Tapatalk support?

[The_Balm 4]

I'm a long time watcher, but a new poster and I know I'd be here a lot more if the site had Tapatalk support (it supports IP.Board). Any chance of the site getting support for it?

 

Please vote! Hopefully we can get enough people for it to get added to ST.

[timmie 988]

I'd love it too. I had suggested it somewhere before, but it got a bit lost in the discussion, I think. Tapatalk would be especially useful for people with Windows Phone, since the site cannot show the mobile version for whatever reason...

[The_Balm 4]

I'd love it too. I had suggested it somewhere before, but it got a bit lost in the discussion, I think. Tapatalk would be especially useful for people with Windows Phone, since the site cannot show the mobile version for whatever reason...

It doesn't work on Windows Phone? That's odd. In my search I only found one mention of Tapatalk so I thought I'd make a thread requesting it.

[Haljackey 17,355]

There wasn't much info about it in that link.

 

In a nutshell, can you tell me what it is and how it will benefit ST?

[The_Balm 4]

There wasn't much info about it in that link.

In a nutshell, can you tell me what it is and how it will benefit ST?

Tapatalk is an app for iOS, Android and Windows Devices. Here's link to it on the app store for iOS (also here's the paid one with a few more features). It makes all forums have the same fantastic UI and searching and sorting capabilities (view just threads you've participated in, most recent posts, all unread posts, subscribed threads etc.). It even can send push notifications for being quoted or for new replies to subscribed threads.

I highly recommend anyone to check it out the free version, is fully fledged and works really well. Multi-quoting, liking posts, PMs, emoticons, images, videos, GIFs, you name it its got it, there's almost nothing that you can't do with it.

Any user with the app can connect to any forum that has the Tapatalk plugin installed (which I linked to in the OP). For benefiting ST, I'd say more people will visit the site on mobile devices and be more active due to push notifications and the amazing UI of Tapatalk (I mean who doesn't want to have the same UI for every forum they view on mobile). I know I'm a lot more active on forums with Tapatalk support even if I'm just using it as a helpful reminder that I might have a reply to my post. One downside to Tapatalk is due to it being their own UI you cannot have ads, but it doesn't look like ST has ads on the mobile site anyway.

I think this was closer to the whole tree than the nutshell , but I can't stress enough how great the app is and in some cases it's better than the desktop view of a forum.

[timmie 988]

I do agree Tapatalk is a lot easier to use than a mobile site. The reason I installed the app was to view and participate on skyscrapercity.com

 

About Windows Phone: for some reason the forum software doesn't see phones running the OS as phones. The full website is loaded (although my phone is set to load mobile sites!) and there is no 'mobile' button where it should be. An IP.Board quirk, I suppose.

[Haljackey 17,355]

I don't visit ST on my phone so wouldn't be any use to be but anything that improves site functionality is a plus in my books!

[The_Balm 4]

Looks like no dice for Tapatalk, too bad. I'll still poke around, but not as much.

[Duke87 1,070]

Another forum I hang out on supports Tapatalk and I tried it out. I ended up deciding that it was a lame app and that I preferred just browsing the full version of the site on my phone. Yeah, you have to zoom to read and click on things, but everything works the way you expect it to. The app seems clunky in comparison.

 

For the same reason, I don't use the mobile version of ST. It's easier to read on a phone, yes, but it has a lot of functionality removed. I prefer to use the regular site - which works, save for that the top bar renders wierdly.

 

 

Personally, I think the biggest hindrance to using a forum (or the internet in general) on a phone is the inability to do tabbed browsing (says the person who thought that feature was useless when Mozilla first pioneered it), and that's something that can't easily be fixed.

[The_Balm 4]

Another forum I hang out on supports Tapatalk and I tried it out. I ended up deciding that it was a lame app and that I preferred just browsing the full version of the site on my phone. Yeah, you have to zoom to read and click on things, but everything works the way you expect it to. The app seems clunky in comparison.

 

For the same reason, I don't use the mobile version of ST. It's easier to read on a phone, yes, but it has a lot of functionality removed. I prefer to use the regular site - which works, save for that the top bar renders wierdly.

 

 

Personally, I think the biggest hindrance to using a forum (or the internet in general) on a phone is the inability to do tabbed browsing (says the person who thought that feature was useless when Mozilla first pioneered it), and that's something that can't easily be fixed.

