STill a little new to this But I'm pretty sure there aren't any threads on this.
BUT My question is what is the difference between gappsmarket and appslib?
One of my reasons for asking is because there are some apps for instance like K-9 Mail that are o nboth markets but different versions. The one I have from Gapsmarket is version 3.4 and the one in appslib is Version 2.403.
So if anyone has any reasons or explanations for the differences It would be very much appreciated.
P.S. This is for the Archos 101
gapps market delivers the "real" android apps market hosted by Google. Odds are, it is going to have the most current versions of apps, since it is used by 99% of android users.
Appslib (along withGetJar, AndroLib, etc.) are secondary markets that were set up by independent 3rd party's to deliver apps to:
a. people who can't access the official market (like non-hacked tablet owners)
b. people who want apps not found in the official market (like porn & questionably legal stuff)
c. people who bought an android device from a manufacturer that wants to limit what the user can have access to.
The 3rd party markets are usually updated slower & have less selection b/c the app developer so where most of the customers are first, and some may decide that the 3rd party market support is too much trouble.
It is like the delivery truck rolls into a small town & drops off 100 cases of batteries to WalMart. Then they have to hunt down the one mom-and-pop store in town, set up an account, do the paperwork , and then sell them 1 case (because that is all they can use/sell). Who would you deal with first?!?
Thanks
strongergravity said:
gapps market delivers the "real" android apps market hosted by Google. Odds are, it is going to have the most current versions of apps, since it is used by 99% of android users.
Appslib (along withGetJar, AndroLib, etc.) are secondary markets that were set up by independent 3rd party's to deliver apps to:
a. people who can't access the official market (like non-hacked tablet owners)
b. people who want apps not found in the official market (like porn & questionably legal stuff)
c. people who bought an android device from a manufacturer that wants to limit what the user can have access to.
The 3rd party markets are usually updated slower & have less selection b/c the app developer so where most of the customers are first, and some may decide that the 3rd party market support is too much trouble.
It is like the delivery truck rolls into a small town & drops off 100 cases of batteries to WalMart. Then they have to hunt down the one mom-and-pop store in town, set up an account, do the paperwork , and then sell them 1 case (because that is all they can use/sell). Who would you deal with first?!?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks Man appreciate it. Was just curious but that clears things up a lot.
That's why i'm here...to learn for myself & pass it on to others. That's what XDA is all about.
Yeah I know this site has helped a lot with everything. I joined when I got the HTC hd 2 then switched to the evo. Very helpful.
Its made my Eris a much nicer device, too!
Sent from my ERIS using XDA App
Moved to general as not android development
There is another reason why certain tablet manufacturers like Archos do not provide Google apps like Android Market. I was told by an Archos tech support specialist that the A101 is not Android certified. It does not have all the required hardware features like a compass in order to pass certification and thus access officially to the Google Android marketplace. The A101 also does not have Adobe Flash Player certification yet.
I have been using the Amazon App Store to grab free games of the day like PvZ and Peggle but I noticed PvZ on Google Play is up to version 1.35 or something like that while the one I have from Amazon is only v1.2.
Is there anyway to get an updated version? Im pretty sure the two markets cannot be linked (unless there is a hack or mod that I dont know about?). I understand that I got the game for free and I am in no way complaining. I was just curious if there was a way to get the updated version for performance reasons and other fixes.
No, you just have to hope the developer maintains both stores.
No this has been a complaint of the Amazon app store, but its not Amazon's fault. Its devs that forget to update their Amazon listing.
It looks like the Droid DNA is going to have Amazon software baked into the OS.
http://phandroid.com/2012/11/13/verizon-preloading-amazon-ecosystem-on-android-devices/
Does anyone know if Verizon's version of the Note 2 will have this?
I read an article about the new release of Ubuntu that baked the Amazon into the search.
http://arstechnica.com/business/2012/09/ubuntu-bakes-amazon-search-results-into-os-to-raise-cash/
Looking at the Odin dump that is in the Development section, there is Amazon software bundled with the phone, but I don't know if it is the same as what the DNA has or not. Until both phones are in the wild and you can compare system dumps, it will be hard to tell.
Can't you freeze those apps?
