DEV Community: Anshu kumar Shandilya

Why should you learn Kotlin?

Anshu kumar Shandilya — Fri, 27 Nov 2020 09:34:45 +0000

The world is enhancing day by day.

For making enhancement you have to upgrade yourself by learning a new skill, exploring new domain, trying different technologies.

As a developer, you also have to enhance yourself to survive in this technological world.

“Over 50% of professional Android developers now use Kotlin, it’s been one of the most-loved languages two years running on Stack Overflow, and one of the fastest-growing on GitHub in the number of contributors.”“Over 50% of professional Android developers now use Kotlin, it’s been one of the most-loved languages two years running on Stack Overflow, and one of the fastest-growing on GitHub in the number of contributors.”

For the first time in history, in 2017, when Google announced that Kotlin is going to be used as a programming language to develop native android apps, no one assumed that in future this is going to be the most lovable programming language to develop a native app.

Today, when someone has to build an android application, Kotlin has become their first choice. And, there is a reason behind that.

In this blog, we are going to explore those reasons, why Kotlin have become the first choice and why should you learn Kotlin.

When Kotlin was introduced, its simple definition was that "It's a better and modern version of Java".

But, when the developer started using this language, the community started getting bigger than it's definition also changed.

Now we call it "Kotlin is a cross-platform, statically typed, general-purpose programming language with type inference."

Here are the following reasons, why should you learn Kotlin:

It is Interoperable means you can, it can be turned into byte code before compilation. Because of this feature Kotlin code can run anywhere except IOS.
Like Java(platform independent language), Kotlin can also be run on multi-platform because of its conversion into byte code.
Kotlin's code can also be compiled into JavaScript to run on a web browser.
Java code can be converted into Kotlin and vice versa.
It is concise. You can write lots of things very concisely and clearly in less number of lines of code. And, because of this, you can build an application faster than ever before.
*It is null-safe. It means that you will not be able to see null pointer exception by adopting Kotlin. *

*Tony Hoare call "null pointer exception" a billion dollar mistake.
*

Here are some companies that use Kotlin for their apps:

Google
Pinterest
Square
Trello
Evernote
Slack
Tinder
Netflix
Airbnb
Basecamp
Zomato

Most of the above mentioned companies are using 100% Kotlin code into their apps.

Apart from Android App development, Kotlin is also used for Desktop App, Cross Platform App, Web apps, Server side developments.

There are tons of reasons to learn Kotlin, you just have to makeup your mind and start learning, start building.

Before you dive into Kotlin, please try to explore Java. It will become a lot easier for you if you start by having Java background.

As you read above, Kotlin is a better and updated version of Java. So, it will be beneficial for you to understand Java before exploring Kotlin.

References:

https://www.spec-india.com/blog/top-apps-built-with-kotlin
https://hinchman-amanda.medium.com/null-pointer-references-the-billion-dollar-mistake-1e616534d485

Top 10 Android Development Questions I have been asked

Anshu kumar Shandilya — Fri, 27 Nov 2020 09:26:13 +0000

In recent years, people have reached out to by having so many doubts related to Android Development. Questions related to Android development as a career, job scenario, best courses, etc.

So, I have come up with this blog where I will discuss the top 10 questions people have asked.

No. 1 question is really obvious to ask when you are planning to start your career.
"Why should anyone choose Android Development instead of Flutter, React Native?"

Before I answer this question, you have to understand about "type of applications". Like:

Native App: This type of application runs on a mobile phone which is having an operating system like Android & IOS. To build this type of apps, you have to learn about Android/IOS app development.
Web App: This type of application runs only on web browsers. To build this type of applications, you have to learn HTML, CSS, JavaScript.
Hybrid App: This type of application runs on multiple platforms like Android/IOS/Web. To build this type of applications, you have to learn React Native, Flutter, Ionic, Xamarin.

Now, Let's understand why you should choose Android over Flutter and React Native.

More than 80% world population use Android as an operating system. If you build an app using Android you will be able to tap this 80% of the population.

Building a native application give you freedom for being reliable. That you can't expect from hybrid apps.

Only native apps allow you to build application having a camera, microphone, compass, accelerometer and swipe gestures.

Native apps are way more responsive and faster than hybrid apps.

These are the reason, you should choose Android instead of Flutter or React Native.

