APP DEVELOPMENT THUNKABLE

 How To Become an App Developer?

App development is the process of creating an application for a mobile device or computer. It starts with the design of the app and ends with its release in an app store. The smartphone and tablet market is growing at a staggering rate and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future due to their increasing penetration rates in developed economies. As such, app development is expected to remain a viable business. We can see people using smartphones of different brands. These Smartphones are nothing but small handheld computers; just like a computer, they too have memory, storage, and a processor, not to forget a keyboard, touchscreen, and a screen for output. Just like a computer has various software apps installed in it, similarly, a Smartphone also has a large number of apps installed inside its memory. These apps do have a unique interface, wonderfully designed and developed by experts. Smartphone apps work on different types of operating systems. Android apps work on Android OS whereas apps built for iPhones work on ios. Thunkable is a platform for mobile app development that allows users to create mobile applications without the need for extensive programming knowledge. It is designed to simplify the app development process and make it accessible to a wider audience, including those who may not have a background in coding. Here's an overview of Thunkable:

No-Code/Low-Code Platform: Thunkable is often categorized as a no-code or low-code platform. This means that it provides a visual interface and a drag-and-drop system for building apps, reducing the need for manual coding. Users can create complex apps by connecting pre-built components and defining their behavior through a visual interface.

Cross-Platform Development: Thunkable supports cross-platform app development. This means you can create apps that work on both Android and iOS devices using a single codebase. This simplifies the development process and allows you to reach a broader audience.

Visual Interface: Thunkable provides a user-friendly, visual interface where you can design your app's user interface, arrange elements on the screen, and configure their properties without writing code. It uses a block-based programming approach, similar to Scratch or MIT App Inventor, where you snap together blocks to create app logic.

Component Library: Thunkable offers a library of pre-designed components and templates that users can use to quickly build common app features. These components include buttons, text input fields, maps, sensors, and more.

Live Testing: Thunkable provides live testing features that allow you to preview your app on a connected device in real time. This enables you to see how your app behaves and make adjustments as needed during the development process.

Third-Party Integrations: Thunkable allows you to integrate with third-party services and APIs, enabling you to add features like social media sharing, location services, and data storage to your app.

Community and Support: Thunkable has an active community of users and provides resources like tutorials, forums, and documentation to help developers get started and troubleshoot any issues they encounter.

Publishing: Once your app is complete, Thunkable provides tools to package and publish your app to app stores like Google Play Store and Apple App Store.

Free and Paid Plans: Thunkable offers both free and paid plans. The free plan typically has limitations on features and may include Thunkable branding on your app. Paid plans offer more advanced features and the ability to remove branding.

Thunkable is an excellent choice for individuals, small businesses, and educators looking to create mobile apps quickly and without a steep learning curve. It empowers people with creative ideas to turn them into functional mobile applications, making it accessible to a wide range of users, including those with no prior coding experience. However, the capabilities and pricing of Thunkable may have evolved since my last update in September 2021, so it's advisable to visit Thunkable's official website for the most current information.

Types of Apps

There are many categories of smartphone apps and different operating systems. But most of the time we use  these three categories:

Native Apps

A native is a person who is born in a specified place or associated with a place by birth. Similarly, in mobile computing Native apps are developed specifically for a mobile device operating system. This means you can develop Android apps for devices using the Android operating system and iOS apps for mobile devices that use the iOS operating system. Smartphones have different hardware specifications, and native apps are built, keeping in mind the hardware specifications of the specific smartphone. Native apps are coded using a variety of programming languages like Java, Kotlin, Python, Swift, Objective C, etc. They also have some advantages and disadvantages. They have pros faster, better performance, native UI, and access device features. It has some cons like the higher cost to maintain, taking up space in the device, and updates that must be downloaded.

Web Apps

Web apps that are accessed using a web browser. There is no need to install these apps on your smartphone device. Even if we click on the install button, it simply means that we are simply downloading the device. Even when we click on the install button, it simply means that we are simply downloading a bookmark. The URL link will help us in accessing the web app quickly using a browser.

The common language used for developing web apps is HTML, CSS, JAVASCRIPT, RUBY, etc. It has pros like web-based so performs on all devices, is easier to maintain, and users don't run out of storage. It has cons as dependent on the browser, needs an internet connection, and may not always integrate with device hardware.

Hybrid Apps

Hybrid apps are a combination of both web apps and native apps. These apps have an interface like a web app and can be installed on a device like a native app. Hybrid apps can be downloaded from the Play Store or iOS Store. Hybrid apps have an app icon, display responsive design, and assure fast performance. They are designed to function offline, but they are actually web apps made to look native.

The common language used for developing hybrid apps is Objective C, Swift, HTML, etc. It has pros quicker and cheaper to build, loads quickly and has less code to maintain. It has cons lacks the power of native apps, is slower since it has to download each element and certain features might not be usable on the device.

Developing Time

If you want to create an app that should not take much time in its development, and your user is okay with using a browser, then web apps are the best choice.

Limit Resources

In Case of limited monetary resources, choose either a web app or a hybrid app. Once your app gets popular among users, you can upgrade your app to the native version.

Performance

If app performance is the most important consideration for you, then developing a native app is the best choice. Native apps can be easily customized and are efficient in speed and stability.

Android apps are built as a combination of different components. For example, a bike comprises different components with individual functions, which when combined together, make a bike move. In app development, an app is developed by creating its individual components first and then assembling all these components together.

Thunkable App

Thunkable is an app that allows you to create and share your own videos for any subject. The app provides the user with a list of subjects which they can choose from and a video timeline that displays the items on the list. The user can then pick out one of these subjects and drag it to the timeline, where it will be attached to two arrows. Thunkable is a web-based app with an integrated development environment originally provided by Google. Anyone with basic computing can develop different types of apps that are based on Android and iSO operating systems. Thunkable is now maintained by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology(MIT). It has a GUI-based interface which is very similar to Scratch and the StarLogo app. Its interface consists of various tools that help in developing an app using drag and drop. Using drag-and-drop feathers, we can easily create an app without writing any code.

Components of Thunkable GUI Interface:

Layout Screen: This is a layout screen, which looks similar to our Smartphone screen, and it is used to place the components like images, buttons, labels, etc. It helps us to design the interface of our app. It also helps us in deciding where to place components on the screen.

Design Panel: The panel consists of various components that are used to build the interface of our mobile app. Some basic components are Image, Button, Label, Text input, Slider, etc. We can simply drag and drop these components on the Layout Screen using the mouse.

Layout Screen Panel: This panel consists of options that can help us enhance the looks of your app by adding a background color, adding a background image, orientation, alignment and adding scrolling bars, etc. 

Is Python important to make an app?

Python is not necessary for the creation of apps. It has many benefits such as being an easy-to-learn and easy-to-read language that is used in many industries. However, it is not necessary for app development and a developer can still create a successful app without it. Python is used in a lot of different industries. Some examples are robotics, web design, and software engineering.

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