AppStories

John and Federico consider the pros and cons of competing with, and what it takes to succeed against, Apple’s free, built-in system apps and highlight some of their favorite alternatives. This episode is sponsored by: Zapier - Connect your apps and automate your workflows. Linea by The Iconfactory - Sketch. Simply. Linea for iPad Linea Link for macOS Links and Show Notes Notes Competitors Bear 1Writer Drafts Ulysses iA Writer DEVONthink Reminders Competitors Todoist OmniFocus 2Do Things Sorted Picnic AnyList Taskpaper Taskmator Editorial Calculator Competitors PCalc Calcbot Calca Soulver Tydlig Music and Podcasts Competitors Picky Ecoute Cesium Overcast Castro Pocket Casts Weather Competitors Dark Sky Weatherline Weather Underground Hello Weather RadarScope Mail Competitors Airmail Polymail Spark Outlook Inbox Follow us on Twitter AppStories Federico Viticci John Voorhees

Federico and John interview Adriaan de Jongh, the co-creator of the hit iOS and PC game Hidden Folks about the creation and design of the game, its unique sound design, gaming on mobile, and an exclusive look at what’s next for Hidden Folks. This episode is sponsored by: Zapier - Connect your apps and automate your workflows. The Best Photo App - Choose your best photos. Links and Show Notes Apps Hidden Folks (App Store) Hidden Folks (Steam) Bouden Fingle Creators Adriaan de Jongh Sylvain Tegroeg More on Hidden Folks Hidden Folks Trailer For Hidden Folks Designer Adriaan de Jongh, Games Are About People (Paste) Building thousands of tiny interactions into Hidden Folks (Gamasutra) Behind the Game: Hidden Folks Upcoming Factory Area (Twitter) Follow us on Twitter AppStories Federico Viticci John Voorhees

Federico and John cover more app pricing models including tip jars, patronage, fan clubs, bundles, and in-app merchandise sales. This episode is sponsored by: SketchParty TV - The fun drawing-and-guessing party game for Apple TV. HealthView - A new way to view your health data. Links and Show Notes Previously on AppStories: Episode 5 - App Subscriptions Tip Jars, Patronage, and Donations with Perks Pedometer++ (App) Overcast (App) Overcast 2.0 Streaming, Chapters, New Patronage Model, and an Interview With Marco Arment (MacStories) Overcast trying ads, dark theme now free (Marco.org) Overcast 3: Design walkthrough (Marco.org) Castro (App) Castro for iPhone Goes Free, Adopts Patronage Model (MacStories) Drafts (App) Drafts 4.7.0 (Agile Tortoise Blog) Twitterrific (App) Twitterrific 5.14.4 Adds Ollie’s Tip Jar & More (The Iconfactory Blog) PCalc (App) Paper (App) Hello Weather (App) App Bundles App Bundle Documentation OmniFocus (App) OmniFocus Bundle Providing the best possible App Store experience (The Omni Blog) OmniFocus Bundle Video OmniFocus Bundle Support Page In-App Merchandise Custom Storefronts — Building Commerce Anywhere (Shopify Blog) With its Unity Buy SDK, Shopify now lets mobile games sell real goods (TechCrunch) Unity Buy SDK from Shopify Will Let You Buy Merch in Games Like ‘Alto’s Adventure’ (TouchArcade) Alto’s Adventure (App) Follow us on Twitter AppStories Federico Viticci John Voorhees

Federico and John interview Brian Mueller, the creator of the CARROT series of apps, about how he got started, the origins of CARROT, a corgi with a top hat and monocle, and his new CARROT game, Artificial Superintelligence. This episode is sponsored by: Setapp - An app for every job, already on you Mac. SaneBox - Clean Up Your Inbox Today (and Keep It That Way Forever) Links and Show Notes Background The CARROT Family of Apps Apple Interview with Brian Mueller Apple features CARROT Weather Game Day: A.S.I. Brian Mueller on Twitter Brian Mueller’s CARROT Apps Artificial Superintelligence CARROT Weather CARROT Fit CARROT Alarm CARROT To-Do CARROT Hunger CARROT Sticker Pack Follow us on Twitter AppStories Federico Viticci John Voorhees

