BabyWhisperer Phone App?

[Kimberlina]

If this isn't the right place to put this, please feel free to move!!

Just wondering if there are any developers out there that fancy putting together a BabyWhisperer Forum app (for both iPhone and android)??

I know I have a friend that can do it, but she's not a BWer ...


Thoughts??

[KathrynK]

Ooooh yes please someone, I would be a fan of that!

[Tweakster]

Yeah would love that too!

[nosenose]

So sate my curiosity, what would the difference be between a phone app and just visiting the site on your browser?

I don't yet have a smartphone so not sure what the difference would be.

[nosenose]

OK, so I found a thing, let me check the feasibility and test it on Wendy's phone if feasible then we can see if it's doable

Will let you all know.

[momtonb&ab]

ooooh, how exciting!!!!!!!!

[L76]

Oooh I'd love an app for my iPhone.

[Mama2boys]

but isn't an app to do soemthing special that a wenbiste would not?

like a BW app would if you fed in the age of child last A time wake-up time etc. tell you when and how long the next nap should be

[Roseii]

Yes pleeeeeeeeeease!!!!!!!!!!1 x

[Kimberlina]

OOOOOH! So exciting!!  Can't wait for the update, Tom!!

Good idea, mukta! That would be snazzy!!

Initially, I was really only thinking of a way to access BW forums a bit easier on my phone. Mine has quite a small screen (HTC Wildfire) and it's quite difficult to navigate from there... Facebook is just about exactly the same on their app, it's just a bit more direct to find what you're looking for... I was thinking maybe a button for "new replies to your posts", a button for "unread posts since last visit", a button for your PM inbox, a button for forum home, a button for "my posts", etc?

OOOH! Something that might be handy for both the forums AND an app would be something like a "favourites" something... like, if you found a topic (locked or otherwise) and you could "like" it or "favourite" it or something, and it would save them all somewhere that you could access quickly?? Eh??

[nosenose]

Well the thing I found was flaky (you can try it yourself, install an app on your phone called ForumKast). Yeah it uses the iPhone interface rather than just displaying a hard to navigate web page in your phones' browser. It's free and nothing needs to be done to the server to make it work, but it doesn't have a very good layout/organisation of the forums.

There are others, the next on my list requires some work on the server before it will work and then it costs to install it to your phone.

I now understand why you'd want a specialised app for this. You have it for FaceBook, you have it for GMail, why not have it for your other 'primary' sites eh?

The options I have looked at are just generic phone apps for accessing SMF forums.
As for having an app specifically tailored to BW, sure, this is possible, as would having an app that helps with EASY etc, but this would take some actual programming. This usually means iPhone developers and money...

Let's see how we get on with the next on my list of SMF phone apps

Tom...
p.s. it will be my turn for a smartphone in Dec. WOOO can't wait. I may get the HTC Desire.

[nosenose]

Tom you so good to use

Aye, just ask Wendy!

[nosenose]

OOOH! Something that might be handy for both the forums AND an app would be something like a "favourites" something... like, if you found a topic (locked or otherwise) and you could "like" it or "favourite" it or something, and it would save them all somewhere that you could access quickly?? Eh??

There may be a plugin for this, but I don't want to do anything new on the server until we have upgraded. I have kinda half-promised to get that done by the end of the year. We'll see

[Tweakster]

What's a half promise?  Survey says...NO SUCH THING

[nosenose]

OK, hows this. I'll do it when Finn stops with his EW?

[gogomama]

like a BW app would if you fed in the age of child last A time wake-up time etc. tell you when and how long the next nap should be Wink

I really like this idea too..Would it be possible to have make a sort of sleep tracker app? Maybe there is one already, or one where you could track the EASY..so at the end of the week you could see an average for sleep needs/A times, etc. It would help a lot for tweaking and also for those lazy folks, like myself, who can't be bothered to break out the pen and pencil everyday

[Tweakster]

There is a good app called Trixie Tracker that I have been using for sleep - but it covers everything:
http://www.trixietracker.com/

[Mama2boys]

what? EW is a perfect time to work, F gets to play while you work...good motivation to be up

[Kimberlina]

EW is a perfect time to work

Ha ha!! I've done this!!!

I also found this site: http://appinventor.googlelabs.com/about/   Apparently they're going to be making it available to some people?? I put forward my interest...we'll see!!

I think I'll also speak to my friend, Helen, who is a software engineer-person. She has the HTC Desire, and I'm sure I remember her saying that she was going to start creating some apps for herself soon...I can put out the feelers on whether she would be willing to do this for us, too.

