# 3.6 Summary There was a time when the act of writing a program gave the developer full control over each and every transistor of a machine. That era died alongside the 3.5” floppy disk. An app is a restricted bit of code, governed by the many laws set by the operating system that gives it power. Just as the Android API provides the means by which your app will work for the user, it also places limits upon what your app can do for the safety of the user. That is the underlying principle behind the many convoluted rules surrounding intents and the manifest file, avenues through which the application will request for additional power from the operating system. --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://android-course.cornellappdev.com/chapters/3.-intent-and-manifest/3.6-summary.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.