assert some state of the view. Most commonly used ViewAssertion is the matches assertion, which uses a ViewMatcher to assert the state of the currently selected view.
A complete list of the available ViewMatcher, ViewAction, and ViewAssertion can be found in this Espresso Cheat Sheet.
Now that we know the basic components of Espresso, let’s see how we can integrate Espresso into our Android projects. Let’s start with setting up our test environment.
It is recommended to turn off system animations on the device on which the tests will be run. This should be done in order to avoid test flakiness. Go to Settings -> Developer Options and turn the following 3 animations off:
Window animation scale
Transition animation scale
Animator duration scale
We can override beforeActivityLaunched() to execute any code that should run before our Activity is created and launched.
We can override afterActivityLaunched() to execute any code that should run after our Activity is created and launched but before any test case is executed.
We can override afterActivityFinished() to execute any code that should run after our Activity has finished.
Methods annotated with @Before annotation are executed after the activity is launched and before the test case is executed.
Methods annotated with @After annotation are executed after the test case is executed and before the activity finishes.
ActivityTestRule rule provides functional testing of a single activity, that which is specified in the ActivityTestRule. This activity will be launched before executing every test annotated with the @Test annotation. ActivityTestRule has 3 constructors:
The activityClass parameter indicates the activity class that needs to be launched before every test.
The initialTouchMode parameter indicates whether the activity should be launched in touch mode.
The launchActivity parameter indicates whether the activity should be launched by default before every test case is executed.
Let’s see how we can pass some data to the activity before any test cases are executed. There are two ways in which this can be achieved.
First, we can use the 3rd ActivityTestRule constructor along with the @Before annotation to achieve this. Passing the launchActivity parameter as false indicates that the activity will not be launched by default. The method annotated with the @Before annotation will be executed before every test case
The second way is to implement the ActivityTestRule constructor and override the getActivityIntent method. The getActivityIntent method returns the custom intent that we build and this intent is then available to the activity under test after it’s launched.
We have seen how to setup Espresso and how simple test cases can be written. I hope this article motivates you to implement Espresso in your Android applications for UI testing.
Doesn’t it look cool when one view appears to move across screens without breaking the continuity of motion? It just adds to the flair of your app, thus improving the app’s UX.Now, this can be achieved using Shared Element Transitions; but here is the catch. This transition effect is available only on devices running on Lollipop (Android 5.0 – API level 21) and higher.Shared elements transitions were introduced in Android 5.0 to make view transitions across screens more seamless and easy to implement. Using this transition, the switch between Activities or Fragments seems more natural and unforced.
Before Android 5.0, transition effects across Activities were available, but they would animate the entire root view of our screen. Using shared element transitions, we can animate any number of views, regardless of their view hierarchies.
Now, let’s see how we can implement shared element transitions in our Android apps-
Step 1 : Enable Window Content Transitions in styles.xml
Step 2: Set a Common Transition Name for Respective Views on Both Screens
For the transition to work across screens, you have to assign a common transition name to the shared elements (views) in both layouts. The views don’t have to be of the same type or have the same id, only the transition name must be same.
The transition name can be set using the android:transitionName attribute in xml or using the setTransitionName() method in Java.
Step 3: Open Activity with Element Transition
In order to get the transition effect, you have to specify a bundle of the shared elements and view from the source activity while starting the target activity.
When we specify the source view along with its corresponding transition name, it ensures that even if multiple views exist in the the source view hierarchy with the same transition name, it picks the correct view to start the animation from.
While specifying multiple shared elements transitions, make sure that you import android.support.v4.util.Pair. Please ensure that you do not overdo the transitions, as that can distract the user and degrade the user experience.
Step 4: Close Activity with Reverse Element Transition
In order to get the reverse element transition effect while finishing the second activity, you need to call the Activity.supportFinishAfterTransition() method instead of the Activity.finish() method. Also, you need to make sure that you override the Activity finish behavior everywhere in your activity, for example if you have a back button in your Toolbar or if the user presses device’s back button.
Shared Elements Transitions with Fragments
We can achieve shared elements transitions with Fragments as well.
Step 1: Set a Common Transition Name for Respective Views on Both Screens
Step 2: Define a Custom Transition:
Step 3: Specify the Shared Elements Transition in FragmentTransaction:
Custom Shared Elements Transitions:
In Android Lollipop (Android 5.0), the default shared elements transition is a combination of 4 transitions:
Change Bounds – It captures the layout bounds of target views before and after the scene change and animates those changes during the transition.
Change Transform – It captures scale and rotation for Views before and after the scene change and animates those changes during the transition.
Change Image Transform – It captures an ImageView’s matrix before and after the scene change and animates it during the transition.
Change Clip Bounds – It captures the getClipBounds() before and after the scene change and animates those changes during the transition.
In most cases, the default transition is sufficient. However, there might be cases in which you might want to customize the default behavior and define your own custom transitions.
You can set the window content transitions at runtime by calling the Window.requestFeature() method.
