Android (operating system)
Android is an operating system used in mobile devices. It is mostly used for smartphones, like Google's own Google Pixel, as well as by other phone manufacturers like HTC and Samsung. It has also been used for tablets such as the Motorola, Xoom and Amazon Kindle. A modified Linux kernel is used as Android's kernel.[7]
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Screenshot Android 14 home screen with Pixel Launcher | |
| Developer | Google, Open Handset Alliance |
|---|---|
| Written in | Java (UI), C (core), C++ and more[1] |
| OS family | Unix-like |
| Working state | Current |
| Source model | Open source (most devices include proprietary components, such as Google Play) |
| Initial release | September 23, 2008[2] |
| Latest release | Android 13 / August 15, 2022 |
| Latest preview | Android 14 Beta 5.2 / August 25, 2023 |
| Repository | |
| Marketing target | Smartphones, tablet computers, smart TVs (Android TV), Android Auto and smartwatches (Wear OS) |
| Available in | 100+ languages[3] |
| Package manager | APK (primarily through Google Play; installation of APKs also possible locally or from alternative sources such as F-Droid) |
| Platforms | 64-bit ARM, x86-64, unofficial RISC-V support; 32-bit (for e.g. ARM) was supported[4][5] |
| Kernel type | Monolithic (modified Linux kernel) |
| Default user interface | Graphical (multi-touch) |
| License | Apache License 2.0 GNU GPL v2 for the Linux kernel modifications[6] |
| Official website | android |
Google says that over 1.3 million Android smartphones are sold every day.[8] Most mobile phones run Android, making it the most popular mobile operating system. It is also the most popular operating system in general.
It supports multitasking and two-dimensional and three-dimensional graphics.
Security updates are not provided on versions older than Android 10. Newer versions receive security updates if the phone manufacturer supports them. Phones which have Android 10 and above receive security updates (like app updates) directly from Google Play.
The current stable version is Android 13, released on August 15, 2022. As of October 2022[update], Android 9 is the most used version.
Android programs
Programs for Android, also called "apps" (short for applications), usually come from the Google Play Store. The Android programs have a file extension of .APK. On May 7, 2019, Kotlin replaced Java as Google’s preferred language for Android app development. Java is still supported, as is C++. Google states that[9] "Android apps can be written using Kotlin, Java, and C++ languages". Other languages may also be used; such as Python and Go, and those languages and even C++ may have restrictions. Large portions of the operating system itself are also written in Java. Over 2.6 million apps are available for Android in the Google Play Store.[10] Some apps are distributed elsewhere.
Android, Inc. began working on the Android operating system in 2003. In the future, Google bought it in 2005. The software development kit (SDK) for Android OS was launched on November 12, 2007, while the beta version was made available on November 5, 2007.
In October 2008, the T-Mobile G1 (also known as the HTC Dream) became the first Android smartphone to be made available to the general market.
Google revealed in August 2019 that the candy scheme was coming to an end and that future Android releases would instead use numerical ordering.
Android 10 was the first Android version to be made available in numerical order.
Android version numbers and names
Versions of Android have a number and have had a name based on confectioneries, up to and including Android 9 Pie, but since then it has mostly been a number, with the code name usually only being used internally and by Developers and manufacturers. The version numbers and names are:
- 1.0 (no codename)
- 1.1: Petit Four[11]
- 1.5: Cupcake
- 1.6: Donut
- 2.0 and 2.1: Eclair
- 2.2: Froyo (Frozen Yogurt)
- 2.3: Gingerbread
- 3.x: Honeycomb (a tablet-only version)
- 4.0: Ice Cream Sandwich
- 4.1, 4.2 and 4.3: Jelly Bean
- 4.4: KitKat
- 5.0 and 5.1: Lollipop
- 6.0 and 6.0.1: Marshmallow[12]
- 7.0 and 7.1: Nougat
- 8.0: Oreo
- 9.0: Pie[13]
- Android 11: Modded Apps usable for users with existing knowledge Tiramisu[14]
Related pages
References
Other websites
- Android (smartphone) - Citizendium
