Part 2. Technology

This part of the book introduces you to all the technology you need to be able to create location-aware applications.

Location-aware applications have many different technology components, such as mobile platforms, connectivity issues, server backends, browser-based web applications, mapping data sources, content format, and the like.

Chapter 5 looks through many types of different consumer applications and shows you how different technology and content components fit together to create exciting new experiences.

Chapter 6 teaches you about all the major mobile application development platforms out there, such as the iPhone and Android. The chapter has plenty of examples for each mobile platform, so you can see first-hand how to start creating the next great location-aware mobile app.

Chapter 7 talks about critical issues relating to connectivity. How do you make sure that your application is following best practices when geo-locating the user constantly? Will the user run out of battery in two hours (and uninstall your application immediately)?

Chapter 8 wraps up the section by looking at server-side integration of location-aware apps and considers the most effective way of linking data to the application.

After digesting this part of the book, you’ll be fully equipped to make all the right decisions about what technologies you’ll use in your location-aware application!