Coroutines in Kotlin are a concurrency design pattern that enables asynchronous programming in a sequential manner[1]. They provide a lightweight and efficient way to handle background tasks in Android applications[1].
Key points about Kotlin coroutines:
Coroutines are lightweight threads that can be created and managed by developers[3]. They allow you to suspend execution of a function without blocking the thread until a particular task is completed[3].
Coroutines make use of suspend functions, which are non-blocking functions that can be paused and resumed later[3]. This allows for easier composition of asynchronous operations[3].
Coroutines provide a structured approach to asynchronous programming, making it easier to write sequential code that can be suspended and resumed[2]. They offer features like structured concurrency, cancellation, and exception handling[2].
Coroutines differ from traditional threading mechanisms in Android by being more lightweight, efficient, and predictable[1]. They provide a higher-level abstraction for concurrency management compared to threads[1].
Here's a simple example of using coroutines to fetch data from a server asynchronously[3]:
