Prototyping
This page will provide a guide for what constitutes an update to the app stores; a new prototype build, or dynamic in-app changes, when building an app in the MobileSmith platform.
The technical explanation has to do with the app’s fundamental architecture: the buttons, tabs, and graphics on the home canvas of the application will always require a rebuild or update to see changes made. Changing formatting or updating content on interior pages of the application will usually be dynamic, meaning that a page refresh, or a ‘publish’ in the platform will apply the changes.
This page will outline some of the specific cases of each type of change; a manual update vs. a dynamic update.
App Store Update
The following situations will require a rebuild of a prototype application, or an update to the app stores, to take effect.
**NOTE** Before installing a new build, be sure to first delete the old app. This ensures that your newly installed build will be fully up-to-date.
1. Any changes to the Home Canvas
The home canvas of your application, in the software, is the front-end page of your application.
When adding, removing, or changing buttons and tabs on this page a rebuild or an update will need to take place for you to see the changes.
This page essentially points to all of the other pages and functionalities inside of your application, so this page is directly tied to your fundamental architecture.
2. Adding a new functionality, to an interior page, by pointing a button to an AppBlock that did not previously exist in your app
In this same vein, if you are adding a button that will be tied to an AppBlock on one of the interior pages that did not previously exist in your app you will be adding architecture to a page. This will need a rebuild to properly take effect.
You can add a button, and point it to an AppBlock; either on Detail views of List Items, on Menu List Pages, or on Custom Pages as well. However, if the AppBlock did not previously exist in your app, then you must create a new build or update to complete the change, as you’ve added additional architecture
Unlike the Home Canvas, if you delete that button from one of the interior pages you will not need to rebuild or send an update to see the change take effect... only when you add. (If you add a button to an interior page and point it to a new AppBlock, then refresh the page on your phone, you will see the new button, but tapping it will have no effect.)
3. Updating a Native Plug-In AppBlock
When you make changes to a Native Plug-In AppBlock, you will need to do a rebuild to see the changes.
4. Updating an AppBlock's Display Name
If you would like to change the Display Name of an AppBlock, so that the title of the pages associated with the functionality reflect the new text, a rebuild/ update will be necessary.
You can find this in the configuration step of the AppBlock in question.
If a change is made to the AppBlock name so that the Navigation Bar for that page is titled differently, then an update or rebuild will need to take place.
5. Updating the Navigation Bar
If your app's navigation includes a navbar, you can set the Text, Background Color, and Text Color on the Home Canvas, Any changes that you make here will require a rebuild/ update to take effect. This is one of the only times that you will need to create a new build/update to see color or formatting changes inside the application.
6. Updating the content for a ‘user creates content’ list AppBlock
Making changes to a ‘user creates content’ list requires a new build to see your changes. This is necessary so the end users will not lose the data they have entered,
Dynamic In-App Changes
After covering changes that require a rebuild/update of your application, let’s look at what can be seen dynamically after a refresh in a prototype app, or a publish action to a live app.
1. Page format and data content changes.
For most of the interior pages of the application, you can refresh the list or page to see updates from any formatting changes. These include moving a field on a canvas, adding/removing a field form the canvas, and changing a field's display properties, such as Text Color or Text Size.
A content change happens whenever the data is updated:
- An AppBlock is using a remote server and new data is added to the remote server.
- An AppBlock is using an uploaded CSV you edit an item in AppOffice.
- An AppBlock is using an uploaded CSV and you upload a new CSV.
Refresh the page in-app to see most content and formatting changes made in the MobileSmith Platform.
Dynamic Change AppBlock Types:
2. Menu List display
When adding content to, or changing formatting of a Menu List, you will have to kill the app and restart it to see changes made. If adding an AppBlock that did not previously exist to the Menu List, you’ll have to do a new build in order to get to the new AppBlock in the app. If you add a row to a Menu List and point it to a new AppBlock, then refresh the page on your phone, you will see the new row, but tapping it will have no effect..
3. Carousel on Home Canvas
When you make changes to the Carousel on the home canvas; either adding items, changing the speed of the transition, or the look of the carousel items itself, you will need to kill the app and restart it to see the changes. You will not need to do a rebuild/update.