When was the last time you used Tapatalk? They've improved it a lot over the years. I know not everyone likes Tapatalk, you're not forced to use it if it's installed on a forum. I'm a huge fan of it (and I know others are too) and I can't imagine it hurting ST, so why not? Options are always good.

 

It's not just that forums are sized for the screen. I routinely (while in front of my computer) use Tapatalk to check up on all the forums I use just to see if I have any replies real quick.

 

P.S. you can get mobile browsers that have tabs. Atomic Web for iOS is one I sometimes use that has tabs.

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

At the moment, the noes have it!  I voted no because I don't use a mobile system and don't need further complications in this already large and almost unwieldy web program.  Every time one sticks on a new, very optional, feature much good maintenance time is lost getting the thing to work properly.  Enough is enough.

[Duke87 1,070]

 

When was the last time you used Tapatalk? They've improved it a lot over the years. I know not everyone likes Tapatalk, you're not forced to use it if it's installed on a forum. I'm a huge fan of it (and I know others are too) and I can't imagine it hurting ST, so why not? Options are always good.

 

A couple months ago. I had no idea it was years old.

 

As for "why not", well, there are two questions that need to be answered as to the opposite question of "why":

1) does it deliver enough benefit to be worth the extra work of adding and maintaining?

2) is it safe or does it introduce security flaws?

[The_Balm 4]

 

 

When was the last time you used Tapatalk? They've improved it a lot over the years. I know not everyone likes Tapatalk, you're not forced to use it if it's installed on a forum. I'm a huge fan of it (and I know others are too) and I can't imagine it hurting ST, so why not? Options are always good.

 

A couple months ago. I had no idea it was years old.

 

As for "why not", well, there are two questions that need to be answered as to the opposite question of "why":

1) does it deliver enough benefit to be worth the extra work of adding and maintaining?

2) is it safe or does it introduce security flaws?

 

Of course these questions ultimately need to be looked at and decided by an admin of the site, but I'll give it a quick shot.

 

1. I do not personally have any experience with the installation and updating of the plugin, but it looks just like most add-ons for server side web software, upload a few files and directories, couple settings and done.

 

2. Obviously anytime you add more third-party code to a site you are upping the risk of having a security flaw. But Tapatalk is no rinky-dink few-month-old start up, it's used on over 60,000 forums including some very big ones, MacRumors (just under 18 million posts and 870,000 members) and Operation Sports (just under 11 million posts and just under 500,000 members) being among the bigger ones I use it on. It is also in the IPS Marketplace for IP.Board (I linked to the version for IP.Board 3.4).

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

The general trouble with add-ons is finding the necessary block time to add it.  The site essentially has to be taken down then tested.  The current demand from 3 members is probably not enough to justify the work.  The site cannot be everything to everybody.

[The_Balm 4]

The general trouble with add-ons is finding the necessary block time to add it. The site essentially has to be taken down then tested. The current demand from 3 members is probably not enough to justify the work. The site cannot be everything to everybody.

Do to it's third-party server integrations are you not able to test it in a dev testing environment? I'm sure it would need a little testing on the live server, but I can't see it being more then a minute or two if its already been tested elsewhere.

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Since I have no idea of the complexity of the current system source, integration may or may not be easy.  If the system is as organic as it seems, adding something else may just disable another feature inadvertently.  My 50 years as an O/S type and analyst makes me very wary for "stick ons".

[CaptCity 4,871]

Moved here... and cleaned up a bit. Let's remember to stay on topic...

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Good move.  Now let's see if there is sufficient interest.

[Lot Creator 304]

I generally always (even when I came here back 5 or 4 years) I use a desktop to view the site, I wouldn't find much value in setting a iOS/Android/WinPhone system for the website since you would be downloading mods and stuff for a game that runs on a desktop, and I find it uncomfortable writing long replies on a phone or tablet.

[Ocram's Razr 964]

I access Simtropolis more often on my phone than desktop. The mobile site is OK and firefox supports tabbed browsing.

--Ocram

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Public exposure has elicited more votes, but the majority remains contra by one.  Seems some people can access the mobile view without a problem.

[Snacko 5]

The current version of Tapatalk works very well and makes it easy to keep up with the forums that support it. I'm really surprised more people haven't replied to this post.