Devoxx 2013 - How to make your Android apps suck. A rant.

Litrik De Roy

Android problems to avoid

• crazy permissions. E.g.
  • directly call phone numbers
  • phone status & identity: tracking
  • retrieve other apps running
  • mock location for testing -> test-only settings...
• splash screens :-(
• "menu button of shame" lower right corner of app
• Skeumorphic design
  • try to use iOS design on Android
  • tabs at the bottom of the screen
• spammy notifications: games
• exit confirmation "are you sure you want to exit?" -> doesn't exist..
• portrait only mode
• tabs without swiping
• Jerky scrolling
• themed buttons without selectors -> pressed, selected, active , disabled
• app size (=feature creep)
• flooding logcat (too many debug messages)