Google Android already has 75,000 applications and the count goes up for each day. Through App Inventor the software giant hopes to accelerate the growth through an interface that enables regular users to create Android applications.
Google App Inventor requires no programming skills what-so-ever and applications are created through a simple drag-and-drop interface, which means that any user can create an application for their, or others, mobile phone.
Since all coding is handled automatically by App Inventor there are limitations, but Google says that you can create relatively advanced applications with the new program. The only thing required is a PC or Mac, Java 6 and a compatible browser. In the true spirit of Google App Inventor is namely an online tool used directly in the browser.
You can build just about any app you can imagine with App Inventor. Often people begin by building games like WhackAMole or games that let you draw funny pictures on your friend’s faces. You can even make use of the phone’s sensors to move a ball through a maze based on tilting the phone.
But app building is not limited to simple games. You can also build apps that inform and educate. You can create a quiz app to help you and your classmates study for a test. With Android’s text-to-speech capabilities, you can even have the phone ask the questions aloud.
Google has posted a video that shows App Inventor can be used to build an application in just 60 seconds. Incredibly simple, but still impressive.
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Google App Inventor has potential to boost Android and result in some really exciting possibilities, and we can only hope that the market won’t be flooded with mediocre applications.
More information on how to use App Inventor can be found at Google’s official website.
