Hands on: What's new and noteworthy with Android N

随着谷歌的I/O developers' conferencebehind us, it's time to start looking forward to what's next in the world of Android.

The most prominent thing is Google's rapidly approaching Android release, currently known only as Android "N." (The company has yet to reveal the full name or version number.) While the software itself isn't expected to arrive until sometime this summer, we're getting an increasingly clear picture of the fresh features and improvements it'll provide.

我一直使用Androi的预发布版本d N since Google's first developer preview back in March and all the way through the most recent update put out last week (which isavailable to anyone with an eligible device, though be warned that it isn't entirely stable). While the software is still in flux and its elements aren't guaranteed to remain unchanged, we've seen enough at this point to get a pretty good idea of what's in the works.

Here's a tour of the most significant new elements in Android N as of now -- and why they all matter.

(Remember: Since manufacturers are able to customize Android as they like, some specifics of the software may vary from one device to the next once N is actually released, as will the timing ofwhen the upgrade becomes available。What's described here is Google's core vision for the software -- which is what's used on its own Nexus devices and what all manufacturers use as a base for their efforts.)

Multi-window mode

The marquee feature in Android N is without a doubt its new multi-window mode. The feature makes it possible to split a device's display in half and view two apps onscreen at the same time.

Sound familiar? It should: Manufacturers like Samsung have been adding that ability into their Android devices for quite a while now. Android N, however, marks the first time the function is being offered as a native part of the actual operating system -- which means it's the first time it'll be available onallAndroid的devices, regardless of who makes them, and the first time developers will be able to optimize their apps to work consistently well with the feature across the entire platform.

以对Android的N张多窗口模式的优点是很容易的：在使用任何应用程序，只需按住系统概述键（一般是正方形的图标旁边的返回和首页图标）。一个日渐应用到屏幕的一半，并带来了显示卡，在另一半你最近使用过的应用程序。所有然后你要做的就是选择你的卡堆希望第二个应用程序，和TA-DA：你有两个应用的显示器上同时运行。

然后触摸和拿在最近使用的应用程序列表中的任何卡并将其拖到屏幕的上半部分 - 或者，您也可以通过从系统中任何一次敲击概述主要火起来的多窗口模式。你甚至可以将两个Chrome标签一起，如果你想要的。

If you're anything like me, multi-window mode isn't something you'll use all the time -- but itissomething that can come in handy once in a while, like when you want to glance at an email while editing a document or send a text message while continuing to watch a video on YouTube.

快速应用切换

Something I've been enjoying even more than multi-window mode isthe new fast app-switching featureavailable in Android N. You can think of it as Alt-Tab for Android: When you want to jump back and forth between two apps in a snap, you just double-tap the Overview key -- and almost instantly, Android zaps you back to the last app you had open.

它使进程之间跳跃的更有效的方式。一旦你习惯了它，你会想知道你以前相处。

An improved Overview

For times when hopping alone won't suffice, you'll still want to use Android's full Overview interface -- and with the N release, that part of the platform gets some much-needed polish.

As of the most recent preview, Android N limits the number of items in the Overview list, so that you see only cards from the last seven apps you've had open. That's a huge improvement from the previous mess of a setup, where dozens upon dozens of cards would stack up and make the functionmore overwhelming than useful。

In addition to the inherently decluttered view, Android N offers a new command to clear away all the cards in the Overview list and start fresh. All in all, it's a much improved user experience that makes getting around Android even easier.

Better notifications

Android的's notifications are getting better thanks to a refined interface introduced in Android N. Multiple alerts from a single app are now bundled together into a single expandable card -- so if, for instance, you received three new messages in Gmail, you'll see a single card in your notification panel with an overview of that info. Tapping the card will then fan it out into individual mini-cards with more detailed info on each message, and tapping any one of those mini-cards will expand it and allow you to perform message-specific actions like archiving.

安卓ñ还能够回复从通知面板的通知权 - 通过在过去的解决方法允许一些特定的应用程序，但现在可以更容易和一致完成。随着视频群聊，例如，敲击在通知中的回复按钮使报告向下扩大和出现在它里面的文字窗口。然后，您可以键入您的回复也没有做过切换应用程序或停止任何其他你在做发送 - 一个聪明地实现方便，迅速成为非常宝贵的。

更令人满意的快速设置

Speaking of accomplishing things without interruptions, Android's Quick Settings feature gets some significant new polish with the N release.

