Tuesday 29 October 2013

Droidcon 2013: Responsive Design for Android

Juhani Lehtimäki, Smashing Android UI

Presentation available online

  • alternative to master/detail — grid view
    • works the same way with adapters
    • can adjust number of columns in values to adjust on screen size
    • use it as an easy way to extend the UI without a huge redesign
    • also useful for inspiring designers to take the design further
  • need to figure out where the relayout/break points are?
    • need to talk about what is the screen size for this layout to work
    • don’t need to talk about tablets or phones
  • juhani likes to do the large screen first
    • makes you think about whole picture if there would be enough space
  • android design in action from google
    • different layers of design:
    • information design — all you
    • interaction design — all holo/android
      • 100% chance users use other Android apps
      • tiny chance they use other platforms
      • optimise for user experience, not app consistency across platforms
    • visual design — mixed
  • use the default components!
    • but don’t components that are not needed for the app
  • action bar gives you lots of things for free
    • adjusts for screen space automatically
    • components work across lots of devices — tested!
    • also hold down item gives tooltip
  • best app for design on android right now: timely alarm clock
    • and follows all android guidelines!
  • can fade out the action bar when content scrolls up
  • use Android Asset Studio to show how 9 patch graphics work
    • designers can check online
  • use fragments from support package even when targetting 4+
  • decouple front end from backend
  • when fragment starts it queries for data by id
    • fragment should ask for it
    • manager should respond to bus with id when ready
    • fragment subscribes when it’s around and unsubscribes when it goes away
    • so fragment can then request data when it’s told that id is ready
  • http://jimulabs.com — lets you change layouts on the fly
  • make sure your design team uses android devices
    • at least for a couple of weeks!
  • use standard components and follow guidelines
    • won’t just cost in coding — think about all the testing!
  • think scalable from the first wireframe

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