Exclude Elements from Window Content Transitions
Sometimes you might want to exclude the use of the status bar, ActionBar and navigation bar from the animation sequence. This might be particularly required when your shared elements are drawn on top of these views.
You can achieve this by excluding these elements from the transitions. This can be done by adding a <target> tag and specifying the ID of the element you want to exclude.
Shared Elements Transitions with Asynchronous Data Loading
There might be cases when the shared elements require data that might be loaded from a web API or URL. The most common example is when a URL needs to be loaded into an ImageView which also happens to be the shared element we want to animate. However, the shared element transition might get started by the framework before that data is received and rendered.
We can overcome this by temporarily delaying the transition until we know that the shared elements have been rendered with the fetched data.
We can delay the shared element transition by calling postponeEnterTransition() (For API >= 21) or supportPostponeEnterTransition() (For API < 21) in your second Activity’s onCreate() method.
Once you know that the shared elements have been rendered with the data, you can call startPostponedEnterTransition() (For API >= 21) or supportStartPostponedEnterTransition() (For API < 21) to resume the paused transition.
We can start the paused transition in an onPreDrawListener which is called after the view layout and before the view is about to be drawn.
Results
You can expect to see something like this once you are done with all of the steps above.
It’s been some time since Google I/O 2017 was released and there are lots of new things for Android developers. We all have to suffer from the Gradle build speed issue. Sometimes it takes ages to build an APK. But in this I/O session, Google team presented some cool tips on how you can speed up your Gradle builds and it looks promising. After listening to the complete session, I decided to extract some cool tips for your reference.
1. Always use the latest Gradle plugin for Android
The tool team is working hard to improve the performance of the Gradle plugin for Android, so it’s better to check the latest build and always keep updating.
2. Don’t use legacy MultiDex
If you are using legacy MultiDex in a device having a lower Android version, then it can impact your app performance. Always try to use the latest version of MultiDex so that it can be supported by all Android versions without impacting the performance of the app.
3. Turn Off multi-build APK
If you are in development phase, then it would be better to disable this as it slows down build time.
You can also set this using Android Studio. For this, open Preferences -> Build, Execution, Deployment -> Compiler settings in Android Studio and add -PdevBuild to the Command-line options.
4. Use only required resources
Resources occupy some space while generating APK file and also impact the build time. If you are in development phase, then let Gradle know to only take care of the required resources. Also, you can set the preference of the device for which you are developing the application.
5. Turn off PNG grinding
PNG optimization is not necessary for the development builds so you can turn it off, as by default it is on. It will definitely speed up the build time.
6. Give Instant Run a try
There is a bad reputation of the instant run, but when it works, it works like a charm. The tooling team has worked on it and now in Android 3.0, it is more stable as compared to earlier versions. So you can give it a try and speed up the build performance.
7. Avoid using dynamic dependencies
Using dynamic dependency version causes Gradle to check for the new version in every 24 hours. So it’s highly recommended not to use the dynamic dependency.
8. Always take care of memory
You should keep your eyes on how much memory you are giving to the Gradle. You can watch this video to know more on Gradle memory setting and Dex in the process.
9. Turn on Gradle caching
Gradle caching is introduced in Gradle version 3.5. It reuses the outputs from the previous build. It can work across the projects and gives a high performance when used with Android Studio 3.0. So let’s give it a try as well.
10. Disable Crashlytics plugin
We generally add crashlytics plugin in Android Studio to find the cause of the issue/crash, but it slows down the build time as it generates new ID every time we generate a build. It’s better to disable this in development builds using below-mentioned code snippet.
What comes to our mind for the very first time when we hear about JMeter? Is it Performance Testing? Or Web App Load Testing? Well, most of us are unaware that JMeter can also be used for performance testing of Android/iOS apps. It’s quite similar to recording scripts like in case of web apps, all we have to do is to configure a proper proxy on mobile devices. So here in this blog post, we would be listing down the process to record a performance test script in JMeter for Android and iOS platforms.
Prerequisites: JMeter version 3.0, Android phone (versions above Jellybean) or iPhone (version 8.0 onwards)
JMeter Configurations
1. Launch JMeter -> Navigate to File option -> Templates -> Select Recording -> Click on Create (So now we have added all the necessary parameters for Recording scripts)
2. Go to HTTPS Test Script Recorder -> Set port to 8080
Now find your IP Address by ifconfig for Linux and ipconfig for Windows. We will load up this IP address on our phone Android/iOS phone to setup proxy.
Mobile side Configurations
iOS proxy configuration:
Go to Settings–>Wi-Fi option.
Click on your connected network.
Select ‘Manual’ option from the HTTP Proxy section.
Set ‘Server’ value as your computer’s IP address and ‘Port’ value to 8080 as JMeter configuration. Refer above image to get an idea about this setup.
We need appropriate JMeter Certificate and save it to our phone.
Install this certificate on your iPhone.
