Offical phpbb.com mobile app

[MichaelC]

phpBB is in the process of creating either a mobile style or making the style responsive. This will be happening in a major phpBB release (most likely 3.2).

[Garebooo]

phpBB is in the process of creating either a mobile style or making the style responsive. This will be happening in a major phpBB release (most likely 3.2).

Good to know that!

phpBB should to be developed to be compatible with the smart phones apps and social networks in order to be more competitive.

I hope to all the best

[togbish]

phpBB is in the process of creating either a mobile style or making the style responsive. This will be happening in a major phpBB release (most likely 3.2).

Great news!!! Mobile is the future!

[3Di]

phpBB is in the process of creating either a mobile style or making the style responsive. This will be happening in a major phpBB release (most likely 3.2).

Really? I do not think so, at least in the nearly future (years).

[TroopiePete]

Good news about the Mobile APP!!
I realise that writing things such as this do not happen over night and there will be a lot of testing required before it will be into the production phase but please if possible make this happen sooner than later!
The comment that Mobile is the future.. Mate Mobile is NOW!
If you don't have a mobile APP or support it then you are well and truly missing out

I am not a programmer but have worked in this field of development, I wish you all the best with the development and please let us know when it's ready for testing, My forum only has a limited number of users but most of them would be more than willing to test the app out.
Keep up the good work guys looking forward to catching up with the rest of the world

[Ishimaru Chiaki]

That's a really cool news, for I replaced my aging 7-years-old feature phone with an Android smartphone, and we just toggled from ethernet to wireless for internet at home, so I can now browse without using 3g network (which isn't unlimited).

And everywhere, wether in my relatives or in my cooking class, I can see more and more people having a smartphone and/or a tablet and a WiFi connection at home. This year, we definitely have a boom in mobile devices usage.

[Thijs88]

After the google search command: phpbb app I found this thread.
I love the discussion! It's clear that there are much more important stuff to improve this increadible free board software. Deep respect for everybody who contribute their bit to.

I followed the url at the second page, last post, to the mobile style... curiously i searched for this info on my smart phone hehehe. The board works perfect with prosilver... the thing is that people complain. I recognize that too. One of the major reasons people didn't want to switch from a mailinglist to a forum. Finaly we agreed to make the switch without really taking care of that argument. That's why I feel like i still have to take care of that wish.

But well, I digress... I followed that url and found the style... I turned on the computer to search for it and try it on my secondairy board. Before I tried that, I found also something else, called: Forum Runner

Does anybody here have any experience with that?


P.S.: I'll post my experience after I tried the mobile style...

[gotwings]

a mobile-optimized board style built by the phpBB Team and included with the official phpBB software package is essential.

Enthusiastically seconded!

A mobile style (not an app) is a complete no-brainer, and the resources required are relatively small (compared to an app).

It needs to be a part of the official phpBB release. It needs to be supported in the ACP ("Enable mobile style for users of mobile devices? y/n"). And it shouldn't be encumbered with unnecessary cruft (SEO).

As others have said, all respect to the devs for a wonderful open source forum solution! So many forum users benefit from your work! But... It's 2013, ya know? So many of us are on-the-road, and all that pinching and zooming gets *so* old.

--gw

[tha_specializt]

A mobile style (not an app) is a complete no-brainer

You obviously dont know what you're talking about - restyling the whole forum into a mobile version is a pretty big task, you will need to take multiple device-dimensions, support for various mobile-APIs like jQuery-mobile, transitions, loading-times and especially reduction of the amount of transferred data into account. Doing this like its supposed to be done will take weeks - my guess is : at least 1 month for an experienced developer who has already created mobile forum-styles.

Nevertheless : a phpBB-app will most likely not be used very frequently, theres no reward in it.

[RainSong]

Nevertheless : a phpBB-app will most likely not be used very frequently, theres no reward in it.