Good question. We will have to see. Hopefully you can control how search results work for you. After all Android is all about making it work for you the way you want it. What I don't want is if I am searching for something unrelated to buying stuff on Amazon and yet get bunch of search results from Amazon.
In having the Google Play Store within these devices with Amazon's ecosystem, this is all about how Google feelings about this. I know Google doesn't want competition when it comes to ecosystems. But I know that Google doesn't want to cut it's own throat by leaving Google Play Store from Verizon's (biggest carrier) Android devices. So my money is in that both ecosystems will be in Verizon's Samsung Galaxy Note 2.
For me as long as I can manage how search works for me and allow full control and access to both ecosystems I don't mind. For me I use both ecosystems on my Android right now.
It would be cool to have an Amazon app to watch videos from Amazon. Way cool!
As the title says, are in-app purchases as effective as I'd like to think they are?
As we're all fully aware, there are a lot of people around the internet who will do whatever they can to get a game or app that they shouldn't be able to.
Obviously developers have to make money when they choose to because otherwise they could be making a loss and not want to continue to develop any more. What is their best option to make money?
1) They could have a price on their app/game but once paid for, no more money will need to be spent in the app/game.
2) They could use the popular method of creating a free version and a paid version.
3) Have the app/game free of charge but have in-app purchases to make some money from it.
There are of course downsides to each of the options above but in my mind, the best option is 3) because it's not as easy to be able to get around the paying system. The only way around, that I can currently think of, would be by using cheat systems such as GameCih.
Whereas with the other 2 options, it's fairly easy to be able to bypass the required payment.
A perfect example of in-app purchases working is with Shadowgun Deadzone.
If the app had not been free, chances are I wouldn't have been interested in it because I couldn't test it before buying.
As the game is free, I tested the game out and because I thoroughly enjoy the game, I've since bought in game gold numerous times and will continue to do so.
I know that not everyone will have the same mentality as me but it proves, in my case, that in-app purchases work.
What are your thoughts on in-app purchases or what do you feel are the benefits of simply putting a price on the app/game?
From my experience, In App Billing is really good.
In my truck parking game, 3D Truck Parking, there are about 4 level packs for free and 1 that you have to buy with IAB. I must say that I got a lot of purchases daily!
IAB is better, you don't have to maintain two different versions, its easy to set up. Also users can't cancel an order they make through IAB & its linked to their accounts. On a normal paid app you can copy the apk and cancel the order, making it easy to steal.
When i started to work with android app i did two version free and paid. Now i'm sure that it's wrong. One free application with in-app payments is the best choise.
Question
Hi Guys!
I'm writing my academic thesis about the market of the app stores and I would like to interview some developers about the monetization, revenue models etc... If you could answer some questions please contact me at [email protected] It would be a great help! Thank you very much!
Freemium and IAB
Hi,
I believe Freemium is a good model for many apps, specially games.
And IAB is the best option to support the Freemium model, to my experience.
I tried other options such as free app with paid apk acting as an unlock key, which is a quite popular model on the Play Store, but not as powerful and flexible as IAB.
So I would really recommend IAB, specially latest version 3 which is easier to use.
Make sure you use the helper class provided by Google, but be careful, there are a few bugs in it...Look for fixes in stackoverflow !
Good luck!
Eric
I can certainly say I wish I had implemented in app purchasing instead of a free and paid version of the same app. As mentioned before, the ease of not having to maintain two versions, as well as the advantage of free app entry is a big plus. Definitely the way to go if the app is designed in a way that makes sense for that style.
In-apps are gr8, the only problem is that the app must be developed rly good (if not excelent i.e. nice in-game economy) to encurage ppl to use them. Freemium FTW!
I would love to move to IAB but I already have a paid/free app combo in the store. That would just be another app to maintain
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app
Just to say, Google Play bans ALL apps with in-app purchase here.
Besides, I can't but any apps in GP.
What a shame, Google.
F2P is here to stay
When you look at the top grossing list on both Google Play and iTunes you will see that, in fact, free-to-play titles make more money than paid titles. Of course, market for premium titles will still exist, especially for high-quality utility apps but in games F2P is dominating and, I think, this trend will continue.
As you experienced yourself, this model is super-convenient for players, you can test a game and, if interested, pay for additional items, etc. The only one thing which is tricky is keeping balance, ie. not making a game pay-to-win.
