Top 10 amazing facts about Google’s
Android operating system which most
users dont know
Android, the worlds mostly widely used
smartphone operating System is growing
day by day with its highly enriched user
interface and extensively used mobile
applications. Some are using it as platform
to develop applications while the others use
it as one of source which connects them
with their friends and relatives due to its
highly customizable and user friendly
applications.
So it can rather be said that Android is
dominating the mobile market.
But there are certain facts about android
which users should be aware as they are
using the Google based android
applications.
Android was not founded by Google
The Android operating system was founded
by Andy Rubin, Chris White, Nick Sears and
Rich Miner under the umbrella Android
Inc. It was established in October 2003.
Android was later acquired by Google who
had been backing the company all along.
The deal was struck in August 2005 at a
price of $50 million. Google marketed the
platform to handset makers and carriers on
the promise of providing a flexible,
upgradable system.
Google launched Android in 2007
Google officially launched the operating
system in November 2007. The operating
system had initially been developed for
cameras but Google saw a potential in the
usage of the OS on smartphones and
worked on a lot more features that you can
see now. So Google saw it as potential
opportunity to establish its impact on
market by making it a platform for newer
version of Smartphone.
Android was initially developed only for
digital cameras
Android operating system was developed as
a platform for digital cameras. But Google
later changed its focus to smart phones as
it saw its potential. So Google decided to
go on and adopt Android OS for
smartphones which has created a revolution
in smartphones as it was widely accepted
and easily accessible.
HTC Dream – First Android Smartphone
The first publicly used phone to run Android
was HTC Dream. The HTC Dream was first
released in October 2008. The device used
the Linux-based Android operating system
by Google. It used Android version 1.0 and
was upgradable till 1.6. The Android
operating system on the device was
criticized for lack of functionality and
software in comparison to certain
established platforms like Nokia’s
proprietary Symbian OS but was still
considered to be innovative.
Android has more than a billion users
Google’s Vice President for Android, Sundar
Pichai, announced that the Android
operating system has powered hundreds of
millions of mobile devices in more than 190
countries around the world. It’s the largest
installed base of any mobile platform and
growing fast—every day another million
user’s power up their Android devices for
the first time and start looking for apps,
games, and other digital content.
Android Version Names
Apart from Android 1.0 and 1.1, all other
Android versions have been named after
sweet treats or desserts. These codenames
are chosen alphabetically, and have thus far
all been dessert items. Some codenames
are associated with more than one version
number, while others are limited to only a
specific one. The reason for this
inconsistency is not currently known. The
naming typically appears to correspond to
changes in the developer API levels, but
this is not always true (example: 3.0 and
3.1 are both “Honeycomb” but they have
different API levels). The names of different
versions are :-
Cupcake:
Android 1.5
Donut:
Android 1.6
Eclair:
Android 2.0
Android 2.1
Froyo: ( short for “frozen yogurt” )
Android 2.2
Gingerbread:
Android 2.3
Honeycomb:
Android 3.0
Android 3.1
Android 3.2
Ice Cream Sandwich:
Android 4.0
Jelly Bean:
Android 4.1
Android 4.2
Android 4.3
KitKat:
Android 4.4
Lolipop:
Android 5.0
Android 5.1
Android Naming Order
Android versions have been following an
alphabetical order in their naming and
upgrades but many users have failed to
notice this.
1. A for Astro (1.0)
2. B for Bender (1.1)
3. C for Cupcake (1.5)
4. D for Donut (1.6)
5. E for Eclair (2.0)
6. F for Froyo (2.2.x)
7. G for Gingerbread (2.3.x)
8. H for Honeycomb (3.x)
9. I for Ice Cream Sandwich (4.0.x)
10. J for Jelly Bean (4.3)
11. K for KitKat (4.4)
12. L for Lollipop (5.0)
Open marketplace for distributing your
apps
With Google being a member of Open
Handset Alliance (OHA), Android has given
users or interested party right access to
modify the source code of the operating
system. Android was built from the
ground-up to enable developers to create
compelling mobile applications that take full
advantage of the specs that a handset has
to offer. It can be liberally extended to
incorporate new cutting edge technologies
as they emerge. The platform will continue
to evolve as the developer community
works together to build innovative mobile
applications. This has allowed users and
smartphone manufacturer’s great flexibility
in adding features to the operating system.
This also enables OEM’s to develop their
skinned versions.
Android is open source
Google offers Android operating system to
smartphone manufacturers without
payment for its license. This is one of the
major advantages of Android which had
attracted users as a platform to innovate
more new apps based on it.
Google gains from Android
Despite offering the Android software open
sourced to smartphone manufacturers,
Google will likely achieve its aim of
becoming the mobile advertising king
through Android devices. Google makes its
biggest revenue from advertising and this
will pay off in the big way with the users
from PCs to smartphones and tablets. It
must be noted that Android dominates both
categories.
So all done. Do you find these facts
interesting? If you know any other Android
fact we left out, you can comment below.

Good one