Tag: AVE Publishing

Analytics in apps

Digital Publishing, How-to, Learn, QuarkXPress 91 Comment

Quark just released a document that shows how you can implement Analytics in native apps (iPad apps):

Click here: http://www.quark.com/Products/QuarkXPress/Quark_Training/Learning_App_Studio.aspx
(and scroll down to App Studio Tracking with Google Analytics)

Best of all, all of the analytics are free of charge with Google Analytics, so it is a great start into the world of analytics in Digital Publishing.

Here’s a bit more explanation:

Often when publishers decide to publish to tablets, they want to take advantage of the potential of tracking what their readers are reading, how long they stay on a page, what video they watch, and so on. While that’s impossible to do in Print, the Web has made this is an expected commodity.

As in many other aspects, native apps fall in-between Print and Web. You can capture some analytics in an app that you can’t in Print. However you can’t capture as much as you might be doing on your website, because platform vendors such as Apple implement privacy restrictions and enforce privacy checks. This limits how much you can capture.

Tutorial on How to Build a Dynamic Newsletter App

Digital Publishing, How-to, LearnNo Comments

I just found a cool tutorial by Jamie Cross on how to build a dynamic news reader app using Quark App Studio:
http://www.jamie-cross.net/?p=402

The tutorial also features a video showing the solution in iOS Simulator.

I like the simplicity of the approach, because it doesn’t use a Web Content Management System (CMS) — just a Dropbox to host the dynamic content.

Enjoy!

How to find the iOS Simulator in Xcode 4.3 / 4.4 / 4.5 / 4.6 / 5.0

Digital Publishing, How-to, Tip13 Comments

In version 4.3 (and later) of Xcode (Apple’s development environment), Apple made some changes to how Xcode appears:
The Xcode 4.3 Toolset Is Repackaged as a Single App

This definitely makes handling Xcode much easier, as it is not spread across several folders. But since you’re not a developer, why should you care about it?

Because the Xcode package contains the iOS Simulator, which you use to perform all iOS simulations on your Mac, such as previewing self-designed apps using QuarkXPress and Quark App Studio.

Though with App Studio you never need to use Xcode and never need to code (unless you want to) you will need Xcode for two things: 1) Using iOS Simulator to look at your self designed iPad layouts and apps and 2) to use App Studio Factory to create an app (it uses Xcode in the background).

So where is iOS Simulator now? It is within the Xcode package. To access it:

  1. Go to ~/Applications, and right-click Xcode.
  2. Select “Show Package Contents”. A folder opens.
  3. Browse through the folder structure to “Contents/Developer/Platforms/iPhoneSimulator.platform/Developer/Applications/”
  4. There you’ll see the “iOS Simulator.app” — it’s best to add it to the dock, so that you do not need to go through these steps again.
  5. Close all the folders, as you won’t need them to use the iOS Simulator.
  6. Start iOS Simulator from the Dock.

So next time you need iOS Simulator you just click on the Dock icon, which looks like this:

Showing iOS Simulator in Dock

New Quark Issue Previewer Available: How to get iPad layouts into it

Digital Publishing, How-to, News, QuarkXPress 9No Comments

Yesterday Apple approved the newest version (1.5) of Quark Issue Previewer, which you need to preview iPad Issues (.zave files) which have been exported out of QuarkXPress 9.

If you have already installed Quark Issue Previewer, then you’ll get an update notification. If you haven’t, here’s the link:
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/quark-app-studio-issue-previewer/id434810259?mt=8

This release of Quark App Studio Issue Previewer supports the new App Studio features in QuarkXPress 9.2, including:

  • The ability to loop movies, hide audio controls for movies, and play multiple sounds at the same time
  • Support for Play, Pause, Stop, and Toggle Play actions
  • Support for a new pop-up option
  • The latest version of the AVE Reader component

There are four ways to get your iPad issues onto the Quark Issue Previewer:

  1. Drag the .zave file onto iTunes and sync your iPad with iTunes
  2. Faster: Open Quark Issue Previewer on your iPad, tab on the little wheel, note the URL and type that URL into a web browser on your Mac or Windows machine. Use the web page showing to sideload your .zave file to your iPad.
    (your Quark Issue Previewer in iOS Simulator will react to localhost:8080)
  3. Even faster: When exporting an iPad issue out of QuarkXPress, check the Preview checkbox and type the IP address of your iPad running the Quark Issue Previewer into it.
    (your Quark Issue Previewer in iOS Simulator will react to 127.0.0.1)
  4. For external reviews: Upload the .zave file to any web server or Dropbox and note the URL of the file. Replace http:// with mykiosk:// and send this URL to your customer via email. If they have Quark Issue Previewer installed on their ipad, tabbing such a URL will automatically open the .zave file in it and display it.

Just for fun, try selecting this link from your iPhone and see what happens…?

Nicest app so far?

Commentary, Digital Publishing, FeatureNo Comments

I have seen many apps and helped a lot of customers to publish their (public and in-house) apps so far and I would have a hard time to choose the “nicest” or best-looking or most interesting app published so far.

So let me introduce you to an App Studio app that I would currently see as my favorite so far when it comes to the user experience and especially its use of interactivity: Quidtap.

My advice, try it yourself (even if you like me don’t understand Italian). If you don’t want to, you might also want to look at an introduction video only: http://www.quidpad.it/

What I like about the usability of Quidtap:

– First, it uses interactivity tailored to a tablet (one of my pleas earlier)
– The usability (what to do when, how to navigate etc.) is explained and clearly indicated (no need to “just tap everywhere to find effects”)
– The interactivity doesn’t get into my way when accessing content (one of the worst things to do, remember “Skip Intro” in the Flash days?)
– The interactivity underlines the message the publication is conveying (photos have callouts that explain areas tapped)
– The interactivity is fun to use

(Is there a better reason than the last one? ;-)