What the Heck is an Android Phone?

Android is a mobile operating system that uses a modified version of the Linux kernel. Huh? The Linux kernel is one of the most prominent examples of free and open source software (OSS). The Android OSS was initially developed by Android, Inc. Google later purchased that company. This led to the Open Handset Alliance (OHA). Huh?? OHA is a business alliance of 65 firms for developing open standards for mobile devices. Are your eyes crossed yet? An open standard is a standard that is publically available. The term "open" usually means royalty-free technologies. "Standard" is sometimes restricted to technologies approved by formalized committees that are open to participation by all interested parties and operate on a consensus basis. Getting back now to the Android mobile operating system—it allows developers to write code in Java to control a device, in this case a mobile phone, via a Google-developed Java library. In this explanation library means a collection of "sub-routines" used to develop software. Phew! Got all that?