LinuxQuestions.org Android App
 

I'm happy to announce that the first release of the native LQ android app is now live in the market. Visit https://market.android.com/details?i...etin.build_114 (or market://details?com.vbulletin.build_114 if you're browsing on your android device) to download and install the app. Please keep in mind that this is our first release, so this should be considered beta. If you have any feature suggestions or bug reports, please let us know.

--jeremy

Jeremy, do you have any plans to roll out such apps for other platforms like iOS, BlackBerry?

An iOS will likely be released in the very near future. We have no plans for BlackBerry or WebOS apps at this time, but it's possible that will change.

--jeremy

Wow that was a really quick reply. I would have liked BlackBerry app but thats just because I use it. I hope we have a BB app as well.

Also note that the next major code upgrade will include a having the option to browse the site using a mobile skin when visiting LQ via a mobile device.

--jeremy

Additional feedback should be posted here, but if you like the app do feel free to rate it or comment on it in the market.

--jeremy

Jeremy,
Love the idea and so far the new app is nice and polished. Good work.

I did notice something that struck me as odd. If I use the back button to leave the app it insists on logging me out. Since I am an avid android user I could be wrong, but I was under the impression that if you use the back button to leave an app it manages memory a lot better than if you just click the home screen.

I will probably be a more avid android user now. :)

It looks good. Haven't really used it yet, but will mess about with it tomorrow.

Nice work.

If you click home to exit the app, it's possible the app will stay running for some time before being killed by android. Clicking back until the app closes immediately terminates the app. It's possible the logout functionality will change in a future version. Thanks for the feedback.

--jeremy

FYI.

I tried posting with the app today.

Reading was fine, but I made a boo-boo in composing my reply and could not find a way to edit it after Preview (I did not push the Menu button on my T-Mobile Android G1 for the reason which follows).

I tried changing the phone's orientation so I could use the pull-out keyboard (I'm a keyboard kind of guy) and the phone locked up with the screen black.

I waited what seemed like forever, but was probably more like 30 seconds.

I tried powering the phone off, but there was no response.

I eventually pulled the battery and restarted the phone. When I did and restarted the app, it considered me still logged in and was responsive. Pressing the "Back" button displayed the "Do you want to logout" dialog.

I'm not able to reproduce the phone orientation issue. Is anyone else seeing this? You can edit your post by first clicking on the individual post and then clicking Edit.

--jeremy

Been playing with the app a bit today, and noticed quite a few things so far.

First, there are some very odd color choices going on here. I am not sure who's idea it was so use white text on an off-white background but it makes many lines of text almost invisible. The options on the initial login screen and the "Welcome, USERNAME" line jump to mind.

I am also confused as to why there is a black horizontal bar on the "Thread", "Forums", and "Home" screens that doesn't appear to do anything. I can select it, and it will go orange, but nothing happens.

There doesn't appear to be any way to clear my notifications. At the top of the screen it constantly says "You have 73 new notifications", and clicking that shows me that apparently I have 73 "Likes". Except, even though there is an arrow on that line, I am unable to select it so that I can clear them. Any other entry on the Notification screen can be selected and show their details, but not the "Likes".

It doesn't appear that my choices are saved for which topics I want to be shown either. If I change from "Newest" to "Subscribed", and then exit the application, it will be back to "Newest". Frankly, it seems like "Subscribed" should be the default anyway, to match the functionality of the "My LQ" dashboard.

There is also plenty of areas where HTML and BB code is showing, but I suppose that is a known issue since it happens in apparently in all messages. I did notice that, when starting the application without logging in, I see two notification lines ("Welcome to LinuxQuestions") that have their HTML visible.

I'll also agree with the previous commenters about the Back button functionality. It is redundant to have both a "Logout" button and logout on Back, plus it is simply non-intuitive. Many people Back out of an application rather than hitting Home, and they aren't going to expect to answer a dialog when they hit Back.

Regarding the "Back" button, I do know that the current version of the weather dot com app displays a confirmation dialog when you try to "back" out of it.

I don't use many apps, but thought I'd mention that a dialog on "backing" out of an app is not unheard of.

It is definitely not unheard of, but I complain every time I see it. Its for this reason I use the browser to go to weather.com and not their app.

Also for me its more of an OS friendly way to close or leave an app. Hitting home it will take android some time to release the memory used by the app. In the mean time it will use more battery life and slow down other apps/processes. Using the back button or "backing out" of an app tells android to "release the memory" for lack of a better term.

Not to mention it's a pain in the arse to log in every time I open an app. Being allowed to back out and not log off would allow me to use my phone more efficiently and not have to log in every time I use LQ mobile?


Since having my first android phone I have always used the back out method when done with an app.

The app has been updated to address a crash issue, fix a memory leak and add additional languages. Your continued feedback is appreciated.

--jeremy