How easy is it to make an Android app?

The 21st century has become synonymous with apps and the media choked with stories about some developers earning big sums of money.

But if you consider app development the preserve of software geeks, you’re wrong. And in this guide you’ll discover how a simple idea could be quickly transformed into a working app for Android smartphones.

Smartphone apps: The basics

To develop an app you first need an idea. If you already have an idea for an app then skip to the section below, but if you don’t then try:

• Browsing the sections of your smartphone’s existing app store for inspiration
• Thinking of a solution to a common problem - For example, could you create a smartphone app that helps people find mislaid keys or one that lets people easily donate money to charity?

Whatever idea you come up with, it’s also important to do some market research because an app that solves a genuine problem is more likely to popular than a poorly made Angry Birds rip-off.

Creating Android apps in a flash

App Inventor is a tool developed by Google to help app novices like you create apps for Android smartphones - including those from HTC and Sony Ericsson.

Instead of running on complicated code, the software lets you visually design apps using “blocks to specify application logic”. That last phrase might sound a little overwhelming, but it essentially means that you use pre-set options within the software to create your app.

For example, an app that shows pictures of kittens which “meow” each time they’re tickled through the touchscreen could be developed by selecting options related to pictures, sounds and input methods.

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Sky app academy

If, after creating your first app, you get a taste for it then why not consider taking your skills further and exploring ways you could potentially make a living out of app development?

For example, British broadcaster Sky has launched an “app academy” that will train 50 people to create apps and associated software for smartphones and other gadgets.

The apps will, of course, all be Sky focused - the broadcaster already has an app that lets you control your Sky+ HD box from the iPhone. But each Sky app student will earn £30,000 a year.

Click here for more information on the Sky app academy.

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