Shannon Whitley

With several exceptions, Android apps are written in Java.  iPhone apps require the iOS SDK, which is only available for the Mac.  I don’t write programs using Java and I don’t own a Mac, which means I’ve been sidelined throughout the current mobile revolution.  For quite a while it didn’t matter, I’ve had plenty of things to learn for my web projects, but I’ve recently become more interested in programming for mobile devices.

Although I could probably pickup the basics of Java and bang out some Android code, I was really hoping that I could find a solution that might work for multiple platforms.  I’ve been looking at some of the application frameworks, some proprietary and others based on web standards such as the upcoming HTML 5.

I had a fairly simple mobile app that I wanted to build.  I searched for a web framework that would help me run some experiments, and I found jQTouch.  “Use jQuery to build mobile apps!  Fantastic!” I thought.  I created my application and it performed perfectly in my browser.  It was actually very beautiful in its simplicity.  When I tried to run it on my Android phone, however, none of the forms would work.  I then shifted over to my iPod Touch and the pages didn’t even render properly.  I don’t have a lot of time to play with these tools, so I moved on.

My next find was a product called Sencha Touch.  It’s an HTML 5 framework that comes with some great demos.  Unfortunately, the model for the code is Sencha’s other product, EXT JS.  If you’ve ever seen EXT JS, it’s object-oriented and modular to the nth-degree.  This translates into an ultra-cool tool that is frickin’ hard to learn.  I actually invested several days into learning the basics of the Sencha Touch approach.  Most of that time was spent trying to figure out how to populate a dropdown listbox (yeah, it’s that complicated).  Once I finally got the hang of it, the code started to come together.  Again, my app looked amazing in the browser.  Then I ran it through my iPod…awesome!  Next, I ran it to my Android phone and it fizzled big time.  Forms didn’t really work and some page transitions took minutes to complete.  [It’s interesting to note that Sencha now owns jQTouch as well.]

Next, I installed Appcelerator’s Titanium.  I tried to get the Hello World app to run on the emulator.  It ran once.  After that I continued to receive error messages during deployment.  Again, it became a matter of time.  I can’t spend a lot of time trying to figure out the issues, even if they might be simple things.  Although Titanium’s product doesn’t require native code, I would still be stuck without an iPhone development tool because a Mac is a required to compile iPhone apps.

I was hoping to get a peek at MonoDroid, but it hasn’t been released yet (at least to me).  MonoTouch requires a Mac too.

Update:  Almost forgot to mention Google’s App Inventor.  Interesting to play with, but it’s not a real tool.

The jQuery team has announced that they’re working on a mobile platform.  That seems promising, but it doesn’t help me right now.

Windows Phone 7 is coming out soon during the Holidays.  That’s right up my alley as far as the development tools go, but I couldn’t wait for Microsoft to get it together.  I already purchased a new Android phone.

So for now, I’ll be focusing on my other applications (the non-mobile type).  Maybe 2011 will be the right year for me to move into mobile programming.  In many ways, we’ve taken a step back in time with the “app for that” mentality.  I’d like to bypass this phase.  I’d like to get to a point where we aren’t writing different apps for each mobile device.  Hopefully the web will come to the rescue again.

We have become so enamored with apps.  Need to calculate a tip?  There’s an app for that.  Need to take some notes?  There’s an app for that.  The iPhone and Android platforms boast zillions of apps…taken together might form a complete solution for something.  We’ve broken down every tiny task into a separate app.  The tip app could just be a button on a calculator.  The notes app seems to be one function of any text editor.  Which brings me to the app called, “Google Wave.”

Google Wave, as an app, is dead.  This is a good thing, because Wave isn’t really an app; it’s a communication widget that could be an additional feature in many larger applications.  In fact, I seem to recall several applications that were including support for Google Wave. 

Even though Wave, the app, is dead, I hope that it will continue on as an embeddable feature.  I used it several times for project collaboration and it definitely improved communication.  The biggest hurdle was getting people to return to it.  We had a couple of good runs, but there just wasn’t enough in Wave to keep us coming back.  That’s simply because Wave shouldn’t have to stand on its own.

The technology is useful.  Since it is an open source product, I can only hope it follows its natural path and becomes a standard feature within other applications.

About a year ago, my family gave me an iPod Touch for Father’s Day.  I’ve been using it heavily on the bus for e-mail, Twitter (via TweetDeck), and music.  It’s sort of hit-or-miss on whether the bus will have wi-fi (and if it will work), but I really enjoy it when it’s available.  The problem, of course, is that the iPod is always limited to wi-fi availability.  I’ve been dragging my feet for awhile, but I finally realized that I needed a smart phone.

