Remote Control your App

AndroidMakers 2018 talk

Transcript

1. Remote Control your App
   AndroidMakers 2018 - Stan Kocken
   

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2. Why?
   2
   

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3. Release Cycle
   3
   

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4. Different company, different style: max time between updates
   4
   Source: appannie.com - updates on the store between 1st April 2017 and 1st April 2018 - 75% - 95% confidence interval
   5-6 days 9-16 days 7-17 days
   15-21 days
   63-66 days 11-15 days
   

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5. Frequent updates is the way to go?
   5
   

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6. Daily updates […] Everybody can see it's
   because of too little testing
   - real review of a user
   6
   

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7. 7
   Less frequent update: the main reasons
   Event-based application
   No dev working actively on it
   Expensive release
   

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8. Our release cycle: Release Train
   8
   5.12.0
   5.13.X
   5.13.0
   5.14.X
   Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4
   beta
   5%
   20%
   100%
   beta
   5%
   20%
   100%
   alpha
   alpha
   

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9. App Release Feature Release
   9
   ≠
   Our Release Train
   Engineers Product/Marketing
   

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10. How do you do that?
    10
    

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11. Remote Control your App
    AndroidMakers 2018 - Stan Kocken
    

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12. But… I need to change this text…
    I want to test this…
    - product owner
    12
    

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13. Remote Control your App
    AndroidMakers 2018 - Stan Kocken
    

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14. WebView
    14
    

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15. A View that displays web pages
    - https://developer.android.com/reference/android/webkit/WebView.html
    15
    

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16. 16
    How?
    99% Hybrid Low-touch
    Facebook lite
    1.6MB
    Installs: 500,000,000+
    4.3/5
    ~ Mobile website
    vs vs
    Native and Web None or 

    just few pages
    Eurostar v1

    (2011)
    • Help pages
    • Credit card
    payments
    • …
    

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17. 17
    Advantages
    Full control without app update
    Cross-platform
    “I know HTML, I can make an app”
    Cheaper: Lower price
    

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18. 18
    Disadvantages
    Full control without app update
    Cross-platform
    “I know HTML, I can make an app”
    Cheaper: Lower price
    BAD
    quality
    So nobody feel at home
    

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19. If even Facebook cannot make it great, 

    how can you?
    19
    

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20. 20
    WebView: Take-away
    - no budget
    - limited part
    - “lite” application
    - everything else
    BAD
    GOOD
    

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21. Remote Screen Configuration
    21
    

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22. Configuration
    22
    UI
    

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23. 23
    "render": {
    "card_premium": {
    "title": {
    "resource": "configurable_premium_title"
    },
    "color": "#25B41E",
    "descriptionItems": [
    {
    "title": {
    "resource": "configurable_premium_item_title_backup"
    },
    "description": {
    "resource": "configurable_premium_item_description_backup"
    },
    "icon": {
    "defaultResource": "configurable_premium_features_backup"
    }
    },
    {
    "title": {
    "resource": "configurable_premium_item_title_sync"
    },
    "description": {
    "resource": "configurable_premium_item_description_sync"
    },
    "icon": {
    "defaultResource": "configurable_premium_features_sync"
    }
    },
    …
    

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24. 24
    WebView
    Remote Screen

    Configuration
    100% remotely controlled
    Cross-platform definition
    Native UI look&feel
    Cost $ $$$
    remotely controlled
    

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25. Remote Copy
    25
    

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26. I need to change this text.
    When can we have this live?
    - product owner
    26
    

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27. But… the text is within Strings.xml…
    Strings.xml within the app…
    So we need an update.
    - dev
    27
    

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28. 28
    getString(R.string.hello_world)
    Hello World
    "Hello World"
    +
    =
    Strings.xml
    

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29. What about a JSON file?
    - dev
    29
    

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30. jsonObject.optString("hello_world")
    30
    "Hello World"
    +
    =
    {"hello_world": "Hello World"}
    Simple JSON
    

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31. Where should I put the French version?
    - product owner
    31
    