How app subscriptions work, the pros and cons for consumers and developers, and examples of apps using creative subscription models. This episode is sponsored by: This episode of AppStories is sponsored by: Drafts - Where text starts. Drafts screencast series with David Sparks MailButler - Your personal assistant for Apple Mail. Links and Show Notes Background Choosing a Business Model Apple announces subscriptions for all apps Subscriptions – Developer Documentation App Bundles - Developer Documentation In-App Purchases - Developer Documentation Apple Announces In-App Purchases For Free iPhone Applications Top App Publishers of Q1 2017: 10 Largest Accounted for 67% of All Revenue Managing Subscriptions - iOS Managing Subscriptions – Mac On the limitations of subscriptions and the argument against them, including some examples of low-cost subscriptions for premium features: App Review Guideline 3.1.2(a) Apple Interview with Brian Mueller, maker of CARROT Weather More on CARROT Weather’s Business Model CARROT Weather 1Password Weather Underground Stamp Pack Fiery Feeds Parcel Phil Schiller on App Store Upgrade Pricing Some iOS apps that are using auto-renewable subscriptions in creative ways: Bear App in the Air Outlinely Remotely Zombies, Run AstroPad Studio Manifest: Time Tracker RadarScope Other well-known companies that have also switched to auto-renewable subscriptions on the App Store: Todoist 1Password Evernote Newton Box Autodesk Sketchbook Follow us on Twitter AppStories Federico Viticci John Voorhees

Federico and John talk about the iTunes Affiliate Program and its importance for app discovery and independent curation with Kevin MacLeod of AfterPad. The episode was recorded before Apple’s clarification of changes to the program. This episode is sponsored by: SQLPro Studio - A simple, powerful database manager for macOS. Download a 7-day free trial and use promo code APPSTORIES at checkout for 20% off. CardioBot - use heart rate data captured by your Apple Watch to improve your health. Links and Show Notes iTunes Affiliate Program Apple’s official iTunes Affiliate Program webpage and Getting Started guide iTunes Affiliate Linking Apple Cuts Affiliate Commissions on Apps and In-App Purchases A Comprehensive Guide to the iTunes Affiliate Program Apple is NOT lowering app affiliate commissions May 5: Apple clarifies changes to the iTunes Affiliate Program AfterPad AfterPad Apple’s MFi program AfterPad’s gallery of MFi controllers and MFi-enabled games AfterPad’s Apple TV Catalog The Next Generation Gamevice is Now Available Kevin MacLeod on Twitter Follow us on Twitter AppStories Federico Viticci John Voorhees

Federico and John interview Jean MacDonald and Grey Osten, the co-founders of App Camp for Girls – an organization that helps middle-school age girls get started with app development. This episode is sponsored by: Working Copy - a powerful Git client for iOS. Narwhal - fast, gesture-based Reddit browsing. Links and Show Notes Jean MacDonald and Grey Osten App Camp for Girls App Camp for Girls is Coming to Chicago Contribute to App Camp for Girls App Camp Quiz Compendium 2016 Volunteer to Help App Camp for Girls Sponsor App Camp for Girls Follow App Camp for Girls on Twitter Follow us on Twitter AppStories Federico Viticci John Voorhees

Federico and John discuss setting up a new iOS device, whether they do a clean install with new iOS releases, the first apps they install, and tips and tricks to make the process easier. This episode is sponsored by: Streaks - The to-do list that helps you form good habits. Where To? - Find the best places around you – wherever you are. Links and Show Notes Apps Dropbox 1Password Slack Airmail Trello Tweetbot Ulysses Working Copy Workflow Todoist Moves Gyroscope Deliveries Article Links AgileBits Launches 1Password for Families Doing the two-step: Switching to Apple’s two-factor authentication Apple Details Two-Factor Authentication in iOS 9 and El Capitan iOS 8 Family Sharing Explained: Share Purchases Between Family Members & Much More Dropbox, Twitter iOS Apps Gain Option to Clear Cache Health Importer Makes It Easy to Move Health Data Between iPhones Follow us on Twitter AppStories Federico Viticci John Voorhees

Federico and John introduce AppStories, talk about apps that made a difference in their lives, and highlight apps that have caught their attention recently. This episode is sponsored by: Gyroscope - See the complete story of your life Shapego - Beautiful word clouds Links and Show Notes In the first segment of this week’s episode, Federico and John remember four iOS apps that had an impact on their lives and changed their perspective on the App Store. Some of these apps predate MacStories and pioneered several conventions of modern app design. Federico and Twitterrific Twitterrific by The Iconfactory Macworld Video: iPhone Twitter apps First look: Twitterrific 2 for iPhone Twitterrific’s Tough Love Redesigning Twitterrific John and Instapaper Instapaper by Marco Arment (original creator) Instapaper: Now available offline Review: Instapaper for iPhone Tilt Scrolling in Instapaper Pro Pocket (App Store link) Federico and Editorial Editorial by Ole Zorn Automating iOS: How Pythonista Changed My Workflow MacStories Pythonista Articles Reinventing iOS Automation: Editorial Review MacStories Editorial Articles John and Tweetie Tweetie by Loren Brichter A Conversation With Loren Brichter An Interview with Tweetie Developer Loren Brichter Loren Brichter Talks About Pull-To-Refresh Patent and Design Process Lesson 19, iPhone Application Programming (Stanford, Spring 2009) New apps we’ve been trying Newton Pandora Follow us on Twitter AppStories (@AppStoriesNet) Federico Viticci (@viticci) John Voorhees (@johnvoorhees)