Google publishes guidelines for layout Android apps

Google has published guidelines prescribing how apps on Android should look and work. For example, notifications must always be turned off and style elements from iOS may not be applied in apps.

The guidelines are not mandatory on Android; Google does not approve apps before they appear in Android Market. Well, the guidelines advice on how developers can create apps that work well on all Android hardware and have a clear layout.

Google thought the guidelines were necessary, because Android apps now often have different layouts, which means that users take longer to learn the interface of an app. If developers follow the guidelines in large numbers, apps often work in the same way, so users know where to find which function.

One of the things Google insists on is that there should be no styling cues from other platforms. This includes iOS style elements, such as the Back button at the top, the arrows next to list items and the tab bar at the bottom. “If you want to change the theme of interface elements, do so carefully and according to your own brand guidelines, not the conventions of another platform,” Google warns.

Another point that Google wants to make is that developers should be careful with notifications. For example, notifications should always be turned off and the app should not give a notification for all activity, because then the notification bar would become cluttered.

The guidelines focus on Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, the new version of Google’s mobile operating system, in which the interface has been radically changed. Never before has Google produced a guide like this to show developers how to design the layout of apps.