Nauman Rasheed

Report on Android Operating System Prepared By Muneeb Ahmed BS in Physics Semester 1 Contents Definition of Android ............................................................................................................. 3 Introduction to Android ......................................................................................................... 4 How Android started ................................................................................................................................ 4 Versions of Android ............................................................................................................... 5 Android Beta............................................................................................................................................. 5 Android Astro 1.0 ..................................................................................................................................... 5 Android Cupcake 1.5 ................................................................................................................................ 6 Android Donut 1.6 .................................................................................................................................... 7 Android Éclair 2.0/2.1 .............................................................................................................................. 8 Android Froyo 2.2 ..................................................................................................................................... 9 Android Gingerbread 2.3........................................................................................................................ 10 Android Honeycomb 3.0 ........................................................................................................................ 11 Android Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS) 4.0................................................................................................... 12 Android JellyBean 4.1 ............................................................................................................................. 13 Android 4.4 KitKat (API level 19) ........................................................................................................... 14 Android 5.0 Lollipop ............................................................................................................................... 15 Latest Version of Android .................................................................................................... 16 Android 6.0 Marshmallow ..................................................................................................................... 16 Upcoming Verion of Android ............................................................................................... 17 Salient Features: ..................................................................................................................................... 17 History of Android ............................................................................................................... 19 Android 2.3 ............................................................................................................................................. 19 Android 4.0 ............................................................................................................................................. 20 Samsung TouchWiz................................................................................................................................. 20 HTC Sense ............................................................................................................................................... 21 Technical Details ..................................................................................................................................... 22 Conclusion........................................................................................................................... 23 Reference of Data................................................................................................................ 24 Study Report on Android Operating System Page 2 Definition of Android Android is a mobile operating system developed by Google. It is used by several smartphones, such as:  Motorola Droid  Samsung Galaxy  Google's own Nexus One The Android operating system (OS) is based on the open Linux kernel. Unlike the iPhone OS, Android is open source, meaning developers can modify and customize the OS for each phone. Therefore, different Android-based phones may have different graphical user interfaces GUIs even though they use the same OS. Android phones typically come with several built-in applications and also support third-party programs. Developers can create programs for Android using the free Android SDK (Software Developer Kit). Android programs are written in Java and run through Google's "Davlik" virtual machine, which is optimized for mobile devices. Users can download Android "apps" from the online Android Market. Since several manufacturers make Android-based phones, it is not always easy to tell if a phone is running the Android operating system. If you are unsure what operating system a phone uses, you