#uiz

[chicken-scratch-sketchbook]

More stuffs

Why is CapCut sooo confusing?????

[swan2swan]

also am I the ONLY dude over thirty who knows how the heck to approach a CHILDREN’S CARTOON??????????

heck, over twenty-five?

over twsent?

the only ADULT????

‘‘Oh no one died--” NO CRAP, IT’S A CHILDREN’S CARTOON.

You gonna go read a Doctor Seuss book and go ‘Well, it was nice, but there weren’t many words with three syllables, and there wasn’t any swearing, and I don’t think those rock structures would stand as illustrated--” excuse you, you’re not the target audience??? And whatever standards you’re using are probably flawed? 

You, as an adult who has consumed fifty shows, need to learn how to properly grade what you’re watching based on a standard criterion, and no, “I’ve seen this character before” doesn’t count.

What does count is “I watched this show and this character was this, but then they randomly did this and no one liked that, so now I’m wary of that happening,” and that’s how you judge it. Oh, this character is acting the exact same way as this character did in this thing you loved? Great! It’s probably because they’re hitting similar story beats and they’re making similar decisions because that’s how people react when they make the right choice!

Shows don’t need to meet your expectations, you need to make reasonable exepectations and then watch the shows and grade them as they meet them, gosh I need ot go back into education, my gosh.

[konotor]

What kind of app are you?

By Srikrishnan Ganesan

Relax! This is not an online quiz that tells you which app you have a match with. The idea is to get you to think about what kind of app you are building.

From a discovery standpoint, we do see apps get slotted in different categories - business, productivity, entertainment, games, news, social, commerce, etc.

For those of us building mobile apps, it probably also helps to think about how to slot your app from a different angle - "what's the interaction / engagement model of this app?"

Here are some examples to help you categorize your app:

* Idle-time apps: Apps that just target being the go-to for your downtime or entertainment needs. Taking public transport and want something to keep you occupied? There's games, news, social time-lines (even anonymous social like Secret) which are all competing for your time here. You look for them and its all about which app pulls you back every-time you have this window to consume little capsules of information from time to time. Maybe it matters who nudges you at the right time - or maybe its about whether you are in the mood for fun (twitter for me!) or being productive (Flipboard perhaps).

Desirable experience: Focus on ease of consumption, suited for short  windows of consumption

* Invisible apps & Contextual Apps : Invisible apps do their stuff in the background - you don't really have to interact with them or use them actively. E.g.: PhoneWarrior (blocks spam calls/texts), True Caller, Aviate, Swarm, Friday App, etc. 

This class of apps also includes contextual apps that "engage with you" at the right time through smart notifications or other means, instead of you looking for them or using the app. I use Medisafe to remind me to take my pills (little more than a simple reminder for me, but has larger use behind the scene), Google Now brings me information at the right moment, Shifu prompts me to do stuff or return a call when I have time, Swarm tells me when a friend is around, Any.Do prompts me to add items to my todo list, etc.

Desirable experience: Doesn't come in your way, works reliably, optimized for low battery and bandwidth consumption, allows for great degree of personalization to suit each individual, learns and adapts to improve accuracy for context.

Read more about invisible apps here and here.

* Habitual apps: These apps make you form habits of using them for something regularly. This can be the news app you use, or even an app like Uber. Its either in your routine, or its the first thing that comes to your mind for a particular flow. In a way, even commerce apps that you use often could fit into this flow. I use Cleartrip for ticket booking by default, Foodpanda for ordering in, Google Keep for my notes, Scandid to check prices before I make a purchase.

This can also include apps like Instagram, InTouchApp, Dialapp that just replace one of the default phone functions (camera, contacts, phone, etc).

Desirable experience: Does one thing really well, optimized flow for doing your specific task, remembers your preferences/ favorite patterns

* Transient apps and Limited time apps: No I'm not talking about apps with transient content! I'm talking about apps that themselves serve a very specific one-time purpose or make sense in a specific time window. Why would I download an app for one time use? Because it helps you solve a problem that one time! Its just better done through an app than a mobile browser perhaps. Urban Ladder (buy furniture online) is launching an app to help you custom build your wardrobe - use when you are buying a wardrobe and then be done with it! Another example would be apps you install just to interact with other attendees at an event or during a season (say Football world cup app or a Wedding planning app).  These apps have a defined life and don't seek to extend that and engage beyond.

Desirable experience: Solves a very unique / specific problem, small in size, does not require personalization

This is not an exhaustive list. Also, remember that there are different kinds of users of your app - power users, novices, etc and the usage expectations from them and of them would vary!

Interested in contributing to a more comprehensive study on app engagement mechanisms? Reach out to me at [email protected].