Create mobile services and applications regardless of your computer programming knowledge. This extraordinary book introduces you to App Inventor for Android, a powerful tool that exposes you to the world of computer programming, so you can create technology rather than merely consume it.

You don't need years of training to build your own Android apps. This book teaches you how to quickly design and code apps for anything from texting to location awareness to data storage on the Web, using App Inventor's unique visual interface. Ideal for beginning and intermediate Android developers, hobbyists and makers, and students of any age, App Inventor will help you turn your great idea into a full-functioning app in no time.

* Take advantage of App Inventor's GPS-location sensor: Build an app shows the location of friends or colleagues at a concert or conference, or one that gives you a custom tour of your school, workplace, or a museum.

* Use an Android device's phone features: Write an app that periodically texts "missing you" to loved ones, an app that responds to texts automatically when you're driving, and an app that reads incoming texts aloud.

* Communicate with the Web: Create Android apps that talk to your favorite web sites, such as Amazon and Twitter.