can often find the system information by selecting "About" in the Settings menu. The name "Android" comes from the term android, which refers to a robot designed to look and act like a human. Study Report on Android Operating System Page 3 Introduction to Android How Android started Android is an operating system for mobile devices such as smartphones and tablet computers. It is developed by the Open Handset Alliance led by Google. It's is built on a Linux foundation. Google purchased the initial developer the software, Android Inc., in 2005. The unveiling of the Android distribution on November 5, 2007 was announced with the founding of the Open Handset Alliance, a consortium of 84 hardware, software, and telecommunication companies devoted to advancing open standards for mobile devices. This alliance shares a common goal of fostering innovation on mobile devices and giving consumers a far better user experience than much of what is available on today's mobile platforms. By providing developers a new level of openness that enables them to work more collaboratively, Android will accelerate the pace at which new and compelling mobile services are made available to consumers. Android is often symbolized by the green robot to the right. Android has evolved rapidly since its launch. Google has named all projects after a dessert. The main releases are listed below, this is nothing you have to memorize and it’s just to illustrate the rapid pace of development and all the innovations. Android is developed "on Internet time", that is much faster than the old style of development (for example Windows releases which are typically several years apart). Study Report on Android Operating System Page 4 Versions of Android Android Beta  Android Beta First Version of Android  The focus of Android beta is testing incorporating usability  Android beta will generally have many more problems on speed and performance. Android Astro 1.0  Released on September 23, 2008  Android Market allowed application downloads and updates through the Market application  Web browser to show, zoom and pan full HTML and XHTML web pages – multiple pages show as windows  Camera support – however, this version lacked the option to change the camera's resolution, white balance, quality, etc.  Folders allowing the grouping of a number of application icons into a single folder icon on the Home screen  Access to web email servers, supporting POP3, IMAP4, and SMTP  Gmail synchronization with the Gmail application  Google Contacts synchronization with the People application  Google Calendar synchronization with the Calendar application  Google Maps with Street View to view maps and satellite imagery, as well as find local business and obtain driving directions using GPS  Google Sync, allowing management of over-the-air synchronization of Gmail, People, and Calendar  Google Search, allowing users to search the Internet and phone applications, contacts, calendar, etc.  Google Talk instant messaging  Instant messaging, text messaging, and MMS  Media Player, enabling management, importing, and playback of media files – however, this version lacked video and stereo Bluetooth support  Notifications appear in the Status bar, with options to set ringtone, LED or vibration alerts  Voice Dialer allows dialing and placing of phone calls without typing a name or number  Wallpaper allows the user to set the background image or photo behind the Home screen icons and widgets  YouTube video player  Other applications include: Alarm Clock, Calculator, Dialer (Phone), Home screen (Launcher), Pictures (Gallery), and Settings  Wi-Fi and Bluetooth support Study Report on Android Operating System Page 5 Android Cupcake 1.5  Released on April 30, 2009  Support for third-party virtual keyboards with text prediction and user dictionary for custom words  Support for Widgets – miniature application views that can be embedded in other applications (such as the Home screen) and receive periodic updates  Video recording and playback in MPEG-4 and 3GP formats  Copy and paste features in web browser  User pictures shown for Favorites in Contacts  Specific date/time stamp shown for events in call log, and one-touch access to a contact card from call log event  Animated screen transition  Auto-rotation option  New stock boot animation  Ability to upload videos to YouTube  Ability to upload photos to Picasa Study Report on Android Operating System Page 6 Android Donut 1.6  Released on September 15, 2009  Voice and text entry search enhanced to include bookmark history, contacts, and the web  Ability for developers to include their content in search results  Multi-lingual speech synthesis engine to allow any Android application to "speak" a string of text  Easier searching and ability to view app screenshots in Android Market  Gallery, camera and camcorder more fully integrated, with faster camera access  Ability for users to select multiple photos for deletion  Updated technology support for CDMA/EVDO, 802.1x, VPNs, and a text-tospeech engine  Support for WVGA screen resolutions  Speed improvements in searching and camera applications  Expanded Gesture framework and new GestureBuilder development tool Study Report on Android Operating System Page 7 Android Éclair 2.0/2.1  Released on October 26, 2009  Expanded Account sync, allowing