Android proxy configuration:
We need appropriate JMeter Certificate and save it to our phone.
Download the zip file for the certificate and send the certificate on mail. And install through the mail. Once the certificate is installed phone will ask to apply a lock. And a notification appears showing Network may be monitored.
Now click on Wi-fi Settings -> Long press on the Network you are connected to -> Click on Modify Network -> Advanced Settings -> Change Proxy to Manual -> In Proxy Host name enter the IP of your computer -> Set Proxy to 8080 -> click save
Now we are set to start recording and running the scripts.
Go to Jmeter -> HTTP(S) Test Script Recorder click Start (this would start the recording). Remember that the port in JMeter Global Settings and Mobile must be the same.
Add a Listener -> Add Result Tree to HTTP(S) Test Script Recorder
Perform any actions on mobile devices and the user can see the actions getting recorded on JMeter.
Replay the actions by increasing the load and monitor the performance
In JMeter go to thread groups and alter the number of threads, Ramp up period and Loop count.
Thread means the number of active users.
Ramp-Up is the amount of time JMeter must take to send threads for execution.
Loop Count is used to specify the number of times to execute the Performance Test.
Adding Appropriate Listeners and analyzing the performance on different loads. Listener that we have used here is Response time over time Listener.
These Listeners don’t come by default with JMeter we need to download the jar and put it into JMeter’s lib/ext directory. Now restarting JMeter shows these Listeners in JMeter’s list of Listeners.
Advantages of using JMeter for mobile performance testing
First of all, JMeter is an open source software. So zero investment.
It’s very user friendly with a interactive UI
It’s easy to learn
Every test script results can be best monitored using different Listeners in JMeter
By far the easiest though effective way to check the mobile performance
Google has just unveiled in their I/O 2017 conference that Android will officially support Kotlin programming language and got huge applause from the IT world. It is an open source project under Apache 2.0 license and built by JetBrains who earlier built IntelliJ. Google has announced that Kotlin is brilliantly designed, mature and will take android development to the next level as it is fast and fully supported by Java. Using Kotlin in Android development will be more fun.
For Android developers, Kotlin as a “first-class” language, is a chance to use a modern, powerful and mature language. It will help to solve the run-time exceptions and source code verbosity. Kotlin provides the flexibility which means it can be easily introduced into an existing project. Kotlin emits the java bytecode and can call java and vice versa out of the box. “The effortless inter-operation between the two languages” was a large part of Kotlin’s appeal to the Android team.
Developers can play around the Kotlin using Android Studio 3.0 and there is no need to install any extra plugin or worry about the compatibility issue. You can open the existing Java file, and then choose the option “Convert Java File to Kotlin File”. Android Studio will then add all required Kotlin dependencies into your project and the equivalent Kotlin code. Isn’t this cool?
Kotlin’s major goal is to be available on multiple platforms. Also, they are pretty much busy on working on native platforms like iOS, IoT, macOS, embedded systems.
As said by Google, some of the apps have already started using Kotlin like Expedia, Flipboard, Pinterest, Square. They are getting very positive feedback.
Kotlin has a lot in common to Java in structure as it’s object oriented and statically typed. It is designed for the problem that actually Java solves.
Some of the cool features of Kotlin
Nullability is a very common problem in Java. Basically having null references in the application can kill it. Kotlin finds the difference between the reference that can hold the null or that can’t, effortlessly.
Switching from Java is easy as there is an option to convert Java files in Kotlin directly from the plugin in Android Studio.
Kotlin is versatile and interoperable with Java as developers can write their own module that will work with Java code. It’s compatible with the existing Java library.
Kotlin’s architecture is written in such a way that one has to write less code; at least 20% less while development, which is fascinating.
A common problem in Android development that causes inefficiency to Java code is extra garbage collection. So Kotlin does a fabulous job to avoid this problem.
The Lean syntax in Kotlin language is very convenient. Kotlin balances terseness and readability in syntax which helps to write the code faster and allows better productivity.
Kotlin also provides Functional programming support with zero-overhead Lambdas.
It imposes no runtime overhead.
Kotlin’s extension functions are helpful in building really clean APIs and solve a bunch of other problems.
The == operator does exactly what the community expects.
To learn more about Kotlin, check out their official website.
Google team has announced the preview release of Android O, here are some changes for the developer with documentation and API differences.
In new API changes, each page which is returned by the Content provider will be counted as a single Cursor object.
Android O will allow you to customize the pairing request dialog when trying to pair with companion devices over Bluetooth, BLE, and Wi-Fi.
There is a specific disk space for each app for caching data. You can get it using-getCacheQuotaBytes(File).
Introduced OpenJDK Java language features in Android.
Fonts using XML file
You can now use fonts as resources as it is a new feature introduced in Android O. There is no need to keep all fonts in assets. You can access these fonts with the help of newly introduced type, font.
Adaptive Icons
There is this new feature of adaptive launcher icon in Android O that supports visual effects and can display a variety of shapes across different device models. For example– you can configure launcher icon circular on one device and square on another device, it’s totally up to you.
