You say "US" are you a LW developer then? I always heard that objective-C was one of the worst languages to develop with, and the devs I have dealt with love working within the android framework, I guess different strokes for different folks. (I know a lot of devs that curse the apple infrastructure, especially around connections with blue tooth and usb)
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- The Lone Wolf Development Team
Hero Lab Online
- Thread starter HippyCraig
- Start date
- Status
You say "US" are you a LW developer then? I always heard that objective-C was one of the worst languages to develop with, and the devs I have dealt with love working within the android framework, I guess different strokes for different folks. (I know a lot of devs that curse the apple infrastructure, especially around connections with blue tooth and usb)
No I am not with LWD and do not work in the gaming industry. The issues have nothing to do with language and everything to do with trying to satisfy the needs of 15 different versions of the OS that have significant install basses. Write one line of code and then 7 lines of midshipmen's and exceptions.
This probably because Android developers don't like to follow the Apple attitude of dropping support for devices that are two years old (by issuing iOS updates which only work on "recent" iPhones and iPads).
This is a large exaggeration.
Android application developers don't have much choice; the chipset creators, phone manufacturers, and carriers don't keep the OS up to date. For devices on the Google Play Store, there's about as many on Jelly Bean (2012) as there are on Nougat (2016), and most are somewhere in the middle. (For contrast, iOS 10 is available on most devices from the same timespan.) Project Treble might improve that, but that's still a couple years down the line given how people replace devices.
As for the rest: storing data in a database doesn't magically make UIs easier. As the RW team found out, neither does picking a framework and controls that look supported on multiple platforms at first glance but actually aren't. I'm not a big fan of moving everything to "the Web" either, but I can't blame them for choosing that way to provide support for more devices.
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iOS updates tend to go onto hardware up to 4 years old.
Android is what tends to be only get about 2 years of support.
themantheycallcris
Member
I'm hoping Hero Lab Online will be a page where you can load up a .por file into a webpage and interact with it in a game session. Editing the file would be nice, but the ability to share a .por with my player of their character, and them being able to then load it and play it on their phone's web browser, is at least going to let them play... and maybe encourage them to either chip in on my HeroLab expenses or else buy their own copy.
Not having to have a windows machine at hand would also be useful for me as a GM, I could load up a browser on my Android phone with separate tabs for all my baddies in HeroLab, and do whatever in-game interactions were needed to get through the encounter.
I'm hoping that HeroLab Online will at least be that!
Not having to have a windows machine at hand would also be useful for me as a GM, I could load up a browser on my Android phone with separate tabs for all my baddies in HeroLab, and do whatever in-game interactions were needed to get through the encounter.
I'm hoping that HeroLab Online will at least be that!
I suspect it will be a whole lot more than that. I'm guessing it will be a fully online solution. All guesses here but:
You will open it in a web browser
It will be login / account based not license based
It will pull data from a server instead of your machine
The questions I'm already pondering is:
Will it require an always on connection or will it work offline?
Will it completely replace Hero Lab or will they work together?
Is it using the same core data?
Will my purchased data flow over to the new tool?
Will it support the creation of custom content (i doubt it wouldn't)
How will custom content be stored? (locally or on a server)
If on a server what will that cost me?
How will player hosted content work (aka community pack)?
Will there be a way for DMs to view / interact with their players character sheets?
Will combat management allow live sync between the DM and players?
How will Realm Works integration work?
Moving to an online solution is a big step and it certainly feels like it's the way of the future. It will no doubt open the tool up to a wealth of new customers. Just going to be very keen to understand the impact of moving to a web based solution as web tools are generally not as powerful as standalone applications.
You will open it in a web browser
It will be login / account based not license based
It will pull data from a server instead of your machine
The questions I'm already pondering is:
Will it require an always on connection or will it work offline?
Will it completely replace Hero Lab or will they work together?
Is it using the same core data?
Will my purchased data flow over to the new tool?
Will it support the creation of custom content (i doubt it wouldn't)
How will custom content be stored? (locally or on a server)
If on a server what will that cost me?
How will player hosted content work (aka community pack)?
Will there be a way for DMs to view / interact with their players character sheets?
Will combat management allow live sync between the DM and players?
How will Realm Works integration work?
Moving to an online solution is a big step and it certainly feels like it's the way of the future. It will no doubt open the tool up to a wealth of new customers. Just going to be very keen to understand the impact of moving to a web based solution as web tools are generally not as powerful as standalone applications.
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MNBlockHead
Well-known member
I'm hoping for both. DnD Beyond will offer a Web view and an app for iOS and Android. The app will support offline access to your content. There are, however, no plans for Windows program at this time.
Hero Lab would actually have an edge if they have an on-line version that syncs with data uses with their iOS and Windows apps.
Hero Lab would actually have an edge if they have an on-line version that syncs with data uses with their iOS and Windows apps.
UttiniDaKilrJawa
Member
Hmm, Hero Lab Online.
I must admit the prospect sounds interesting and a tad off putting at the same time.
I like the thought of being able to use this one program across multiple OS's.
Yet, I wonder what happens if my Internet connection goes down during a game session where I am using Hero Lab.
Also, the whole Online portion makes me wonder if some sort of subscription model is coming down the pipe. Which could possibly make this program more expensive to run in the future for myself.
Regardless, it will be interesting to see what happens.
I must admit the prospect sounds interesting and a tad off putting at the same time.
I like the thought of being able to use this one program across multiple OS's.
Yet, I wonder what happens if my Internet connection goes down during a game session where I am using Hero Lab.
Also, the whole Online portion makes me wonder if some sort of subscription model is coming down the pipe. Which could possibly make this program more expensive to run in the future for myself.
Regardless, it will be interesting to see what happens.
charlieluce
Well-known member
On the other hand, I've had Hero Lab for around ten years; I've spent around $300 on it in that time. That's a good deal less than $10 a month.
I have spent well over that in 3 years, but I GM a lot of games, and my players have a lot of the splat books. I use the tactical console and import all of their characters, so I end up buying more books. At this point I would not do the $10/month. But if I just started using hero lab tomorrow, it would be tempting.
I imagine the subscription model would really only work well for Pathfinder, or if you use multiple systems.
Right now the barrier for entry into Pathfinder is very large, especially for a GM using the tactical console. I see posts on reddit all the time about how expensive it is.
I wonder if it is a sub if the sub will even be for content. There's so much work involved in creating content that I suspect they will still want to charge a one off fee for it. Some of the packages take weeks to months to enter.
Just like dnd beyond I would suspect there will be a subscription to cover the ongoing cost of the service instead. To cover things like bandwidth, electricity, storage. These are all things LWD will be billed for monthly by the data centre.
Just like dnd beyond I would suspect there will be a subscription to cover the ongoing cost of the service instead. To cover things like bandwidth, electricity, storage. These are all things LWD will be billed for monthly by the data centre.
Steel_Wind
Member
- Status