+1

+1

Maybe as a preliminary project on this is for StackIdeas to create a REST API for EasySocial. That way, mobile developers will be able to develop apps for ES.

I agree with GURPREET saying that it would be hard to push websites using EasySocial without a mobile app capability.

Web template that looks like a mobile app is still not appealing to users. I'm getting this as feedback.

Not sure if you guys realized this but combining the native app https://www.joomgap.com/slim-app-for-easysocial.html with the web mobile template, one could also fully utilize the push notifications from OneSignal too.

Why not going the mega simple way and making a webview app? There are tons of tutorials that make this easily working within two hours without any knowledge of programming.

@Mark

Seriously, those prices are ridiculous! Did I miss something? What they want so much money for? I think Appcarvers were crazy being more expensive than the software the app was based on but that is crazy. O.O


EDIT: Okay, I found what I missed. It is not necessary to buy more than one month at least. Nevertheless I feel like it is pretty expensive for having a simple webview app.

Easiest way would be this for an android app: http://web2apk.com/create.aspx

+1

Why not going the mega simple way and making a webview app? There are tons of tutorials that make this easily working within two hours without any knowledge of programming.

@Mark

Seriously, those prices are ridiculous! Did I miss something? What they want so much money for? I think Appcarvers were crazy being more expensive than the software the app was based on but that is crazy. O.O


EDIT: Okay, I found what I missed. It is not necessary to buy more than one month at least. Nevertheless I feel like it is pretty expensive for having a simple webview app.

Easiest way would be this for an android app: http://web2apk.com/create.aspx

Since web views are relatively simple app to be built, we could certainly build it. In fact, I already built a test playground locally

Having said that, we don't have the confidence in pushing this out because we are not 100% sure we are able to support it. If the code is being controlled and maintained by us, we are sure of what we are doing (not just copy / pasting codes).

Hey Mark,

Not sure if you guys realized this but combining the native app https://www.joomgap.com/slim-app-for-easysocial.html with the web mobile template, one could also fully utilize the push notifications from OneSignal too.

Wow! A whopping $99/month.. again... per month! Mark, if you guys do the App, I might even reconsider paying your guys $99/month but 3rd party? Well, some people wants to get rich fast.

By the way, since you guys are more in depth with Joomla! development, is there a plan for REST API in version 4? ES IMO needs to have REST API.

Thanks,

Jackson

+1

Are you guys confident that you do not overestimate an app? I thought I desperately need an app. But now I have to admit that I highly overestimated the impact an app will have.

If you think about the amount of money and time an app will consume I think it makes more sense to put this time and money into marketing. The moment your site has 100k+ users an app might slowly become interesting. But up to this moment it is just a useless grave of money and time in my opinion...

Hey Mark,

Wow! A whopping $99/month.. again... per month! Mark, if you guys do the App, I might even reconsider paying your guys $99/month but 3rd party? Well, some people wants to get rich fast.

By the way, since you guys are more in depth with Joomla! development, is there a plan for REST API in version 4? ES IMO needs to have REST API.

I wish we could charge $99 / month as it would really help a lot but I personally think selling our extensions at $99 / month is just too insane haha. Perhaps they have their own reasoning behind the $99 / month plan, perhaps it comes with something else as well?

Techjoomla has a REST API already available and we are trying to include it into 2.2 but we're still in discussion with them.

I do agree with Sabih above about having a native app though because it seems like everyone is transitioning from a native app into progressive web apps and hybrid apps. There are a lot of apps that takes advantage of them these days as they would be able to reduce the cost of maintaining native apps across several different platforms.

Yes it seems the future is the Progressive Web App.
We just have to hope that Apple supports this in future iOS.

+1 please build inhouse apps. I would also be ready to pay everthing you want That would be the last piece, what stackideas should offer. For a full package of support and products.

Unfortunately, this is not about what we think but how users will use our websites and apps.
Think about how you will engage them, how you will keep them coming back.
Why do all the big players like facebook, instagram, linkedin, twitter, snapchat etc all have apps?
Because that's how you engage your audience.....how you leverage yourself above the rest.
You push content to them, then make it easy for them to interact with that content.
Thats why apps are still the future...

Members are bombarded every day with information, so we need to make ours visible, exciting and easy to interact with.
Unless we have an app of sorts, we just get "forgotten" in the information overload.
If anyone thinks that deploying an app is easy or cheap, think again. Building it is just the first step.
Just to register on the Apple store will set you back a quick $100 per annum......and then there is the fact that Apple will reject a pure webview-based app anyway.

