App Adventure Experiences Discussion
App Adventure Experiences – please share with everyone your creations and experiences during this process.
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melissaayers
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ETEC 522 – September 2012
Ventures in Learning Technology
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jenbarker 11:00 pm on October 1, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
So I just spent the past 30 minutes or so playing with TheAppBuilder. I found it a bit slow and not totally user friendly. When I thought I had uploaded a picture, the image didn’t appear. I also didn’t like that I could only upload my YouTube channel and not one specific video. I think for a beginner like myself I should have tried the easier versions suggested. I will try the others out and do a quick comparison.
Anyway, here is my first attempt at an app.
http://webapp.theappbuilder.com/apps/26f5289b-4ed7-422f-9eff-092ad2505275
tomwhyte1 7:47 pm on October 2, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Quick question, how did you get the webapp addition of your final product. I for some reason, cannot figure out how to do that…
teacherben 8:09 pm on October 2, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I have been playing with it this morning. I also found it clunky and slow. But like any good tech teacher, I handed the project over to a student. Our school does not yet have an app so I asked her to investigate this program to see if it would be an appropriate tool for our needs.
On my own, I got far enough along to get a few pages created and set up some RSS feeds. Then I loaded the app on my phone. All it did for the feeds was redirect to the web though–pretty lame. I wonder if the final exported version of the app will load feeds so you can read them when you are offline.
If anyone is interested in learning a little coding, there is a very simple programming language called Processing that allows you to export your programs for Android. KhanAcademy just released a ton of resources for teaching programming with this language. The nice thing is that you can make highly personal apps and only share them with people you are close with. I made a little game for my toddler where I took a picture of him and when you click on different parts of his body, everything disappears except for that part and it says the name of the body part. I even recorded him saying the names of the parts. This is one of the real advantages of Android over IOS. You don’t have to worry about getting a developer license and you don’t have to worry about getting your app into the app store to share it. You can just give it to whomever you want and they can install it on their device. With Apple, you can only do this with web apps and that isn’t really the same thing. They are pretty limited in what they can do. With Android, you can make apps for a specific target audience. You can make an app for your kindergarten class about friendship and use pictures of all the kids in your class, then put it on the tablet you keep in the classroom.
jhodi 8:31 pm on October 2, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Hi,
I also experienced a lot of difficulties with this. I originally tried appmakr.com, but did not find it very user-friendly. I would try to make changes, but nothing would happen, or I could not figure out how to make changes. I did not try TheAppBuilder, but I did try AppShed, and it was significantly more user-friendly. After getting consumed by this for a few hours, I have come to the conclucion that developing an app is a skill that must be worked on and acquired over time. It is something that interests me, but I feel like I would need to research this process much more before another attempt would be worth while and less frustrating.
Jhodi
Pat A Son 11:51 pm on October 2, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Thank you for sticking it out with this part of our week’s activity on apps. I too had issues with TheAppBuilder. However I simply look at it as part of the learning process as this ETEC 522 class explore this new technology called apps.
Feel free to extended the adventure to discover and use the app creation tool of your choice
melissaayers 4:45 am on October 2, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Hi Jen,
Sorry to hear you did not have too much fun with the appbuilder last night – this is something we all found when we tried it as well. It takes a bit of getting used to and it is a little restrictive in what you can do.
However just for you information in case you want to go back and try you can embed individual Youtube videos If you take a look at the TED-Ed sample app on a number of pages I have embedded videos. To embed a single video you need to:
1) go to the Youtube video (on Youtube.com)
2) click on the “Share” button under the video.
3) click on the “embed” button next to the link given
4) copy this html code snippet
5) go to the appbuilder item that you want to add the video to
6) in the text editor click the “html” button in the tool bar and a small text pop up window will appear. Paste the html code snippet you copied in here and save.
7) you should now have successfully embedded a single Youtube video in your app.
Sorry for the long details I wanted to just post screen shots of how to do this but I seem to be unable to post images in the weblog comment posts.
For the picture not appearing you might just need to refresh your browser as it does not always update automatically.
Hope that is of some help. Do not hesitate to mention/share any further issues you come across we are here to help as much as we can.
