The State of Mobile for Nonprofit Needs

Mobile Web Apps

Ben from Quilted--not a lot of experience, been using SMS in activism

Ryan--platform-agnotic mobile apps because mobile users going up, crossing desktop users by 2013

William from Co-op, beginning to do mobile design

Catrina--ACLU NorCal built iOS app using builder, wasn't happy with it, wants to learn more

Josue, Progressive Technology Project, wants to hire someone to build a mobile interface for Civi CRM

Tedt--Radical Designs; clients starting to poke around & ask, looking to find shortest path to mobile development

Bill, RD--maintain a few Android apps, no iOS experience

Josh, web developer

Lisa, client-side, Center for Media Justice (CMJ), low-income users already passed, CMJ doesn't have mobile site

Ernie, represents Smart Voter, interested in Mobile Web Development

Joseph, Cal Student looking at getting into coding apps

Neil, Drupal, run conferences & volunteer

David, Pierce Family Foundation, helps grantees make decisions like this

Brianna, interested in going beyond mobile CSS

David--evolution from mobile WAP to iphone (full web browser) and evolution to objective C-native apps-->Apple launched the App store, you could run apps without having an internet connection, developers could make a little bit of money or even a lot, huge rush to mobile web development

Objective C: Programming language used to develop programs on apple iOS

All the functionality of an app by adding bookmark of webpage to smartphone desktop

Android apps: written in Java, iOS apps written in C, Bberry written in a different Java Cross-platform tools: Titanium and Phone Gap--> open source tools where you can write an app with wrappers for Android and iPhone and distribute them through the Apple/Android app stores

Choices: 1. build native apps: slow, not compatible with other platforms 2. build a Titanium or Phone Gap app using web development technologies-->you have to have a web page in order to build the application 3. On the web you have a URL, you're on the website or in the application or go to the website

In the Apple store, any dynamic content pulled from the web must be rated NC-17, limits on what can be sold, Apple's decisions aren't transparent, they don't tell you about their decision, there's no arbitration.

Android market: only Google-approved phones can access the Google store, but not a tablet without a

Refocus to Non Profit application

Ted: what's the shortest route?

Kevin: Phone Gap

Ryan: clarification--what is the app?

Kevin: anything, including shortcut to website

Ted: you can have scripts like JSON send from within the app

Kevin: made 1 mobile-friendly web page, wrapped it in Phone Gap app

Brianna: practical application for dynamic apps--examples/brainstorm

Kevin: submission tool for tree image & location sent through REST so the city government can

Ted: Got Mercury? app so you can see mercury content of fish

Poonam: what is the process when working with the non-profit?

Ted: It's very similar to web development i.e. UI/UX, assessments,

Josue: I have a web-based database--Do I want an app? Do we look at CSS/html through the browser? How do I evaluate needs

Kevin/Ted: You have no control over pushing releases in Apple store; you need to test itunes app way more than web app

Josie: Can I add a feature to push the phone number and have it open in Skype rather than in the phone?

Bill: the applications you build natively tend to be a lot more brittle because they've pre-coded exceptions

Kevin: It can be 100s of pages to make a simple REST request rather than cURL REST

David: Briefly address relative skill levels and various types of investment

Bill: once you get into the phone systems, it's a different skillset

David: any differentiation between the mobile web apps & a wrapped app?

Kevin: mobile web app basically the same thing, different libraries but still web development

Ted: selective templates i.e. instead of multiple templates for every possible system boilerplate example: Skeleton

Kevin: wrapped app is being built from scratch

Ryan: tap into features of phone i.e. camera, GPS?

Kevin: Titanium or PhoneBack let you do that

Ryan: Good libraries?

Ted: jq touch

Ryan:

Ted: flush it out i.e. specific use cases: 3 examples of what mobile users need.

Ryan: how do you test?

Bill: iOS simulator and Android Emulator

Ryan: How do I get these?

Bill: Desktop apps, may need X-code for Apple

Ted: responsive templates