Head First Android - how's the book different aka why choose it over other books in the field?

[Sebastian Makowiecki]

Hi there,

What makes this book stand out from the crowd? Why and when would I choose it over other available books in the subject?

I am looking for a good resource in the field of Android development, wondering would this be my best bet. I did not look at any other available resources (yet). Most of the time I like to make and informed decision, lately however I feel overwhelmed by the sheer amount of available resources how does one make an informed decision any more?

I hope the reasons for my question are clear to you,

Thanks for the book and all the hard work put into it,

/SM

[David Griffiths]

Hello Sebastian,

Head First Android Development focuses on the motivations behind the features, so it doesn't just teach how to do things, but also *why* things work the way they do.

Android Development has become an immensely complex area, and Google documentation often shows how you would have done things 10 years ago, mixed in with how modern Android developers would do it today. This is inevitable because they have to support developers with legacy apps, as well as new developers.

Consequently, it's easy to find lots of material about the "how" of Android, and rather harder to find out about *why* and *when* you should do something.

If you are comparing titles, then we would definitely recommend looking for a book that includes Kotlin (you can still use Java for many things, but the tide is very much towards Kotlin now) and something that gives some kind of introduction to the Jetpack libraries, including Jetpack Compose. It should also include the fundamental concepts of Android: activities, lifecycles, view-models and so on.

Good luck with your Android journey!

D+D

[Sebastian Makowiecki]

Excellent and promptanswer.
Thanks a bunch!