# FA Android App



## Rakuen Growlithe (Sep 18, 2011)

Since FA is notoriously slow (over one month to do the final changes to the staff code of conduct and no word on its progress) ChipFox created an FA Android app. He apparently wants to work with the FA staff but the app is currently unofficial. The article also says he's received no offer of support from staff, which sounds dodgy because he should actually have asked them for help. In any case do you think this is trustworthy? I said I don't think it's a good idea to trust it when it's unofficial and point out where a user was temporarily suspended for similar actions. Of course it would be great to have someone on the staff weigh in on the matter.

http://www.furrynewsnetwork.com/2011/09/furry-owned-company-foxtech-creates-furaffinity-app/


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## Summercat (Sep 18, 2011)

Yeah, that app. I believe (but I may be mistaken) that one of our tech people mentioned talking to him, but I disrecall the result of that.

Because it IS a third party application not approved by FA staff, I would recommend against using it - much like I would also advice people against using a third party client to connect to an MMO, or using a non-Google app to connect to your Google Account. It's not a judgement on the person making the app, just 'playing it safe' and not handing your password out. If you decide to use the app, do so at your own risk. 

Anyhow, since I'm not really tech-orientated (and if I was, that's not really an area of responsibility of mine on FA anyhow), I'm going to post this to the relevant locations to see if we can't get someone who DOES know more than I do on this particular topic to come out and say what's up.

That said, I do hope that something can be worked out; a good app for FA would be something I'd be interested in seeing on Android phones.


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## MRGamer01 (Sep 18, 2011)

Now don't take me wrong, but I don't think an android app is something FA needs right now.


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## Summercat (Sep 18, 2011)

MRGamer01 said:


> Now don't take me wrong, but I don't think an android app is something FA needs right now.



It's up to the guy programming it. *shrug*


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## mapdark (Sep 18, 2011)

Actually , I know it's unofficial , but I think it's a good idea.

My android phone is fully capable of handling content heavy websites so FA is no problem. 
But having an app that would be configured to cellphone screen sizes would be great, instead of having to zoom all the time.

I will give it a try.


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## Arshes Nei (Sep 18, 2011)

My personal opinion, worry about the current state of the site, worry about apps for a mobile later.


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## mapdark (Sep 18, 2011)

Arshes Nei said:


> My personal opinion, worry about the current state of the site, worry about apps for a mobile later.



True, but if someone (who's not on the admin team) feels like making an app , I don't see any problem.


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## Sar (Sep 18, 2011)

This has potential. It is unlikely for the FA app to be realised onto the iPhone app store because of the porn.
Doesn't stop them sticking it on Cydia.


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## Evan of Phrygia (Sep 18, 2011)

ehhh...if he's not getting with a lot of the actual site on it...it just seems a little sketchy at the moment.


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## mapdark (Sep 18, 2011)

I've given it a try. 

It doesn't have all of the features on the main site , but for what people are most likely to do anyways from their phone (browsing new submissions and comments) ,it does a good job.

The interface is simple and clean. I actually like it a lot.


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## Captain Howdy (Sep 18, 2011)

Don't need it, don't want it, rather untrustworthy to begin with, and totally unnecessary.


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## Accountability (Sep 18, 2011)

Acknowledging this app isn't in the best interests of FA for many reasons. For one, saying "Look at this FA app! It's not by us, though, so we can't offer support." will inevitably result in trouble tickets and forum threads and notes to Dragoneer asking why "your crappy app broke" should something happen. Also, because if something shady is going on with it ("Oops, it _was_ scraping data the entire time!") it would be another black eye to FA.

Last I heard, the new UI was supposed to be mobile browser friendly, so just wait for that to come out.


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## Kyrodo (Sep 18, 2011)

Once he actually starts working with FA staff on this, perhaps people would start trusting this app. Until then, it's safer to just leave it be. Even then, it's not in the list of priorities of things that need to get done.


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## Devious Bane (Sep 18, 2011)

Protip: Get a PC.


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## Runefox (Sep 18, 2011)

This would potentially be useful if A) its interface was any good, and B) FA had any useful content to be browsing on the go to begin with. As it stands, though, FA is hardly a social network, and a lot of it is held together by scotch tape and glue. It seems that any given fix for any given issue in the foreseeable future will break this app, and I think that the timing for it (referring of course to it being released at any point prior to Duke Nukem Forev-I mean, Ferrox (DNF got released)) is pretty terrible. I'll admit that I thought of something similar in the past, but the reality is that the site is probably too broken at any given point in time for it to be reliable enough to work properly as time goes on.


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## Arshes Nei (Sep 18, 2011)

mapdark said:


> True, but if someone (who's not on the admin team) feels like making an app , I don't see any problem.



FA would be accused of having its priorities broken.

Why did you make an APP for your BROKEN SITE. FIX IT FIRST!

Yeah, not such a good idea.


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## Devious Bane (Sep 18, 2011)

Arshes Nei said:


> FA is accused of having its priorities broken.


Fix'd.

Using an application from a 3rd party is often untrustworthy, especially since they code isn't open to the public and has had very limited use. This is basically walking up to a stranger, giving him 100USD, and expecting him to give it back to you 1 week later.


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## Fenrari (Sep 18, 2011)

It's fun to test out for the time being anyway. Seems to be working.


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## MRGamer01 (Sep 19, 2011)

Summercat said:


> It's up to the guy programming it. *shrug*



Actually I can agree with this.  If it's someone else using their time to make it, then alright but if it comes to someone on staff or something, maybe they should just take back to other priorities you know?


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## Taralack (Sep 19, 2011)

Hey. Hey hey. Hey. Ever heard of a mobile browser?


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## Aden (Sep 19, 2011)

I would just reiterate in the app's description that FA neither endorses nor provides support for the app and that this is an entirely third-party effort. 

Aside from that, good on 'em.


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## Trpdwarf (Sep 19, 2011)

Devious Bane said:


> Fix'd.
> 
> Using an application from a 3rd party is often untrustworthy, especially since they code isn't open to the public and has had very limited use. This is basically walking up to a stranger, giving him 100USD, and expecting him to give it back to you 1 week later.



I'm going to have to agree to an aspect of this post. Any time you have a third party application involved people should be wary. While it would be a nice gesture to be able to reach out to a group who wants to help make third party apps and make them more official this is not something we can do at this time. Our priorities are (and rightly so) elsewhere. I'd like to reiterate that we do not endorse or support this item. So if you use it and you end up having issues please don't come to us.


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## Ricky (Sep 19, 2011)

If it's not part of FA, it would have to be using some kind of a proxy I'd think, since parsing the page sure wouldn't make it any faster and I don't think FA has any type of XML/webservice support.

Just realize your login credentials are going through it every time you login.

Also, making a watered-down site to be accessed via http would be a hell of a lot more portable and less of a pin in the ass if you ever want to support a phone besides Andriod.


That said, I noticed on the article it said they are planning to make the app ad-based?  :\

It uses FA.  That can't be fucking legal...


EDIT:  Now that I think of it, if you have to login you have to login.  Regardless of what you're doing, unless you're only getting web facing content your login credentials are going though their app.


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