Very soon, we’ll be launching our new app, Paprika. We’ve had the idea for Paprika floating around in our heads for a while. We even told you about it along the way in our five-part series:
In the spirit of the above mentioned series, we thought we’d add one more piece about the single moment we realized we needed Paprika. Keep Reading
The word “beta” evokes an emotion somewhere between excitement and nervousness- for both the user and creator. From a user standpoint- it’s not the real thing yet; it’s being tested, so you can never be sure what you’re dealing with. From a creator standpoint- we’re finally here! What will the reaction be? You’ve worked so hard up to this point, and of course you want a positive outcome. The actual launch product depends on the quality of this stage…
We recently launched our brand new app into beta testing. Paprika is our third full app, and we’ve managed to learn a few things along the way. Keep Reading
As an exercise in creativity, I usually imagine all sorts of scenarios when we’re working on a new web app. Things like:
Recently I hit on another thought provoking question to ask myself: Keep Reading
While thinking through our new app, Groundhog, and trying to finalize the set of functions, it occurred to me that we were asking the questions out of order. We were looking at a list of important functions, and trying to remove the ones that weren’t essential. Each of these items is important and useful, or else they wouldn’t have been on the list in the first place. That makes it difficult to decide.
Many of the best products in the world today have a limited and clear call to action. Some have really only one orienting button to push. For example, Google has the search button (ignore the silly “I’m Feeling Lucky” button). The iPhone has the home button. Twitter has update. Keep Reading
Of all the things to worry about, the name of an app is probably most agonized over. And rightly so. It’s the first, and last impression. The reason the app sticks, or doesn’t. A great app with an awful name has two strikes against it before it even approaches the plate.
A really great name is essential to a great app- but you don’t need to wait on development to find the perfect name. When we begin a new app, we pick a code name. Something we can call it. Something friendly, and neat.
We try not to burden the codename too much with being perfect, we just pick one of the best of our first ideas that seems acceptable. Keep Reading
We’ve entered the planning phases of a brand new app. It’s something we, of course, can’t tell you the specifics of for several reasons:
...We don’t know them ourselves.
...They’ll probably change a lot before we’re done.
...After exploring, we might decide not to finish the project due to several reasons.
...It’s a competitive advantage to be somewhat secretive when building niche apps.
...Keeping things a secret builds interest, and makes the whole thing more fun.
Still, keeping everything secretive goes against our nature. We love to share, and we love to help the community. As an experiment, we’re going to share some of the growing pains we’re experiencing as we plan, sweat and think about this new app. Keep Reading