Product update releases are always fun. They are fun for you to experience. They are fun for us to create and apply. And they are fun for our Product Owner to manage. Just don’t ask him, please.
Borislav Kiprin
Features
Product update releases are always fun. They are fun for you to experience. They are fun for us to create and apply. And they are fun for our Product Owner to manage. Just don’t ask him, please. We have been working on this product update for a while and tried to put in as much as we can, so you can work better, faster, and in a more visually appealing way. Of course, most of the changes we introduce now are based on customer feedback. And these fall mainly into the look and feel of Open as App, but also some other under the hood performance tweaks. But enough of this banter. Let’s get down to business and tell you precisely what we worked on in the past few months…
Finding the app you are looking for is now easier than ever. Just look at the Search field in the title bar. We have also overhauled the app card layout. On top of that, there is now a completely brand new bottom navigation bar, where you will find that now you have quick access to your Favourites, History, All, and Hubs (for those looking a bit further down). Whatever view you want to have, you are in charge and we have made sure you are sitting comfortably behind the wheel.
Notifications were certainly on our list (as in many of yours)… With this redesign you have a better view, not only by the newly introduced grouping of “New Notifications” vs. “Read Notifications”, but also the color-coded badges showing you the initials of their author. You can now have an overview of seeing when your app is ready to be used or whether there is an update available for your data.
On the left menu, where your Settings and History sit, we have worked hard to make it more consistent with the whole app design, but also to grant you easy access to all your apps in an easy touch. Access points are now clearer and crisp – just what you need to find the app you need right now and use it to your advantage.
Remember that section where you choose how to share, save or load data, reset values, and make comments? Yes, that one on the right. We have tweaked the design to be more consistent with the overall light theme of the app and offer more readability and ease of use.
We have thought about those who build multiple apps and need to bring order into their lists – enters Hub View. This is essentially a way for you to organize your portfolio based on the parameter you chose. Let’s say you have several apps that follow a certain process or are used by a fixed group in your organization (ex. sales team). You simply create a Sales Hub View and you put all related apps into it. This way everything is easily accessible and right where you expect it to be.
Long gone are the days when we were using just one device, usually a smartphone. These days, we are no longer talking about a second screen, but a third, fourth, and sometimes even more. We heard you. You shift between devices and you need flexibility. With the new App Tablet Mode, you can now choose to have a full-screen app or collapse it into a smaller format (in case you want to preview how it will work on that very smartphone). Just use the button on the lower-right corner to switch between full and minimized screens.
While working in the App Creator and building beautiful and useful apps, you had that empty background, but with this product update, it is no longer the case. Now, you can upload your own branded image for each app you create. The background image you set will serve also when you are not in full-screen mode. So, go and give it try now.
We said good-bye to our previously used font and we opted for you to see the one set by default on your device. This should offer you an uninterrupted visual experience matched to your preferences.
We have worked on streamlining the app synchronization in the background, smoother app loading, and also various animation improvements. And while most of them are something you are not necessarily seeing, we are confident that you will have a much better experience with our app.
Bug fixes should go without mention, but they are essential for the app’s performance and getting you where you want to be with whatever you were building on Open as App. And now that we squashed everyone we’ve seen so far, they shouldn’t be bothering you anymore. This is all for this product update, but there is more coming. No rest for the wicked. We hope you like what you see. But do let us know what you think or what could make your use of Open as App even more useful. We certainly appreciate very much the feedback of every app creator on our platform. This is the only way we can ensure that we are adding value to you.