Mobile app for Apple devices

General Discussion
1

One of the benefits of our new software is that it allows for ‘notifications’, those pop-up messages that let you know when someone has responded to a post and the like.

People who use Android devices will see notifications according to whatever their settings are in their profile.

Unfortunately, people who use Apple devices will not receive notifications even though the software sends them. This has to do with fundamental differences in the business models of Google and Apple - it costs $99/ year plus custom tailoring to enable notifications on Apple devices.

T̴h̴e̴r̴e̴ ̴i̴s̴ ̴a̴ ̴f̴i̴x̴.̴

{incorrect, see below} If you have an iPhone or iPad and would like to get notifications you can download a free app that will enable notifications for you on this website and any other website that runs Discourse software{/incorrect}

Discourse Hub

The app will also help you juggle multiple different Discourse forums. {this part it correct}.

The Google Play Store likewise offers this app but it is not needed to simply receive notifications.

Please let us know your experience with the app if you do install it.

2

It was easy enough to install on my iPad…we’ll see how the rest goes with time.

3

I should mention, also, that if you are on a mobile device you should be able to switch between mobile and desk views.

Click the ‘hamburger menu’ which will expand the sidebar. At the bottom of the sidebar you will see a symbol representing either a monitor or a phone if you have the ability to switch.

If you don’t see either of those symbols then the software believes you to be on a computer for which mobile view is not appropriate.

I have been able to switch on various phones and tablets but not my desktop.

Here are a couple of screenshots of that the mobile view looks like on Android. The ‘switch’ appears at the bottom right of the second one.

Screenshot_2022-10-04-15-49-18-31_40deb401b9ffe8e1df2f1cc5ba480b12

Screenshot_2022-10-04-15-45-54-34_40deb401b9ffe8e1df2f1cc5ba480b12

4

The icons you mention are not visible on either my iPhone or iPad. But at least on these Apple products, there in no discernible difference to me between viewing in the browser vs. the app.

5

Interesting. Do notifications work for you? For instance, did you get a notification about this reply?

6

No, I did not, nor on your last reply. And I did check that notifications definitely are enabled.

7

It turns out the Discourse Hub app won’t deliver notifications to Apple devices. I either misread a discussion about it or missed that critical bit of the discussion but I was mistaken in thinking that it would do.

There is another mobile app actually will deliver notifications. I gearing up to build it - it has to be constructed per-website - but I’m not actually sure it will be worth the effort because some time in 2023 Safari will itself start allowing notifications natively. Android already does.

The Discourse website software automatically rolls over to a mobile version that’s not significantly different than the app versions so when Safari starts delivering notifications the need for an app goes away.

Thanks for trying out the app. I’ll post here if I do get the other app working for this forum.