Also great work for diving in there and giving the appbuilder a try!
tomwhyte1 10:33 am on October 2, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I have created the app, but when I went live with theappbuilder… I only get one screen advertising their company, not what I built… However, when I trialed the app… it worked fine…
Thoughts?
tomwhyte1 10:38 am on October 2, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Never mind, think I figured it out…
tomwhyte1 7:50 pm on October 2, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
To facilitate my apps ability to be seen on multiple platforms, I have used appshed to generate a HTML 5 version of it… the link is here:
http://appshed.com/appbuilder/8446
Thoughts? (it is my hope to have students use this to see their homework, etc…)
kstackhouse 4:51 am on October 3, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Thanks for sharing Tom. This looks like a great tool to support your work and provide students with resources they can use.
jhodi 8:30 pm on October 2, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I am not sure if I posted my original message in the correct location (I posted it under Week 05), so here it is again!
I found this experience extremely frustrating. I started out trying to create an app with appmakr.com, but after spending half an hour and getting nowhere, I quit and decided to try an alternative. I found that this website was not very user-friendly or intuitive. I could make minor changes, but any larger change that I wanted to make required me to search out how to do it.
Once I switched to AppShed, I found the app creating process to go much, much smoother. I really liked how it provided you with an editable screen shot of what the app would look like on the actual phone. It was easy to edit the various sections since each section has its own individual edit button. It was easy to switch the functions and tools within each section as well in order to modify the section to what I wanted.
Here is my sample app (I just put a few things on it, I would like to build upon each section):
http://appshed.com/appbuilder/8447
Colin 9:43 pm on October 2, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I too tried creating an app on theappbuilder.com and after playing around for 20 minutes I did finally create a basic photography app though it would take much longer to create something worth showing. Then I tried appshed.com and I agree that it is much easier to design as they show how the app will look right on the screen. It was more enjoyable working with this program as I found it more user friendly.
I have never heard of these sites before so I am glad that you shared as I have already incorporated it into one of my assignments. I will be interested to hear how my students like it and what apps they will design. It definitely teaches students to think through their design and plan out exactly what they want to do as you can’t just quickly enter click a few buttons and be done.
kstackhouse 4:53 am on October 3, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Great to hear that you are able to use this in your teaching practice. One thing that we noticed while researching and mentioned in our intro video is that designing an app takes careful consideration. As you mention the students will have to have a clear plan in mind in what they hope to accomplish before going ahead with creating their app.
visramn 7:53 am on October 3, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Sorry, I posted this in the wrong place yesteday.
My app
I really enjoyed creating this app. The program I used was not the most user friendly. It was very slow but I had fun creating the app and the best part was seeing it function on my phone. I have always wondered how apps were created but never thought to look into it. This activity gave me the opportunity to learn that it really is not that difficult to create and app. My app is not as complex as most but I still feel like it is an accomplishment. I used ‘TheAppBuildrer’ program to create my app. The link to my app is: http://webapp.theappbuilder.com/apps/cca8540d-3bea-41ad-8621-6b38301dd296 Thanks.
Nureen
Mike Rae 11:36 am on October 3, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Im glad to hear that so many of you got your hands dirty with trying to build an app. Our purpose wasn’t to have you bang your head against the keyboard in frusteration, but rather (as most of you have done), move on once it gets too much, maybe try a different site to compare what you liked and what you didnt.
I’d be interested to hear how students respond to wither using an app that you guys have made or the process of making their own.
Does anyone think app creation could have a place in curriculum outside of IT classes?
lullings 11:48 am on October 3, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
HI Mike,
I definitely do see a place for app creation outside of IT classes.
When creating an app there are many essential skills that have to be thought out – such as problem identification, need assessment, simplification of task, user needs etc.
The building of the app would just be the fun part and the interesting part where as the real learning would be from breaking down the problem and delivering it to the audience.
After a task like this a student becomes more of an independent critical thinker and opens their mind in relation to the possibilities that they would have taken for granted previously – like their mobile device.
