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Android 11 – The Most Notable Features & Improvements

iPraxa - Web & Mobile App Development Company — Tue, 23 Jun 2020 09:39:34 +0000

Following four developer previews, Google has finally released the first public beta version of Android 11. However, it's currently available to download only for Pixel 2+ phones.

While we're still a few months away from the final build being available for everyone, Android 11 Beta gives us a pretty accurate picture of the new features and improvements coming to the next version of the mobile OS.

Wondering what the final release of Android 11 will be offering to you? Here's everything you need to know.

Highlights:

Android 11 Release Date
Android 11 Features & Improvements
How Will Android 11 Impact Mobile App Development?
Which Phones Support Android 11 Beta?
How to Install Android 11 on Supported Devices?

Android 11 Release Date

According to Google itself, the final public release is expected to release in Q3, most probably August 2020. Take a look at Google's timeline for Android 11 updates:

Image Credit: developer.android.com

Android 11 Features & Improvements

Unlike last year's Android 10 update, which was aimed at tightening the security and privacy of users, Android 11 focuses on three key areas: People, Controls, and Privacy.

Here's what it means in terms of Android 11 feature highlights.

People

Android 11 attempts to make the operating system more people-centric and expressive with:

#Simplified Conversations

To help people communicate with each other more effectively, the new version of Android moves all of your conversations across different messaging apps to a dedicated section at the top of the notification shade.

Thus, you can view and respond to all your messages in one place.

As you can see, you can even mark a particular conversation as a priority by long-pressing the notification and tap on Priority.

That means you'll never miss messages from that contact, even when your phone is on 'Do Not Disturb.'

#Chat Bubbles

The upcoming version of Android introduces a new feature, called Bubbles, to let you carry on important conversations while multitasking.

It's similar to Chat Heads on Facebook Messenger and works with any Messaging and Chat app that uses the Bubbles API.

You can open a floating bubble from the notification shade and continue multitasking without missing a single message.

#Better Typing and Autofill Suggestions

When you type something using Gboard in the new version of the OS, you get relevant and automatic text and emoji suggestions.

That's because the operating system now uses on-device AI for improved typing and autofill suggestions

#Smarter Voice Access

On the accessibility front, Android 11 brings improved Voice Access that lets you control your phone entirely by your voice.

When it's activated, you can do anything simply by speaking naturally.

#Dark Mode Scheduling

Dark Mode, first introduced in Android 10, can be scheduled and automated.

Like other apps, you can also schedule dark mode to come on at sunset and turn off at sunrise.

Image Credit: gizmodo.com

#Increase Touch Sensitivity

Those who use screen protectors will surely love this feature!

A new display setting has been added to eleventh release of Android to let you increase the sensitivity of your touchscreen.

Image Credit: droid-life.com

When enabled, this should result in fewer missed taps and scrolls.

#Notification History

Android 11 gives you the ability to look back at previously dismissed notifications, and you can even interact with their content.

Image Credit: computerworld.com

You can access all your recent and snoozed notifications received in the last 24 hours.

#Segmentation of Notifications

Android improves the notification shade with every release, and this one is no different.

Image Credit: androidbeat.com

Android 11 classifies notifications into three types:

Conversations: Emails and messages.
Alerting Notifications: Alarms, screen recordings, and permission requests.
Silent Notifications: All other silent or muted notifications.

#Airplane Mode Doesn't Turn Bluetooth Off

In the forthcoming version of Google's mobile OS, Bluetooth won't turn off when you activate the Airplane Mode.

Image Credit: androidauthority.com

#Pin Apps to Share Menu

Android 11 allows you to pin your favorite apps and shortcuts to the share menu to make it more customized for you.

Image Credit: computerworld.com

#Dynamic App Suggestions

The new version of Android learns your app usage behavior and shows your most-used apps on the home screen.

Image Credit: gizmodo.com

#More Functional Recent Apps Screen

The Recent Apps panel in Android 11 is much more functional with bigger preview cards. At the bottom, Google has also added three new functions:

Screenshot: Clicks the screenshot.
Select: Lets you select text inside the frontmost app.
Share: Opens up the share sheet.

Image Credit: androidbeat.com

#Resizable Picture-in-Picture Window

Android 11 also gives you an option to resize picture-in-picture windows.

This is great for times when you want a video to take a larger part of the screen than the other app that you might be using.

Image Credit: androidbeat.com

Controls

Android 11 will make it faster and easier to control your connected devices and media with:

#Revamped Power Menu

The power menu, which appears when you long-press the power button, gets a massive revamp in Android 11.