Autosizing TextViews
Android O allows you to let the size of the text expand and contract automatically based on the boundaries of the TextView.
You can set up the TextView auto sizing via code or XML. The two types can be setup like:
Granularity- By using this, you can set up the minimum and maximum range of the text size.
Preset Size- By using this, you can auto size the TextView from the list of predefined sizes.
Generic findViewById
Say goodbye to casting views after findViewById().
Snoozing of Notifications
You can now snooze the notifications and can see later. Developers can also get all the snoozed notifications using- getSnoozedNotifications().
setToolTipText
Set the text on the tooltip that will be displayed in a small popup window. The tooltip will be displayed:
On Long Click, unless is not handled otherwise.
On hover, after a brief delay since the pointer has stopped moving
Progress Dialog is no longer there, it’s deprecated now
Progress Dialog is now deprecated in Android O. It uses a progress indicator such as ProgressBar inline inside of an activity rather than using this modal dialog.
A dialog shows a progress indicator and an optional text message or view. Only a text message or a view can be used at the same time. The progress range is 0 to max and cancelable on the back press.
Notification.Builder() is now deprecated
Now we have to use Notification.Builder (context, channelId). ChannelId is a string value and mandatory for all posted notifications.
It’s time to remove BroadCast Receiver from the Manifest
In Android O, they have set the limit on the background executions. You should remove all implicit broadcast that is for intents. If you keep them in place then it will not crash your app but will be of no use when your app will run on Android O.
Autofill Framework
Autofill will save user’s time to fill the information in forms, like details such as credit card or personal account in their devices. The Autofill Framework manages the communication between the app and autofill service.
Developers can start using Android O by setting up the compileSdkVersion as ‘android-O’, targetSdkVersion as ‘O’ and buildToolsVersion as ‘26.0.0-rc1’.
You must set the support dependency as-
Syncing the phone book contacts in an android device with your application is being used by various android applications today. These applications include Whatsapp, Google+, Skype and various email applications. In this way, contacts syncing allows the user to access contacts from various social applications from the phone book itself.Now I will explain with an example Android application how the syncing process happens. This Android application runs in the background as soon as its launched and synchronizes itself with the device’s phone book contacts. Following is a screenshot of a contact synced with the app.
Clicking on MyData will take us to the desired screen on the application.
Contacts syncing requires three components to work in order which is:-
Contacts provider
Authenticator service
Sync service
Contacts provider
Contacts provider is the standard access provider to the device’s data about people. All the contacts in the phone are managed by the contacts provider through tables that can be queried to get data. There are basically three tables that store data for a person.
ContactsContract.Contacts is the table that contains the aggregated data from raw contacts rows that represents different people in the contacts list.
ContactsContract.RawContacts table contains the person’s accounts and type data summary.
ContactsContract.Data table contains other details corresponding to each raw contact like email address, phone number, etc.
I made use of the ContentProviderOperation to handle the table insertion operations on the table to add a raw contact and the data corresponding to my app and finally to apply the changes to the database as a batch operation.
Here is the sample code for the class that handles this functionality:
Authenticator Service
The authenticator service is used to create an account for our app on the device. It plugs into the Android accounts and authentication framework through which an account type is created on the device corresponding to our app. Accounts for standard social applications like Whatsapp, Skype, Facebook, etc. can be found if you visit the accounts screen in settings on your device.
Sync Service
The sync service is made up of two parts the sync adapter and the sync service itself. The sync adapter is used to synchronize data between the server and the local database. My app doesn’t fetch any data from the server but still, it is required to implement the sync adapter. The sync service is what binds the sync adapter to the android sync framework.
The authenticator service runs in the background when the app is launched to create an account for the app on the device. The sync service is called in a periodic cycle to constantly sync the data.
When you tap on the Whatsapp icon on the contacts screen, it will take you to the chat screen of that contact. Similarly, in the phonebook contacts, your app icon can be seen which is clickable to access the app screens that correspond to that contact’s information on the app. The contact data can be sent through the intent extras to the activity that launches.
Back in 2008, the iOS App Store was launched with 500 apps. Today that number has skyrocketed to 1.85 million apps that are available for users to download. Android users have a bigger app universe to browse from that consists of over 2.56 million apps available in the Google Play Store. It is safe to say that we are living in the digital era! To prove we are in the digital era, let’s recall the numbers. Did you know that the number of smartphone users worldwide surpasses 3.5 billion? As per the Statista- Smartphone User forecast, it is estimated to further grow by several hundred million in the next few years. There are 7.94 billion devices connected worldwide and this number is more than the number of people in the globe! Hence, there is no denying the fact that mobile applications are an integral part of our daily lives. Keeping the above data in mind, many entrepreneurs are planning to start a mobile app centered business. If you are amongst those businessmen who are looking forward to creating a mobile app, then the first question to address is – which is better among Android vs iOS development?In this article you will walk through certain factors that will influence your choice, and embibe you with the iOS and Android App Development Platform.
