Mobile Application Development

The route

Lessons are in the order that makes each one easier than the last. Each unit ends with a short quiz.

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   Unit 1

   Introduction to Mobile Computing and Mobile Applications

   The phone in your pocket is a small, battery-powered, sensor-packed computer that loses signal in lifts. Everything about building for it starts there.
   1. Mobile Applications and Mobile Application DevelopmentFree The most personal computer ever made lives in a pocket, and it plays by different rules from the laptop. 10 min
   3. Constraints of Mobile Development and Mobile Service Channels Low-end phones, patchy data and the humble USSD menu that still moves billions of naira. 11 min
   4. The Mobile Application Development Lifecycle Six stages that turn "wouldn't it be nice if..." into an app people keep on their phones. 11 min
   5. Unit 1 quiz6 questions on this unit 8 min
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   Unit 2 Full plan

   Mobile Platforms and Development Approaches

   Two giant platforms, a stack of layers under every app, and four very different ways to put your code on a phone.
   1. Mobile Operating Systems One open platform on thousands of phones, one closed platform on Apple's own hardware, and a handful of others. 10 min
   2. The Android Platform Architecture Six layers between a tap on the screen and the electrons in the chip, each doing one job. 11 min
   3. The iOS Architecture and Application Sandboxing Four layers from touch to silicon, and the walled room every app lives in. 10 min
   4. Native, Web, Hybrid and Progressive Web Applications Four ways to put software on a phone, from fully native to nothing more than a clever website. 12 min
   5. Cross-Platform Frameworks and Selection of a Development Approach Write once, run on both, and know exactly what that promise costs. 13 min
   6. Unit 2 quiz7 questions on this unit 9 min
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   Unit 3 Full plan

   Android Application Fundamentals

   An Android app is not one program with a main() function; it is a set of components the system starts, pauses and kills on its own schedule.
   1. Android Application Components Four kinds of building block, each one an entry point the system can start on its own. 11 min
   2. Intents, Intent Filters and the Android Manifest How one screen asks for another, and how an app tells the system what it is made of. 11 min
   3. The Android Activity Lifecycle Six callbacks that tell a screen when it is born, seen, touched, covered, hidden and gone. 13 min
   4. Configuration Changes, State Preservation and the ViewModel Why turning the phone sideways can wipe a half-typed form, and the three tools that stop it. 12 min
   5. Unit 3 quiz7 questions on this unit 9 min
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   Unit 4 Full plan

   Mobile User Interface Design

   A thumb, a five-inch screen and a user standing in a moving bus. Designing for that is a craft with its own rules.
   1. Material Design and the Human Interface Guidelines Two rulebooks written by the platform makers, so that every app feels at home on its phone. 11 min
   2. Declarative User Interfaces and Layouts in Jetpack Compose Describe what the screen should look like right now, and let the framework work out the changes. 13 min
   3. Mobile Navigation Patterns How users find their way around an app they can only see five inches of at a time. 11 min
   4. Screen Density, Responsive Layout and Mobile Accessibility One design that fits a budget phone, a foldable and a user who cannot see the screen at all. 12 min
   5. Unit 4 quiz6 questions on this unit 8 min
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   Unit 5 Full plan

   Data Storage, Networking and Device Features

   Where an app keeps its data, how it talks to servers when the network comes and goes, and how it asks politely to use the camera.
   1. Local Data Storage in Mobile Applications Preferences, files and databases, and how to pick the right drawer for each kind of data. 12 min
   2. Networking and RESTful APIs in Mobile Applications How an app asks a server for data without freezing the screen or burning through a data bundle. 12 min
   3. Offline-First Architecture and Data Synchronisation Treat the network as a bonus, not a requirement, and the app keeps working when the signal does not. 13 min
   4. Device Features and the Android Permission Model Camera, location and sensors make phones magical, and permissions keep that magic from becoming spying. 13 min
   5. Unit 5 quiz7 questions on this unit 9 min
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   Unit 6 Full plan

   Mobile Security, Testing, Performance and Publishing

   The last mile, from "it works on my phone" to an app that is safe, tested, light on battery and live in the stores.
   1. Mobile Application Security and Privacy Phones get stolen, Wi-Fi gets sniffed and APKs get unpacked; a safe app assumes all three. 13 min
   2. Mobile Application Testing Thousands of phones, three network speeds and one user who rotates the screen mid-payment. 11 min
   3. Mobile Application Performance and Battery Optimisation Sixteen milliseconds per frame, five seconds before the system loses patience, and a battery that must last till evening. 12 min
   4. Publishing Mobile Applications to Google Play and the App Store From a signed release build to a staged rollout, the last steps before strangers start using your work. 13 min
   5. Unit 6 quiz8 questions on this unit 10 min

Practise and remember