Instead of just showing the usual shut down or restart options, it will now also provide quick access to your Google Pay cards, smart home controls, and even your boarding pass (when you're going to fly).

Image Credit: cnet.com

#Smarter Device Controls

Android 11 is well-optimized to help you better manage and control all of your connected devices.

While it allows you to bring up device controls instantly by just long pressing the power button, it also lets you turn on the lights, adjust the temperature, and unlock the front door with a single tap and without opening any additional app.

Think of the revamped power menu as a pocket for your digital wallet, keys, and more.

#Better Media Controls

New media controls makes it quick and convenient for you to switch between devices for your audio or video content.

Additionally, media controls now live in the Quick Settings area right above notifications.

Consequently, you can quickly bring your music with you from one device to another.

Furthermore, the new version of the operating system also arranges sessions from multiple apps in a swipeable carousel.

Image Credit: developer.android.com

The carousel lists sessions in the following order:

Local streams
Remote streams
Previous sessions, in the order they were last played

From the carousel, you can restart previous sessions without starting the main application.

Once the playback starts, you can interact with the media controls in the same way as usual.

Privacy

Android 11 gives users even more granular controls over the most sensitive permissions with features like:

#One-time Permissions

You can now grant apps access to the device camera, microphone, or location, only for one time.

The next time you use the app, it will have to request permissions again (as opposed to the background access).

Image Credit: droid-life.com

#Permissions Auto-reset

If you don't use an app for a long time, the new version of Android will auto-reset all of the permissions associated with the app and notify the user of the same.

Image Credit: blog.google

Thus, you'd need to grant permissions again when you use the app next time.

How Will Android 11 Impact Mobile App Development?

Android 11 can be a paradigm shift for mobile app development experts, as they will get better options to create better applications. Let's take a look at how the new release is going to affect the way apps are built:

#Preparations for 5G

Android 11 brings Dynamic Meterdness API that automatically detects a 5G network, allowing users to stream the highest possible graphics and video quality. Android development experts can leverage this API to equip their apps with the complete set of advantages that come adorned with the 5G technology.

#Adaption of Different Screen Types

Given that the advent of foldable devices is all set to revolutionize the smartphone market, Android 11 has been optimized to embrace foldable-specific features and experiences. Consequently, Android app developers also need to build their apps with foldable smartphones in mind.

#App Usage Statistics Will Be Kept Private

To better protect the users' privacy and data, Android 11 will keep the user's application usage data in the credential encrypted storage.

As a result, neither the app nor any other system will be able to access app usage statistics unless some coding is done. This means until you know the workaround, it'll be difficult for you to view the app usage statistics.

#Restricting Permissions

Android 11 gives users the privilege to restrict the permission dialogue box. If the user taps Deny twice, the operating system interprets it as Don't Ask Again. What this means for you as an Android app developer is that you need to convey and convince your users clearly why you are asking for permission.

#Reduced Data Redundancy

In the case of media playback or machine learning, multiple apps prefer to use the same large datasets.

While the earlier versions of Android required each application to download a separate copy of the dataset, Android 11 allows you to cache the large datasets on devices to reduce the data redundancy on disk and the network. It eventually helps you make your Android apps even more lightweight and faster.

#Greater Clarity on App Process Exit Reasons

Android 11 will generate reports carrying the proper reasons behind app crashes so that developers can rectify the issues immediately before they take place on other users' devices.

#Rapid Incremental APK installation

In the previous versions of Android, installing the large APKs used to take quite a while, even if you made a small update.

Realizing the importance of app updates, Google brings incremental APK installation to the 11th release of Android.

The new feature accelerates the installation process by providing enough of the APK required to launch the application successfully.

#Better Support for Neural Network Applications

If your application leverages the power of Machine Learning and Neural Networks, then the new version of Android will just make it more beneficial.

With the new Neural Networks API 1.3, Android 11 attempts to run computationally intensive operations so that your machine learning Android apps run smoothly on Android devices.

Which Phones Support Android 11 Beta?

Currently, the following Google Pixel phones support the Android 11 Beta:

Pixel 2 and 2 XL
Pixel 3 and 3 XL
Pixel 3a and 3a XL
Pixel 4 and 4 XL

Other phones will likely be included soon as well.

How to Install Android 11 on Supported Devices?

