We’re all pretty jaded when it comes to software but when I first saw yHomework I was completely floored by it!
Where was this tool when I was in junior high?
If you haven’t seen yHomework in action I suggest you give it a try right now on your
Android or
iOS device.
In a nutshell the app accepts several types of math equations starting with the basic algebra e.g 3(x+5)=6 and then
shows you the process of solving it as if a human teacher solved it for you. Including text explanation of every step
that you can just read thru and understand!
This is ideal for students picking up the higher level math subjects who might struggle with an exercise, why does
the answer in the book differ from my result?
In Codename One
yHomework was one of the first major Codename One apps ever written, some of
our features were explicitly built to help this app. Originally the author wrote an entire implementation in JavaScript
and scrapped the whole thing our of concern for IP issues & a personal preference for Java.
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Despite obfuscation JavaScript apps (e.g. PhoneGap/Cordova) can be unzipped and resold which is a common practice in some markets |
The app makes use of many Codename One features including in-app-purchase, cn1libs for the ads, push notification etc.
In fact the app was so successful that it brought down our old push notification servers back in the day.
Portability
yHomework benefited greatly from it’s portability as a few years ago a competing iOS app went on a media blitz.
yHomework saw it’s marketshare rise both on iOS and Android thanks to that competitors campaign. The rise
was especially pronounced on Android (where the competitor wasn’t present) but also carried into iOS thanks
to the social sharing effect.
With installs in the millions and great reviews yHomework shows that cross platform can be a fan favorite
where the complaints users have are more around the fact that the app isn’t completely free than anything else…
If I had to pick a favorite Codename One app I would pick yHomework. It shows that content and functionality
is still king & the most important thing an app can deliver.
4 Comments
I remember downloading the app over a year ago and the graphics on my phone were pretty poor… Maybe I’ll check it out again.
By the way, how do you make the app showcase images like the one at the top of this post? I’m looking for a tool to be able to do similar stuff.
That’s a very slick looking app. Any idea what sort of time it took to develop ?
The UI was designed before flat design took over, the general design was around the idea of familiarity to 7th-10th grade kids (notebook, calculator motif). My one complaint about the UI is it’s performance which I think could be improved significantly.
Since this app is so old by now it was developed before there were “best practices” for Codename One and a lot of things could probably be accomplished in a more efficient way.
The core UI was written in a few months but overall this app has been in production since 2013 or so. The current level of functionality and UI evolved over time.