users to add multiple accounts to a device for synchronization of email and contacts  Microsoft Exchange email support, with combined inbox to browse email from multiple accounts in one page  Bluetooth 2.1 support  Ability to tap a Contacts photo and select to call, SMS, or email the person  Ability to search all saved SMS and MMS messages, with delete oldest messages in a conversation automatically deleted when a defined limit is reached  Numerous new camera features, including flash support, digital zoom, scene mode, white balance, color effect and macro focus  Improved typing speed on virtual keyboard, with smarter dictionary that learns from word usage and includes contact names as suggestions  Refreshed browser UI with bookmark thumbnails, double-tap zoom and support for HTML5  Calendar agenda view enhanced, showing attending status for each invitee, and ability to invite new guests to events  Optimized hardware speed and revamped UI  Support for more screen sizes and resolutions, with better contrast ratio  Improved Google Maps 3.1.2  Motion Event class enhanced to track multi-touch events  Addition of live wallpapers, allowing the animation of home-screen background images to show movement Study Report on Android Operating System Page 8 Android Froyo 2.2  Released on May 20, 2010  Speed, memory, and performance optimizations  Integration of Chrome's V8 JavaScript engine into the Browser application  Improved application launcher with shortcuts to Phone and Browser applications  USB tethering and Wi-Fi hotspot functionality  Option to disable data access over mobile network  Updated Market application with batch and automatic update features  Quick switching between multiple keyboard languages and their dictionaries  Support for Bluetooth-enabled car and desk docks  Support for numeric and alphanumeric passwords  Support for file upload fields in the Browser application  The browser now shows all frames of animated GIFs instead of just the first frame only  Support for installing applications to the expandable memory  Adobe Flash support  Support for high-PPI displays (up to 320 ppi), such as four-inch 720p screens  Gallery allows users to view picture stacks using a zoom gesture Study Report on Android Operating System Page 9 Android Gingerbread 2.3  Released on December 6, 2010  Updated user interface design with increased simplicity and speed  Support for extra-large screen sizes and resolutions (WXGA and higher)  Native support for SIP VoIP internet telephony  Faster, more intuitive text input in virtual keyboard, with improved accuracy, better suggested text and voice input mode  Enhanced copy/paste functionality, allowing users to select a word by press-hold, copy, and paste  New Download Manager, giving users easy access to any file downloaded from the browser, email, or another application  Support for multiple cameras on the device, including a front-facing camera, if available  Support for WebM/VP8 video playback, and AAC audio encoding  Improved power management with a more active role in managing applications that are keeping the device awake for too long  Enhanced support for native code development  Switched from YAFFS to ext4 on newer devices  Audio, graphical, and input enhancements for game developers Study Report on Android Operating System Page 10 Android Honeycomb 3.0  Released on February 22, 2011  Optimized tablet support with a new “holographic” user interface  Added System Bar, featuring quick access to notifications, status, and soft navigation buttons, available at the bottom of the screen  Simplified multitasking – tapping Recent Applications in the System Bar allows users to see snapshots of the tasks underway and quickly jump from one application to another  Redesigned keyboard, making typing fast, efficient and accurate on larger screen sizes  Simplified, more intuitive copy/paste interface  Quick access to camera exposure, focus, flash, zoom, front-facing camera, time-lapse, and other camera features  Ability to view albums and other collections in full-screen mode in Gallery, with easy access to thumbnails for other photos  Hardware acceleration  Support for multi-core processors  Ability to encrypt all user data  HTTPS stack improved with Server Name Indication (SNI) Study Report on Android Operating System Page 11 Android Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS) 4.0  Released on November 14, 2011  Major refinements to the "Holo" interface with new Roboto font family  Soft buttons from Android 3.x are now available for use on phones  Separation of widgets in a new tab, listed in a similar manner to applications  Easier-to-create folders, with a drag-and-drop style  Improved visual voicemail with the ability to speed up or slow down voicemail messages  Pinch-to-zoom functionality in the calendar  Improved error correction on the keyboard  Ability to access applications directly from lock screen  Improved copy and paste functionality  Better voice integration and continuous, real-time speech to text dictation  Face Unlock, a feature that allows users to unlock handsets using facial recognition software  Automatic syncing of browser with users' Chrome bookmarks  Ability to shut down applications from the recent apps list with a swipe  Built-in photo editor  New gallery layout, organized by