No. 2 question is that "What are the best courses to learn Android development?".

There are numbers of courses in the market but only a few of them are the best fit for anyone who wants to start learning:

Udacity Free Courses
Educative Course (Only if you have GitHub student packs)
Udemy Courses

Before starting any courses you must explore "what are the industry requirements or what type of apps I will work on?"

What exploring this, you will be able to select the best courses according to your requirements. In my starting days, whenever I used to open any courses, I wasn't able to complete those because I wasn't able to understand that whatever this course is teaching that will be suitable for any job/internship I will apply for.

No. 3 question is that "What is the job scenario of Android developer?".

As I said Android is one of the operating systems that is dominating the whole world by having a user base of more 80% of the world population.

So, there are tons of opportunities after learning Android Development. It's one of the careers that will also give you job security along with other perks and benefits.

Question No. 4 is that "What laptop will be best for Android Development?"

This is a question that no one has an accurate answer. Because Android Studio is a zombie who will be hungry after eating 32 GB of your system's RAM.

While talking to experienced developers, I got to know that after 8-10 years, they along face system hanging problem.

Keep jokes aside and follow this recommendation:

RAM: 8-16 GB
Memory: 256-512 GB SSD
Graphic: 2 GB
Processor: Intel i5/i7

By having this configuration in your system you will be able to build Android app frequently. Sometime, You may face a hanging problem, just ignore that.

Question No. 5 is that "What community should I follow?"

There are some amazing Android community that is very interactive and helpful like

Question No. 6 is that "What are the websites to follow for Android Development Updates"

Subscribe to their newsletters to receive weekly Android updates.

Question No. 7 is that "What language should I learn Java or Kotlin?"

As per current market requirements, you should definitely start learning Kotlin. There are the following reasons why Kotlin is better than Java:

Kotlin is faster than Java.
It's much easier to understand.
It has less number of lines of code.
Kotlin is also becoming very famous for its easily compatibility with Java.
It solves most of the flaws of Java.
Its runtime performance is higher than Java.

These are some reasons why should you start learning Kotlin.
If you are already familiar with Java then it will be a lot easier for you to understand Kotlin because it's also described as a general-purpose language.

Question No. 8 is that "How someone from non-tech background starts App development?"

I would suggest before you directly dive into Android Development, you should get a basic understanding of programming language, understanding of how any application work, learn to build logic. After all these you can take a course on Android Development and start learning.

Question No. 9 is that "What should I do, when not being selected for any Android Development Internship?"

Don't worry, there are lots of opportunities waiting for you. Just be prepared. Analyze yourself, where are you doing wrong.

Ask yourself these questions,
Do you have a basic Android project?
Are you familiar with the basics of Java/Kotlin?
Are you showcasing your projects correctly?
Have you gone through companies' requirements criteria?

Hope after answering these questions, you will be able to crack any type of internships. If you still face the problem then you can reach me out.

Question No. 10 is that "What are the companies who are hiring remotely for Android developer role?"

It's complicated to tell because there are so many platforms from where you can apply for remote jobs.

Here, I will share those remote platforms reference and you can look into those to find different opportunities.

Check these out to explore remote jobs.

Here I have only mentioned questions related to Android development. But, soon I will also post questions related to software development, programming, database.

Stay updated.
Keep building, keep documenting @Kiwismedia.

Best Blog Websites for Android App Developers

Anshu kumar Shandilya — Thu, 12 Nov 2020 18:05:26 +0000

Android Application Development has become one of the demanding domain in the tech industry.

More than 80% of the world's population is dominated by the Android operating system.

As a self-taught developer, I understand the pain of finding the best resources to learn new thing. Internet is a messy world. You have to dive deep into it to find the best resources.

There is a proverb, "Gold is usually found in the coal mine".
Internet is like this, you will not easily found best people, best resources, best tools. You have to work very hard to extract suitable information, resources from this world.

I this blog, I am sharing some of the best blog websites that have well-explained topics related to Android App Development.

Let's explore,

These are some of the best blog websites I look into to find solutions and clear concepts. Hope you will find this helpful.

I will keep updating this list as I found something new, something interesting.

Let's Connect to have some discussion on Android or any other tech-related stuff.

Happy Coding.

Thanks for reading.