What you think your app is -vs- What your app *actually* is!

Creator Lounge
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I think for a lot of app developers and aspiring app developers alike (myself included! :joy: ) there can sometimes be a disconnect between what we think our app is and what our app actually is. Let me illustrate;

What we think our app is

For many, once we’ve hit publish that’s it. We’re done. Our great masterpiece is unveiled to the world for others to admire and adore (and download!). It makes sense to feel this way, since so much time and effort has gone into creating it. This is the “finished” app and we want to put it in a glass box for posterity, right? Well, maybe there’s another way to think of it…

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Photo by Mika Baumeister on Unsplash

What our app actually is

In reality, our apps are less like a Da Vinci masterpiece and more like the Golden Gate. Like any good app, this iconic bridge is used and admired by tens of thousands of people everyday. However, the bridge - unlike the Mona Lisa - is still not “finished” and to this day is still being painted:

The truth is that the Bridge is painted continuously. Painting the Bridge is an ongoing task and a primary maintenance job. The paint applied to the Bridge’s steel protects it from the high salt content in the air which can cause the steel to corrode or rust. [1]

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Photo by Joseph Barrientos on Unsplash

It seems that an app developers work is never done - what updates are you planning for your app?

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Removing ads from my latest publishing effort thanks to a charitable donation to the project!

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What a generous patron - that way everyone gets a better app experience too, right?

How long was your app live with ads in it?

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it was been 4-6 months.

The app was originally a charitable contribution on my part to strengthen my Thunkable skills AND fulfil an old professor and mentor of mine’s dream of having an app to go with his book.

the ads were placed to help support the cost of having the app live in the iOS app store. So the professor took care of that part! :slight_smile: In return, I can remove the ads!!!

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Sounds like good karma to me!

@kartik14 - you’ve supported organisations in the past by building apps for them too, right? Anyone else doing this for their community or peers?

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@domhnallohanlon Yes! And I still do the same :slight_smile:

Since the beginning I’ve been building most of my apps for free (including databases, publishing costs, designing, etc.) for many organizations/events/others, as I’m only 16, and I see it as a hobby. :) TBH I enjoy it that way… I always look forward to continue building apps which help everyone :smiley:

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This is all too true! To look at where my app was in February 2021 to now, it’s been a constant improvement effort; much like painting the bridge. It’s a conglomeration of ideas constantly fed by feedback.