3 ms·

Mac Dev Notes: iOS and Android Development Compared

3 points by xm 16y ago

andymoe 16y ago
I have found the android simulator to be dog slow (takes 2-5 minutes to install a project and boot) and basically unusable so add to the right hand column of costs an unlocked android device right off the bat if you don't want to pull all your hair out and would like to be at all productive.
- wallflower 16y ago
  To be fair, the android simulator once running performs OK for the crucial Run to test-Modify-Run to test cycle. We rarely use 'Debug', usually use 'Run'. We find that running on the hardware is not as necessary during feature development - as it slows down the iterative cycle. Running on hardware is critical, of course, for testing layouts, how the app handles incoming calls, being killed etc. As a plus, the emergency-break-is-on-like performance of the simulator is pretty slow - in contrast to the iOS simulator which runs as fast as your development machine will let it. It encourages unit tests - as a way of avoiding the simulator. ./adb uninstall com.yourcompany.package is a good shortcut to remove an app When we do release an APK, we usually use Dropbox to make it look more professional when we send it out to client's beta testers (but nowhere as good as http://testflightapp.com http://testflightapp.com for iOS)
  - andymoe 16y ago
    I still find the simulator way too slow to be useful but I guess I am just spoiled by the Apple development tools. I agree that adb is really really useful for uninstalling and for the all important test of your APK files right before you submit to the market. It's also very useful for testing on older android hardware that you might have difficulty installing to using the eclipse plugin for whatever reason or can't get to connect to the market place. We are also using DropBox to distribute the APKs amongst the team for our own testing purposes and that's been a really great workflow for sure.

3 ms·

Mac Dev Notes: iOS and Android Development Compared

3 points by xm 16y ago

andymoe 16y ago
I have found the android simulator to be dog slow (takes 2-5 minutes to install a project and boot) and basically unusable so add to the right hand column of costs an unlocked android device right off the bat if you don't want to pull all your hair out and would like to be at all productive.
- wallflower 16y ago
  To be fair, the android simulator once running performs OK for the crucial Run to test-Modify-Run to test cycle. We rarely use 'Debug', usually use 'Run'. We find that running on the hardware is not as necessary during feature development - as it slows down the iterative cycle. Running on hardware is critical, of course, for testing layouts, how the app handles incoming calls, being killed etc. As a plus, the emergency-break-is-on-like performance of the simulator is pretty slow - in contrast to the iOS simulator which runs as fast as your development machine will let it. It encourages unit tests - as a way of avoiding the simulator. ./adb uninstall com.yourcompany.package is a good shortcut to remove an app When we do release an APK, we usually use Dropbox to make it look more professional when we send it out to client's beta testers (but nowhere as good as http://testflightapp.com http://testflightapp.com for iOS)
  - andymoe 16y ago
    I still find the simulator way too slow to be useful but I guess I am just spoiled by the Apple development tools. I agree that adb is really really useful for uninstalling and for the all important test of your APK files right before you submit to the market. It's also very useful for testing on older android hardware that you might have difficulty installing to using the eclipse plugin for whatever reason or can't get to connect to the market place. We are also using DropBox to distribute the APKs amongst the team for our own testing purposes and that's been a really great workflow for sure.