Category Archives: Android Market

Winning Android Market Comment Of The Day Goes To… [Humor]

Posted by on September 14, 2011 No comments

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Today’s winning comment from the Android Market goes to… this guy (above). Apparently, Dan doesn’t understand that when you install a launcher replacement from the Market and change your homescreen that it — well, changes your homescreen. Rather than take the time to repopulate his new homescreen (Launcher Pro) with icons and widgets, he uninstalled the app after 30 seconds. In one last effort to kick developer Federico Carnales in the shins, he would later reinstall the app just so he could rate it the app 1 star. Ahhhhh… Android n00bs. Gotta love ‘em.

[Via Reddit]

Google TV Apps Begin Populating the Android Market

Posted by on September 13, 2011 No comments

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Though the release of the Honeycomb-based update for Google TV is up in the air, a number of apps tailored to the device have begun to make their way to the Android Market. A quick search of the term reveals apps including Fox News, TNT, CNN and more. Games, utilities, and music app Napster can also be found. We know Google has been making a recent push to get Google TV-ready apps in the Market. The apps could indicate we are even closer to the release of the update that will grant Android Market access on currently existing devices.

[Thanks, Tommy!]

Google’s Auto-Correct Kills Launch of Android App Locai

Posted by on September 13, 2011 No comments

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Auto-correct, while normally extremely humorous can sometimes be detrimental to a business. Don’t believe me? Just ask the developers of Locai, a Dallas, Texas based start-up that introduced their app into the Android Market about a week ago. The only problem, nobody could find it. Google’s auto-correct function in the Android Market just about killed their launch. Go ahead. Give it a shot. Type — Locai — into your Market search bar and watch as Google assumes you meant “Local” and brings up a list of apps with that fill that description. Funny? No. Tragic? Well, if you’re a budding app developer than, hells yes.

The only way to actually find the app is by typing in “Locai” with the quotes. Something I didn’t even know was possible in a Market search until now. Let’s hope the attention brought by this new Market issue will be addressed in some coming updates. All Google would have to do is prioritize exact spelling before auto-correct queries. In any case, to help these guys out — why not give Locai a quick download. They’ve been through enough.

[Market Link]

Android Developers Spamming Their Apps in the Market [Rants]

Posted by on August 27, 2011 No comments

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Whether you’re an Android user or a developer, I’m sure we can all agree on 1 thing: the Android Market is far from perfect. I’m not talking about the UI or even how “open” it is (another topic for another time), I’m talking about things like this.

CatNinjaFly. Or is it SuperNinjaCat? Or NinjaCatFly? It doesn’t matter what you call it because all would be the correct answer and that’s my problem. They are all the exact same games, from the exact same developer. Apparently, the developer NANJAANDROID thought he could gain a little more exposure out of his app, by spamming it in the Market under different names.

Did I download the game? Yes. Did I enjoy it? I mean – it’s a freakin’ ninja cat for heaven’s sake. But that’s beside the point. The point is, how does stuff like this go unnoticed in our Android Market and what should be done about it? I don’t want to down rate the game because it’s actually quite enjoyable. Honestly, I’m not sure what can be done about “app spam” like this but I can tell you this, it needs to stop. NOW.

[Via AndroidSpin]

Download the Latest Android Market Update and Install it Manually

Posted by on August 24, 2011 No comments

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Waiting on that awesome +1 button in your Android market? Need to lock access to your market down to keep people from buying/installing or uninstalling apps? If you haven’t gotten the latest update yet, you can manually install it by downloading the APK file (here) and installing it like you would any third party app. Be sure to have Unknown/Third-Party Sources enabled in Settings > Applications. We’re aware that some of you haven’t even gotten the first update (the one that first introduced the UI changes). No use in waiting, really – these are all the same APK files that users would otherwise get over-the-air. Your phone won’t explode into nothingness if you install it. And you don’t need to be rooted. Get to it! [Android Police]

Google Closing Android Market Developer Support Forums

Posted by on August 23, 2011 No comments

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If developers weren’t already peeved enough, we have some more bad news for them – Google’s shutting down the developer support forums where the coders of the market convene to discuss issues with the Android market or application development. The site has been home to huge discussions and complaints from market developers with massive threads usually spawning when developers are seeing diminished returns due to Android market bugs, errors or what have you.

