> It's not like Android runs all native code in a VM - it's as "close to the metal" as you can get
Can you please explain how Dalvik[1] isn't a VM? Sorry if I am missing your point.
Are you referring to the NDK[2]? I haven't used it but my understanding was that Dalvik is still used for UI and basic process control, while calling out to native code via JNI.
I was referring to the NDK. The NDK is perfectly capable of input & drawing - it's what many games use, for example. It's also what Firefox uses. Well, Firefox is a hybrid - a mix of Java and native. But the web parts are all native running outside of dalvik and drawing directly to a surface via OpenGL.
Can you please explain how Dalvik[1] isn't a VM? Sorry if I am missing your point.
Are you referring to the NDK[2]? I haven't used it but my understanding was that Dalvik is still used for UI and basic process control, while calling out to native code via JNI.
[1] - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dalvik_%28software%29
[2] - http://developer.android.com/tools/sdk/ndk/index.html