Android is a mobile operating system first developed by a Silicon Valley company named Android Inc. The collaboration spearheaded by Google in 2007 through the Open Handset Alliance (OHA) gave Android an edge in delivering a complete software set. The set includes the main operating system, the middleware and the specific mobile application or “app”.
Being patterned after the Linux kernel, the Android was also released as open source code. Developing for the Android can be done either through Windows, Linux or Mac. Although primarily written in the Java, there is no Java Development Machine (JDM) in the platform. Instead of allowing Java programs to run through the JDM, Google developed their own virtual machine specifically for the Android called Dalvik -- it runs the re-compiled Java code and reads it as a Dalvik bytecode. Dalvik was designed to optimize battery power and still work well in an environment with limited memory and CPU power such as that of mobile phones, netbooks and tablet PCs. One of the Android’s selling points is its ability to break down application boundaries. Another advantage is that it can be easily developed, not to mention the speed of development of applications (or “apps”). A large community of developers continually comes up with apps that enhance the capability of devices. They can then make their applications available for users the world over through Google’s Android Market or other third-party sites.
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