# I have an idea for an app



## moody (Jun 23, 2015)

I am pretty sure, from various searches that there is nothing similar on the market.

It is a very simple idea.

What is the next step, how could I go about finding out if it can be delevloped?


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## FridgeMagnet (Jun 23, 2015)

Learn how to code.


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## twentythreedom (Jun 23, 2015)

IS IT DRUGS?



Dunno 

But srsly I can't be much help but fucking good on you mate and best wishes


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## moody (Jun 23, 2015)

no, it is an app, it is not drug related.

FridgeMagnet,  even if I coded it myself, how can I stop someone else nicking my idea and then marketing?


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## moody (Jun 23, 2015)

lol, by the time I would of learned to code and then wrote the app, technology would of completely changed


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## Bob_the_lost (Jun 23, 2015)

moody said:


> no, it is an app, it is not drug related.
> 
> FridgeMagnet,  even if I coded it myself, how can I stop someone else nicking my idea and then marketing?


You can never prevent it, although you could go to court over it after the fact. Contracts help, talking to companies rather than individuals is probably safer but you won't have the money for that.

Bluntly if you can't code or scrape up 10k of development funds you're probably not going to get this going.

I promise not to steal your idea, type it up and IM me. I'm not an apps developer but i know the surrounding technology and my day job is turning user requirements into designs.


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## Crispy (Jun 23, 2015)

Ideas are 10 a penny and yours is not unique, I can pretty much guarantee. Implementing an idea is the hard bit and you've got to put the work in.


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## FridgeMagnet (Jun 23, 2015)

moody said:


> no, it is an app, it is not drug related.
> 
> FridgeMagnet,  even if I coded it myself, how can I stop someone else nicking my idea and then marketing?


You can't. The App Store is full of clones.


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## FridgeMagnet (Jun 23, 2015)

Bob_the_lost said:


> You can never prevent it, although you could go to court over it after the fact. Contracts help, talking to companies rather than individuals is probably safer but you won't have the money for that.
> 
> Bluntly if you can't code or scrape up 10k of development funds you're probably not going to get this going.
> 
> I promise not to steal your idea, type it up and IM me. I'm not an apps developer but i know the surrounding technology and my day job is turning user requirements into designs.


10K if you want to hire someone who's "played a bit with making apps and thinks they know how to do it"!


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## Bob_the_lost (Jun 23, 2015)

FridgeMagnet said:


> 10K if you want to hire someone who's "played a bit with making apps and thinks they know how to do it"!


It depends on scale but if you can get 10k you may be able to get the rest to get your application up and running. Although this article may help pour some cold water on it':
https://www.fastcompany.com/1841912/true-costs-launching-startup


> To build an online store or application from scratch expect a team of 4 developers to spend at least 6 months designing, implementing, testing and launching it. At $50 per person per hour, working full time each month, the monthly cost is $32,000 per month. In this case you would pay $196,000 over six months.


So yes, i was out by a factor of 10


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## moody (Jun 23, 2015)

so if they cost so much cash how come there are so many that look like they've been written/made by children


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## Bob_the_lost (Jun 23, 2015)

moody said:


> so if they cost so much cash how come there are so many that look like they've been written/made by children


Oh you want to know how much for a _pretty _one? Five times that please.

Alternatively, those are the ones that were made by someone who knows a bit of Javascript, or where the client is a gibbering idiot.


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## moody (Jun 23, 2015)

this is not a game or require any graphics or sound, it is simply to make the phone preform  a certain function when required.


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## fractionMan (Jun 23, 2015)

Good software is _hard_


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## fractionMan (Jun 23, 2015)

Like Bob, I promise not to steal your idea if you want to PM me.


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## twentythreedom (Jun 23, 2015)

moody said:


> no, it is an app, it is not drug related.



Srs bznz


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## Fez909 (Jun 23, 2015)

It's this: when your toast is burning, the app automatically blows on your smoke alarm and opens the window.

