[support-michael]

Updated Oct 3, 2011, see updates in red
Send To Phone (AppSync) – Basics

Background
MobiOne provides a free cloud service known as AppSync that runs on the Google App Engine. The MobiOne “Send To My Phone” feature converts a mobione design and all of its linked design files into HTML5, css and javascript resources. It then packages these resource files and all design images into a compressed zip file that is uploaded to AppSync for temporary hosting. AppSync then emails or txt’s a tiny URL of your mobile webapp to the recipients email addresses that you specified. The limited hosting duration and size is to be able to offer this as a free service to MobiOne users.

Update: many of you have contacted us requesting larger upload size and longer duration hosting times. We have heard your requests.[i] In the recent MobiOne 1.3 update we expanded the maximum upload limit from 2Mb to 5Mb and improved media streaming capabilities with no additional charge for the expanded storage[/color]. We are continually evaluating ways to improve the AppSync services.[/i][/color]

Limitation
1) AppSync will host your mobione webapp for a maximum of 5 days. When the 5 days of hosting have elapsed, AppSync expires the URL to your hosted mobile webapp and then deletes the webapp from its storage. Users attempting to access an expired webapp will see the equivalent of a custom HTTP 404 error page. To extend the hosting lifespan of your webapp beyond 5 days, you simply need to use Send to Phone feature on the application to inform AppSync to resync with the current state of the webapp and to reset the timeout for 5 more days.

2) There is also a 5Mb limit on the maximum upload size of your compressed webapp (i.e., zip file) to AppSync.

Dealing with the 5Mb Upload Limit – Suggestions
1) Check image sizes and compress
The most common cause for a MobiOne webapp size to exceed the 5Mb limit is the use of large images. Please inspect the size of the images used in your designs. If they are excessively large consider reducing their size by using an image compression utility such as the free OptiPNG, http://optipng.sourceforge.net/?

2) Extra Included Files
Another thing to inspect is the contents of your mobile webapp for unneeded files that are being included in the upload. Use the Test Center’s “Send To Phone” wizard to view and select or deselect resources to be uploaded to AppSync.
See attachment stp-files.png

Future Plans
We are preparing to expand the AppSync services. We welcome your feedback. Some questions we are interested in understanding are:

1) Do you need long term hosting for your mobile webapp?
1a) If yes, for how long?

2) Would you pay a small fee for these extended services if available today?

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[lee39a]

Hello Wayne,

I tried to compress, but still need more space. Here are my answers

1) at this time, 10 MB would be great. During sending to phone process, the design center stops and just showing half of the pages-images exported (6 MB) already.

2) at least two weeks asap and renewal available.

3) YES. Willing to pay extended service right away.

So, let me know as soon as possible whether this extended service could be done right away.

Thanks,
KJ

[Worksdigital]

Hi Wayne,

The 5 day limit is problemaric as i want to create a business card type app and have a link from our website for users to download. With the 5 day limit i woild have to keep regenerating the link.

Would in not be possible to allow us to download a zip version of our creations so that we could self host?

[support-michael]

@Worksdigital
All of the code uploaded to AppSync stored to your disk prior to the AppSync upload phase. Thus you can access the code either by exporting your main (startup) design or using Run in Test Center and accessing the generated code. The generated as part of the Run in Test Center action is created in the subdirectory of the running design file’s saved location.

Wayne
Genuitec Mobile Team

[Worksdigital]

Excellent. Thanks for that info hadn’t realized it was generated client side, I guess that this is also a way around file size limits if self hosting.

Phil

[bouchie]

2) Extra Included Files
Another thing to inspect is the contents of your mobile webapp for unneeded files that are being included in the upload. Use the Test Center’s “Send To Phone” wizard to view and select or deselect resources to be uploaded to AppSync.
–> I don’t get that screen anymore, it just start to sync. Is there a way to go to that screen so I can exclude the unneeded files?

[support-michael]

@bouchie
From the Test Center, the Send to Phone feature has 2 modes of operation:
mode-1: uploading to AppSync the current running MobiOne webapp and then sending the URL to your distro list
mode-2: if Test Center is running a non-MobiOne webapp (e.g., normal website) then only the URL to the remote webapp is provided to AppSync to sent out to your distro list

In the case you describe please verify that the Test Center is running a local MobiOne webapp. You can do this by selecting the statusbar or Browser>Addressbar to reveal the addressbar. The local URL should start with “file://” If the URL is remote then you will not have access to its contents to upload to AppSync.
See attachment local-webapp.png
A reason you may not see the upload contents page on subsequent Send To Phone operations in the Test Center is because Send To Phone may be replacing your local webapp with the URL of the uploaded AppSync URL. The Send to Phone dialog includes an option “Open URL in Test Center emulator” which is checked by default. When this option is selected, the Test Center will automatically load the URL of your AppSync hosted mobile webapp. Note that this URL is a remote url as described in #2 above
See attachment openurl.png

I hope this is helpful.

