make an Android app on your computer - Tutorial 1

We are launching a new series where we will teach you everything that you need to know about making an Android app. It does not matter if you cannot afford a fancy Android tablet or a smartphone. We begin this series with a small tutorial on how to make an app using your laptop. All Android development tools are available on the web for free. You can start developing apps for Androids by following some simple steps described below:

System Requirement 

Development for Android can be done on any reasonably-sized computer with Windows or Linux. For a decent experience, a computer or laptop with the following configuration is recommended: a 2.0 GHz CPU with at least 3 GB of RAM and 1 GB of available hard disk space.  You don’t require an Android device to start developing as you can test your app in the Android virtual device that comes with the Android Development Tools Bundle.

Software Requirements 

Android Development Tools Bundle (contains Eclispse,  Android SDK, Device Emulator)

Java Development Kit or JDK (6 or 7)

Follow the steps below to set up an Android development environment:

Step 1 : Download JDK from the following Link

http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/downloads/index.html

Now Install Java using the downloaded “jdk-7-windows-i586″  just like you install any other software.

Step 2 : Download ADT Bundle from the following link

http://developer.android.com/sdk/index.html

Step 3 : Extract ADT bundle to a specific folder

Once you download the ADT Bundle , you will get a zip file named “adt-bundle-windows-x86″ which is roughly 400 MB in size.

Extract this zip file to any specific folder where you would like to set up your Android development tools.

Open that  folder to find two folders “Eclispe” and “sdk”. Open the eclipse folder.

Step 4 : Open Eclipse

In Eclipse folder click on the Eclipse icon.

Step 5 : Select your projects folder

Now the Android development tools will launch eclipse for the first time. It will take a while for it to set up until you reach the following screen:

Select the folder where you want your Android development projects to be stored and click OK.  Eclipse will be loaded and you are all set to start developing apps for Android. To start an Android app development project select  File –> New –> Android Application Project. 

Step 6 : Create an Android Virtual Device (AVD)

In case you don’t have an Android Device , you can easily create a virtual device by selecting Window –> AVD Manager –> New

In the following window, Give a name to your virtual device and Select 4.0 “Nexus S ” for device and Android 4.2 as target and click OK

Your virtual device is ready now and your Android development project can be tested. The Virtual device will pop up automatically when you run your project for testing. Be patient as it may take up to 5 mins for the device to load entirely.

Now you are all set to start developing your own Android apps. If you have any doubts regarding this post or get stuck while trying to set up an android development environment, you can post your queries in the comment section below and we will be happy to help you. we will post the second tutorial in the coming week. keep checking.

Happy Coding!