location and person  Support for the WebP image format  Hardware acceleration of the UI  Wi-Fi Direct  1080p video recording for stock Android devices Study Report on Android Operating System Page 12 Android JellyBean 4.1  Released on June 27, 2012  Triple buffering in the graphics pipeline  CPU input boost  Synchronizing touch to vsync timing  Enhanced accessibility  Bi-directional text and other language support  User-installable keyboard maps  Expandable notifications  Ability to turn off notifications on an application-specific basis  Shortcuts and widgets can automatically be re-arranged or re-sized to allow new items to fit on home screens  Bluetooth data transfer for Android Beam  Tablets with smaller screens now use an expanded version of the interface layout and home screen used by phones  Improved camera application  Multichannel audio  USB audio (for external sound DACs)  Audio chaining (also known as gapless playback)  Ability for other launchers to add widgets from the application drawer without requiring root access. Study Report on Android Operating System Page 13 Android 4.4 KitKat (API level 19)  Released on October 31, 2013  Refreshed interface with white elements instead of blue  Ability for applications to use "immersive mode" to keep the navigation and status bars hidden while maintaining user interaction  Action overflow menu buttons are always visible, even on devices with a "Menu" key, which was officially deprecated by Android 4.0  Wireless printing capability  NFC host card emulation, enabling a device to replace smart cards  Expanded functionality for notification listener services  Public API for developing and managing text messaging clients  New framework for UI transitions  Sensor batching, step detector and counter APIs  Audio tunneling, audio monitoring and loudness enhancer  Built-in screen recording feature  Native infrared blaster API  Verified boot  Enforcing SELinux  Expanded accessibility APIs and system-level closed captioning settings  Bluetooth Message Access Profile (MAP) support  Disabled access to battery statistics by third-party applications  Settings application no longer uses a multi-pane layout on devices with larger screens  Wi-Fi and mobile data activity (TX/RX) indicators are moved to quick settings  Disables text wrapping in the WebView browser component Study Report on Android Operating System Page 14 Android 5.0 Lollipop  Released on November 12, 2014  Support for 64-bit CPUs  Support for print previews  Material design, bringing a restyled user interface  Refreshed notification tray and quick settings pull-down  Project Volta, for battery life improvements  Searches can be performed within the system settings for quicker access to particular settings  Lock screen provides shortcuts to application and notification settings  Guest logins and multiple user accounts are available on more devices, such as phones  Audio input and output through USB devices  Third-party applications regain the ability to read and modify data located anywhere on external storage, such as on SD cards  Pinning of an application's screen for restricted user activity  Recently used applications are remembered even after restarting the device  Addition of 15 new languages: Basque, Bengali, Burmese, Chinese (Hong Kong), Galician, Icelandic, Kannada, Kyrgyz, Macedonian, Malayalam, Marathi, Nepali, Sinhala, Tamil and Telugu  A flashlight-style application is included, working on supported devices with a camera flash  User-customizable priorities for application notifications  Smart lock feature  Improved accessibility support (e.g. switch access support)  Block-based over-the-air (OTA) updates for new device Study Report on Android Operating System Page 15 Latest Version of Android Android 6.0 Marshmallow  Released on October 5, 2015  Google "Now on Tap" feature  Introduction of Doze mode, which reduces CPU speed while the screen is off in order to save battery life  Alphabetically accessible vertical application drawer  Application search bar and favorites  Native fingerprint reader support  Direct Share feature for target-specific sharing between apps  Renamed "Priority" mode to "Do Not Disturb" mode  Larger Application folders with multiple pages  Post-install/run-time permission requests  USB Type-C support  Demo Mode feature for screenshot-capture usage  Automatic full data backup and restore for apps  4K display mode for apps  Adoptable External storage to behave like Internal Storage  MIDI support for musical instruments  Experimental multi-window feature Study Report on Android Operating System Page 16 Upcoming Version of Android Android N could bring a VR mode to Android phones, while Google has also confirmed the new software will make it easier for phone manufacturers to bring pressure-sensitive display tech to the market.  