Google requires a dozen or so beta testers before you are allowed to launch an app on the Play store publicly. Given that this community lives on Lemmy, and it’s full of Android users, I was hoping I could recruit a few people.
My app, “Blorp”, is already listed on the official Lemmy website for iOS, but Android has been delayed due to this requirement.
Would greatly appreciate your help, and if it turns out you like my app, I’m happy to make changes based on your feedback.
For closed testing, Google requires you join a linked Google Group before downing the app.
Step 1: Join the testing group
🔗 https://groups.google.com/g/blorp-android-app-testers
Step 2: Download the app
📱 https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=xyz.blorpblorp.app
Thanks in advance!
Edit: there’s also a Lemmy community if you want to stay up to date or ask questions [email protected]
That should be easy to fix. Though I’m looking at it, and I would guess sort and search would be a harder to hit target since they seem smaller.
Sorry, I wasn’t clear - I meant the actual separate accounts in the account sidebar, where it says “other accounts”
Great catch! I have a fix, but it might take me a couple days to cut a new release. Cutting a new release takes a bit of time, so it’s easier to batch a bunch of bug fixes all at once. Let me know if you see any other bugs and I’ll see if I can sneak them all into a release.
Btw, follow [email protected] if you want to stay up to date
Just followed! I’ve mostly switched over to this from Boost and Sync in the last couple days; you’re doing really great work!
I have a small, totally unsolicited idea/piece of feedback (please feel free to utterly disregard it):
The logo and the name are both really cute, but they don’t immediately make me think of Lemmy. I’ve had a few moments in the last two days where I’ve blanked on the name of the app while looking for it in my app drawer, which might just be my memory fritzing out. But here’s my thought: the UI design in-app is really lovely in a kind of wintry way, and kind of makes me think of an arctic tundra, which is where Lemmings are typically found.
Tundra would be an absolutely killer name for this app, as it would evoke a place for Lemmings, and it would fit the kind of lunar/cold theme you’ve already got going.
I realize this suggestion could easily feel very presumptuous, or even unwelcome, so please forgive me if that’s the case. Just a thought! Regardless, this has quickly become my preferred app, so I’ll definitely keep using and supporting 🖖
I’m not opposed to a name change. I’m not really great at marketing tbh. Here’s the thing, I kinda hate the Lemmy branding. The technology is wonderful, but I find the logo kinda off putting. I really wanted to build an app that felt cool to use. Naming things is hard, and I’m not claiming that I did better than Lemmy. I also understand most people here probably either like or have no problem with the name.
When I set out to build Blorp, my goal was to appeal to a broader audience. I would love to help bring in new users to Lemmy. ~8 months later, here I am and I think if shifted focus a little to making current Lemmy users want to use my app. I would still love to bring in new users, but that poses the challenge of helping them understand federated social media.
I’m kinda rambling now, but there’s some context. But if someone wanted to build out some alternative branding including a logo, I’d be open to the idea. But it would take time to switch things over and really don’t want to sacrifice the limited time I have to solve bugs.
What I really need if we want to scale this project up is some help. That could be submitting bugs, helping organize GutHub issues, researching out to existing Blorp users to collect feedback, writing code, help marketing to new users. Any of those would be helpful.