Questions about servers, databases, and android

Ok so I'm trying to develop a server for an android app that I'm developing.

Basically it's an application that needs to connect with other phones through a database system.

I was thinking of using an sql database to store the simple data I need to exchange.

What type of server should I be using?

What language should I be writing the database code in (if besides SQL)?

How do I get the android application to communicate and exchange information with the database?

Is there a type of开发者_开发技巧 virtual server I can use to test my app?

The server type and language choices very much depend on your skillset and environment. However, I'd suggest exposing queries to your database either through JSON or XML, and presenting through a web server.

PHP & MySQL are as good a choice as any, as you can run the same code on UNIX, Linux, Solaris, or MacOS servers. Of course, using a J2EE environment with JDBC drivers to a generic server is also a good choice, especially if you need to share any classes between Android and your server.

By 'virtual server' I assume you mean 'virtual handset', in which case the Android emulator in the SDK might be good enough (although it is painfully slow), or just use a real Android device plugged in to your development machine.

Hope this helps,

Phil Lello