A Dad’s Plea To Developers Of iPad Apps For Children • Hacker News Board

Re: A Dad’s Plea To Developers Of iPad Apps For Children

#111

Post by evilduck » Mon, Mar 12, 2012, 6:45 PM UTC

spoiledtechie wrote: post #107

veidr wrote: post #48

I'm curious: don't any other people here think 2-year-old kids shouldn't be playing iPad games at all ? I'm convinced that watching TV is harmful to a child's intellectual development. (And there's an established body of evidence to support that.) As a kid, I hated my hippie Montessori teacher mom for allowing me only one hour of TV per week as a kid in the late 70s and early 80s (elementary school; I usually chose t…

My nine month old, started playing with my phone at 2 months old. We let her play with pictures and she LOVES the xylophone app along with the Piano app. I think you will find it much different reality than you actually think.

Similar story, my 14 month old mocks everything we do. If I knock on a door, he knocks on the door, if I sneeze, he'll try to make a sneeze sound, if I fold laundry, well...he'll unfold it and scatter it on the floor, but you get the idea. But since we use the phone, he wants to use the phone, there's no avoiding it.

I don't see the big issue, it's something in his environment that he's curious about. It's not a direct physical danger, I let him explore it.

Re: A Dad’s Plea To Developers Of iPad Apps For Children

#112

Post by huhtenberg » Mon, Mar 12, 2012, 7:18 PM UTC

seclorum wrote: post #31

I really, really, really wish there was some way to disable the Home button on my iPad. My 19-month old and 4-year old kids, who absolutely love to sit with me and play with the iPad, simply find it irresistible to press that button. And when we're watching a movie, its a sure-fire way to ruin the whole experience. If it were lockable so that it didn't do anything, they wouldn't press it. Come to think of it, the sli…

> way to disable the Home button

A piece of cardboard and a sticky tape. Ask me how I know :)

Re: A Dad’s Plea To Developers Of iPad Apps For Children

#113

Post by wilsmex » Mon, Mar 12, 2012, 7:27 PM UTC

veidr wrote: post #48

I'm curious: don't any other people here think 2-year-old kids shouldn't be playing iPad games at all ? I'm convinced that watching TV is harmful to a child's intellectual development. (And there's an established body of evidence to support that.) As a kid, I hated my hippie Montessori teacher mom for allowing me only one hour of TV per week as a kid in the late 70s and early 80s (elementary school; I usually chose t…

I'm all about apps that promote early learning (pre-school) type of content.

I built one of such apps (http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/toddler-trainer-hd/id49632353...) and took extra care to tuck away all menus and settings in a triple-clicked menu, so toddlers can't access it.

Interesting article and suggestions. I'll have to incorporate a few of the ideas.

Re: A Dad’s Plea To Developers Of iPad Apps For Children

#114

Post by tylermenezes » Mon, Mar 12, 2012, 7:37 PM UTC

veidr wrote: post #48

I'm curious: don't any other people here think 2-year-old kids shouldn't be playing iPad games at all ? I'm convinced that watching TV is harmful to a child's intellectual development. (And there's an established body of evidence to support that.) As a kid, I hated my hippie Montessori teacher mom for allowing me only one hour of TV per week as a kid in the late 70s and early 80s (elementary school; I usually chose t…

As a hacker, I'm sure you know, ideals are often different than what actually happens. I often see kids in restaurants. Half of them are screechy. The other half have something to play with. Usually iPads or iPhones, because they're easy to carry, and don't get boring. They're not a choking hazard and won't cut you. Sure, you might like the idea of keeping them away from video games, but it's probably not going to work out that well when you become a parent. The real world is often more difficult than general statements on HN.

Re: A Dad’s Plea To Developers Of iPad Apps For Children

#115

Post by JeremiahNunn » Mon, Mar 12, 2012, 8:05 PM UTC

mwidarto wrote: post #94

I develop an educational app geared for kids and just like some of the people here. I dislike ads, in app purchase, external link etc so I made sure that my app doesn't have any of those and price it at $0.99. I keep updating it based on user feedback to make the app better. It's good to read that there are a lot of parent here that say they won't purchase any app with ads and/or inapp purchases for their kids but I…

There are ways to do in-app purchases for kid apps that aren't unethical. In fact, allowing people to try your app before buying it is a very ethical thing to do. Don't limit yourself unnecessarily, and don't assume kid apps with iAP must be from shady developers.