To install Android 11 on a compatible device, you need to first enroll in Beta. Simply follow the below steps:

Log in to your Google account when prompted.
Your eligible devices will appear on the next page.
Click to enroll in the Beta Program.
Go to Settings >> System >> Advanced >> System Update and Check for Update.
Download and install the Android 11 beta.

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How to Add COD Handling Charges to Your Shopify Store?

iPraxa - Web & Mobile App Development Company — Thu, 16 Jan 2020 06:56:26 +0000

Even though there are multiple ways out there to collect online payments from your customers, Cash on Delivery (COD) is still considered the most convenient and preferred mode of payment in the realm of eCommerce. According to various reports, COD accounts for nearly 60% of online sales.

If you're using a leading eCommerce platform like Shopify and want to offer COD as a payment option to your customers, you don't have to think too much as the platform lets you enable or disable Cash on Delivery as a manual payment option. However, it doesn't natively offer any option to implement Cash On Delivery with additional charges. Means, you have to do it manually by writing custom code. For your help, here is how you can do that!

Script for Adding COD Handling Charges to Shopify

If you want to add some COD handling charges to Your Shopify Store, you first need to write or copy the following script.

window.ShopifyAnalytics.merchantGoogleAnalytics = function() {
  if(document.URL.indexOf('?previous_step=shipping_method&step=payment_method')>=0) { 
[].forEach.call(document.querySelectorAll(".order-summary__section--discount"),function(e){
            e.parentNode.removeChild(e);
        });

[].forEach.call(document.querySelectorAll(".applied-reduction-code__clear-button"),function(e){
            e.parentNode.removeChild(e);
        });

[].forEach.call(document.querySelectorAll(".field__input-btn-wrapper"),function(e){
            e.parentNode.removeChild(e);
        });     

var shippingMethod = document.getElementsByClassName('review-block__content')[2].innerText;

if(shippingMethod == 'COD · Rs. 100.00') {



[].forEach.call(document.querySelectorAll("[data-select-gateway='127248205']"),function(e){
  e.parentNode.removeChild(e);
});

document.getElementById("checkout_payment_gateway_130854093").checked = true;
document.getElementById("checkout_payment_gateway_127248205").checked = false;
}



if(shippingMethod == 'Standard shipping · Free') {
    


[].forEach.call(document.querySelectorAll("[data-select-gateway='130854093']"),function(e){
  e.parentNode.removeChild(e);
});

document.getElementById("checkout_payment_gateway_130854093").checked = false;
document.getElementById("checkout_payment_gateway_127248205").checked = true;

}
}
};

Note: You can change the shippingMethod == parameter to anything you like.

Steps to Add the Script to Your Shopify Store

Follow the steps given below to add the above COD handling charges script to your Shopify store.

Step 1: Go to your store’s Setting page and click the Checkout tab.

Step 2: Paste the script code in the given box.

Step 3: Now go to your Checkout page and you’ll see that COD handling charges have started appearing there.

That’s it!. If you're not capable to implement this script or facing any issue, feel free to contact us.

Free and Best Languages for Mobile App Development

iPraxa - Web & Mobile App Development Company — Tue, 15 Oct 2019 12:38:04 +0000

Mobile applications have become an indispensable aspect of human lives these days. Wherever you go you would come across people glued on to their mobile handsets checking out various new applications. In fact, currently, there are 2.71 billion smartphone users across the world. Interestingly, mobile applications have also kept pace with the growth of smartphones. It is being said that mobile apps are projected to hit $188.9 billion in revenue by 2020. This is truly phenomenal. Hence, all these prove beyond doubt that mobile applications stare at a great future ahead.

It must be noted that developing a mobile app is no joke. There are a lot of thoughts and discussions that precede before deciding on the framework of mobile apps. For example, the platform to be used to develop the app, the appropriate language, etc. Here are 15 free languages that can be used to develop mobile apps. So, select the right one after analyzing your requirements.

# Kotlin

Kotlin has eventually become one of the top languages of mobile app development. It was created by JetBrains and the Kotlin language is very beneficial for Android app developers. The main trigger for the unprecedented rise to prominence of the language is due to its interoperability. The other reasons for Kotlin’s immense popularity are its ability to work on Java Virtual Machine (JVM) and adaptability with front-end and back-end development.

# Swift

This is one of the most unique and powerful languages for iOS mobile app development. You can choose Swift for app development in case you are eyeing premium and advanced platform for iOS and Mac OS. Looking at the impact it's making on devices such as iPhone, iPad, and Mac, it can be safely argued that Swift has a promising future ahead.

