Creating Backward-Compatible UIs

This class demonstrates how to use UI components and APIs available in newer versions of Android in a backward-compatible way, ensuring that your application still runs on previous versions of the platform.

Throughout this class, the new Action Bar Tabs feature introduced in Android 3.0 (API level 11) serves as the guiding example, but you can apply these techniques to other UI components and API features.

Lessons

Abstracting the New APIs

Determine which features and APIs your application needs. Learn how to define application-specific, intermediary Java interfaces that abstract the implementation of the UI component to your application.

Proxying to the New APIs

Learn how to create an implementation of your interface that uses newer APIs.

Creating an Implementation with Older APIs

Learn how to create a custom implementation of your interface that uses older APIs.

Using the Version-Aware Component

Learn how to choose an implementation to use at runtime, and begin using the interface in your application.