Re: A Dad’s Plea To Developers Of iPad Apps For Children

#116

Post by JeremiahNunn » Mon, Mar 12, 2012, 8:08 PM UTC

tvon wrote: post #27

I get irked enough when a non-kids app keeps prodding me towards in-app purchases, I'd be pretty livid if I found out a for-kids app was doing it.

iAP is a great way to allow users to try before they buy. Don't confuse iAP with games that fundamentally handicap the game experience unless you continue paying money.

Re: A Dad’s Plea To Developers Of iPad Apps For Children

#117

Post by speleding » Mon, Mar 12, 2012, 8:09 PM UTC

veidr wrote: post #48

I'm curious: don't any other people here think 2-year-old kids shouldn't be playing iPad games at all ? I'm convinced that watching TV is harmful to a child's intellectual development. (And there's an established body of evidence to support that.) As a kid, I hated my hippie Montessori teacher mom for allowing me only one hour of TV per week as a kid in the late 70s and early 80s (elementary school; I usually chose t…

You are over generalizing by blaming an entire medium. There is very appropriate content for children on iPad and on TV and there is very inappropriate content for children in some books.

Granted, the nature of the medium plays a role, there is probably a much higher likelihood of bad / non-stimulating content on TV than in books. However, given that the iPad can act as a book, it logically follows it should have good content as well.

Re: A Dad’s Plea To Developers Of iPad Apps For Children

#118

Post by JeremiahNunn » Mon, Mar 12, 2012, 8:12 PM UTC

huhtenberg wrote: post #41

Spot on regarding the in-app purchases. I have a rule of giving 1 star rating to any kid's game that has them regardless of how well it's done and if my kids actually enjoy the non-gimmicky part. Milking parents by making their kids beg and nag them is an unethical way to earn money.

What is wrong with people here? In app purchase doens't have to be gimmicky, and rating with 1 star just because it has iAP is ridiculous. What about kids games that can be expanded on with modules. Do you really want to buy 5 different apps, one for color minigames, one for shapes, etc? Especially when they can all be linked together in one app, holding the child's attention better and providing a better experience?

Re: A Dad’s Plea To Developers Of iPad Apps For Children

#119

Post by pbhjpbhj » Mon, Mar 12, 2012, 8:17 PM UTC

feralchimp wrote: post #86

veidr wrote: post #48

I'm curious: don't any other people here think 2-year-old kids shouldn't be playing iPad games at all ? I'm convinced that watching TV is harmful to a child's intellectual development. (And there's an established body of evidence to support that.) As a kid, I hated my hippie Montessori teacher mom for allowing me only one hour of TV per week as a kid in the late 70s and early 80s (elementary school; I usually chose t…

> don't any other people here think 2-year-old kids shouldn't be playing iPad games at all? > My own kid won't be here for a few more months, so I'm not preaching; just honestly asking. > Shouldn't kids of that age, instead of learning in-game physics, be learning real physics? Like with balls, marbles, and blocks, running and falling down, and not with animated honeypots and flying unicorns? You are in fact preachin…

Our former 2 year-old and current two year-old have neither choked on their marbles. Why? Supervision. You play with your kids and then you can stop them doing stupid things that are going to cause them high-level harm.

The hard part I find is letting them hurt themselves as part of their learning.

Indeed our 2 year-old just used a kitchen knife (about as long as his forearm) for the first time a couple of weeks ago to chop the potatoes he peeled. Close supervision.

"He could swallow a marble", well yes, he could bash his brother's head in with the corner of an iPad, get hit by a meteorite, run in to a wall, drown himself in the toilet, etc..

Re: A Dad’s Plea To Developers Of iPad Apps For Children

#120

Post by JeremiahNunn » Mon, Mar 12, 2012, 8:19 PM UTC

celticninja wrote: post #32

If your app for children includes in-app purchases I will delete it as soon as I realise. At present this is just a frustration for my 2 year old as he doesnt understand why the game is no longer on the screen, but as he gets older he is more likely to try and pester me into buying. Not Going To Happen, plus I will leave a 1 star review of your app based on in app purchases alone. iPads and iPhones are not bought by…

You leave a 1-star review because you can't be bothered to do some research ahead of time? Or did you assume that a free app, that otherwise was of decent quality, should really be free and the developer should be making content for you and your kid just for the love of it?

In app purchase is a great way to let the user try the app before buying it. And there's a way to do it in kid apps that isn't unethical or taking advantage. I shudder to think of all the developers you hurt because you can't be trusted to use your ipad properly.