Configuring Your Android Development Environment

To write Android applications, you must configure your programming environment for Java development.The software is available online for download at no cost. Android appli-cations can be developed on Windows, Macintosh, or Linux systems.
To develop Android applications, you need to have the following software installed on your computer:

• The Java Development Kit (JDK) Version 5 or 6, available for download at http://java.sun.com/javase/downloads/index.jsp.

• A compatible Java IDE such as Eclipse along with its JDT plug-in, available for download at http://www.eclipse.org/downloads/. 

• The Android SDK, tools and documentation, available for download at http://developer.android.com/sdk/index.html. 

• The Android Development Tools (ADT) plug-in for Eclipse, available for

download through the Eclipse software update mechanism. For instructions on how to install this plug-in, see http://developer.android.com/sdk/eclipse-adt.html. Al-though this tool is optional for development, we highly recommend it and will use its features frequently throughout the tutorial.
A complete list of Android development system requirements is available at http://developer.android.com/sdk/requirements.html. Installation instructions are at http://developer.android.com/sdk/installing.html.

Configuring Your Operating System for Device Debugging
To install and debug Android applications on Android devices, you need to configure your operating system to access the phone via the USB cable.On some operat-ing systems, such as Mac OS, this may just work. However, for Windows installations, you need to install the appropriate USB driver.You can download the Windows USB driver from the following website: http://developer.android.com/sdk/win-usb.html.
Configuring Your Android Hardware for Debugging Android devices have debugging disabled by default.Your Android device must be enabled for debugging via a USB connection in order to develop applications and run them on the device.
First, you need to enable your device to install Android applications other than those from the Android Market.This setting is reached by selecting Home, Menu, Settings,Applications. Here you should check (enable) the option called Unknown Sources.More important development settings are available on the Android device by selecting Home, Menu, Settings, Applications, Development . Here you should enable the following options:

• USB Debugging:This setting enables you to debug your applications via the USB connection.
• Stay Awake:This convenient setting keeps the phone from sleeping in the middle
  of your development work, as long as the device is plugged in.
• Allow Mock Locations: This setting enables you to send mock location informa-tion to the phone for development purposes and is very convenient for applications using location-based services (LBS).