Let’s get right to it.
Apple vs Android: Market Share
According to Statista, in 2020 the market share of Android and iOS was 86.6% and 13.4% respectively and these numbers are expected to reach 87.1% for Android and 12.9% for iOS in 2023.
Looking into the above graph, you can conclude that Android is a clear winner in the mobile operating system market share worldwide and is expected to remain so in the years to come. It is so because the Android startup apps are the most adopted ones for almost every smartphone vendor other than Apple.
Also, Android is an open source platform that allows and makes it easy for mobile phone manufacturers to add their own look to the operating system.
Apple vs Android: App Downloads
According to Statista Market Forecast 2016–2021, there will be 196 billion annual downloads from Google Play store by 2021, all thanks to growing smartphone and app adoption worldwide.
While from the iOS store there will be 42 billion downloads. Android again wins when it comes to app downloads worldwide and it is expected to enormously grow in the years to come.
After reading all the above facts and data it is highly advisable for you to make yourself familiar with the process of startup app development.
We have curated a complete guide on apps for startups, with A to Z information about the process of getting your idea live on a mobile application. In this article, we will answer all the questions that every entrepreneur who is new to the app industry might have.
Which Is Better – iOS Or Android?
Android vs iOS development is a never ending debate between software developers. The quest to- Which platform should startups choose has no one word answer. There are solutions that depend on various factors that an entrepreneur should consider before making a decision.
Let’s go through all the factors one by one:
1. Demographics
There is no denying the fact that Android smartphones have a larger demographic than apple users.
Also, there is no denying the fact that Apple is considered a high end device in which users are willing to purchase apps. So, Apple users are generally found in prosperous parts of the world.
For example: The USA is considered among the highest revenue making countries, thus you will find a larger number of iOS users there.
As per the reports by Statista, currently there are more than 113 million iPhone users in the United States, accounting for about 47 percent of all smartphone users in the United States. So if you are targeting the western demographic, I suggest you to hire iphone app developers.
2. Fragmentation
In simple words, fragmentation refers to when users are running different versions of a mobile operating system and using different mobile hardware models or mobile devices.
We are aware that iOS devices and their release cycles are controlled by Apple alone. As a result, once a year Apple synchronizes iOS version releases with device releases. Hence, fragmentation issues are less.
However, when we talk about Android, fragmentation issues occur constantly, further making life of the android application developers difficult at the time of testing and quality control. Thus, Android fragmentation increases development cost and maintenance time.
3. Design and development
In terms of designing, Google Material Design has a greater influence on UI and UX. Mobile app developers feel that when it is about coding mobile apps then Swift is a much easier language to start as compared to Java.
However, design and development is one factor that depends less on the platform and more on the skills of your partnered mobile app development company. When you are linked with a brand that has it specialization in the development of both Apple and Android apps, it is of the least matter about which platform requires less developmental efforts as both are done within equal efforts.
Now that we are aware of the factors involved, let us discuss the reasons to go for android startup apps and iphone startup apps separately.
Why Choose Android Startup Apps?
You should go with Android first if your audience is not concentrated on any one specific demographic or target audience. Also, if there are a good number of customization elements in your mobile app, go with Android.
Below are the advantages of using Android.
1. Greater user base
Majority of users globally use Android devices as compared to other devices, which gives you a large pool of potential users. Not having an android app for business means losing limitless opportunities and audiences for your product or services.
2. Open source platform
Android is an open-source platform which means Google doesn’t charge any fee for using this platform. Wherein, Google also provides Android app development tools and technology for free to the developers. Thus Android app cost is comparatively lesser than iOS app cost.
So, it is a cost-effective solution for your startup budget.
Hardware device manufacturers such as Samsung, Oppo, Xiaomi, etc., all use Android as their default OS.
3. Customizable apps
Android app development allows the app developers to customize the applications as per the business requirement. This means your business app development will get done with the right requirements and required flexibility which might not have been possible with any other platform. It is always a good idea to hire an android app development company that can help you with your startup app.
4. High ROI
The moment you publish your app on the store, you get a big pool of potential users that you can tap into. Since you have such a wide market to target, the return of investment on your android app would be instant and always on a higher end considering your Android app development cost.
5. Compatibility
One of the biggest advantages of choosing an android app over iOS is that there’s no restriction on devices that is to be used for building an android app. You can build an app on any device, be it Windows desktop, Mac, or the Linux system.
The fact that makes Android a go-to platform for all the sectors with interoperability needs is that it allows you to expand your brand across devices and systems .
We now understand the advantages of choosing android apps. Let’s dig deep and see what are the reasons to go for iOS app development for your startup.
Reasons To Choose iPhone Apps
You should place your startup’s first mobile app on iOS by investing in a sound reputed iOS app development company if you wish to come in the sight of the app store’s target demographics.