Last but not least, it's so much more exciting from a dev perspective to have 1 million of players enjoying your title than 10k Making money of them is yet another matter.
As a user I still like the idea of purchasing an app once and using it for as long as I like, but maybe I'm getting old...
I don't like the pay2play model, for example in real racing 3 you can only race a couple of rounds and then your car needs maintenance. This maintenance takes just long enough to hate it, but with in game coins you can make it happen instantly, which you can buy with real money.
The same goes for buying new cars: you don't make a lot of money racing so buying a new car takes ages (if you don't pay for quick maintenance that is) but you can again buy credits with real money to make it faster.
This probably makes for a continious money flow for the developers, but it annoys me; I would much rather just pay once and then play forever, and after that maybe pay some more for some dlc or something, but i don't like paying just to keep playing...
I don't mind what model developer choose. But I'm really disappointed by the lack of proper filters in Google Play. Free and Payed is not enough! It's cheating that demo or IAB applications are listed together with really free applications. There should be at least third category, which would gather demo, IAB etc apps - apps that aren't fully free. I would also love to have "open source" category.
Google's IAB is simple to implement in the app/game, but it has a huge disadvantage: if no server verification was implemented, then it is very easy to automatically hack IAB, there are many hacking tools available. Server verification is not an easy to implement. At least, a dedicated server is needed + experience in server programming.
IAP is good, but takes work
I have deployed apps with both IAP as well as the free/paid model.
IAP allows a single app with combined ratings and DL count (and free apps get more casual attention)
IAP takes more work - code, testing, and setup in portal
Paid apps on different app stores are easy. IAP solutions from each app store are not compatible with each other.
I plan to use IAP as the primary model on my next app (as well as ads), with no paid version. We'll see how that goes. I decided to try subscriptions, which is a tougher sell.
For a first app, however, the free/paid model may be much easier for many devs. Just hit a switch to show the no-ad layout (or whatever other features the paid version has) and dump the separate apk up on Google Play.
BTW I blog on ad networks and Android app stores at http://www.projectjourneyman.com. I created a report with charts showing my experience with a paid app as well as a free app w/IAP on Amazon and Google Play (plus paid app on Nook). Getting it signs you up to my email newsletter, but you can unsubscribe right away if you want
As a user I agree with an earlier poster that a once off fee for a full featured product is the most satisfying.
The biggest problem is IAP is that it needs to be very well implemented and generally this is not the case. More often than not it becomes a pay to win scenario which is just silly.
Too many games entice you to make a payment and then you feel you've been robbed as there was little value in the purchase.
I understand it is a good business model to get money from your hard work as a developer but personally I find it almost unethical. It becomes a little like gambling where games are addictive and require you to keep feeding in money to continue playing. This is not dissimilar to the pokie machines (aka slot machines) which are a very political issue here in Australia. I can imagine this pricing model in mobile games also becoming a political issue for similar reason if it is not self regulated by developers.
Also, hacking IAP apps is often pretty easy to do to avoid payment so this model is not immune to piracy.
Developers who depend on freemium might find their market drying up when their customers finally realize it's really a scam.
Im sorry for putting it this way but it's more honest to say so.
Freemiums are making money right now because of new smartphone owners who dont know any better.
But just like kids growing up, they will realize its better to buy outright a game than to keep throwing money into a game to get in game items just to play it well. It becomes pretty expensive later on.
The gold rush isnt going to last.
Here's my 2p's worth as a consumer, not a developer. The Freemium model is OK if its implemented correctly. Hill Climb Racing and Jetpack Joyride are two examples of what I believe to be decent titles. They're both so well made I have ended up spending real money on them both, not because I had to in order to progress or complete them (I'm looking at you Glu Games) but because I enjoyed the titles so much I wanted to play faster and support the developers. As for Real Racing 3, well I've got all the cars fully upgraded and I've never given EA a f***ing penny, nor will I.
There are limits.
I personally love the free / paid app model and almost all the tools and system apps I now use or have used were free versions I found invaluable and subsequently paid for. Hell, I've even bought 'Donate' versions that are exactly the same (Orux Maps) purely because the apps are that good.
