App Inventor 2 is a no-code app development platform created by MIT University. It has been created using google’s programming language called blockly. I believe after Android Studio, App Inventor 2 is the best platform to create android apps and in this article, I will explain why am I so confident that it is the best platform.
App inventor is a no-code app development platform with the flexibility close to android studio
To understand its importance you have to first understand how programming works.
How programming works
In order to perform different operations on your computer, you need to learn programming languages like Java, C++ or python. It may take a long time to learn these languages and to use them efficiently. In order to write a program, you should have knowledge about different keywords, operators and other programming elements. Apart from that you should avoid typing mistakes(known as syntax errors) and arrange the program in a proper sequence to be executable. If any of these mistakes exist in the programme then, it cannot be executed on your computer and as a result, you have to spend a lot of time finding and fixing those errors.
However, in App inventor, there is no chance for such errors to exist because here we use graphical blocks instead of typing the programming statements. Blocks are very simple to understand. They look like pieces of a puzzle and you have to just snap two blocks for creating a programming statement. App inventor has a simple interface which makes it easy to understand unlike other IDE’s (Integrated development environment) such as an android studio. Moreover, IDE’s like android studio are very difficult to set up whereas, App Inventor does not require any setup, as you can easily access it through the web. It is a cloud-based web app which stores your projects in the cloud (database) and allows you to access your projects on different devices when you sign in with your Google account.
Advantages of App Inventor over other no-code app development platforms:
- Unlike other no-code app development platforms, App Inventor allows us to create apps from scratch.
- It provides the ability to design the user experience.
- You have control over each and every component which may not be available in any other no-code app development platforms.
- Services like Google translate API, Open Clipart API e.t.c can also be used through a Web API component.
- Variables, lists, Procedures.. give more power to perform different operations.
In a single sentence app inventor is a no-code app development platform with the flexibility close to android studio.