THERE ARE NO NEW IDEAS moody


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## Bob_the_lost (Jun 23, 2015)

moody said:


> this is not a game or require any graphics or sound, it is simply to make the phone preform  a certain function when required.


Well obviously it'll need some graphics. You've got the different developer frameworks for each of the mobile platforms, hooking in any add systems that you want, the cost of publishing to the app store itself and so on.

As always there is an XKCD comic that applies: https://xkcd.com/1425/
And since you don't know this stuff, the explanation for it: http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/1425:_Tasks


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## twentythreedom (Jun 23, 2015)

Drugs need more apps tbf


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## moody (Jun 23, 2015)

twentythreedom said:


> Drugs need more apps tbf




like one that makes your phone vibrate when you happen to walk past a massive secret stash house


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## Fez909 (Jun 23, 2015)

twentythreedom said:


> Drugs need more apps tbf


Barometer, fingerprint sensor? Nahhh, we need pill testers on our phones. That would be


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## moody (Jun 23, 2015)

doesn't require any new technology.

I saw in the news the other day that british scientist have developed a device that can do drugs tests just from being popped on the end of your finger


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## Bob_the_lost (Jun 23, 2015)

That's an interesting challenge, an app that takes a picture of a pill and attempts to identify if it's from a dodgy batch would be useful i suspect. Of course there's a few obvious security and data protection issues around that sort of thing.

I'm still amazed that there isn't a function on rightmove or zoopla that asks users for a starting point (work for example), a maximum travel time and then works out what areas you can afford to live in based on your budget and house priorities. Throw in the Police database and anything else and you've got a really interesting feature.


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## weltweit (Jun 23, 2015)

So, you have an idea, all well and good, but you don't have the skills and software / hardware to make your idea into a reality or following that to market the resulting app.

You could try to find someone who develops Apps and get them involved in the production of the software, if you don't have money you could offer a share of the profits, who knows, if the idea is compelling enough and likely enough to sell they may be up for it. But what share should they have? what share do they deserve for development? perhaps larger than your own even! Then you have to get it to market, to sell it, will you do that? do you know what is needed to get it selling?


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## moody (Jun 23, 2015)

I know a couple of coders and have sent them messages asking to meet up for a chat about it, they are friends of mine so I am sure they will tell me exactly how it is.


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## Winot (Jun 24, 2015)

moody said:


> no, it is an app, it is not drug related.
> 
> FridgeMagnet,  even if I coded it myself, how can I stop someone else nicking my idea and then marketing?



Some information on this thread. 

http://www.urban75.net/forums/threads/patenting-an-idea-getting-it-into-production-etc.334326/


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## ohmyliver (Jun 29, 2015)

I'd say that you almost certainly need 2-300+ per day minimum for each coder and a tester.  I'm not sure about the day rates for designers and ux people. Probably the minimum you could get away with is 1x dev 1x designer 1x tester.  You'll obviously cut costs if you keep it to one platform.

The best thing to do would be to work out what you want it to do, in really specific terms.  I'd have a look at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Behavior-driven_development#Behavioural_specifications and use that methodology to sketch out the core functions of the app, in both 'what does the app do' and 'how do users use the app' ways.


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## fractionMan (Jun 29, 2015)

What did your coder friends say?


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## salem (Jun 29, 2015)

Bob_the_lost said:


> As always there is an XKCD comic that applies: https://xkcd.com/1425/



That is brilliant, going to print that out and put it with Little Bobby Tables

Valid point too, things that can seem trivial can be very difficult to do in practice and at the same time it can take a few minutes and a well chosen library to blow peoples minds.

The question here is a bit vague to be able to tell which. I've also come across many dreamers who want to offer you 5% of their company which will be the new Facebook in return for building the thing from the ground up.

Saying that I don't think the people saying you need a team of developers working for months are necessarily right either.

A quick hacked together proof of concept or slimmed down app could be enough to at least prove or disprove the viability and give you a foot up to taking the idea further.

