Instruction

A Brief History of Android Studio

The first stable version of Android Studio was introduced by Google and released in December 2014. Before Android Studio, developers used a modified version of either Eclipse IDE or IntelliJ IDEA. The Eclipse IDE was originally created by IBM as an open-source IDE framework, and it has grown into a highly customizable platform supporting various programming languages. IntelliJ IDEA, on the other hand, is developed by JetBrains. It was introduced as a Java IDE but has evolved into a versatile platform that supports multiple programming languages, frameworks, and technologies. Android Studio was built on top of IntelliJ IDEA. Google collaborated with JetBrains to build Android Studio. This allowed Google to leverage the robust features and extensibility of IntelliJ IDEA. The collaboration between Google and JetBrains allowed Android Studio to inherit many powerful capabilities that immediately made it a sophisticated IDE.

Now you might be asking…what’s an IDE? IDE stands for Integrated Development Environment. It’s a specialized app that’s built to streamline software development. An IDE typically combines several key tools that make a software developer’s life easier. IDEs typically contain a code editor, a compiler, a debugger, and a GUI (graphical user interface) designer. Android Studio provides all those tools and much more.

Since Android Studio was built on IntelliJ IDEA, you’ll come across many features also found in IntelliJ IDEA. Often, you can reference IntelliJ IDEA documentation to understand some of the inner workings of Android Studio. What sets Android Studio apart from IntelliJ IDEA is the additional features and tools specific to Android development. Android Studio provides a dedicated environment for designing, developing, testing, and debugging Android apps. It’s equipped with powerful emulation tools, sophisticated debugging and optimization features, and seamless integration with external tools to support the dynamic evolution of the Android platform. Some of these specialized tools include:

• Android Emulator: Allows you to create virtual Android devices. This allows you to test and run your Android apps on different devices without having to buy them.
• Layout Editor: Allows you to design the user interface of your Android app. You can see what your app’s user interface will look like while you are developing it.
• APK Analyzer: An APK is an Android Package Kit. It contains the compiled code and metadata for the installation and execution of an Android app. With the APK analyzer, you can inspect the contents of your Android packages.
• Android Project Templates: Instead of starting an Android app from scratch, Android Studio provides project templates. These are a set of pre-configured project structures that serve as starting points for different types of Android apps.
• Android Profiler: Performance monitoring tools for Android apps. These tools can monitor the CPU, memory, and network usage of your Android app to give you insight and help optimize performance.

The announcement of Android Studio marked a significant shift in Android app development because Android finally had a unified, purposely-built IDE that Google officially supported. Over the years, it has been continuously updated and improved. It’s now the preferred choice for Android developers worldwide.

Naming Convention

Android Studio continues to undergo changes and improvements, but how do you keep track of all the changes? Android Studio follows a predictable release process and naming convention to help you keep track of the different versions and changes. Every version is typically named using a combination of release cycle, version number, and codename.

Codenames

Android Studio makes it easy to track versions by codenames. The codenames are often associated with the name of an animal, such as Hedgehog, Iguana, and Giraffe. With the names arranged alphabetically, you can quickly tell which one is the newer version.

Version Numbers

The version number follows a standard convention of major, minor, and patch version. The version number format is commonly represented as X.Y.Z — for example, 2022.3.1.

Release Cycles

Android Studio is made available to the public throughout each release cycle. This gives you early access to test and experiment with the latest features before waiting until they are included in a stable release. You can expect to see a release in one of these five cycles:

• Canary: This is the first stage of the new version. It provides early access to the latest features and improvements, but it might be less stable because it’s the first stage.

• Beta: After the canary channel, features that have undergone some testing may be promoted to the beta channel. Beta releases are more stable than canary releases but may still contain some experimental features that are being refined.

• Release Candidate (RC): This is a potential candidate for final release. It is considered feature-complete and stable. Release candidates undergo thorough testing to identify and fix any issues before the official release.

• Stable: This is the final release, and the app goes into maintenance mode. No more changes are expected for this release unless an update or patch is needed.

• Patch: After a stable release, there may be updates or patches to address any issues discovered post-release. These updates may also include support for new Android platform versions.