Let us discuss the advantages of choosing iOS apps for startups:
1. Security
Security is the utmost requirement for any business because sensitive enterprise data is lodged in apps. Android apps are a big risk when it comes to security while iPhone users are cushioned against hacking and malware. When you compare the iPhone vs Android on the basis of security, iPhone apps protect firmware and software through stringent security measures such as :
Integrated data handling systems
Measures to prevent duplication of data
Measures for loss of security by data encryption
2. Revenue
The ones that have a greater ROI than Android apps are the iPhone apps.. The best revenue generation opportunities that you can get from your iOS application development process, is to keep an eye on the mistakes, tips and tricks, and other related information would be a big advantage. You can look for iOS app development services that can help you with your vision.
3. Established customer base
The biggest USP of Apple is its established customer base. Apple is a pioneer in technology and applications. Apple has a well-established niche of its customer base that swear by Apple’s quality and performance and are loyal to the brand. That’s why it is said that once a smartphone user experiences the iOS platform, they will never be satisfied by any other OS and will stick to Apple.
4. Low fragmentation and testing
As discussed earlier, Apple generally develops just one updation on its existing OS every year. Also, the number of Apple devices are lesser than Android-based ones. Thus, Android apps should be tested comprehensively to get its better functioning on all the versions of Android OS.
On the other hand, iPhone apps just have to meet testing criteria of its previous iOS versions. This constantly reduces testing time and guarantees a rapid time to market for its apps. This also results in saving apple app development cost.
Wrapping Up
After reading the write up you must have understood that there is no right or wrong answer, it all depends on your requirements. We have seen specific scenarios favouring the iOS platform and others suggesting us to go for Android.
By keeping all the above information in mind, you can contact a mobile app development company that will help you build your app without worrying about the operating system.
In this digital age, one can’t survive without technology. Mobile apps have become an obsession for people, a proven fact that in 2017, users around the world downloaded almost 197 billion Android apps and over 25 billion iOS apps. The app development business has reached its peak in the past few years and has been growing higher since.
But with the craze for mobile apps rising high, there’s one massive problem that has arisen for app development companies. Finding enough talented developers who can develop the same thing for Android and iOS is a bit of a challenge.
So is there a more natural solution?
Of course, there is! If you want to develop an app from scratch, for both iOS and Android platforms, React Native is the best option.
React Native is a framework that can be used to develop cross-platform apps. It is a JavaScript-based framework created by Facebook to develop apps supported by both Android and iOS platforms. While it offers benefits such as reduced development time and reusable code and app components, there are some differences between the usages of React Native for both platforms.
In this article, we are going to highlight five significant differences between React Native app development methods across Android and iOS. But before that, let’s have a look at the features of React Native that have made it so popular.
Why is React Native gaining impetus?
React Native is a widely used platform that allows you to alter the user interface of an app for both iOS and Android development. Following are some primary reasons that React Native is such a hit among app developers:
Open-source Framework – This framework is open-source. Its structure is all set to become completely compatible with both Windows and macOS. It also supports reusing already written code instead of rewriting it from scratch.
Quick Development – Application development is not an easy task. Writing code from scratch and learning to code in Swift and Java is tough and time-consuming. React Native resolves this issue in a way that instead of having expertise in these two, you are only required to know JavaScript; this makes app development very easy and quick. That said, basic knowledge of Swift and Java is also necessary.
Focus on the User Interface – React Native allows you to develop smooth and easy-to-navigate User Interface in both operating systems at the same time. UI is one of the main reasons behind its popularity. Before this, developers were required to prioritize one type of operating system. React Native resolved this issue and made development more comfortable and balanced for both platforms.
Coming to the focal point now –The differences when used for Android and iOS no platform is perfect when it comes to technology. There are some boundaries and restrictions for every one of them. The same is the case with React Native. App development for Android and iOS vastly differs, and it is because of the following factors:
While you develop a cross-platform app using React Native, you need to access a few specific iOS simulator tools for app testing. But these tools are not considered reliable as Apple does not officially recognize them. In the case of Windows, Android studio is a reliable source to test the Android version of apps. So it is effortless to conduct official testing for the android version, and there is no authorized testing module available for iOS. That does not mean that iOS apps are not tested; we can say that the results are not authentic.
A suggested solution to overcome this problem is to test the iOS app within Android Studio since it is compatible with macOS. It is better to use Apple MacBook as the testing device to test both, Android and iOS versions of the React Native apps.
Linking Libraries
If you need to link third-party libraries in your app, you cannot merely use the React Native link called “library name” to link libraries. You are required to link those third-party libraries manually. This manual linking is considered to be a hurdle because it is time-consuming, and it requires developers to have distinct knowledge about Android and iOS development.
We can avoid manual linking if complete documentation of the required libraries are available, which is rare. The manual linking requires the developer to have a grip on Java and Swift or Objective C language.
Platform-Specific Styles Elements
While working on a cross-platform app, it is essential to consider the style differences. The styles added using React Native look different in iOS and Android because both operating systems might not support that styling. For example, if you add shadow style in your app, it won’t be visible in the Android version, as Android does not support this styling.