Stuart
Kent Jamieson 11:54 am on October 4, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I find with so many elements, or essential skills as Stuart explained, there is a great opportunity for social skills, organizational skills, and collaboration skills to be practiced and applied. As well, with a subject-specific application you would need to integrate other subject areas into the process. So yes…definitely, get it out of the lab and into the classroom.
lullings 2:16 pm on October 3, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I used the app builder to build a commercial style app. I took a design studio just to see how it would cope with the different elements.
The wizard is very clear and thought out. The instructions are not complicated and work well. It is a complex process but app builder hides the complexity and delivers on usability.
Downside of this process, similar to creating a website in weebly or wix, is that there is very little options to steer away from the structure that is given. There is little to no creative input allowed on the functionality. But then again allowing these sort of adjustments might create issues with the app being ‘accepted’ into the Apple store.
Good to experience the structures and to see the elements necessary such as the splash pages, icons and sizings. I enjoyed it.
Have a look see for yourself – http://webapp.theappbuilder.com/apps/163ed2da-bd8c-4142-8d96-0eca02f9d4bb
Stuart
kstackhouse 6:58 am on October 4, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Thanks for sharing. Yes, like weebly there are some fixed elements that restrict the user in some ways. I think for someone that is not an expert in coding and design it is a big help. I know that a couple of years ago I didn’t think I would be able to host a website or app of my own. For me taking some hits on being over-structured is worth the fact that I wouldn’t be doing this without a program like this.
visramn 3:36 pm on October 6, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Nice app. I too thought that the tool I used was a slightly rigid as well. It has pre-structured components that you can choose from but does not give you the leeway of adding something different.This might have been because I used the free version. However, I think as a first trial this activity was great.
Thanks for sharing.
Nureen
melissaayers 11:22 am on October 7, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Hi Stuart, if you are confident in html and/or html5 most of these application creators and website creators like weebly give you a bit more freedom and creativity, however this is still usually somewhat restrictive on certain elements and structures depending on the host/provider.
Jenny Brown 6:25 pm on October 3, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I tried to use appshed as everyone seemed to find it more intuitive to use and I would agree. With a little searching around it is pretty easy to set it up. Most of my time was actually trying to figure out what to create. Anyway, here is my mini app on three good mountain biking sites: http://appshed.com/appbuilder/8516
visramn 3:39 pm on October 6, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Great job. I agree the tasks seems a lot more difficult than it is. I had a hard time deciding on what to make my app about also. Looks like you found a topic that you know lots about. Thanks for sharing your app.
Nureen
Jenny Brown 6:30 pm on October 3, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Sorry the link doesn’t look great on a laptop as it is optimized for mobile phones. Here is a link to the preview – hopefully this will look better: http://appshed.com/appbuilder/preview/8516
kstackhouse 7:00 am on October 4, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Jenny,
This app looks great! Thank you for sharing. It is great when our only problem is deciding how great we will make an app. 🙂 You have done a nice job on this.
Eva Ziemsen 7:52 am on October 4, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Hi,
I used AppShed, after reading of others’ experiences with it. My initial experience was not great, as I deleted everything I created by mistake. As well, I found it to be a bit slow, but it could be my Internet connection. I found this exercise very interesting and useful. There is nothing better than actually trying to create an app, in order to learn about what is involved. I did not realize it was ‘so easy’ (and yet also so hard) to develop an app. I thought it was easy, in the sense that you do not need to know how to code, etc. It is difficult because there are glitches and also one must plan the design beforehand in order to best maximize the nature of APPS.
I created an app for a website that I have developed over time. It relates to film production. My app is the product of about 1 hour of fiddling around. Obviously this is just a sketch of an app idea, as I think it would require several weeks to refine.
http://appshed.com/appbuilder/preview/8542
I hope you are able to see it. I want to create a kind of homepage for the app, but I think I have to have less icons/tabs at the bottom in order to do that. If anyone knows other ways to have more icons on screen, please let me know.
Eva
melissaayers 11:26 am on October 7, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Great work Eva, you seemed to have managed your way around AppShed no problem and found out how to content and embed videos. Unfortunately there is a restriction of only being able to add 5 tabs to this app creator.