Like the others I'm happy to have a quick look at the idea with a promise not to rip it off


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## elbows (Jun 29, 2015)

Crispy said:


> Ideas are 10 a penny and yours is not unique, I can pretty much guarantee. Implementing an idea is the hard bit and you've got to put the work in.



And even then, getting people to discover it, use it, give a poop about it, isnt exactly trivial either. Build it and they will come, not.


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## elbows (Jun 29, 2015)

salem said:


> I've also come across many dreamers who want to offer you 5% of their company which will be the new Facebook in return for building the thing from the ground up.



I usually get the ones who dont even offer me 5%. Had one the other day, who wanted to 'close a funding round' in just a few weeks time, admitted they thought I could provide the sizzle that would sell the deal to investors, but didnt offer me any equity and started taking the usual crap about how they were bootstrapping it themselves so even one-off pay would not exactly be generous. Funnily enough I passed on the offer. I think I'll bypass these goofballs, put my own ideas on indygogo and watch them die horribly with minimal fuss.


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## salem (Jun 29, 2015)

elbows said:


> And even then, getting people to discover it, use it, give a poop about it, isnt exactly trivial either. Build it and they will come, not.


Good point, building a site is often the easy part. People forget that the business behind it is as important (if the objective is to make money)


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## Fingers (Jun 29, 2015)

I am about to launch an app on Apple and Android for a new social network we have been working on for a niche market.  It is not too dissimilar  to Facebook but the web version is getting quite a take up. The app was pretty much pre built already and I am just customising it but even that has not been cheap.

Having said that, the amount of clowns who get in contact with me who want to recreate Facebook or the Gumtree with a £500 budget is laughable.


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## Part 2 (Jun 30, 2015)

I was talking about developing an app with a mate whose eyesight is getting bad. He was asking if a phone could detect from taking a picture of your eye, how bad your eyesight is, and automatically adjust the size of text to a size you could read. 

I've no idea if eyes change as eyesight worsens though?


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## fractionMan (Jun 30, 2015)

Chip Barm said:


> I was talking about developing an app with a mate whose eyesight is getting bad. He was asking if a phone could detect from taking a picture of your eye, how bad your eyesight is, and automatically adjust the size of text to a size you could read.
> 
> I've no idea if eyes change as eyesight worsens though?



offer Fingers and elbows £500 and see what they say 

Wouldn't it be far easier to have an app that gradually increases text size on voice command and when you can read it, you say 'stop'.


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## weltweit (Jun 30, 2015)

moody said:


> ... It is a very simple idea.
> 
> What is the next step, how could I go about finding out if it can be delevloped?


Google, Apple Software Development Kit. and download.
Google Android Software Development Kit. download.
Google Apple SDK Tutorials etc etc


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## fractionMan (Jun 30, 2015)

I have an idea for an app that writes other apps for people that want apps written.

GOLDMINE.


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## elbows (Jun 30, 2015)

Chip Barm said:


> I was talking about developing an app with a mate whose eyesight is getting bad. He was asking if a phone could detect from taking a picture of your eye, how bad your eyesight is, and automatically adjust the size of text to a size you could read.
> 
> I've no idea if eyes change as eyesight worsens though?



No, you cant do that. And even if you could, precise font size is still going to be influenced by personal preference, not pure eyesight performance on its own.


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## Part 2 (Jun 30, 2015)

Fire pissed on.


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## fractionMan (Jul 1, 2015)

It was a very small fire.  Like a half spent matchstick


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## Winot (Jul 1, 2015)

Chip Barm said:


> Fire pissed on.



Doctors are however using smartphone photos to remotely diagnose eye disease etc. in developing countries.


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## Winot (Jul 1, 2015)

Winot said:


> Doctors are however using smartphone photos to remotely diagnose eye disease etc. in developing countries.



Here you go 

http://www.nature.com/news/mobile-phone-microscope-detects-eye-parasite-1.17499


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