WizAnnApp

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8/29/2015 8:49 am  #1


Windows WizAnn Points App (IMPORTANT)

Please take this post as confirmation of dropping support for the windows version of the app, there is a whole bunch of reasons the main ones are time and money.

1. Time, the number of people still using the windows version of the app has greatly reduced from the well over 1,000 students down to very low numbers (don't know exactly but less than 50 would be a rough estimate, working on anything for 50 students when we have more than 1,500 on the Apple version means that 50 people are slowing down the progress of the Apple apps (I have one pair of hands). We are wanting to work on the Android versions of the apps but I cannot work on 3 platforms at the same time it just is not going to happen.

2. Money, the windows app was always free, which is something I am still happy about, but developing in windows has a cost beyond my time, Windows licences, development licences for visual studio, licences for the PDF libarary that produces the bike list, costs more than £1,000 per year without considering hardware costs and my time, so for 50 students it wil cost me in excess of £20 per student just to keep you current per year.

The issue here is this is a moving target, this is the same for all platforms, Microsoft, Apple, Google you cannot put software out there and it will work forever, I have experience of doing this in the past and there is only one solution that works, you lock the computer down, make sure it does not have access to the internet, it never updates or installs patches for any of the software on it, this way it will work until you get a hardware failure. This is unrelalistic for most people as they use their computers for more than just the WizAnn Points App.

I have had a number of people contact me recently saying their windows app has failed, one student came to my house I spent 4 hours trying to get it to work, the app works fine, the data is ok, windows seems fine but the 3 together don't work, the conclusion is the only thing that has changed is something in Windows e.g. an update from Windows Update, I cannot work out which one but given this app has worked flawlessly for a good couple of years without needing an update, you can assume whatever has changed has caused the issue.

I recomend that everyone move across to the Apple app ASAP or wait until the Android version is developed, sorry that I cannot help but this comes down to resources and the likelyhood of me being able to resolve your issues, in my previous career I was a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer so looking after more than 10,000 windows computers/servers was my job, so I know when I am up against issues that are not going to be easy fixes.

I am happy to help people move across to the Apple apps with their current data on windows.

atb

alex

 

 

Last edited by Alex (8/29/2015 9:11 am)


Feel free to post enhancement requests for the apps, always looking for new ideas.

All the best
Alex
 

8/29/2015 1:49 pm  #2


Re: Windows WizAnn Points App (IMPORTANT)

Hi Alex
Firstly, thx for all your hard work & time in developing and fine tuning the software. It's a great bit of kit. I still use both the app & the windows platform, transferring the database as necessary. Both seem to work fine in tandem at present. From what you are saying it is OK to continue to carry on using both or is it best to just use the app now? 

 

8/29/2015 3:48 pm  #3


Re: Windows WizAnn Points App (IMPORTANT)

Thanks for the feedback.

Carry on using both apps if they work, but at some point the windows software might blow out on you.

atb

alex


Feel free to post enhancement requests for the apps, always looking for new ideas.

All the best
Alex
     Thread Starter
 

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