So, developers require keeping the style differences in mind and use the styles which are supported by both operating systems.
Native Elements
The display differences of different native app elements might not be considered at the initial stage, but once development proceeds, developers start regarding such differences as hurdles. React Native has several elements to be used, but the results differ according to the platform they are implemented on. For example, the picker component would display a different outcome on an iOS simulator and a different one on the Android emulator.
Platform-Specific Design Elements
React Native provides a cross-development platform because of shared code, and developers expect to build both versions of applications with minimal efforts. But unfortunately, no platform is perfect. iOS apps usually are quite minimalist in design, while Android is more drawn towards the material design principle. While developing through shared code, you need to make sure that the app is suitable according to its natural look and feel for both platforms. Right now, multitask panels in iOS have small tabs in contrast, while the interchangeable tabs of Android’s multitasking panel are almost of screen size. So, developers need to keep track of these differences while developing on a shared platform.
Similarly, the icons of iOS apps are round-cornered squares, while Android has a range of useful options that include icons with transparent background and shadows. iOS has simplicity and lower cognitive load on icons. There is also a difference in navigation patterns for both operating systems. Android’s native navigation-bar has back and refresh buttons, while in iOS, the back button on the top is screen-specific and also works with a right swipe gesture.
All these differences are necessary to consider for developers while working on application development through React Native. These issues are essential to tackle but don’t come in the way of making it a popular and reliable platform. Many big brands have utilized React Native to develop popular applications for both operating systems.
To Sum It Up
From in-app features to design elements to testing tools, the development of iOS and Android mobile app development using React Native differs on various levels. Developers need to take care of these differences to avoid bugs during implementation. Many big brands like Instagram, Uber Eats, Airbnb, and Gyroscope use React Native’s shared platform technique, which goes a long way to indicate that the framework is reliable and generates up to the mark results.
Every day, we come across different types of computer software that helps us with our tasks and increase our efficiency. From MS Windows that greets us when we switch on the system to the web browser that is used to surf the internet or the games that we play on our computer to the calorie burn counter on our smartphone, are all examples of software. In this world of technology, we even come across various software development trends that help our business to grow, we are surrounded by all these software that are determined to make our lives easier. By definition, Software (also abbreviated as an SW or S/W) is a collection of data, programs, procedures, instructions, and documentation that perform various predefined tasks on a computer system. They enable users to interact with the computer
In the field of software engineering and computer science, the software is nothing but information processed by a computer system and programs. The software includes libraries, programs, and corresponding non-executable data, such as digital media and online documentation. Computer hardware and software need each other and neither one of them can be convincingly used on its own. The amalgamation of the hardware and the software gives control and flexibility to modern-day computing systems. Without software, computers would be of no use. For instance, without the help of your web browser software, you will not be able to surf the Internet. Similarly, without an operating system, no application can run on your computer.
Today there are abundant high-end technologies and software accessible to us that outline the way we lead our lives and house our continuously changing and increasing needs. The endless number of software types can be overwhelming for anybody, especially when one does not understand the various types of software and their users thoroughly.
Different Types of Software
Typically, there are two major classifications of software, namely System Software and Application Software.
1. System Software
A system software aids the user and the hardware to function and interact with each other. Basically, it is a software to manage computer hardware behavior so as to provide basic functionalities that are required by the user. In simple words, we can say that system software is an intermediator or a middle layer between the user and the hardware. These computer software sanction a platform or environment for the other software to work in. This is the reason why system software is very important in managing the entire computer system. When you first turn on the computer, it is the system software that gets initialized and gets loaded in the memory of the system. The system software runs in the background and is not used by the end-users. This is the reason why system software is also known as ‘low-level software’.
Some common system software examples are:
Operating System: It is the most prominent example of System Software. It is a collection of software that handles resources and provides general services for the other applications that run over them. Although each Operating System is different, most of them provide a Graphical User Interface through which a user can manage the files and folders and perform other tasks. Every device, whether a desktop, laptop or mobile phone requires an operating system to provide the basic functionality to it. As an OS essentially determines how a user interacts with the system, therefore many users prefer to use one specific OS for their device. There are various types of operating system such as real-time, embedded, distributed, multiuser, single-user, internet, mobile, and many more. It is important to consider the hardware specifications before choosing an operating system. Some examples of Operating systems given below:
Android
CentOS
iOS
Linux
Mac OS
MS Windows
Ubuntu
Unix
Device Drivers: It is a type of software that controls particular hardware which is attached to the system. Hardware devices that need a driver to connect to a system include displays, sound cards, printers, mice and hard disks. Further, there are two types of device drivers: Kernel Device Drivers and User Device Driver. Some examples of device drivers are:
BIOS Driver
Display Drivers
Motherboard Drivers
Printer Drivers
ROM Drivers
Sound card Driver
USB Drivers
USB Drivers
VGA Drivers
VGA Drivers
Virtual Device Drivers
Firmware:Firmware is the permanent software that is embedded into a read-only memory. It is a set of instructions permanently stored on a hardware device. It provides essential information regarding how the device interacts with other hardware. Firmware can be considered as ‘semi-permanent as it remains permanent unless it is updated using a firmware updater. Some examples of firmware are:
BIOS
Computer Peripherals
Consumer Applications
Embedded Systems
UEFI
Programming Language Translators: These are mediator programs on which software programs rely to translate high-level language code to simpler machine-level code. Besides simplifying the code, the translators also do the following :
Assign data storage
Enlist source code as well as program details
Offer diagnostic reports
Rectify system errors during the runtime
Examples of Programming Language Translators are Interpreter, Compiler and Assemblers.