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[JohnJake2]

Hi Support (Wayne and Octavio)

I have another question regarding this thread.
Wayne, you stated:

All of the code uploaded to AppSync stored to your disk prior to the AppSync upload phase. Thus you can access the code either by exporting your main (startup) design or using Run in Test Center and accessing the generated code. The generated as part of the Run in Test Center action is created in the subdirectory of the running design file’s saved location.

I couldn’t manage to find that specific directory. When understanding this correctly, you talked about the problem that your cloud service holds the App Install data for only 5 days. “Worksdigital” wanted to keep the cloud content for more than 5 days, since he wants to offer this to his customers for a longer period. So he asked for a zip download of all his 5-days-cloud-content in order to put this onto his own server.

That is exactly what I want as well. But I cannot find the local directory where my procject install HTML code is stored. I need that specific HTML file, based on jQuery, that displays my app’s name, the version and the information e-mail address. And of course the “Install Now” button with the content, wich then must include the ipa file as well.

But I can only find HTML content and js files in my project’s folder and it’s subdirectories.

I am not looking for the option to put all HTML and js content to my webserver since then it would be no installation. Then it is just surfing with Safari and all my customers need a link. But I want them to have my app on their phone as an “app”. Is that possible?

Thx in advance for your feedback.
JohnJake(2)

[support-michael]

@JohnJake2

In the MobiOne 2, all App Center data lives for 50 days.

App Center does not have a mechanism for creating and downloading a zip of all content hosted by user on the cloud. We have been discussing this possibility but it has not been assigned a priority yet. I am adding this thread to the feature discussion.

[Clint1557]

I have tried everything to get my software to “Send to your Phone” with no success.

I am quite savvy regarding iPhone settings and functionality of software.

I have tried 2 e-mail addresses..my apps are very small.

What next?

[support-michael]

@Clint1557

Open a help request on the Getting Help forum. Following the posting guidelines and share your project details with an example or two. We will see what we can do to fix you up.

[ManuelNogueira]

Hello Wayne and Octavio-

Love MobiOne and have been working on quite an extensive webApp. I’m getting real close to finalizing it but it’s not good to me if my clients cannot access and download it after 50 days never mind 5 days from the appSync cloud service. I as I’m sure, many of us users are in REAL NEED for “long Term” AppSync Cloud service where we can release a MobiOne webApp and not have to reload it every 4 days just to keep it alive.

I would rather not have to self host or have anything to do with a server since I rather be making apps plus I’m not server savvy

Here is what I need from MobiOne and I understand if there is a cost for the service ;
1. I need MobiOne server allocation where I can purchase additional space if needed
2. The service provided needs to be identical to the service we are presently getting or better. In other words; hosting and appsync cloud service so that it all remains transparent.

This would be terrific to have from MobiOne and if at all possible, please let me know how soon it could happen as I’m needing to make final preparations for my release.

The other less preferred option is for me to “emulate” what mobiOne does which I believe is compressing all the files and uploading to AppSync & of course having to host it myself or buy server space. If this is the case, please provide me with clear instructions as to what I need to do and if at all possible, where to go for it. Again, please keep it simple but precise.

Thanks in advance

[support-octavio]

Hi Mano,

We are juggling a few corp priorities atm. No promises but we are shooting for late Q4 timeframe.

[ManuelNogueira]

Hi Octavio-
Thanks for your reply…really appreciate it.
When you mention potentially late Q4 are you referring to MobiOne offering server space with AppSync support? Please explain.

In the meantime, I need to release my webApp… Do you have any suggestions prior to Q4 as far as a VPN or shared server service with AppSync out there?
If there is one that can handle my MobiOne files please let me know. Or do you suggest just keeping refreshing my webApp every week(5 days) so that my customers would have the webapp available in the cloud for downloading as well as for revisions?

Thanks guy

[Paul_paul]

I have hosted my own web apps and Android apps with no problems at all, if you want help to do the same leave your email address on here and I will contact you.

[Author]

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