Tablet Wars II: Attack of Android 3.0

[cryptoknight]

Why not just use Unity? It's supposed to allow for multi-platform development.

[crowofpyke]

I also cast my vote for Android. Many tablets (and readers) use Android now and they are far less expensive than an iPad. In addition to larger Android tablets which are popular, such as the Transformer HD, there are many smaller tablet readers out there which could handle this, such as the Google Nexus 7 and the Nook.

I played a lot of Shadowrun at GenCon this year, and I kept wishing that Hero Lab was being supported for Android tablets. Count me in for an additional license if and when Hero Lab comes to Android tablets!!

[rob]

Originally Posted by cryptoknight

Why not just use Unity? It's supposed to allow for multi-platform development.

We looked at Unity. You'll find the answer to this question in our original tablet announcement.

[dafrca]

Originally Posted by rob

We looked at Unity. You'll find the answer to this question in our original tablet announcement.

And for the real newbies: This would be found where?

[rob]

Originally Posted by dafrca

And for the real newbies: This would be found where?

You'll find it in our July newsletter, which can be found at:
http://www.wolflair.com/index.php?co...page=july_2012

[neohelios]

I see that there is already a discussion on this, and glad to see that there are efforts towards providing Hero Lab on the iPad (great start, by the way!).

Due to recent events, specifically Google recent huge ad campaign for its Nexus 7, I have found myself in the possession of a "STANDARDIZED" android device! (can't get much better than directly from the horses' mouth!)

As such my priorities are obviously now biased, and I think it might be very interesting to see how people (like me) vote with their money on Kickstarter! (yes, i totally went there, LOL)

Would the guys at Wolf Lair like to have some fun with a Kickstarter project for developing an Android version of Hero Lab?

Android users unite!

[dafrca]

Originally Posted by rob

You'll find it in our July newsletter, which can be found at:
http://www.wolflair.com/index.php?co...page=july_2012

Thank You Rob.

[Jamz]

For those who choose Android and will have to wait another year or two for official Android versions, I've found an acceptable work around, SplashTop!

It's just another remote desktop app but after trying a few, this one works REALLY well. If you pay the 10$, you can access over the cloud without knowing IP addresses or anything, really simple.

Sure, HL isn't tablet friendly so scrolling and pressing buttons is not always 100% on my Xoom, it looks decent enough. I've even moved to using it at the table in place of my character sheet now It's a pain to adjust HP but having all the other info at my finger tips is really nice.

I think what Rob needs to concentrate on is not a full port, but just an "interactive" sheet. That's how I want to use my tablet, as a character sheet that tracks spells, gives me info, etc. And have that info "sync" when I update if via Hero Labs.

To the Cloud everyone!

[DaveWolfgang]

It's great to hear that you are planning on working on an Android based HL in the future (being an owner of a ASUS Transformer).

Currently my group uses laptops while gaming, but having the availability on a tablet will really open up space on the table top and/or reduce the need for TV trays off to the side.

[Illydth]

Originally Posted by robrowald

While they appeal to the masses and have a simple interface iOS devices are not the device of choice for many of the people whom I have met in my travels. Most people I know that do tabletop gaming are for lack of a better word, geeks, who pride themselves on being in total control of the devices they own/use and the Android platform has proven itself to be go to OS for most of them, because it is mostly open, highly customizable, and very hacker/tinker friendly.

Actually I believe this, right here, is what hurts Android development more than any other feature. You're absolutely right that Androids are much more configurable, less locked down and much more highly accessible than iOS Devices. The ability to get in and do what you want with them (without jailbreaking a device) is what draws MANY people to the Android.

And it's exaclty what should/would drive developers AWAY from it. The fact is that CONTROL and STATIC HARDWARE is what makes development efforts easy. If you know exactly what your target hardware can do, exactly what it will be, and that 90%+ of your users will be using the same OS that is locked to the point where a user can't/hasn't screwed it up, you have a stable platform to develop on...one that isn't likely to get a phone call or e-mail support question that will eventually resolve itself to "You did WHAT to your device?" after hours of technical diagnosis.

The other point that was brought up that rings true is the link between iOS and Mac OS X development: While they OS's are vastly different, there are similarities that allow developers to piggy back iOS development on top of OS X development.

THere's NOTHING wrong with an Android, but given iOS Market Share (Just over 50% of the tablet market is owned by iOS as of a report today)...50% vs. it's closest competitor which holds only 18% of the market, iOS's device hardware and software control, and the fact that you can crutch on OS X development to assist your iOS development, along with the fact that developing an iOS app for an iPad also gets you most of the way there to developing for the iPhone if you care to...and iOS is still the place to be right now.

http://mashable.com/2012/11/05/apple...ercent-report/