OT: MGoBlog for Android update

Submitted by oneilse14 on

I've been working on an overhaul of the Android app, and it's finally in a state where people can start using it! Right now it's read only, but replying to comments and posting new threads will be completed this week. You can download the APK here:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/z1fs7tmjfquv5ev/MGoBlog-1.0-SNAPSHOT.apk

To install it on your phone or tablet, copy it over to the SD card and use the File Explorer to install it.

For the CSE MGoBloggers out there, you can track progress of the app at https://github.com/SeanPONeil/MGoBlog . The dev branch is where all the fun stuff is happening.

 

Danwillhor

February 11th, 2013 at 12:20 AM ^

Thanks for all the work! I use it pretty exclusively and it obviously has major issues in it's current build. I think I'll wait until it is fully functional before changing but I cannot wait to.

Boomer519

February 11th, 2013 at 1:00 AM ^

Works as intended on my GS3. I am abke to open each thread and read the comments. I can not however see any images that are in the thread or its replies. I will be switching back though since my app is the way I view and comment 95% of the time. Looks good so far, keep up the good work.

GoWings2008

February 11th, 2013 at 9:20 AM ^

Forgive me for my technolgoical ignorance, but does this app have any applicability to my Kindle Fire?  I don't think I'm running Android on it, but to be honest I'm not 100% positive.

Moleskyn

February 11th, 2013 at 10:22 AM ^

I have Nexus devices, so no SD card for me. When will the update be available via Play Store? Also, for those who have downloaded the update, can you post a screencap? I'm interested to see the new look/feel.

COMaizeandBlue

February 11th, 2013 at 10:50 AM ^

Downloaded and installed to my Nexus 4 with no problems. You don't need an SD card, in fact you can install straight from the downloads app as long as you allow your device to install from untrusted sources. Sidenote: I did need to uninstall the existing MGoBlog app.

 

IMO, the android version (both current and the linked beta) wipe the floor with the iOS MGoBlog app.

 

Thanks developer(s)!

qbwaggle

February 11th, 2013 at 11:51 AM ^

...and so far works great on my Nexus 4 (read-only of course, like you stated).

Can you start another thread when the update hits the Play Store?

Some things I'd like to see eventually:

  • Ability to adjust font size
  • Ability to sort comments by time (ascending/descending)
  • Upvote/downvote capabilities

Sweet app. Good job.

oneilse14

February 11th, 2013 at 1:46 PM ^

Font size and comment sorting is very easy to implement, and will be added for the Play Store release. The current API doesn't allow for upvoting and downvoting, but if that functionality is added server side in the future you can expect that in the app.

BlueFab5

February 11th, 2013 at 2:09 PM ^

I use the app for most of my reading and have enjoyed the previous app.  Here are some comments regarding the update:

Pros:

Very clean and easy to read.

Swiping down to refresh.

It appears not including the comments make the pages load faster.  I noticed that pages with a lot of comments would take a long time to load.

Cons:

I liked being able to swipe left or right to switch between blog entries, mgoboard and diaries.

mgo.licio.us doesn’t work but it didn't work on the previous version either.  Is that Android thing?

Suggestions:

Search function

Swipe left or right to switch between blog entries, mgoboard, diaries

 

I'm running an SG3.

oneilse14

February 11th, 2013 at 2:21 PM ^

mgo.licio.us works a little differently than the other ones, which is why you can't see the link. It's a simple fix that I already have working in the current dev build, so you should be able to use mgo.licio.us very soon! Just to clarify, is mgo.licio.us crashing for you in this version, or just not displaying the link?

 

I've heard from multiple people that they really liked the swiping between sections. I'll see if I can add swiping and still keep the menu drawer navigation.

tpilews

February 11th, 2013 at 2:32 PM ^

Suggestions: I do like the left/right swipe feature too. I'd rather the whole thread appeared instead of having to click that button on the bottom right. 

I'd really like to see hyperlinks work correctly. It's a PITA to have to copy and paste from the app to a browser. I do like how the iphone app opens the link within the app. Nice feature. 

oneilse14

February 11th, 2013 at 3:23 PM ^

The rich text editor on the site is really bad at adding href tags to links, so a lot of links get pulled down to the app as plain text. I'm working on a search and replace for links that aren't tagged correctly, but it was a little awkward yesterday so I took it out for the read only version.

COMaizeandBlue

February 11th, 2013 at 4:46 PM ^

Suggestions: I do like the left/right swipe feature too. I'd rather the whole thread appeared instead of having to click that button on the bottom right. 

 

I do agree with the request to not have to click the button on the bottom right to view replies. It's a little tedious on the MGoBoard section (but welcome on the main page!)

 

Also, it seems like the on-screen back button on my nexus 4 doesn't actually navigate back, it will dump me out of the app, even if I've moved in several layers.

 

Lastly, since this app is $0 and ad-free, is there any way to donate? I hate being a freeloader.

Moleskyn

February 11th, 2013 at 7:34 PM ^

 

 

Just got home and installed on my Nexus 10 - i have to say i actually prefer not to have to swipe to scroll between the different sections of the blog (for the tablet at least). Having the menu right there is intuitive enough that i don't see the need to scroll. Again, very sharp, I like it a lot. Also, I'd echo the poster above; I'd be willing to pay for an ad-free version.