A one-of-a-kind book on Android application development with Mono for Android The wait is over! For the millions of .NET/C# developers who have been eagerly awaiting the book that will guide them through the white-hot field of Android application programming, this is the book. As the first guide to focus on Mono for Android, this must-have resource dives into writing applications against Mono with C# and compiling executables that run on the Android family of devices. Putting the proven Wrox Professional format into practice, the authors provide you with the knowledge you need to become a successful Android application developer without having to learn another programming language. You'll explore screen controls, UI development, tables and layouts, and MonoDevelop as you become adept at developing Android applications with Mono for Android. Answers the demand for a detailed book on the extraordinarily popular field of Android application development Strengthens your existing skills of writing applications and shows you how to transfer your talents to building Android apps with Mono for Android and .NET/C# Dives into working with data, REST, SOAP, XML, and JSON Discusses how to communicate with other applications, deploy apps, and even make money in the process Professional Android Programming with Mono for Android and .NET/C# gets you up and running with Android app development today.

A bundle of 3 best-selling and respected mobile development e-books from Wrox form a complete library on the key tools and techniques for developing apps across the hottest platforms including Android and iOS. This collection includes the full content of these three books, at a special price: Professional Android Programming with Mono for Android and .NET/C#, ISBN: 9781118026434, by Wallace B. McClure, Nathan Blevins, John J. Croft, IV, Jonathan Dick, and Chris Hardy Professional iPhone Programming with MonoTouch and .NET/C#, ISBN: 9780470637821, by Wallace B. McClure, Rory Blyth, Craig Dunn, Chris Hardy, and Martin Bowling Professional Cross-Platform Mobile Development in C#, ISBN: 9781118157701, by Scott Olson, John Hunter, Ben Horgen, and Kenny Goers

It’s true: you can build native apps for iOS, Android, and Windows Phone with C# and the .NET Framework—with help from MonoTouch and Mono for Android. This hands-on guide shows you how to reuse one codebase across all three platforms by combining the business logic layer of your C# app with separate, fully native UIs. It’s an ideal marriage of platform-specific development and the "write once, run everywhere" philosophy. By building a series of simple applications, you’ll experience the advantages of using .NET in mobile development and learn how to write complete apps that access the unique features of today’s three most important mobile platforms. Learn the building blocks for building applications on iOS, Android, and Windows Phone Discover how the Mono tools interact with iOS and Android Use several techniques and patterns for maximizing non-UI code reuse Determine how much functionality can go into the shared business logic layer Connect to external resources with .NET’s rich networking stack Read and write data using each platform’s filesystem and local database Create apps to explore the platforms’ location and mapping capabilities

Create applications for all major smartphone platforms Creating applications for the myriad versions and varieties of mobile phone platforms on the market can be daunting to even the most seasoned developer. This authoritative guide is written in such as way that it takes your existing skills and experience and uses that background as a solid foundation for developing applications that cross over between platforms, thereby freeing you from having to learn a new platform from scratch each time. Concise explanations walk you through the tools and patterns for developing for all the mobile platforms while detailed steps walk you through setting up your development environment for each platform. Covers all the major options from native development to web application development Discusses major third party platform development acceleration tools, such as Appcelerator and PhoneGap Zeroes in on topics such as developing applications for Android, IOS, Windows Phone 7, and Blackberry Professional Mobile Cross Platform Development shows you how to best exploit the growth in mobile platforms, with a minimum of hassle.