Doug Connery 8:17 pm on October 4, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I used AppShed as many before me have had good experiences. I messed up my first attempt pretty bad last night so left it and came back again tonight. Success of at least a prototype, it was fairly easy once I got my head around it.
Below is the link, it is not pretty but it works! This is a simple app that links to the different programs that my School offers.
http://appshed.com/appbuilder/8519/?8519-ODQ0NTk=-s
As Eva mentions above, it would take several weeks to refine. And like anything new, the first few attempts take some time until you get a deeper understanding of the functionality of the program.
I would like to thank Group 1 for a great module and a wonderful learning experience in the world of Apps. Without this, I would have continued to wander through the world of technology not knowing that building an App is really not that specialized a skill. Anyway you have set the bar high for the rest of us to follow!
Doug.
melissaayers 11:29 am on October 7, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
HI Doug, great to hear that you are able to try out something new with our OER! Thanks
jenniferschubertubc 2:04 pm on October 5, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I spent a good amount of time playing around on AppMakr just to see how easy/difficult it would be to make an app. (It probably would have been better if I had a real idea of WHAT I wanted to make beforehand… BUT I did have a GREAT time figuring out how to transform one of my tumblr blogs into its own app!) It was a bit frustrating at first, as is the case with many new experiences in technology, but when I started seeing things come together and work, displaying my content, I’ll admit I got a bit giddy (as all fangirls know well how to do)! 🙂
I chose not to publish my app as, being a tumblr fansite, it would violate terms of service as it would infringe on intellectual property/copyright. It was very interesting to see, however, how easy it would be to set up something to deliver to a broadcasting company/publicist/publicity house in order to “sell” them a readily accessible database of content for viewers/fans. The ideas are flowing…
Thank you for presenting us with this fun, and informative, challenge! I am seeing new possibilities for what I have only previously viewed as leisure activities.
adi 7:26 pm on October 5, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I finally got around to playing at trying to make an APP (http://appshed.com/appbuilder/8764/?8764-ODcwNDY=-s) . I wrote ‘trying’ because it clearly takes a lot of time to build. What I learned is that organizing all the files, pictures and material for the APP before starting would have made the process much quicker. I literally just placed a couple of icons and attached a file to each; the idea was to create an app for EFL/ESL students to look up grammar, essay writing questions etc. I did not upload anything else because it would have meant looking for material with no copyright.The application was much easier to use than I expected.
Thanks for this great activity. The only way to learn is to dive in.
jameschen 12:08 am on October 6, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I tried creating an app with the web-ware AppMakr and found the experience to be quite interesting. I have never created an app before, and had always thought that having programming skills was a prerequisite. I was wrong.
AppMakr allows users to create apps simply by answering a few short questions. The more time spent on selecting the pre-determined affordances, the more functionalities will be enabled on the app. Appmakr also allows users with programming skills to create apps in various programming codes. These are important educational features because those without programming skills can now experiment with creating an app and learn different programming codes through the process.
The only concern I have for this web-ware is that it might enable hackers to use the app created by a novice to hack into people’s devices because of insufficient security measures of the app caused by a lack in programming skills. But perhaps this too can be regarded as a learning opportunity for users who are serious about creating apps, so in all I think this web-ware is a good educational resource.
James
melissaayers 11:33 am on October 7, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Great point about security James, I hope (and have not had time to verify) that the apps created through these sites follow strict security guidelines and protocols for each of the apps created. I am sure they have in-build security and data protection precautions.
Peggy Lawson 4:16 pm on October 7, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I apolgize – twice – up front. A hectic week, so while I’ve been interested in learning how to create apps for a long time, and never new how to get started and your links were a great way to get started (!!), I didn’t. But I will return, as I am fully intrigued and want to give your sites a real trial.
2nd – While I understand the purpose of this class is to learn to think like an entrenprenuer, or an EVA, for me it really is all about “how can this be used in the classroom??” (for me it’s always a K-12 classroom). I love how you’ve introduced us to these sites that allow you to create apps – what excellent ways to totally engage students in problem-solving, creative thinking, collaboration. Sites such as those you’ve provided are simply amazing opportunities for students – those who are interested – to simply fly. Thank you Week 5!
Peggy