Ultimately if people want to steal your work they'll find a way. Theft isn't going anywhere. But neither is the desire to reward decent work that is genuinely good value. I guess the way to get paid is to strive to create something of value.
bong4316 said:
Developers who depend on freemium might find their market drying up when their customers finally realize it's really a scam.
Im sorry for putting it this way but it's more honest to say so.
Freemiums are making money right now because of new smartphone owners who dont know any better.
But just like kids growing up, they will realize its better to buy outright a game than to keep throwing money into a game to get in game items just to play it well. It becomes pretty expensive later on.
The gold rush isnt going to last.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do not agree, not all games use aggressive freemium model to milk the money from the users. In-app purchases are often used to buy additional unnecessary content (for example, extra levels) or to remove ads (because all free games are supported by ads). So the game just gives users a choice: either live with ads, or convert game into ads-free version.
nishyt said:
IAB is better, you don't have to maintain two different versions, its easy to set up. Also users can't cancel an order they make through IAB & its linked to their accounts. On a normal paid app you can copy the apk and cancel the order, making it easy to steal.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
totally agree! IAP is much better!
I really missed the UI of stock Android, but after rooting and installing Smart Launcher, the UI is manageable, and you can barely tell the difference. I do miss Google Play Services, is there a way to get it on Apollo? Other than there, is there any other advantages to using custom ROMs? I'm not too keen on having to delete and redownload all my apps, not to mention I will loose the few Amazon eBooks I downloaded while on Prime forever. (not that I read them a lot, but if I ever wanted to...)
Thanks!
miketh2005 said:
I really missed the UI of stock Android, but after rooting and installing Smart Launcher, the UI is manageable, and you can barely tell the difference. I do miss Google Play Services, is there a way to get it on Apollo? Other than there, is there any other advantages to using custom ROMs? I'm not too keen on having to delete and redownload all my apps, not to mention I will loose the few Amazon eBooks I downloaded while on Prime forever. (not that I read them a lot, but if I ever wanted to...)
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A custom rom frees you from the restrictions imposed by FireOS and Amazon. Your HDX will look and perform much like a 'pure' Android device (think Nexus 7). Google Play services and all associated apps work as intended with no compromises. The books you purchased from Amazon can be read/downloaded using the Android Kindle Reader app. Most apps you purchased from the Amazon store can be restored if you install the Amazon Store app along side the Google Play Store app (they don't conflict).
Downside of a custom rom is the time, effort and risk you assume preparing your device to accept something other than FireOS. The magnitude of each is determined by your skill set and the version of FireOS currently on your device. While generalizations are dangerous I would categorize most of the work as 'moderate'. You probably won't complete it in an evening or two and will need to do a fair amount of reading up front to understand the process and pitfalls.
Davey126 said:
A custom rom frees you from the restrictions imposed by FireOS and Amazon. Your HDX will look and perform much like a 'pure' Android device (think Nexus 7). Google Play services and all associated apps work as intended with no compromises. The books you purchased from Amazon can be read/downloaded using the Android Kindle Reader app. Most apps you purchased from the Amazon store can be restored if you install the Amazon Store app along side the Google Play Store app (they don't conflict).
Downside of a custom rom is the time, effort and risk you assume preparing your device to accept something other than FireOS. The magnitude of each is determined by your skill set and the version of FireOS currently on your device. While generalizations are dangerous I would categorize most of the work as 'moderate'. You probably won't complete it in an evening or two and will need to do a fair amount of reading up front to understand the process and pitfalls.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks! I didn't know you can still do Amazon eBooks and apps. I put a custom ROM on my original Kindle Fire which only took maybe an hour, is it really that much harder that it take 3 evenings to complete? Is the performance a lot better without FireOS? I never owned a Nexus 7.
miketh2005 said:
Thanks! I didn't know you can still do Amazon eBooks and apps. I put a custom ROM on my original Kindle Fire which only took maybe an hour, is it really that much harder that it take 3 evenings to complete? Is the performance a lot better without FireOS? I never owned a Nexus 7.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It may take less time if you have prior experience. Amazon hardened HDX devices making them harder to modify. Most steps are manual; there are no click-to-fix utilities. Performance with a custom ROM will be comparable to FireOS; battery life will likely be better. The primary benefit is improved user experience and access to Google services.
What version of FireOS are you currently running? That will determine your options should you choose to proceed.