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Automating iOS: How Pythonista Changed My Workflow

A couple of months ago, I decided to start learning Python.

I say “start” because, as a hobby to fit in between my personal schedule and work for the site, learning the language is still very much a work in progress. I hope I’ll get to an acceptable level of knowledge someday. Coming from AppleScript, another language I started researching and playing with earlier this year, the great thing about Python is that it’s surprisingly easy to pick up and understand. As someone whose job primarily consists of writing, I set out to find how Python could improve my workflow based on text and Markdown; I found out – and I’m still finding out – that Python allows for more flexible and intelligent string manipulation[1] and that some very smart folks have created excellent formatting tools for Markdown writers.

But this article isn’t strictly about Python. Soon after I took my decision to (slowly) learn my way around it, I asked my friend Gabe Weatherhead about possible options to write and execute Python scripts on iOS. Thanks to Gabe’s recommendation I installed Pythonista, and this app has completely changed my iOS workflow. Read more

The Value Of In-App Purchases

punch quest

punch quest

The Verge writes about to commercial failure of the first version of Punch Quest, a new game by Rocketcat Games:

But the reality was much different. Despite surpassing 600,000 downloads, Punch Quest only just crossed into the five figure range in terms of revenue. “The really scary thing is that profits tend to drop off sharply a week after an app’s out,” Auwae says. “I hear it’s a bit better for free apps, but a paid app often makes most of its money in the first week of being out.”

Figuring out where the problem lies is a difficult task. Punch Quest seems to have done many things right, with a game that has proved popular with a wide audience and was designed from the beginning with the concept of IAP in mind, but obviously something is missing. “There’s a lot of stuff that could be wrong,” says Auwae, “but we’re just not sure.

Earlier this year, our Graham Spencer wrote an extensive feature story on the state of game In-App Purchases, the best practices for developers, and reactions from users to various kinds of IAPs. He concluded:

On the other hand, people are much more appreciative of paying for something that is more tangible — like more levels or new game modes. They are more substantial than a new gun, or some in-game coins that can buy you a power-up. I think this feeling is amplified when a user moves on from a game and looks back at what they payed for. If they were just buying currency for power-ups, there really isn’t anything to show for that money that they once spent. On the other hand if they bought a new game mode, they can see that additional mode and if they decide to come back to the game at a later date, they’ll still have that and be able to take advantage of it.

As Andrew Webster wrote at The Verge, I think Punch Quest’s case is primarily an issue of perceived value. I don’t think Punch Quest’s virtual currency-like model for IAP is a sustainable model.

On the other hand, I don’t think it’s a problem of “small Buy button” (as suggested by The Verge): Loren Brichter’s Letterpress is a different genre, but some mechanics of revenue generation with IAP are comparable with Punch Quest. Loren said he didn’t make any “IAP optimization” to guide users towards spending money, yet Letterpress is a success. I believe it ultimately goes down to the fact that Letterpress’ IAP feels like a must-have, as I wrote in my review.

I think it’s a smart move, because Letterpress’ in-app purchase is a must-have so, essentially, you’ll be purchasing a $0.99 paid app. In this case, the “free” price tag is an illusion to draw more customers to download the app right away: think of it as a “trial” version of the real Letterpress. This is what the App Store dynamics have become, and Brichter is simply experimenting with something completely new for him while playing by the market’s rules. Because while I could go by without themes – I just use the default one – more simultaneous games and played words is what you’re really looking after.

Punch Quest doesn’t make me feel like I’m missing out. It doesn’t leverage the addictive nature of the game to draw me to the IAP options; at the contrary, the fact that it’s easy to collect currency in the game makes me feel like the IAP is unnecessary: I can play this because I like it and I’ll collect coins anyway.

Letterpress, on the flip side, doesn’t trade your time for options. You’re always going to miss themes and simultaneous games if you don’t pay. The IAP of Letterpress is an exclusive option that is based on the game’s essence: playing games against friends. You like this game so much you want to play more games? Then pay. Otherwise, you won’t have the feature. Simple and effective.

With In-App Purchases, I want to feel like I’m paying for something that I need. Even better, I want that to be more than a feeling: it’s got to be a fact.

Personally, I believe developers shouldn’t settle on “established” ways to implement IAPs. For instance, despite the completely different category, I like what iThoughts HD is doing with IAP: the regular app is $9.99 and already a sustainable business model, but if you want, you can pay more. Paying $3.99 for the IAP will unlock “Early Access” features, which include things like Search and Doodling on mind maps. These are features that will come to the main app eventually, but you can pay to get them now.

iThoughts’ IAP works from both technical and conceptual perspectives. By paying, you know you’re supporting the ongoing development of an app you like, and that is a powerful concept by itself. But, at the same time, you’re also getting new features before other people – you’re unlocking new exclusive stuff. Features that make the app better and that are cleverly targeted at people who use iThoughts on a regular basis. It feels like a must-have.

