Developing mobile apps- you can do it, too -- February 2013 TCEA
Web traffic to school district and campus sites has been growing for years as more families are connected to the internet. But recent internet traffic growth is taking a completely different path. Mobile devices are increasingly accessing school sites. Users are increasingly looking at information on their tablets and smart phones. The massive adoption of apps on both Android and iOS (iPad & iPhone) has clearly shown that users prefer to consume the mobile web in app form, rather than through mobile browsers. Traffic from these devices to school sites is growing and is not going to slow down anytime soon. How will you address this without spending lots of funds on paying a third party to develop apps for you? Most districts can’t even compete to hire a mobile developer. In this presentation Judson ISD will show how we easily created an app for both iOS and Android, without hiring an outside company or additional specialized IT staff. A short demo of creating an app will be included, to give attendees an idea of how easily a basic application can be developed.
Recommended
More Related Content
Recently uploaded
Recently uploaded (20)
Featured
Featured (20)
Developing mobile apps- you can do it, too -- February 2013 TCEA
- 1. Developing Mobile Apps - You Can Do It, Too! TCEA, February 7, 2013 Steve Young, Chief Technology Officer Gabe Landes, Webmaster Joe Gautreau, Web Application Programmer Judson ISD
- 2. Why Did We Go Mobile? • Our Google analytics had our mobile traffic at >10% of site visits. • 14% for January 2013 • More people (both parents & students) are surfing via mobile than ever before • Mobile traffic growing at a dramatic rate and has huge upside growth potential
- 4. Smartphones & Tablets will Help Drive Mobile • Smart phone adoption continues to grow at huge rates: – 2011 – Smart phones accounted for 42% of all phones in the United States (up from 27% in 2010) (Workforce Management, June 2012) – 2012 – Smart phones account for 48% of the United States’ 172 million mobile subscribers (Mary Meeker, Analyst at KPCB, 12/2012). • And tablet growth is surging - 29% of U.S. Adults own a tablet or eReader (like a Kindle) — up from 2% in 2009 (Mary Meeker, Analyst at KPCB, 12/2012). • Tablets are here to stay, but we have not seen anything yet….
- 7. Ignoring mobile could increasingly mean you are ignoring a constituency http://tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/desktop-mobile.png
- 8. But why develop an App? • Mobile users increasingly prefer to consume mobile web via apps…. • This can be seen in huge app boom across Android and iOS • Users are now spending more time using mobile apps – Albeit a lot of that is using Angry Birds, Facebook and other related apps • Mobile apps are easier to access and more convenient than mobile web
- 10. Ok – So We Need an App, but We Don’t Know How to Make One • You don’t need a high paid app programmer • There are several web-based rapid web development tools that let you repurposed existing web content and data into a mobile app • Some of there tools are so easy, even a CTO or teacher can make an app! • Your existing webmaster and/or other staff can easily develop and maintain the app
- 11. Advantages of Web Based App Dev Tools • They let you roll out or make changes to an app quickly • The usually utilize existing web content, like social media feeds and RSS feeds • Require less or no programming knowledge than writing an app from scratch
- 12. Non-Technical Sites To Assist School in Developing Mobile Apps • Conduit Mobile - http://mobile.conduit.com/ • School Connect - http://www.schoolconnectservices.com/ (this is an app that contains many school districts in one app) • Applite - http://applite.co.uk/ • Appsbuilder - http://www.apps-builder.com/en/home • Buildanapp - http://www.buildanapp.com/home • Mobile Roadie - https://mobileroadie.com/ • My App - http://myappinc.com/
- 13. Conduit Mobile • Free or low cost • Easy to use • Publishes to both major app platforms • Demo of and Conduit Mobile live build a district app
- 14. Caveats • Just like a web site, you need great content before you can make a great app • App publishing to both app stores does cost $$ • Custom graphics for branding and app promotion need to be created for both app stores • The app publishing process can be confusing (especially for iOS) • Apple requires a Mac for the final app publish
- 15. Content for Your App • Events, social media, news, photos, calendars, menus, sports schedules • Can use push notifications • Bully and crime reporting • More advanced: grades, attendance, etc. • Or segment your app: – Athletics App – Band App – Newspaper App
- 16. Judson ISD Connect! App made for iPhone, iPad, & Android
- 17. Let’s Build An App Demo of using Conduit Mobile to build an app http://mobile.conduit.com/
- 19. More Info & Questions • Please contact syoung@judsonisd.org