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32. 32
    Localised JSON
    {
    "en": {
    "hello_world": "Hello World"
    },
    "fr": {
    "hello_world": "Bonjour le monde"
    }
    }
    jsonObject.getJSONObject(“fr").optString("hello_world")
    “Bonjour le monde”
    +
    =
    

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33. A user is Spanish should see the English
    version
    - QA
    33
    

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34. 34
    Auto-select language
    res
    - values
    - default_strings.xml
    - values-fr
    - default_strings.xml
    
    en
    
    
    fr
    
    jsonObject.getJSONObject(getString(R.string.locale))
    .optString("hello_world")
    

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35. Hmmm, and from my XML layout?
    - dev
    35
    

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36. 36
    XML Layout: the keys
    …
    android:text="hello_world" />
    

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37. 37
    Custom Layout Inflator
    class MyLayoutInflater(context: Context, private val translator: Translator)
    : LayoutInflater(context) {
    override fun onCreateView(parent: View?, name: String?, attrs: AttributeSet?): View {
    val view = super.onCreateView(parent, name, attrs)
    (view as? TextView)?.let { replaceTextKeyByValue(it) }
    return view
    }
    private fun replaceTextKeyByValue(textView: TextView) {
    textView.text = translator.replaceByValueIfNecessary(textView.text)
    textView.hint = translator.replaceByValueIfNecessary(textView.hint)
    }
    

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38. 38
    Custom Layout Inflator
    class MyLayoutInflater(context: Context, private val translator: Translator)
    : LayoutInflater(context) {
    override fun onCreateView(parent: View?, name: String?, attrs: AttributeSet?): View {
    val view = super.onCreateView(parent, name, attrs)
    (view as? TextView)?.let { replaceTextKeyByValue(it) }
    return view
    }
    private fun replaceTextKeyByValue(textView: TextView) {
    textView.text = translator.replaceByValueIfNecessary(textView.text)
    textView.hint = translator.replaceByValueIfNecessary(textView.hint)
    }
    

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39. What about plurals?
    And a different text per app version?
    And “Welcome %s to our app”
    39
    

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40. • Standard i18n functions (plurals, context, interpolation, format)
    • JSON format
    • Created for Javascript
    • Android reader: https://github.com/i18next/i18next-android
    Written by myself 5 years ago
    40
    .com
    

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41. A/B Testing
    41
    

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42. Compare two (or more) experiences to
    choose the best
    42
    

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43. Example
    43
    

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44. 44
    https://medium.com/wolfgangbremer/amazon-is-the-king-of-a-b-testing-f46008e3b528
    

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45. 45
    Maxime Lorant - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:A-B_testing_simple_example.png
    

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46. Local or Server
    46
    A or B?
    Random().nextInt() % 2
    => Save locally
    => Send to Analytics
    Cross-platform A or B
    

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47. 47
    KEEP
    CALM
    AND
    WAIT FOR

    IT…
    

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48. 48
    Wait

    From minutes,
    TO MONTHS!
    

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49. How long should I wait?
    49
    

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50. One at the time
    50
    

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51. Feature Flip
    51
    

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52. Remotely decide when a feature is enable
    52
    

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53. App Release Feature Release
    53
    ≠
    Store update Feature Flip
    

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54. A/B test Feature Flip
    54
    ≠
    Find best experiences Progressive Rollout
    Synchronise cross-platform
    Beta test
    

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55. A/B Test, Feature Flip: tools
    55
    Braze (formerly Appboy), hack of newsfeed
    Firebase Remote Config
    Home-made solution
    

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56. Dashlane usage
    56
    

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57. Dashlane Recipe
    • Release: every two weeks
    • WebView: very limited part
    • Remote Screen Configuration: for the premium page
    • Remote Copy: we don’t
    • A/B Test: home-made solution
    • Feature Flip: home-made solution, highly used
    57
    

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58. App Release Feature Release
    58
    ≠
    Engineers Product/Marketing
    

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59. Thank you
    @stan_kocken
    59
    

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