Utility: Utility software is designed to aid in analyzing, optimizing, configuring, and maintaining a computer system. It supports the computer infrastructure. This software focuses on how an OS functions and then accordingly it decides its trajectory to smoothen the functioning of the system. Softwares like antiviruses, disk cleanup & management tools, compression tools, defragmenters, etc are all utility tools. Some examples of utility tools are:
Avast Antivirus
Directory Opus
McAfee Antivirus
Piriform CCleaner
Razer Cortex
Windows File Explorer
WinRAR
WinZip
2. Application Software
Application Software, also known as end-user programs or productivity programs is software that helps the user in completing tasks such as doing online research, jotting down notes, setting an alarm, designing graphics, keeping an account log, doing calculations or even playing games. They lie above the system software. Unlike system software, they are used by the end-user and are specific in their functionality or tasks and do the job that they are designed to do. For example, a browser is an application designed specifically for browsing the internet, or MS Powerpoint is an application used specifically for making presentations. Application Software or simply apps can also be referred to as non-essential software as their requirement is highly subjective and their absence does not affect the functioning of the system. All the apps that we see on our mobile phones are also examples of Application Software. There is certain software that is exclusively made for app development like Meteor and Flutter. These are examples of Application software too.
There are various types of application software:
Word Processors: These applications for documentation. Along with that it also helps in storing, formatting and printing of these documents. Some examples of word processors are:
Abiword
Apple iWork- Pages
Corel WordPerfect
Google Docs
MS Word
Database Software: This software is used to create and manage a database. It is also known as the Database Management System or DBMS. They help with the organization of data. Some examples of DBMS are:
Clipper
dBase
FileMaker
FoxPro
MS Access
MySQL
Multimedia Software: It is the software that is able to play, create or record images, audio or video files. They are used for video editing, animation, graphics, and image editing, Some examples of Multimedia Software are:
Adobe Photoshop
Inkscape
Media Monkey
Picasa
VLC Media Player
Windows Media Player
Windows Movie Maker
Education and Reference Software: These types of software are specifically designed to facilitate learning on a particular subject. There are various kinds of tutorial software that fall under this category. They are also termed academic software. Some examples are:
Delta Drawing
GCompris
Jumpstart titles
KidPix
MindPlay
Tux Paint
Graphics Software: As the name suggests, Graphics Software has been devised to work with graphics as it helps the user to edit or make changes in visual data or images. It comprises of picture editors and illustration software. Some examples are:
Adobe Photoshop
Autodesk Maya
Blender
Carrara
CorelDRAW
GIMP
Modo
PaintShop Pro
Web Browsers: These applications are used to browse the internet. They help the user in locating and retrieving data across the web. Some examples of web browsers are:
Google Chrome
Internet Explorer
Microsoft Edge
Mozilla Firefox
Opera
Safari
UC Browser
Other than these, all the software that serves a specific purpose fall under the category of Application Software.
However, there exists one more classification of the software. The software can also be classified based on its availability and sharability.
Freeware software is available without any cost. Any user can download it from the internet and use it without paying any fee. However, freeware does not provide any liberty for modifying the software or charging a fee for its distribution. Examples are:
Adobe Reader
Audacity
ImgBurn
Recuva
Skype
Team Viewer
Yahoo Messenger
2. Shareware
It is software that is freely distributed to users on a trial basis. It usually comes with a time limit and when the time limit expires, the user is asked to pay for the continued services. There are various types of shareware like Adware, Donationware, Nagware, Freemium, and Demoware (Cripplewareand Trialware). Some examples of shareware are:
Adobe Acrobat
Getright
PHP Debugger
Winzip
3. Open-source
These kinds of software are available to users with the source code which means that a user can freely distribute and modify the software and add additional features to the software. Open-Source software can either be free or chargeable. Some examples of open-source software are:
Apache Web Server
GNU Compiler Collection
Moodle
Mozilla Firefox
Thunderbird
4. Software
They are also known as Closed-source software. These types of applications are usually paid and have intellectual property rights or patents over the source code. The use of these is very restricted and usually, the source code is preserved and kept as a secret.
In Android, we have two types of unit tests that we can write:
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