(PS, LOVE HTC!!!)

[Love, laughter, & PJs]

I think most are saying the facebook type app?

Oh yes, a Facebook type app where you're always logged in as yourself and it's easy to navigate around on a smaller screen.  Like the first thing that pops up is 'new replies to your posts' and if you're a mod there's a quick link to your board, etc.  That would be fabulous!

Secondarily, an app that tracks EASY would be good, too, especially for the younger LOs.   But now that I mostly just mod and then poke around reading about old ladies in locker rooms, the former would be awesome! LOL! 

[Tweakster]

Yeah a Facebook type app, except that apparently it ain't all it's cracked up to be - already had to reinstall the Facebook app on my phone.  C'mon people you can do better than that!

Anyway, I'm such a demanding taskmaster that my husband has no time.  Fact.

lol

[Gareth - Harvey & Theo's Dad]

Tom, have you come across Tapatalk yet?  It plugs in to SMF too.

[Tweakster]

Yeah he's on it lol  Has to do 'something' to the server.  It looks promising.

[~Sarah~]

I Love Apps!! Make everything so much easier/quicker!!

I had an iPhone when both babes were tiny, I used an app that had basically a stopwatch for all things baby. Like you would start it when the baby fell asleep, stopped when baby woke, then it would keep track of how long since baby was asleep last.  I have an android phone now and have not looked for that app.  I forgot the name of it but if you wanted to know the name I could easily get it.  I think it was something like all baby??

[Kimberlina]

Have been thinking about this LOADS!

(As Sarah knows!) I have been given access to the App Inventor for Android... and it's a bit more difficult than it looks! I've fallen at the first hurdle and am struggling to find the drivers for my phone so it can connect to my computer! Sigh.

I'm also thinking we could do with 2: one facebook style for the forums and the 2nd as an EASY log. I think I don't feel comfortable with the app telling you how to do with your baby; as Stacy says, it doesn't know!!  I think if you could put in wake up times, eating habits, nappies (if wanted to track poos?), and sleep times and it would do the maths for you and avg out over the week?  And then maybe you could input the age so that for milestones: ie, 4 month, it would pop up to say: "is it time to start with pu/pd?" or at 10pm it would pop up with "dreamfeed" if you opt for that... or if you log a wake up for a particular time in the early am for 2-3 days in a row it will pop up as "this looks like it could be a habitual night waking. Maybe try W2S?"

Or if you log a nap for between 30 - 50 minutes, it'll pop up and say "what happened?" and you can select OT, UT, or cat nap - just for your record...?

Or at 8mo, it would pop up to say "is it time to wean dreamfeed?"

What do you think? What other pop ups / tips would you want it to have?

[Kimberlina]

more thoughts on EASY log app:

Would you want it to record height/weight  complete w/ graphs (a la Circle of Mums)?
What about a baby diary or midwife/HV/Dr/play date appointments that would sync with the calendar on your phone?

I think it would be nice to be a personalised as possible, so when you first access it you can plug in your baby's name (or babies!) and birth date, (whether they're on 3, 3.5, or 4 hr easy? would that even matter as you'll put the times in yourself?). I suppose if you have more than 1 baby, on the opening screen you would need to choose which baby... then on the calendar when it syncs it could say "Jack's Dr appointment, 3:30pm" or "Jill's baby massage class, 10:00am" or whatever?

[~Sarah~]

Kim that all sounds great!! I would buy it

[Kimberlina]

I'll tell you what - I do NOT have the skills! SO DIFFICULT!!! I'm going to speak to my friend Helen and see if she'd be willing to do something for us...

[nosenose]

I could(and would probably like to) probably do it, but it's time I don't have

I also don't phone dev apps yet...

[marensmama]

When it comes out, I want one!!!  Facebook style so I can see the forums better.    Please Santa?  I've been good!!

[Mrs Coops]

Oooo just seen this. I'd buy it

I have a friend who is a website designer, she also owns a baby wearing/ parenting forum called naturalmamas, they use tapatalk.  It seems to have quite positive reviews.

[L76]

Oooh completely off topic (sorry!) but Marsha, I might have to chat to you about your friend to design my cupcake website!!!!

[Kimberlina]

More OT Leanne, my DH is a web designer too, if you need help!

[L76]

Oooh thanks Kim, might take you up on that x

[Mrs Coops]

Leanne I'll have a word with her. x