When the HTC EVO was released, I thought it might be the phone for me, until I went to the store and saw its size.  I’ve been carrying my Sanyo Katana flip around with me for years.  It’s been a true workhorse and I especially loved how it fit in any pocket.  The EVO would probably have been fine in the pockets of my work clothes, but there was no way it was going to be comfortable during weekend activities.  I enjoy gadgets, but I’m also big on practicality and convenience; the EVO is just too large.

I waited several more weeks and discovered the Samsung Intercept.

The Samsung Intercept is the perfect size.  It’s slightly longer than my Katana, but it fits in a pocket just fine.  I purchased the Intercept a couple of weeks ago, have taken it on a major business trip, and am using it everyday on the bus.  Although my time with it has been relatively short, I’ve decided to list the negative and positive elements of my current Intercept experience.

Negative

PC Connection – I’m still having trouble connecting to my Windows 7 64-bit PC.  When I connect the device I usually receive a combination of USB device errors (“USB Device Not Recognized”).  I was able to connect it once after going into Settings>Applications>Development and unchecking all of the options.  I then restarted the phone and it was recognized.  That was the time I was able to move my music over.  I just tried to connect to my PC again and it failed.  This is a major issue, and I hope it can be resolved soon.

Pocket Action – I’m used to a flip phone.  I never, ever had to worry about accidentally activating a phone function while the phone was in my pocket.  This has been a constant issue with the new phone.  I found that if I put the phone into sleep mode and wait a few extra seconds before putting it in my pocket, that seems to help.  I still think there may be an issue when I receive a call and the phone is in my pocket.  If a call goes unanswered, I think it still pops up a dialog box that overrides the phone lock.  This problem still bothers me a lot and I’m going to continue to search for ways to limit the possibility of accidentally activating the device. 

Music Player – The default music player seems to play music at a slower-than-normal rate.  It’s almost like the batteries are running down, even when I have a full charge.  I downloaded the doubleTwist music player and my music plays normally on it.

Twitter Clients – TweetDeck on the iPhone/iPod Touch is great, it’s even better than TweetDeck for the PC.  For Android, I haven’t found anything that’s quite as good yet.  I’m currently using Seesmic, but I haven’t had a chance to try many others.

Dialing – I know it’s not a popular idea, but I still think these phones should first and foremost be great at making phone calls; the Intercept isn’t.  The dialing application feels like any other application.  It doesn’t feel like a special application with bulletproof hooks into the internal system.  The End Call button takes forever to end a call.  The dial pad is hidden by default, which means you have to hit a button first before hitting other buttons during a touchtone session.  It’s a phone, why would I ever want to hide the dial pad?

Startup – The phone takes a long time to boot up.  I’ve learned to have patience, but I wasn’t expecting this.

Positive

E-mail and Twitter Access – I love having access to e-mail and Twitter wherever I go.  Even when I’m on a bus that doesn’t have wi-fi, I can still stay connected.  This is fantastic.  The only problem I’m having now is I have to force myself to put down the phone and get back to my book. 

Music – While I do still like my iPod, I love not having to carry two devices.  I just plug my Skullcandy headphones into my Intercept and I have full access to my iTunes playlists (via doubleTwist).

Text Messaging and the Keyboard in General – The slideout keyboard works really well.  For me, this is a major advantage for this handset.  I love how the keys work.  It makes typing very easy for texting, e-mail, and Twitter.

Battery Life – I don’t make a lot of phone calls and I’m not doing things with my phone all day.  I’m probably not a typical user.  I read a lot of complaints about battery life on the Android phones in general.  What I’m finding is that I use about a quarter of my battery in the morning and another quarter in the afternoon (while I’m commuting).  I could probably go two days without charging, but I’ve been charging daily just to be safe.  Although I wish the battery lasted longer, it hasn’t been a problem.  Even during the weekend business trip that I took, I never completely ran out of juice.

Overall “Happy”

I’m still getting used to many things and exploring a lot of new uses for the device.  There are times, though, I just want my old Katana back; it did one thing and did it very well.  These devices are still evolving and I’m sure we’ll get back to a place where they feel as comfortable as the old phones.  Overall, I’m very happy with the purchase. 

P.S. – My wife purchased the pink Intercept.  She’s still struggling with the advanced features (also coming from a flip phone), but the really important thing is that it’s “very cute.”