It’s marketed differently, but iThoughts’ IAP is actually very similar to Letterpress: it understands the app’s user base and allows customers to get more functionality by paying.

In-App Purchases are tricky. To get a complete overview of this phenomenon in games, I still recommend reading Graham’s story from June, which includes various surveys with developers and users. Overall, I believe IAPs can be a stable (and possibly more intelligent) business model, but developers should consider the value perceived by their customers before and after the purchase.

Google Voice Search for iOS: Not A Siri Competitor, Still A Solid App

Earlier today, Google released an update to its Search app for iOS (a longtime favorite of mine both on the iPhone and iPad) to include an “Improved Voice Search” experience. Apparently, the app had been submitted a while ago, but Apple approved it this week.

The new Voice Search of the app may seem Siri-like in terms of overall concept. Essentially, it allows you to ask questions in natural language without typing, and get results back. I took some time to test the app, and, in actual usage, the scope is considerably different from Apple’s Siri, at least for now. And, at the same time, the technology behind it is much different. Read more

Brief Thoughts and Questions On Apple’s Changes

It’s unclear whether today’s news of a major shake-up at Apple will reveal its actual effects a few months from now, many months from now, or at next year’s new product announcements in the Fall. I’d say WWDC would be a good stage to introduce “the new Apple”.

Rumors of internal struggles between the “political” Scott Forstall have been floating around for quite some time, and we just don’t know whether today’s press release was just that – a press release – or the result of more internal fights. We don’t know for how long this move has been in the works. But I’ll point out the precise timing of the announcement: it comes after the release of iOS 6, the iPhone 5, new iPod products, new Macs, the iPad mini, and an earnings call. It allows Apple to formally mention the efforts of a new executive line-up at a record-setting (per the company’s own guidance) holiday quarter. Coincidentally, as the US market is closing tomorrow due to Sandy, it gives Apple (and analysts and investors) an extra day to properly digest the news. I also guess this explains why Forstall didn’t give a demo at the iPad mini event. He’s being pushed out; I’m curious about timing.

That said, I have some questions. Think of the following list as a collection of thoughts following Apple PR’s announcement; I believe this is, for many reasons, one of the biggest changes to happen at Apple since the release of the original iPhone. It’s a major milestone for where the company is going from here. Read more

iPad mini: Our Complete Overview

Phil Schiller took the stage today at Apple’s media event in San Jose to officially unveil the iPad mini, Apple’s latest entry in the iPad line-up.

As widely rumored, the iPad mini features the same 4:3 aspect ratio of the iPad with a smaller, 7.9” display carrying the same resolution of the original iPad and iPad 2 – 1024x768. The smaller display has allowed Apple to cut down the overall size of the device, which also features a lighter form factor and thinner design, as well as narrower borders. The iPad mini is, from a design standpoint, reminiscent of the iPad 2 and third-generation iPad, with a flat aluminum back, albeit with more rounded edges.

iPad mini is every inch an iPad. With its gorgeous 7.9-inch display, iPad mini features the same number of pixels as the original iPad and iPad 2, so you can run more than 275,000 apps designed specifically for iPad,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing.

Hardware

The iPad mini comes in two colors: white & silver and black & slate. The biggest feature, however, is its design, which is only 7.2mm thin and 53% lighter than the third generation iPad. Schiller compared the thinness of the iPad mini to a pencil. The iPad mini weighs 0.68lbs, making it as “light as a pad of paper”. Read more

Mapping The Entertainment Ecosystems of Apple, Microsoft, Google & Amazon

Please note: An update to this article is available here, it includes the December 2012 iTunes expansion (Music & Movies) as well as Xbox Music.

 

The choice of what phone or tablet to buy is one that often involves many considerations, chief amongst those is the physical device and the operating system that it runs. But I think there is a third fundamental consideration that is growing in importance: what services and entertainment ecosystems you’ll be able to access. You need only look back to the recent criticism of iOS 6, in which Apple replaced Google Maps with their own Maps app. Summing it up generally, Apple’s Maps app is sub-par to what it was replacing and that mattered to people - enough that Tim Cook felt the need to apologise for the frustration the switch caused.

