Question: When are you going to have a Daily Maui Photo App for my Android device?

This question has been coming up a lot since I released the 2.0 version of the iPhone App earlier this year. I hear you loud and clear, and I wish I had better news for all of you asking.

I put this page together to help answer some of those questions and provide an explaination of why there isn't an Android version yet.

Nothing Against Android

First, I don't want people to think I have any against Android or Android users. Up until the beginning of January '12, I was on my third Android smartphone and had one of the earlier Android tablets (one you probably never heard of unless you worked at T-Mobile).

Building Apps like this is just one of my many hobbies, much like visiting Maui, photography, and blogging. I also have a full time software engineering job and am a full-time father, so I unfortunately have to be selective in projects I can take on.

Up to now, development with the iOS platform has been the most productive and enjoyable for me. And while that doesn't mean I'll never get around to working with the Android platform, it does means, however, that I'm going to ride out the experience and momentum I'm making in the iOS space with as many of the planned Apps I can release before I burn out.

Why Not a Mobile Web App?

There may be a few tech savvy folks reading this asking why I haven't put together a Mobile Web App for Android yet, knowing very well that I'm a web developer, after all.

For those of you not as tech savvy, what you might not realilze is that some Apps on your phone are actually mobile websites that are designed to look like Android Apps, without actually running Android code (Java).

That is a fair question, and one I've looked into on more than one occasion.

It might sound like a cop out, but one of the issues I can't get passed is the user experience piece. I don't want to release something for Android just to release something if it doesn't have a user experience that I'm proud to put my name on.

I use Apps all the time, and have done so for years. If I see something that looks and feels phoned in or half-baked, I tend to shy away. If I put out a Mobile Web App for Android that didn't have the same social sharing, maps, and notifications that the iOS version has, I wouldn't feel like I'd be doing anyone any favors.

Maybe I'm adding bias as a super user and not speaking for most of you reading this (shout out below if that's the case).

Whatever. Hey, I Got a Guy that Knows a Guy...

Although I don't have any immediate plans to start an Android version on my own, I'm more than willing to work with someone that wants to give this a shot.

You can see from above that my emphasis on user experience is important, but even if you're still starting out with Android development yourself, I'd be willing to entertain inquiries.

From a software development perspective, it should be pretty easy to nail down the application requirements because we're essentially duplicating the same application that exists already, except with an Android experience instead.

And I am proficient enough with Android and Java to help through any basic questions and to help with code reviews as needed, so no worries there, either.

If you are someone or knows someone who wants to help out, drop me a note at dailymauiphoto@gmail.com.

It's not a paying job (since I don't get paid for this and therefore wouldn't have money to pay someone else), but it would be a good learning experience and portfolio material.

Mahalo!

Thanks for understanding the situation here. If you've read this and still not satisfied that there's not an Android version, I do apologize.

If the situation should change, however, please know that I'll be super excited to share it with all of you waiting patiently for the day when your Android device gets a little daily Aloha, too.

- Kris