Functionality
2.12 Apps that are not very useful, unique, are simply web sites bundled as Apps, or do not provide any lasting entertainment value may be rejected.

Google is easier....its a once-off $25 and you can publish an app based on webview IF you own the website. Webviews to 3rd party websites are not allowed.

Then one needs to consider experience in deploying apps to the play stores, esp when integrating with push messaging. Not to mention anything containing any sort of adult content.
What about charging for the app? Do you know everything you need to know?
What about supporting the app after its launched?
In my experience its best to work with someone who knows what they are doing, who will help you get past the deployment pitfalls and challenges.

So.....
If stackideas developed an app, I would be 1000% behind them. I will happily burn $500 for something that worked, its that important for us. But we also can't wait too long, so we need a commitment or we have to look elsewhere.

Appcarvers is a disaster waiting to happen.
JoomGap looks promising, but until we put cash down we won't really know. Anyone got any experience with slim-apps?


PS Im not a developer, I am simply someone with a lot of scars from trying to get apps published and working

Oh I also forgot to mention issues like battery usage, app performance, network bandwidth usage and costs etc.
A slow app or one which drains the battery will quickly find the delete button.

we use also Appcarvers and it's terrible. Waiting 3 months for deploying the app. I would spend any price for stackideas.

I will happily burn $500 for something that worked, its that important for us.

This will not be enough. Think about it. For 500$ you would maybe get the default app. Making changes would not even be possible because as you said you are no developer. Making some CSS changes differes a lot from working on apps. Not to talk about customizations made on your website which would not work on your app. Finally you would get a default app like all other customers who go into the appstore with the exact same app staying around 1-10 downloads.

For major releases like ES 2.1 you would have to buy the app as well again, because Stackideas would have to update the app when updating the component. Do you really think customers would buy the app over and over again? Most probably not and when they stop buying the latest app version they will have to stop buying the latest component version. In the end, Stackideas would lose more customers with an app as they would lose without an app. It would be crazy in my opinion if Stackideas would start investing into a native app.

A support time for an app like we got for components makes no sense since there will be no support necessary. An app is a completed software. Nothing that has to be compatible to any other components or similar. For a component you got updates like other components, php updates, joomla updates. The compatibility has to be taken care of. With an app this is different. Once it is working there is no scenario where support makes any sense. Therefor the price would be to buy a current version. Next version you will have to buy again of course.

Why do all the big players like facebook, instagram, linkedin, twitter, snapchat etc all have apps?
Because that's how you engage your audience.....how you leverage yourself above the rest.

Well the difference is the content, not the platform. Nevertheless the platform is the most unimportant thing. First is marketing then content and the last thing is the platform itself. Spending all your cash into the platform is the most ineffective way to build a website. Addititionally an app is worth nothing if no one knows it. Because if no one knows it, no one will ever download it. And getting found on google is the easier way than getting found inside an appstore. Do you know any person who searches the appstore when looking for information? No one does. So your visitor will be at first on your website. If you got an app, maybe the user will download the app. But the app will not help you getting found. Only thing that might help you is having an app listed for a better standing on google serach. But this would do a simple webview app.

And additionally, one of the most important and always forgotten scenario of having a website with more components than pure EasySocial. What about that? Once you have an EasySocial app and your website has maybe JReviews or HikaShop installed as well? How do you solve this?

You will be able to see how successful a native app of a component will be produced by the developer himself. JReviews will probably publish a native app pretty soon. I think this is going to be a big failure because of the reasons above but we will be able to see how this is going to work.

Just for information. All of us buys anually subscriptions. Nothing makes sense, what you've written.

It would be the best, if stackideas develop own Easysocial apps. This as a ground package. Above it, can the user set up maybe own colors and links to his own websites. That's it. Everything dressed up as the same.

We pay for easysocial, komento, easyblog, metaman, payplans, regular apps and such things. The last thing which remains ist the belove mobile app for iOS and Android. As i said, i'll pay everything what is in need.

On my sight - since we develop own company solutions into c# basic

Build App, Set custom layout - here comes the input from user, connection with onesignal and the custom colors from their website -, compile that thing, last wishes and check by customer. Rebuild.

Save the Custom Layout on the users profile.
If new versions would appear, rollout it globaly on stackideas. The Customer maybe takes some settings and changes. Rebuild.

Done. Seperate the Package with custom Overlay.

Please Stackideas let this happens. Ask for 1000$ and on the same day i'll pay it.