Today I want to focus specifically on the entertainment ecosystems of Apple, Google, Microsoft and Amazon. I’m referring to the various digital content stores that are run by Apple, Microsoft, Google and Amazon - specifically their Music, Movies, TV Shows, eBooks and App stores. In my mind, there are four general aspects that make a good entertainment ecosystem:

  • Wide selection of quality content
  • Competitive prices
  • International availability
  • Interoperable on a user’s devices

I want to explore the third aspect in depth today, because it’s something that I feel is all too often downplayed by the technology press (which, coincidentally, is based predominantly in the US). I’ll also briefly discuss the fourth aspect as well at the end. Why are these two aspects so important? Well, smartphones and tablets are devices that have universal appeal, so for Apple or any of the other three to win the smartphone or tablet “race” - an entertainment ecosystem that is available across the world, not just in the US, isn’t just a cool extra feature, it’s a necessity. The US may be one of the biggest markets for such devices today, but is there any doubt that these devices will rival the prevalence of personal computers (which are everywhere) in years to come?

I’ve collected data on which countries each service is available in and then added in population figures to create many of the graphs and diagrams you’ll see below, mixed in with some of my own analysis and thoughts. Please note that the five HTML5 map diagrams are interactive, click on the logos of the four companies to compare their coverage.

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Goodbye Tweetie

The original Tweetie for Mac – the app that went on to become Tweetie 2 or “Twitter for Mac – stopped working today. Twitter cut access to the API endpoint that allowed for it to work, thus effectively “killing” the app for those who were still using it.

Matthew Panzarino writes:

Tweetie for Mac came about on April 20, 2009, and it brought along its own set of UI paradigms that propagated throughout Mac app design culture. The sidebar navigation, for instance, is probably in use on whatever Twitter client you’ve got installed. The ‘nipple’ that indicates the current position on the navigation bar is also a Brichter invention, and now exists in hundreds of apps like Google+, Instapaper and dozens more. It eventually found its way to Tweetie 2 for iPhone as well.

To me, Tweetie was more than an .app bundle available from /Applications in the Finder. It represents a period of my life that I cherish every day.

I joined Twitter in February 2009. As I said, I was jobless at the time. I thought I could try my hand at writing about Apple and Macs, and my girlfriend said “go for it”.

On April 20, 2009, MacStories and Tweetie were born.

Today, we kiss Tweetie goodbye. MacStories and my girlfriend are still around, and my relationship with them is better than ever. I didn’t realize this back when we celebrated the site’s third birthday – that MacStories and Tweetie for Mac launched on the same day.

Tweetie and I had our ups and downs. I loved the app, but I became frustrated with the multiple delays version 2.0 was seeing. I wrote some things about Loren that I’m not proud of. Years later, I apologized to him, but I’m keeping those posts online to remember that sometimes I can be wrong, and ridiculously so. In late 2010, Loren was so gracious to let me beta-test “Tweetie 2.0”, which was launched as Twitter for Mac on the App Store. I used that app until Tweetbot for Mac came out. Loren moved on with his life and left Twitter; I, behind my keyboard, picked a different Twitter client.

I guess, in a way, this site owes much of its success to Tweetie for Mac. I woudn’t have been able to get to know developers, friends, colleagues, and readers if it weren’t for Twitter. If it weren’t for Tweetie, which to me, was Twitter.

I remember using Tweetie all the time. Sometimes I would go days without closing it, keeping it open because I was “looking for news” or trying to get into some new beta of an upcoming iPhone app. Other times I would close Twitter during the night, because, back in the “old days”, Twitter clients – not even Tweetie – had good timeline gap detection.

Tweetie set standards and inspired other developers to create new apps. It won awards, and it marked the starting point of a new era of third-party OS X development.

For me and many others, Tweetie defined Twitter.

Goodbye, Tweetie. Our community is better because of you.

Behind The App: MoneyWiz

Early this year, I set out to find an iPad app that I could enjoy using to manage my finances. After a couple of days of looking, I settled upon MoneyWiz from the developer SilverWiz. Its developers describe it as “beautiful, powerful and easy to use”, and having stuck with the app since late January I’m inclined to agree. In my reviews of the iPad and Mac versions my overall take was mostly positive (there is also an iPhone version, but that I have yet to use).

After exchanging a few emails with Iliya Yordanov, the founder of SilverWiz, I thought it would be interesting to have a Q&A with him and learn a bit more about the app, similar to what we’ve done in previous interviews here on MacStories, but this time, I decided to change things up a bit. For this interview I’ve assembled all the various stories about MoneyWiz and the SilverWiz company that Iliya shared with me into a single story that (hopefully) gives you a fascinating and unique look behind the app and company.

Disclaimer: At the time of publication SilverWiz is one of the advertisers on MacStories; however, this article was in the works before the campaign began. Advertising on MacStories is not handled by editors but by BackBeatMedia, and has no relation to editorial content whatsoever.

Read more