Apps/Developers

This page contains all of the important details for the Apps Developers project.

Elevator Pitch

Imagine you're a web developer and you want to learn about this Open Web Apps thing. The Apps Developers project focuses on explaining what this is, what you can do with it and how to build a web app, providing you with guidance and resources along the way.

Overview

• Prod URL: TBD
• Dev URL: TBD
• Stage URL: TBD
• Code Repo: Dev branch
• Code: Django (part of Zamboni = AMO/Marketplace)
• Product Owner: Daniel Buchner
• Dev Team: Arron Schaar (dev), Jason Grlicky (UX)
• IRC Channel: #devecosystem on irc.mozilla.org

Project Status

• Phase 1. (see below)
• Target release date: TBD
• Status meetings: Daily standups, 9:30am Pacific, Vidyo (D. Buchner's room)

Development Phases

Phase 1: General Apps Landing Page and Tutorial

Initially, our strategy to up-level the developer ecosystem will be focused on introduction and information. We will create a compelling landing page and tutorial that lead developers through the subtleties of the general apps development case. In later phases we will expand our landing page + tutorial formula to address other app verticals of interest.

Goals

• Make the app developer experience amazing
• Give app developers a very clear path to where they want to go

Audiences

• Mobile app developers
• Game developers
• Web developers
• Partners/App workshops
• Startups

Outline

• Design
• Revision/Source control
• App workshops/IDEs
• Advertising
• Statistics
• Purchases
• Hosting
• Cloud storage

Notes

• Comparative analysis, design prep - jgrlicky
  • Comparative Analysis
  • Raw Screenshots
  • jgrlicky: the movie
  • Landing page mocks

Relevant Sites

Internal:

• https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/apps/
• https://marketplace.mozilla.org/en-US/login?to=/en-US/developers/
• https://developer.mozilla.org/en/Apps
• https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/Apps

External:

• https://simple.com/
• https://stripe.com/ and https://stripe.com/docs
• https://developer.apple.com/library/ios/#referencelibrary/GettingStarted/RoadMapiOS/

Landing Page

Informational landing page(s) outlining the dev process for web apps.

Suggested outline:

What's a Web App? - content

• Examples
• Compare to other platforms
  • iOS, Android
  • Website
  • Add-on
• Technologies used

Code it! - content

• The parts of an open web app
• Bootstrap
• HTML5 / CSS3 / JS docs
• Localization

Test it! -- content

• Mobile
• Desktop
• Offline / online
• QA best practices document

Publish it! (see "test it" content)

• Deployment
  • (own server, Heroku, Google Appspot)
• Marketplace / AMO
• Monetization

Next Steps (see "test it" content)

• Updates
• User Engagement

Phase 2: Vertical Coverage for Landing Pages and Tutorials

After the initial landing page and tutorial are produced to serve the general apps case, a template will be solidified from that process that will be applied to each app vertical of interest. Games, Video, News & Reading, etc. will all have a landing page and tutorial created that addresses the specific needs of developers creating apps under each umbrella.

Phase 3: Mozilla Builder

The Mozilla Builder is a ecosystem-unifying developer tool that supports app creation from "idea to paid". The Builder will aid in idea formulation, provide a bootstrap for new projects, integrate documentation based on context, provide an authoring environment, help in app testing, and enable publishing to the Mozilla Marketplace, as well as a host of other value added services that support the entirety of the app life-cycle.