I walked into a Sprint store today, set to buy a new phone and sign my life away for another two years.  I’ve been a supporter of Sprint, even though they’ve had the worst selection of phones and are constantly ridiculed as that “other” cell phone company.  I even had a great experience with the Sprint service this weekend when we were hiking in the forest, surrounded by redwoods, and my wife’s phone still delivered a strong, clear signal.

This phone purchase was spontaneous.  I’ve been thinking about a new phone for some time, but I didn’t have any plans to lay down my money today.  But the weather was warm and I went for a walk; the path ended inside the Sprint store with me reaching for my wallet.  Luckily, Sprint has several Anti-Sales™ techniques in place to prevent people from making a quick phone purchase.

The sales reception was lukewarm.  They didn’t glare at me, but they certainly didn’t look all that happy to see me.  If you were the number 4 (or 5 or 6) carrier in the market, wouldn’t you get excited whenever a new prospect walked in the door?  Still, I was ready to buy.  I asked the sales rep if we could sit down and talk about the different services plans.  I gave him my phone number and he entered it into a terminal.  He then asked me for my PIN.  I was pretty sure that neither my wife or I knew our PIN, even if we had set one up.  He also said that I could answer a security question, something about my favorite sports team.  Again, this wasn’t something we’ve ever configured.  I told him that I didn’t know the answers to either of his questions.  He looked at me with a blank stare.  Since my wife was the primary person on the (family) account, there was nothing he could do.

By this time, my spontaneity was seriously losing its edge.  I made a half-hearted attempt, telling him that I was ready to buy a phone today.  He confirmed that my wife would have to come down and show some identification.  He was apologetic, but after all, he explained, I could be an estranged husband trying to mess with my wife’s phone bill (even though I had just called her on my Sprint phone to see if she had any idea what our PIN was).

So, I left the store phoneless.  It was probably a good thing.  I didn’t need to buy a phone today.  Thanks for the help, Sprint. 

One problem though, if I start feeling spontaneous tomorrow, that walk just might lead me to the Verizon store.  I’m pretty sure I don’t know my PIN there either, but maybe their sales people will be a bit more helpful.

The effect that we have on each of our social media connections is called, “influence,” and both social scientists and marketers are racing to further understand and quantify it.  In perhaps stark (but true) language, now that we’re all connected via social media, the next question becomes, how do we use (or exploit) those connections? 

The latest experiment in measuring influence comes from Fast Company through a site called, “The Influence Project.”  The Influence Project is a website that displays a wall of photos.  Each photo has a link, and the owner of a photo can distribute that link to various social media outlets.  When people click on the distributed link, influence points are awarded back to the owner.  The person who clicked on the link then has the opportunity to add his or her own picture to the Influence Project wall and distribute a link as well.  According to the site, the more clicks you receive, the more influence you have.

Does The Influence Project really measure influence?  It seemed fairly obvious to me this morning that it could not.  Indeed, I thought it was a joke or just a new traffic-driving gimmick.  As for my own experience, since so many of my Twitter friends are on the East Coast, the link to the Influence Project had been shared multiple times.  I saw it pop up again and again in my timeline.  I decided to check it out and I clicked at random on one of the links in TweetDeck.  The Influence Project opened up and informed me that I had been influenced by Danny Brown.  Well, he is one of my friends and I do read a lot of his content, but was he responsible for me clicking on the link?  Sorry, Danny, not this time.

The site interests me because I recognize so many of the faces.  They’re all my PR and Marketing buddies, and they’re all influencing each other!

Amber Naslund (aka @ambercadabra) has a nice rant on the topic and there are some great comments about the futility of the project and the lack of savvy exhibited by the folks at Fast Company.  I’m not so sure.

If this project is solely about watching which people share a link to a site, then I agree this is a waste of time.  The concept strikes me as odd and slightly amusing.  I laughed to myself as a I shared my own links on Twitter and Facebook.  Why did I do it?  Out of curiosity of course, and I think that’s what we’re seeing much more than influence. 

What interests me most about these types of campaigns is how people react: who takes the bait and really gets into the game, who calls foul on the players and sits out, and who ultimately wins.  If Fast Company is simply looking at the number of people who share links, they’re seriously missing the bigger picture and the real influencers.  Watch the reactions and monitor that movement.  The next wave, of course, will include the backlash to the Influence Project.  If Fast Company is keeping an eye on that movement (and subsequent waves), then this could be a success after all.

Oh, and I almost forgot.  Here’s my link:  http://fcinf.com/v/aslc