Android N is Google's phone and tablet operating system update that's been so thoroughly refined, the company is now more than halfway through the English alphabet  Now available to download and install in Developer Preview form, it includes new features that didn't make the cut in November's Android 6.0 Marshmallow launch alongside the Nexus 6P and Nexus 5X  It worked well enough for the iPhone and iPad when the same idea made its debut with iOS 8 under the name Quick Reply  Google is opening up Direct Reply Notifications beyond Hangouts, and that could mean popular apps like WhatsApp could take advantage of this convenient inline messaging feature  Google is adding a new quick settings menu to the notifications shade you pull down from the top. Salient Features:  Switching between recent apps isn't true multitasking, as much as Google's concurrent activities tweak to Android 5.0 Lollipop was a step in the right direction  It's funny, one of the smallest additions to Android N is having the biggest impact on my day: the new Quick Settings menu that appears at the top of the notifications shade Study Report on Android Operating System Page 17  Notifications are more organized, detailed and interactive in Android N, and it makes using the new operating system update a seamless experience in its early days  The biggest complaint I hear about when talking about phones with people is "I like my phone, but the battery life is awful." That's why people are clamoring for the easily-swappable LG G5 battery  It's easier than ever to download and install this Android Developer Preview because it can be downloaded straight to your device without having to flash it or tether it to a PC. Study Report on Android Operating System Page 18 History of Android You saw above that the Android releases have been named after various desserts. So it's only natural that there are several flavors of Android! The Android platform is made available under developer-friendly open-source licenses, which gives device manufacturers and mobile operator’s significant freedom and flexibility to design products. That flexibility also means there are several different "flavors" of Android. The biggest device manufacturers often put their own "skin" on top of Android, which means the User Interface on a phone or tablet from one manufacturer may be different than the UI from another. Here are some examples: Interface Phone/Manufacturer "Vanilla" Nexus One, Nexus S, Galaxy Nexus TouchWiz Samsung Sense HTC Blur/Motoblur Motorola UX Sony Ericsson "Vanilla" interface means it's an unmodified version of Google's Android. The Nexus series (HTC made the Nexus One, Samsung made the Nexus S and Galaxy Nexus) use this version, so if you get a Nexus phone you'll get updates faster than for other phones which use some of the heavier modifications. Some manufacturers, e.g. Huawei, ZTE, Acer and LG have done some light additions to Android, often in the form of additional apps. Android 2.3 Study Report on Android Operating System Page 19 Android 4.0 Samsung TouchWiz Study Report on Android Operating System Page 20 HTC Sense Here is an example of the home screen for an Android tablet (Asus Transformer): Study Report on Android Operating System Page 21 Technical Details Google released most of the Android code under the Apache License, a free software license. The Android Open Source Project (AOSP) is tasked with the maintenance and further development of Android. Android consists of a kernel based on the Linux kernel, with middleware, libraries and APIs written in C and application software running on an application framework which includes Javacompatible libraries based on Apache Harmony. Android uses the Dalvik virtual machine with just-intime compilation to run compiled Java code. Android has a large community of developers writing applications ("apps") that extend the functionality of the devices. Developers write primarily in a customized version of Java. There are currently more than 520,000 apps available for Android. Apps can be downloaded from third-party sites or through online stores such as Android Market, the app store run by Google. Study Report on Android Operating System Page 22 Conclusion I've learned through my research that Android is a much more diverse operating system than iOS and Windows Phone Mobile. Android has grown rapidly over the past 4 years becoming the most used smartphone operating system in the world. It's because Android doesn't release 1 phone from 1 company with 1 new OS every year, but countless phones from numerous companies, adding their own twist, throughout the year, developing gradually day-by-day. Android's ability to customize is unparalleled compared to Apple's and Microsoft's software allowing the user to change and customize nearly every aspect of Android which most iPhone and Windows 7 users wouldn't dream possible. I am not one to say that Android is better or worse than one OS, but is unique and incomparable to other mobile operating systems. Study Report on Android Operating System Page 23 Reference of Data http://techterms.com/definition/android http://teckhamsterblog.files.wordpress.com/2010/12/cupcake.jpg http://the-gadgeteer.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/Android-1.6-Donut.jpg http://www.signature9.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/android_froyo.jpg http://i.zdnet.com/blogs/gingerdroid.png http://ticker.ttsh.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/android-ecliar.jpg http://cdn4.digitaltrends.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/android-3-0honeycomb-official-logo.jpg http://www.geek.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/android_ice-cream-sandwich580x423.jpg http://www.google.com/ http://www.wikipedia.com/ Study Report on Android Operating System Page 24