Putting it All Together: Codename, Version, Cycle

When a new version of Android Studio is released, the codename, version number, and release cycle are used to identify it. Here are a few examples of Android Studio releases:

• Android Studio Giraffe | 2022.3.1 | Released: July 25, 2023

  • Codename: Giraffe
  • Version Number: 2022.3.1
  • Release Cycle: Stable

• Android Studio Hedgehog | 2023.1.1 | RC 3 | Released: November 9, 2023

  • Codename: Hedgehog
  • Version Number: 2023.1.1
  • Release Cycle: RC 3

• Android Studio Giraffe | 2022.3.1 | Patch 4 | Released: November 16, 2023

  • Codename: Giraffe
  • Version Number: 2022.3.1
  • Release Cycle: Patch 4

Android Studio and the JDK

Before installing Android Studio, you should be aware of one more fundamental component: The JDK. Android Studio uses the Java Development Kit (JDK) for critical development tasks such as compiling Kotlin or Java source code into bytecode, debugging, profiling, and compatibility with the build system. The JDK contributes to the efficiency and robustness of the Android app development process. In a nutshell, the JDK is an indispensable foundation for Android Studio, and you can’t avoid it. It’s not going to be in the way much, and most of the time you won’t even know it’s there. But, you need to have the appropriate JDK version installed to ensure compatibility with the Android development environment.

When you download and install Android Studio, the installation process typically includes prompts and instructions that guide you through installing the required JDK. It’s important to follow these instructions and install a compatible version of the JDK before launching Android Studio.

Downloading Android Studio

Now that you understand how to identify the different versions of Android Studio and what foundational components to expect during installation, it’s time to learn how to download and install it. Android Studio can be installed on Windows, Mac, Linux, and Chrome OS operating systems. Head over to the Android Studio page to download the latest Stable Version or the latest Canary Version.

It’s recommended to download the latest stable or canary version, but you can also go to the Android Studio Archives to see a list of all the versions that have been released.

Installing Android Studio

After downloading Android Studio, you can run the installer and it will walk you through the installation process. The steps below guide you through a MacOS installation. Installation on other platforms may look a bit different, but the process is similar. You can apply all the defaults for now. Once you become more familiar with the IDE and start installing newer versions, you can play with some of the available customizations.

During the installation process, the installer will look for certain components of your system, such as an Android SDK, Android Emulator, and other build tools. If this is your first installation, you probably don’t have them installed. Make sure you’re connected to the internet, and allow Android Studio to install them for you.

When you launch Android Studio for the first time, it may prompt you to confirm it is from a trusted source and perhaps ask if you want to send Usage Statistics to Google. Once you get through those initial screens, you may be prompted to import settings from a previous installation. You can leave the default Do not Import Settings selected and proceed.

Eventually, you’ll see the Android Studio Setup Wizard. This is where the real fun starts. Click Next to continue with the setup.

The next screen will allow you to select the type of installation. For now, you’ll use a standard installation. In the future, if you install a canary version along with a stable version you may want to look at a custom installation. Select Standard and click Next to proceed.

You’ll see a summary of what will be installed. Click Next to continue with the installation.

Next come the license agreements. Accept each license agreement and click Finish.

When the download and the installation completes, the installer will take you to the Welcome Screen.

Creating a Project

Congratulations! You have Android Studio installed, and you’re ready to get your hands dirty with a new Android app. The following steps will be to use the project creation wizard to create an Android phone app with a basic screen using Kotlin and Jetpack Compose. The app will display the text “Hello World” on the screen.

From the welcome screen, you can get right to it by creating a new project. Click the New Project button, and it will take you to the project creation wizard.

The project creation wizard will help you bootstrap an Android app with boilerplate code and configuration. You’ll see different templates available for phone and tablet, Wear OS, television, and automotive. The wizard will allow you to add some features to your app such as a Bottom Navigation View, or Navigation Drawer. To proceed with creating your first basic phone app, click on Phone and Tablet, then select Empty Activity, and click on Next.

Now, Android Studio is going to need some information about your application:

For this lesson, you’ll name the app Bullseye. The name Bullseye is a reference to an older Kodeco app that has helped many Android developers find their way. :]

Enter Bullseye in the Name. This is the name that will appear when the app is installed.

Enter com.yourcompany.android.bullseye in the Package name field. The package name should be unique to your company and application. It will be used to organize and identify your files, folders and source code.

You can set the Save Location to any location you wish or use the default path. This is where all the files related to the app will be stored.

In some cases, you might want to restrict your app to only specific Android versions. The project creation wizard allows you to declare this in the Minimum SDK setting. For now, leave this as the default. There’s a Help me choose feature that will give you information about each SDK.

Leave the Build configuration language selection as the recommended Kotlin DSL. The alternative is to use a Groovy DSL, but Android Studio is moving away from that so it’s best to start with the current standard language for your build files.

Click Next and Android Studio will start downloading and installing the necessary libraries and SDKs for your new app. When it’s done, click Finish and Android Studio will create your new project and display it on the Project screen:

Continue to the Video Demo to see a live demonstration of the installation and project creation in action.