First of all, a scaled-down version of your Quick Settings now appears when you first pull down the notification panel -- a major improvement from previous versions of Android, which utilized nearly the same amount of space to display only the time, date and a few function-free icons. With Android N, that area holds six functional shortcuts for tasks like toggling your device's Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or do-not-disturb mode.

When you swipe down on the panel a second time (or swipe down once with two fingers, if you prefer), it expands to show a series of tiles that give you access to a broader and more versatile range of commonly used functions. These tiles allow you to perform more intricate actions -- like connecting to a specific Wi-Fi network or viewing detailed battery usage info -- without ever exiting the Quick Settings pull-down.

The tiles are now customizable, too: You can add and remove items and place them in any order you like. And whichever tiles you place into the first five spots appear in the scaled-down version of Quick Settings described above -- an extremely useful bit of personalization potential.

Spruced up system settings

Android的完整的系统设置也得到Android的N.没什么转型新鲜的油漆外衣，但你会发现一些细微的改进 - 比如在顶部有一个新的建议部分，其试图预测你在找什么，使很容易找到，或事实上，主要的设置现在屏幕显示下，每个主选项信息的额外掘金（如声音标题下你目前的铃声音量级别，例如，不然怎么设备的存储空间的多少存储下可用）。

你会发现在设置中的几个新加入的选择，太多，对于像设置单独的壁纸为您的家庭和锁定屏幕，并调整设备的屏幕大小，让一切大的能力。

谷歌还试图使避过系统设置中加入一个侧面装载的菜单，你可以直接从一个部分移动到另一个简单。嘿，什么都可以节省一两个秒钟 - 对吗？

A customizable Share menu

一个看似teensy变化是我们成为one of my favorite Android N featuresis the ability to customize the system-wide Share menu. Google's used a lot of different methods for sorting that menu over the years, but for some reason, my favorite sharing destinations always seem to end up buried in the middle of the list and frustratingly hard to find.

With Android N, you can long-press any icon in the Share list and pin it to the top. You can pin any number of apps you want, and they'll appear in the order you pinned them.

有时，它是最小的事情，让最大的区别。

数据支持节能

Unlimited data isn't a reality for many smartphone owners these days, and Android N has a little something for the gigabyte-pinchers among us: a new Data Saver mode that senses when you're on a metered network and puts the brakes on your mobile data usage.

Data Saver works in two ways: First, it blocks background data usage so your apps won't move any more bytes than is absolutely necessary. (You can manually whitelist certain apps as exceptions if you want.) And second, it tells apps to limit the amount of data use in the foreground whenever possible.

Takethat，讨厌的载体帽！

Under-the-hood advancements and big-picture changes

除了所有的前置功能，Android的N包括我们听到有几乎每一个操作系统升级下引擎罩的改进通常的主机。的Android的最新版本承诺提供更快和更有效的性能，更长的电池寿命和其他类似的东西。它一直没有什么，我经常一天到一天的使用发现，但你的里程可能会有所不同（而一旦最终版本到达上述部分地区可能会更明显）。

Android的N also introduces support for a new VR Mode that'll provide a system-level platform for phone-connected virtual reality headsets. Devices will have to meet specific hardware requirements in order to be certified as "VR ready," though, and Google'sNexus 6Pis the only phone that's been certified thus far -- so odds are, you won't be seeing the effects of this on your current device anytime soon.

On the enterprise front, meanwhile, Google's Android for Work program gains新功能了一把with the N release, including quick device-provisioning via QR code scanning, an optional security challenge to add an extra safeguard to work-related apps, a simple toggle for users to enable and disable a device's work mode and an always-on VPN requirement.

而且超越了氮释放，谷歌正在准备推出一个系统，该系统将使它能够打开和use apps without ever installing them; it'll work on any phone running Android 4.2 or higher when it launches later this year. More broadly yet, new efforts are underway to把Chrome OS和Android更紧密，包括计划，使所有Android上的Chromebook Apps中 - 东西，有对于谷歌的平台未来产生巨大影响(despite what some myopic analysts可以推测).

All in all, Google's certainly got its hands full -- and it shouldn't be long before the fruits of its labor start making their way into our lives.

This story, "Hands on: What's new and noteworthy with Android N" was originally published byComputerworld 。