# Go

This is also called Golang, and this programming language is developed by none other than Google. This language openly braces multithreading, and this explains why it is being used by a lot of entities these days. The language also has some simplistic syntax and faster complication characteristics. It also comes in with in-built testing tools and the language is very easy to learn as well.

# HTML5

Similar to the way HTML is to websites, HTML5 plays an equally important role in web-based mobile application development. The latest update of HTML5 has created a lot of curiosity as it comes with outstanding features such as quick market deployment, multimedia support, etc. This language is suitable for both Android and iOS platforms as the flexibility on offer is infinite. This is the most favored language in terms of mobile app development.

# Python

Of late, Python is emerging as one of the most preferred languages as far as enterprises, and big corporate entities are concerned. The language gives good output, extreme flexibility and amazing user experience to the customers. The one area that sets this language apart is the simple to comprehend syntax that comes across like English.

# Java

Java is undoubtedly the crowned king as far as an efficient and most commonly used mobile app coding language is concerned. The language is used basically to develop desktop applications, Android applications, etc. This has made Java one of the most widely used programs. It takes recourse to JVM, which functions seamlessly on every system.

# PHP

Devised by Zend Technologies in 1995, this happens to be a server-side scripting open source these days including mobile apps. It was conceived with websites in mind, however, PHP is now widely used in several domains as well, including the development of mobile apps. The language is also used for command-line scripting and coding applications. With PHP it is very convenient to create android and iOS apps as well that work seamlessly on their respective platforms.

# JavaScript

JavaScript is an extremely sophisticated language for programming. This is also a very versatile language that gives primacy to object-oriented and functional programming. To develop mobile apps, the programming language has to be used with CSS, HTML, and AJAX. It is possible to create various frameworks to eke out a functional JavaScript app, such as PhoneGap, jQuery Mobile, and Ionic. The development of the app is easy on JavaScript as you are only required to code the app once and release the same on every platform.

# C++

This is pronounced as C Plus Plus. The C++ is purely a purpose-driven programming language having a low-level memory manipulation feature. The usage of this language is very high as it is capable of developing some potent apps. As for mobile apps, C++ can be more than ideal as you can easily come up with cross-platform mobile apps via its debugging experience and resourceful environment. With C++, it is possible to create apps on any platform be it Android or iOS.

# Objective – C

This is another efficient and general-purpose language that is sourced from C. In fact, Objective-C used to be the main programming language employed by Apple for iOS and OS X development before making a switch to Swift. However, this change in no way implies that the usage of objective C is dwindling, as several developers still prefer Objective-C. With this programming language, any app can be created with ease.

# Perl

This comprises of two languages ie, Perl 5 and Perl 6. The programming language of Perl belongs to a high pedigree. This language soaks in features from other similar platforms such as C, sed, AWK, and others. It is very convenient to develop Android apps on Perl as Google, at present, provides APK for Perl developers. This is very easy and very apt for beginners.

# QML

QML is basically Qt Modeling language that provides user interface markup language. Akin to CSS and JSON, QML is also a very declarative language. This language is primarily utilized to design user interface-based applications. The QML is unarguably one of the best languages for mobile application development, and it has a resourceful library as well. This language is apt if you are building mobile apps, requiring touch input, flowing animation, and greater user interaction.

# Visual Basic .NET

Visual basic .Net language is carved out of VB6. It is utilized to make GUI-based apps that simplify work for the programmers and significantly boost productivity. The language is conceived in such a manner that anyone, be it beginners or advanced programmers, can understand the same with ease. As it depends on the .NET framework, the program operates smoothly and efficiently.

# Ruby

This is yet another potent language for developing mobile apps and websites. Ruby came into existence in the 1990s and supports several platforms. If a developer has to develop a mobile app on Ruby, then a framework such as RubyMotion or Rhodes has to be employed. By opting for any of these frameworks, it is easier to make apps on any platforms, Android, iOS or and OS X, etc.

# C#

This is called as C Sharp, and C# is a multiple pattern programming language. Developed by Microsoft, it is very convenient and simple to create a mobile app. With the entry of Xamarin into C#, building an app has become not just simpler but faster as well. With this language, fully-functional apps can be created for Android and iOS. This can truly be an asset for designers.

With mobile apps becoming extremely crucial these days, it has become pertinent to make them in a better way. These are some of the best languages for the same purpose. No coming to the choice it is totally dictated by your requirement. So, select a language wisely after going through the article.