Hi Everyone, making a Weasyl app for Ubutnu Touch. Wanna Help?

[MkLXIV]

Heya, while I'm just getting started with this crazy little project of mine, I am making a Weasyl client for Ubuntu Touch. For those of you who don't know, Ubuntu Touch is a smartphone operating system scheduled for release on phones early next year- it is currently in Beta, and I have a compatible device. I thought I'd come here to the Technology forum to find people interested in my project. So far, I've got the required tools- now, I'm looking to the community to help make the app with me!

Here are ways you can help (You'll get credit for everything you do):

Artwork Permissions: Let me use thumbnails/images of your work (your picks which ones) for use in the app's screenshots. Easiest way to help, if you don't know how to code! ^^;

UI Mockups: Rough sketches of layouts for the app. Artistic ability helps a bit here!

Code Snippets: Helpful pieces of code from more experienced programmers than myself- keep it QML please, trying to go for platform-independence.

Feature Suggestions: Need I say more?

So... let the fun begin!!!

[Runefox]

Hmm, I'd personally prefer an iOS/Android app first since I've not got any Ubuntu Touch-enabled devices, but I like the idea; It would reduce the amount of time needed to get into and browse Weasyl, along with the amount of data (currently, the Weasyl mobile CSS still loads the maximum number of images visible on the main page).

Anyway, I actually have a couple mockups I could use from suggestions on how the mobile layout should be changed, so that would be a nice starting point. I don't know what the design paradigms of Ubuntu Touch will be, however. For now, here's my feature wishlist:

• Configurable push notifications for all notification types - Enable users to go through their watchlist and choose which types of notifications should be badged or pushed (does Ubuntu Touch support badges and push notifications?)
• Ability to upload via camera roll / storage - Hook into native "share" buttons?
• Contact search/sync for friends lists - Enable users to search for and sync contact information for Weasyl friends (with option to update contacts photo with user avatar)
• Ability to quickly share Weasyl submissions on other services such as Facebook, Twitter, etc
• "Activity stream" compiled from notifications and kept when notifications are cleared

[MkLXIV]

While I know a lot of people don't have an Ubuntu Touch device (or let alone a functional port XD), my logic behind this is as follows:

What's the third most used OS in the world? Ubuntu! And what do they plan to do in the next year? They plan to make apps "converge-" that means Ubuntu Touch apps will seamlessly integrate with desktop Ubuntu (by version 15.04, April 2015; but maybe before). In other words, why write different code for different devices to do the same thing on each device? A conditional layout could fix the mobile-on-desktop interface issue. And if you have the Ubuntu SDK (free btw), you can run them on desktop Ubuntu right now.

And the notifications could actually integrate quite nicely with the Ubuntu Touch welcome screen (screenshot of the welcome screen with notifications: http://daker.me/assets/posts/utouch/5.png). Also, you've got some pretty cool suggestions that I didn't think of- cross-posting actually sounds neat, though as there are no feasible drawing apps available for Ubuntu Touch yet, upload from storage wouldn't be practical (but it would be neat ) Also, when Ubuntu Touch is released out of beta, I'll see what I can do to integrate the app with other services as they become available for Ubuntu Touch.

Though you've definitely got some great ideas I might integrate; I might use some- and of course, I will list you as one of the developers, because code isn't the only thing that makes up an app. ;P

[Vae]

I'm just going to second Rune's comment about doing Android / Apple.

I've never even heard of Ubuntu Touch.

A Weasyl app for Android would be useful, though, personally speaking.

[athdaraxen]

I love me some Ubuntu but i have to agree with the others. You'll have a much bigger test base if you start with Android or iOS as well. Not that an Ubuntu Touch app wouldn't be useful, it would probably be great, but even then if you wanted to make an app for desktop I would make a Windows 8 app as much as I hate to say that. Again, its just a much bigger base to start and test with.

Still I love seeing apps being developed no matter the platform and you've got some wonderful ideas for it. <3
I especially love Runefox's idea of a media share feature. It would be much easier to throw my art across the internet if I could post it to Twitter and all those other places. <3

[MkLXIV]

As much as I'd love to, I:

1) Don't know Java to program for Android

-and-

2) Don't have $100 to blow a year to keep one app up on the App Store on iOS.

I would develop for Android if I knew Java, but I would not develop for iOS as it's locked up really badly and I'd have to go through Apple (who's very strict btw) in order to get my app developed. :B

[athdaraxen]

I apologize, I shouldn't have made an assumption. I figured since you were playing with Ubuntu that you probably knew some Java as well (the few programmers I know started with Windows/Java and realized Linux is much more fun). I can certainly understand not wanting to develop for iOS. I didn't realize it it was so very expensive. I think Android is only $25 if I remember right. X3

I did think of a feature though. An easy browsing feature. Just somewhere that you can go to within the app to just browse art easily and has a search bar and such. It'll help folks who like to look, heck you could even make it so the feature doesn't require sign in. it might draw some folks into Weasyl that way!

[Socks the Fox]

Java isn't so hard if you have another programming language under your belt. There are a few tricky things but nothing Google and a quick tutorial run through won't let you figure out. Most of the syntax is the same as other C-like languages, leaving the only hard part being the libraries. But, again, Google'll tell you everything you need to know.