Over 80 hands-on recipes to unleash full potential for Xamarin in development and monetization of feature-packed, real-world Android apps About This Book Create a number of Android applications using the Xamarin Android platform Extensively integrate your Android devices with other Android devices to enhance your app creation experience A comprehensive guide packed with real-world scenarios and pro-level practices and techniques to help you build successful Android apps Who This Book Is For If you are a Xamarin developer who wants to create complete Android applications with Xamarin, then this book is ideal for you. No prior knowledge of Android development is needed, however a basic knowledge of C# and .NET would be useful. What You Will Learn Install and use Xamarin.Android with Xamarin Studio and Visual Studio Design an app's user interface for multiple device configurations Store and protect data in databases, files, and on the cloud Utilize lists and collections to present data to the user Communicate across the network using NFC or Bluetooth Perform tasks in the background and update the user with notifications Capture and play multimedia, such as video and audio, with the camera Implement In-App Billing and Expansion Files and deploy to the store In Detail Xamarin is used by developers to write native iOS, Android, and Windows apps with native user interfaces and share code across multiple platforms not just on mobile devices, but on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. Developing apps with Xamarin.Android allows you to use and re-use your code and your skills on different platforms, making you more productive in any development. Although it's not a write-once-run-anywhere framework, Xamarin provides native platform integration and optimizations. There is no middleware; Xamarin.Android talks directly to the system, taking your C# and F# code directly to the low levels. This book will provide you with the necessary knowledge and skills to be part of the mobile development era using C#. Covering a wide range of recipes such as creating a simple application and using device features effectively, it will be your companion to the complete application development cycle. Starting with installing the necessary tools, you will be guided on everything you need to develop an application ready to be deployed. You will learn the best practices for interacting with the device hardware, such as GPS, NFC, and Bluetooth. Furthermore, you will be able to manage multimedia resources such as photos and videos captured with the device camera, and so much more! By the end of this book, you will be able to create Android apps as a result of learning and implementing pro-level practices, techniques, and solutions. This book will ascertain a seamless and successful app building experience. Style and approach This book employs a step-by-step approach to Android app creation, explained in a conversational and easy-to-follow style. A wide range of examples are listed to ensure a complete understanding of how to deploy competent apps on the Android market.

Learn how to build cross-platform mobile apps from a single shared codebase KEY FEATURES ● Covers fundamental and advanced aspects of multi-platform mobile development ● Revisit the fundamentals of.NET and C# to create modern native apps more quickly ● Check out tips and advice on getting started as a successful mobile developer DESCRIPTION For any mobile developer, it's clear that Xamarin knowledge is vital, thanks to the reintroduction of .NET MAUI. This book provides the reader with complete hands-on experience in designing cross-platform mobile applications with Xamarin, C#, and .NET. The book discusses the importance of cross-platform mobile app development and the benefits of learning Xamarin. The book delivers a quick lesson on C# and Visual Studio to implement all of the knowledge gained in this book into your first mobile application. In the second half of the book, you'll learn to start from scratch using Xamarin and create mobile apps in C#. It explains how to utilise Visual Studio as the development environment, design the user interface using the XAML markup language, organise common controls into layouts, and create multi-page applications with navigation and various pages. This includes creating reusable resources, such as styles and templates, and the use of local and remote databases for data manipulation. In addition, the book offers expert advice on the requirements of a standard mobile application, such as handling network connection, battery level, and safeguarding data in the device's secure storage. WHAT YOU WILL LEARN ● Learn every aspect of Xamarin to create cross-platform mobile applications. ● Refresh .NET, C#, and Visual Studio skills required for mobile development. ● Build UI with XAML, views, and layouts, including navigation. ● Use reusable resources, data-oriented coding, multimedia support, and debug code. ● Explore advanced programming patterns and ways to improve performance. ● Tips and answers to help you land a job as a mobile developer. WHO THIS BOOK IS FOR This book is intended for beginners, aspiring mobile developers, .NET users, Visual Studio users, and application developers eager to design and build mobile apps compatible with numerous platforms. This book will also refresh your knowledge of .NET and C# so you can begin Xamarin development rapidly. TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. The importance of mobile app development 2. Xamarin and Microsoft in the mobile app market 3. Introducing .NET and Visual Studio 4. The C# programming language 5. Building apps with Xamarin and Xamarin.Forms 6. Organizing the User Interface with layouts 7. Understanding common views 8. Pages and navigation 9. Resources and Data Binding 10. Brushes, Shapes, and Media 11. Managing the application lifecycle 12. Working with Web API 13. Working with Native API 14. Finding a job 15. Succeeding as a Mobile App Developer