I use WebView app for free. works perfect.

it on google play

Polfejs

Hello !

To have your site in full screen, just add your website to your Home Screen on iPhone.
On Android there must be a similar function.


So your site with the Mobile Web Template, will look a lot like a native application, in full screen

There are even Joomla extensions, to suggest people to add the site on the Home Screen.
https://extensions.joomla.org/extensions/extension/mobile/apple-display/add2home/

Philippe

Thanks for sharing this Philippe!

Hi Philippe,

Does all your links works in one window? I tried this before but if I click or touch on a link it will open that link in new Safari instead of staying in the same window

Hello Lac,

In principle all links open without leaving the window.
It's curious.

Maybe your links have the target="_blank" attribute ?

Philippe

I discovered a great application for Wordpress : Super Progressive Web Apps
https://wordpress.org/plugins/super-progressive-web-apps/

You can try the demo here: https://superpwa.com
By adding this site to your Home Screen (see previous post).

You will see that at the start of the demo application, there is logo that appears at startup.
As a native application !

It would be nice if the Stackideas team offered us that.
Loading of your site will be faster because some files will have already been downloaded to the mobile the first time.

Philippe

I discovered a great application for Wordpress : Super Progressive Web Apps
https://wordpress.org/plugins/super-progressive-web-apps/

You can try the demo here: https://superpwa.com
By adding this site to your Home Screen (see previous post).

You will see that at the start of the demo application, there is logo that appears at startup.
As a native application !

It would be nice if the Stackideas team offered us that.
Loading of your site will be faster because some files will have already been downloaded to the mobile the first time.

Philippe

I use joomla do you know anything ?

What you can recommended for Joomla? Super Progressive Web Apps?

Unfortunately there is not yet a similar plugin for Joomla.
Hopefully, Mark and his team offer a homemade solution.

Philippe

Android App Idea For Group Or Team Of People


https://stackideas.com/forums/android-app-idea-for-group-or-team-of-people-1

https://stackideas.com/forums/android-app-idea-for-group-or-team-of-people-1

https://www.gofundme.com/easysocial-native-android-app?teamInvite=cJ6qsfMLoEr2eg4IexhJZajIO7IhAe8hifhq2YrBd2wLhsDoVoRXCPGLbdnANRH1

My 2 cents on this mobile app for ES is the best group to create it is StackIdeas devs themselves since it may need API changes. Having a 3rd party to create it is errr something might be just a frustration and would just cost money in out part but will not deliver fully. Well, someone tried it before but I don't think they are successful, the last time I followed it is they have issues with ES API and they have to wait for SI dev team to fix it or has to convince them to fix. That is like switching off the momentum.

If we convince Mark to develop it, maybe it's a better funding initiative.

Jackson

+1

+1 in Stackideas we trust

We are currently looking for options It could be developed in house or sourced to a 3rd party developer.

i guess i speak for everyone, when i say only a inhouse solution would be great.

I will spend even 1000$ but with a satisfied solution from your team. Never ever again something like appcarvers.

i guess i speak for everyone, when i say only a inhouse solution would be great.

I will spend even 1000$ but with a satisfied solution from your team. Never ever again something like appcarvers.

Joy. You are right, APPCARVERS is a money waste.

i guess i speak for everyone, when i say only a inhouse solution would be great.

I will spend even 1000$ but with a satisfied solution from your team. Never ever again something like appcarvers.

Joy. You are right, APPCARVERS is a money waste.

#NeverAgain

We are currently looking for options It could be developed in house or sourced to a 3rd party developer.

Ah, that's interesting !

Philippe

I am in.

+1

I am in.

+1

I gave up waiting and developed my own webview app.
Pretty much every thing works except for the additional onesignal add-on app notifications (normal one-signal broadcasts work fine)
But webview apps aren't as fast as mobile browser.

+1, we are willing to spend serious money for an app. We look at appcraver, and now we are looking into paying developer for doing webview apps. But it looks like there is a huge market that wants it, Stackidea should really listen to their customers and it will be worth it for them financially as well. All we want is a way to get a mobile notification on both iOS and Android, anything more is a bonus :-)

+1 why not to send us to Easysocial active customers email with crowdfund link. Ont the other side I understand Mark, that it is not everything only about money. You must have enough good reliable developers and time to manage them

+1 great idea. Hope next week will we knew morr about native android and uos apps. Would even pay 1000$

+1 on this my need is mainly to allow easy sharing of links and images by users to their status