Now, Google’s going to focus on supporting developers one-on-one, handling issues only when developers directly contact them. We like to think they’re getting a bit annoyed when a big ****storm brews over market issues  and seeing the entire tech community immediately alerted to it.

But what’s the alternative? Developers can continue to contact Google independently for each issue as they always have. The problem with that is, more often than not, developers are met with canned responses. And in some rare instances, they are met with no response at all.

If you do get that canned response, you probably won’t get a status update on whatever fix you’re concerned with. I imagine a lot of isolated issues are handled in a timely manner, but the widespread issues that have popped up in recent months have taken Google forever to fix, with some not even having a resolution in sight.

Many would say that Google’s taking the easy way out (or being a “cop out”) by shutting the developer support forums down. I’m not so sure I’d disagree. As one Reddit user put it, their customer service and support were already rock bottom with the forums, and to take away the avenue developers use to discuss issues in hopes to fix problems Google drags their feet with is doing nothing at all to help. [Google]

From August 22 on, this Android Market forum will be dedicated to user issues and discussion. Because of the nature of developer issues, we feel that one-on-one support is best for the types of threads that have historically been posted to this forum by app developers.
Moving forward, threads regarding developer-facing issues will be closed, and we ask that developers report Android Market issues here so we can address your concerns in a timely manner:
In addition to addressing concerns sent in via these “Contact us” fields, we’ll maintain the developer known issues page with up-to-date information on widespread issues:
Thanks for your understanding and cooperation in helping us get your issues and concerns resolved in the most efficient way.

Android Market Updated Once Again, Receives +1 Button

Posted by on August 23, 2011 No comments

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Yet another Android Market update has begun to arrive on handsets. It’s nothing as drastic as the complete overhaul we saw just a few weeks back, but it does add in some desirable features. For starters, the +1 button that has been featured on the Android Market’s web iteration has made the journey over to the mobile world, allowing you to share all of your favorite apps with your Google+ circles. The second most notable enhancement is the option to PIN lock the Market, preventing easy access to your shopping credentials and insuring you are the only capable of downloading new apps. The new additions are rolling out to handsets now, but for those lacking in patience and with a bit of search engine knowledge and installable APK shouldn’t be too hard to find.

 

Google TV Preview Comes to Android SDK, One Step Closer to Apps on the Big Screen

Posted by on August 22, 2011 No comments

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Back at Google I/O it was announced that a future update would move the Google TV platform over to a build based around Android Honeycomb. Along with the overhauled interface would come the Android Market, a feature promised since Google TV first hit the scene last year. While it is unclear when the Honeycomb update will eventually be pushed to old devices (and come installed on new devices), a Google TV preview has been released today as part of the Android SDK.

The preview will allow developers to emulate the GTV ecosystem to test and develop apps for the television platform. Along with the preview comes new features specific to televisions, such as the ability to call up channel lineups. Google warns that apps calling for non-television features such as a touchscreen won’t show up when the Android Market is accessed from a Google TV box and encourages developers with apps currently in the market to test their software for compatibility with the platform. Google admits it expects few apps available at launch, but hopes this early preview will jumpstart interest from developers.

[via Google TV Blog]

Developers Stew as Google Removes “Just In” Section from Market

Posted by on August 15, 2011 No comments

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Another thread of complaints is building up over at support forums at Google. In the latest market update, Google’s removed the “Just In” category which developers say helped spotlight new applications from smaller developers. Their complaint is that bigger developers already get enough recognition in the Android market and that the “NEW” section for paid apps and free apps don’t tailor to small-time developers at all.

As a direct result, developers have reported diminished sales and downloads. It’s such a subtle change from the outside looking in, but developers obviously relied on this to help build userbase for their new applications starting out.

Are you a developer? And if you are, is this affecting your sales? Do you wish Google would put it back in or do you think people just need to find more ways to report their wares? Let us know below! [Google 1|2, Thanks Mark!]

Android Market Bug Leaving Developers Underpaid for App Sales

Posted by on August 10, 2011 No comments

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There’s a nasty little Google bug that’s been going around for about a week now in Android that’s leaving app developers underpaid for app purchases. Turns out this is a widespread issue where some developers are reporting that they’re being underpaid by as much as half of their app orders. Google is well aware of the issue and they’ve promised a fix for this bug very “soon.”

Google hasn’t been able to identify exactly what the problem was or given an ETA on the fix but they assure developers that they will be credited for missing app purchases once a solution has been found.

[Via Electronista]