Master the skills required to develop cross-platform applications from drawing board to app store(s) using Xamarin About This Book Learn to deliver high-performance native apps that leverage platform specific acceleration, complied for native performance Learn development techniques that will allow you to use and create custom layouts for cross-platform UI Gain the knowledge needed to become more efficient in testing, deploying, and monitoring your applications Implement application life cycle management concepts to manage cross-platform projects Who This Book Is For Mobile application developers wanting to develop skills required to steer cross-platform applications using Xamarin. What You Will Learn Share C# code across platforms and call native Objective-C or Java libraries from C# Submit your app to the Apple App Store and Google Play Use the out-of-the-box services to support third-party libraries Find out how to get feedback while your application is used by your users Create shared data access using a local SQLite database and a REST service Test and monitor your applications Gain memory management skills to avoid memory leaks and premature code cycles while decreasing the memory print of your applications Integrate network resources with cross-platform applications Design and implement eye-catching and reusable UI components without compromising on nativity in mobile applications In Detail Developing a mobile application for just one platform is becoming a thing of the past. Companies expect their apps to be supported on iOS, Android and Windows Phone, while leveraging the best native features on all three platforms. Xamarin's tools help ease this problem by giving developers a single toolset to target all three platforms. The main goal of this course is to equip you with knowledge to successfully analyze, develop, and manage Xamarin cross-platform projects using the most efficient, robust, and scalable implementation patterns. Module 1 is a step-by-step guide to building real-world applications for iOS and Android. The module walks you through building a chat application, complete with a backend web service and native features such as GPS location, camera, and push notifications. Additionally, you'll learn how to use external libraries with Xamarin and Xamarin.Forms. Module 2 provide you recipes on how to create an architecture that will be maintainable, extendable, use Xamarin.Forms plugins to boost productivity. We start with a simple creation of a Xamarin.Forms solution, customize the style and behavior of views for each platform. Further on, we demonstrate the power of architecting a cross-platform solution. Next, you will utilize and access hardware features that vary from platform to platform with cross-platform techniques. You will master the steps of getting the app ready and publishing it in the app store. The last module starts with general topics such as memory management, asynchronous programming, local storage, networking, and platform-specific features. You will learn about key tools to leverage the pattern and advanced implementation strategies. Finally, we show you the toolset for application lifecycle management to help you prepare the development pipeline to manage and see cross-platform projects through to public or private release. After the completion of this course, you will learn a path that will get you up and running with developing cross-platform mobile applications and help you become the go-to person when it comes to Xamarin. Style and approach This course will serve as comprehensive guide for developing cross-platform applications with Xamarin with a unique approach that will engage you like never before as you create real-world cross-platform apps on your own.

This second Preview Edition ebook, now with 16 chapters, is about writing applications for Xamarin.Forms, the new mobile development platform for iOS, Android, and Windows phones unveiled by Xamarin in May 2014. Xamarin.Forms lets you write shared user-interface code in C# and XAML that maps to native controls on these three platforms.

Develop mobile enterprise applications in a language you already know! With employees, rather than the IT department, now driving the decision of which devices to use on the job, many companies are scrambling to integrate enterprise applications. Fortunately, enterprise developers can now create apps for all major mobile devices using C#/.NET and Mono, languages most already know. A team of authors draws on their vast experiences to teach you how to create cross-platform mobile applications, while delivering the same functionality to PC's, laptops and the web from a single technology platform and code-base. Rather than reinventing the wheel with each app, this book provides you with the tools you need for cross-platform development--no new languages needed! Presents an overview of the sea change occurring with the use of enterprise mobile applications and what it means for developers Shares the criteria for evaluating and selecting the best option for application architecture Reviews tools and techniques for setting up a cross-platform development environment Offers an introduction to the MonoCross open-source project and pattern for cross-platform development Packed with specific software design patterns, development best practices, code examples and sample applications, this must-have book gets you started developing cross-platform mobile apps today.

What will you learn from this book? If you have an idea for a killer Android app, this book will help you build your first working application in a jiffy. You’ll learn hands-on how to structure your app, design interfaces, create a database, make your app work on various smartphones and tablets, and much more. It’s like having an experienced Android developer sitting right next to you! All you need is some Java know-how to get started. Why does this book look so different? Based on the latest research in cognitive science and learning theory, Head First Android Development uses a visually rich format to engage your mind, rather than a text-heavy approach that puts you to sleep. Why waste your time struggling with new concepts? This multi-sensory learning experience is designed for the way your brain really works.