DEVELOPMENT OF INTERACTIVE MAPS APPLICATION FOR EE DEPARTMENT ON ANDROID SMARTPHONE DEVICES

Android platform has become a leading mobile operating system since it frrst
appearance on November 2007. Latest statistic based on July market data in U.S
shown that Android smartphone has gain 40% of market share compare to iOS and
Blackberry which hold only 28% and 7% respectively. While Android operating
system is only maturing with just about 3 years old, it already exceeds their close
competitor. This growth is driven by the availability of many high-end products and
the variety of applications in Android Market.
Android smartphone gives the advantage of touchscreen display with multi-touch,
internet access, efficient storage system and many other Application Programming
Interfaces (APis) depending on the software versions. In this project, an offiine maps
application will be develop for Android platform using android Software
Development Kit (SDK) and Integrated Development Environment (IDE) software.
The maps are design for the usage of Electrical and Electronic (EE) students where it
will show maps for EE department, search lecturer infonnation and provide direction
to the desired destination. The process of developing the maps includes designing an
interactive User Interface (UJ), programming the structure of the application,
creating and connecting databases oflecturer information such as room number and
location, office phone number, and email address. The application will not only help
student searching lecturer's details and location, but also can be used by lecturers and
visitors.