Mono for Android Book has been Released!!!!!

If I understand things correctly, and I make no guarantees that I do, our Mono for Android book has been RELEASED!  I'm not quite sure what this means, but my guess is that that it has been printed and is being shipped to various book sellers.

So, if you have pre-ordered a copy, its now up to Amazon to send it to you.  Its fully out of my control, Wrox, Wiley, as well as everyone but Amazon.

If you haven't bought a copy already, why?  Seriously, go order 8-10 copies for the ones you love.  They'll make great romantic gifts for the ones you love.  Just think at the look on the other person's face when you give them a copy of our book.

 Here's a little about the book:

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.

Develop Android apps using tools you already know—C# and .NET

Aimed at providing readers with a thorough, reliable resource that guides them through the field of Android application programming, this must-have book shows how to write applications using Mono with C# that run on the Android family of devices. A team of authors provides 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 planning, building, and developing Android applications with Mono for Android.

Professional Android Programming with Mono for Android and .NET/C#:

• Shows you how to use your existing C# and .NET skills to build Android apps
• Details optimal ways to work with data and bind data to controls
• Explains how to program with Android device hardware
• Dives into working with the file system and application preferences
• Discusses how to share code between Mono for Android, MonoTouch, and Windows® Phone 7
• Reveals tips for globalizing your apps with internationalization and localization support
• Covers development of tablet apps with Android 4

Wrox Professional guides are planned and written by working programmers to meet the real-world needs of programmers, developers, and IT professionals. Focused and relevant, they address the issues technology professionals face every day. They provide examples, practical solutions, and expert education in new technologies, all designed to help programmers do a better job.

Now, go buy a bunch of copies!!!!!

If you are interested in iPhone and Android and would like to get a little more knowledgeable in the area of development, you can purchase the 3 pack of books from Wrox on Mobile Development with Mono.  This will cover MonoTouch, Mono for Android, and cross platform methods for using both tools.  A great package in and of itself.  The name of that package is: Wrox Cross Platform Android and iOS Mobile Development Three-Pack 

Mobile: Wrox Cross Platform Mobile Development - iPhone, iPad, Android, and everything with .NET & C#

Wrox has produced a bundle of their 3 best selling mobile development books and it is available as of Today (March 16). 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

Remember, go buy 8-10 copies of the 3 book set for the ones you love. They will make great and romantic gifts!!

Android Development with Mono for Android 4 - Training via AppDev

My Android Development with Mono for Android 4 Video Training Series via AppDev is out and available.  That's right, .NET/C# developers can now write native apps for Android devices. I hope that this is helpful to you as you get up to speed with Mono for Android.  Here is some info on the training:

This course will show you how to use Mono for Android 4 by starting with how to install Mono for Android 4, introduce the SDK tools and then debugging of applications. The course then will show how to use the Emulators for items like interface design and controls. Next are the different types of Android devices and how to support them. Application Activities and lifecycles are covered and then Menus, Tables and Data. The course will then show the soft keyboards, advanced controls, user notifications and working with the contacts lists. The course will conclude with working with device hardware for directions, multimedia and Geo location.

In this course, you will learn:

• How to set up an Android Emulator
• About Android application framework support
• How to debug using profiling with Traceview
• How to setup a virtual device for Android emulation
• To design screen layouts for Android tablets
• About the basic set of controls
• What are the different Android application states
• How options menu is used with Action Bar in Android 3.0 and higher
• About the different types of virtual keyboards
• What is a Toast Nortification
• What media types Android supports

Prerequisites: This course assumes that you are comfortable developing applications using Visual Studio 2010 and C#. Mono Android requires Visual Studio 2010 Professional or higher (and will not work with Visual Studio Express editions).

Installation of Mono Droid

• What is Mono for Android
• Mono for Android Installer
• Android SDK
• MonoDeveloper for Windows
• MAC Android SDK

Android SDK Tools

• Android Development
• Android Debug Bridge - ADB
• Dalvik Debug Monitor Server - DDMS

Android Debugging and Testing

• Android Ecosystem
• Debugging Operating System
• Android Debug Bridge

Android Emulator

• Setup an Emulator Session
• Features Available
• Multiple Emulator Sessions

Android User Interface Design

• User Interface
• Selection and Focus
• Layouts for Different Screen Sizes
• DroidDraw

Android Controls

• User Interface Basics
• XML Layout
• Images

Android Devices and their Support

• Screen Resolution
• Android Manifest
• Visual Studio Project Properties

Android Applications - Activities and Lifecycles

• Parts of an Application
• Activity Life Cycle
• Mono for Android Specifics

Mono for Android Menus

• Types of Menus
• Creating Menus via Text
• Creating Menus via Resources

Tables and Data

• Data Terms and Interchange Standards
• Web Services
• Displaying Data

Android Soft Keyboards and User Hints

• Input Types
• Hints

Advanced Controls

• Writing a Custom Control
• Drag and Drop
• User Input
• Toast Notification

Android User Notification

• Dialogs
• Notifications
• Toast

Address Book, Contacts and Content Providers

• Content Providers
• Address Book
• Calendar
• General Guidelines for Queries

Integrating with Device Hardware

• Sensor API
• Vibration
• General Pattern
• Turn by Turn Directions

Multimedia

• Play Video
• Play Audio

Android and Locations

• Location
• Proximity
• GeoCode
• Maps

Recording of the Mono for Android Webinar - Building a User Interface with Mono for Android

My webinar for last week on building a user interface with Mono for Android is now available online. The webinar covered:

We will look at the basics of building a user interface for Android with Mono for Android. The user interface is typically the first thing that a user sees when they work with your application. They will often judge your application based on the user interface. We will examine the basic concepts of UI design with mobile devices, the Android XML based layout language, some of the UI design surfaces for Android, some basic Android controls and finally some suggestions on creating a successful Android User Interface. 

PS. The file seems to stream properly in IE, but not elsewhere.  Oh well, I don't control the formats, so just use IE to view it.