I dont think its worthwhile developing, I dont see the problem with just bookmarking the forum URL, and using the mobile browser? Keep it minimised and refresh occasionally. Or activating mobile styles? Why go to all the trouble to develop a separate app?

The number of apps now, is totally ridiculous - my local coffee shop even has one, for counting how many coffees you have bought, so you can claim your free-cup electronically...

As for notifications, the "Boardwatch" mod does fine if an immediate 'notification' on mobile devices is wanted. What is the problem with the board sending email notifications? my smartphone email accounts ding, buzz & do-their-thing etc, when emails come in to either of my accounts from the home screen. You can always put a unique ringtone on the php board email address too.

I became annoyed with 10-15 smartphone notifications daily, from just one of my phpbb boards, and switched the 'Boardwatch' mod settings to just one notification between visits

[Lumpy Burgertushie]

switched the 'Boardwatch' mod settings to just one notification between visits

oddly enough, the stock phpbb notification system does exactly that.

what ever happened to the idea that if you want to keep up with a bulletin board ( or any website) that you simply visit there to see what is going on?


robert

[RainSong]

oddly enough, the stock phpbb notification system does exactly that.

Yes, I know! But was initially sucked-in to the idea of receiving 'immediate' notifications going ding-dong-buzz-dang-whoop etc - new smartphone, new toy - like a baby's noisy toy. The Novelty eventually wore off.

It started last year, when a very busy discussion group e-listserv I had been hosting on my server had started to increase in traffic load (part of it caused by increased mobile use, people using the list-serv like another twitter). I advised the members that after 10 years, the e-listserv was way past its use-by date, and I no longer would be hosting it, and it had to go the way of the dinosaur, transistor radios, VCRs, broadsheet newspapers and wind-up clocks. Many members went ballistic. (Tho' to be fair, some went yippee ...About time!)

I had to gently bully the more stubborn membership into transferring from an e-list to a web-based forum, by giving the ultimatum -- make the switch, or find some other host for their &*^!^ list-serv. It was difficult to get some die-hards to make the switch, and some would not transfer without a special mobile "app".

So I had to spend time helping them use the forums through basic mobile services. Repeating it over and over. Getting ding-dong-whoop-buzzes on my own smartphone so I could tell them how to do it on theirs etc...

Part of that solution was installing "Boardwatch". After a couple of weeks of nearly everyone having full on notifications (including me), people started switching themselves back to the basic notification settings

Human Nature seems to tend towards the majority always having to learn the "hard way" before they are willing to accept change

what ever happened to the idea that if you want to keep up with a bulletin board ( or any website) that you simply visit there to see what is going on?

Exactly, forums, blogs, news/discussion websites etc are often designed for largish articles for reading at length - not simple SMS or twitter messages. If all you want is quick short-text immediate messages, then use Twitter, reddit, tumblr or similar for your group, not Forums.

Years ago, I would go outside and pick up the morning newspaper to read over a lazy weekend breakfast table, to catch up with what was going on in the world, in more depth and detail than 'headline speak' snippets ... over time, I have found this has become web-surfing my bookmarked favourite sites instead

[Lumpy Burgertushie]

a newspaper? a real newspaper? man , you must be almost as old as I am. well, no, nobody is that old.

I bet half the people using the smartphones and all their apps have never even touched a real newspaper.



robert

[tha_specializt]

a newspaper? a real newspaper? man , you must be almost as old as I am. well, no, nobody is that old.

I bet half the people using the smartphones and all their apps have never even touched a real newspaper.



robert

99% of the people claiming to be really old on the internets are actually self-absorbed teenagers, children and adolescent people.

[Lumpy Burgertushie]

a newspaper? a real newspaper? man , you must be almost as old as I am. well, no, nobody is that old.

I bet half the people using the smartphones and all their apps have never even touched a real newspaper.



robert

99% of the people claiming to be really old on the internets are actually self-absorbed teenagers, children and adolescent people.

glad to know that I am in the 1% who tells the truth. not very crowded this way.


robert