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From Chrome Apps to the Web

blog.chromium.org

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Re: From Chrome Apps to the Web

#31

Post by danprime »

seanwilson wrote: post #27

So what are developers of existing paid Chrome packaged apps suppose to do for existing users? "Starting in late 2016, newly-published Chrome apps will only be available to users on Chrome OS." As someone who has been building a Chrome app this sudden change with a lack of notice has made me very nervous.

According to the link, in short, it says to notify your users (assuming you've been keeping track of them via a mailing list) and then posting an uninstall button.

As far as I can tell, there will be no way to programmatically transition users and their IAP outside of your chromeapp. Meaning, we will have to figure out a way to get users to register their purchases to a database.

Re: From Chrome Apps to the Web

#32

Post by niftich »

kzahel wrote: post #30
seanwilson wrote: post #27

So what are developers of existing paid Chrome packaged apps suppose to do for existing users? "Starting in late 2016, newly-published Chrome apps will only be available to users on Chrome OS." As someone who has been building a Chrome app this sudden change with a lack of notice has made me very nervous.

The post said existing apps will continue to stay in the store for the next few years at least. So you have at least a few years to adapt.

Two years, to be specific.

But if you want to maintain a presence on ChromeOS, you can keep updating your app indefinitely, but it'll only run on ChromeOS starting sometime in 2018. Or you can redevelop everything for the Google Play Store (ie. the Android store) if your ChromeOS customers are on new-enough ChromeOS devices to get access to the Android store, leaving old ChromeOS devices stuck on the old Chrome App version. Or you can redevelop everything as an entirely HTML5 single-page-app with all the lovely ever-evolving, impossible-to-keep-up-with features or lack thereof [1] of the web platform. Or you can redevelop everything and go full-native on every single OS. Or you can put all your JS into Electron and hope people don't mind a 60+ MB download. The choice of awful choices is yours.

[1] http://caniuse.com/

Re: From Chrome Apps to the Web

#34

Post by kzahel »

Gaelan wrote: post #9
laksjd wrote: post #3

I've always been somewhat confused by chrome apps. How do (did) they differentiate themselves from extensions? Even Google seemed unsure about that as Hangouts has been available as both an extension as well as an app for quite some time. As a user I'm really glad to see this move, along with the move towards android apps on Chrome OS since I'm hoping it will unify the Google-driven ecosystem a bit more.

AFAIK, A Chrome app is a glorified bookmark + offline support. An extension can add buttons to the toolbar, manipulate web pages, etc.

There are "hosted" chrome apps, which are indeed glorified bookmarks. The "packaged" chrome apps are actually offline by default. Two separate things, with the same name...

Re: From Chrome Apps to the Web

#35

Post by kzahel »

errozero wrote: post #29
GordonS wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

do 50k installs of this app equal 50k sales?

I don't know but there is no free version at the moment. Looking at the updates in the description it mentions that they will refund any unsatisfied customers, that was in 2013 so it was for sale back then too.

This is the free version: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/jstorrent-lite/abm...

It's just not searchable in the store by default.

Re: From Chrome Apps to the Web

#36

Post by kevinstubbs »

danprime wrote: post #18
kevinstubbs wrote: post #8

Does this have any effect on the seemingly small pool of games in the Chrome Store? Has anybody actually made money from that market?

Though I didn't build a game, I have made money (see above) around $1k/year.

Hm that's not bad at all! Have you considered trying to port the app to iOS though? It seems like you would have a much bigger audience there.

Re: From Chrome Apps to the Web

#37

Post by skybrian »

seanwilson wrote: post #27

So what are developers of existing paid Chrome packaged apps suppose to do for existing users? "Starting in late 2016, newly-published Chrome apps will only be available to users on Chrome OS." As someone who has been building a Chrome app this sudden change with a lack of notice has made me very nervous.

Why do you say "lack of notice?" This is the notice. Maybe it's surprising news, but nothing is actually changing today.

Re: From Chrome Apps to the Web

#38

Post by JoshTriplett »

kzahel wrote: post #22
laksjd wrote: post #3

I've always been somewhat confused by chrome apps. How do (did) they differentiate themselves from extensions? Even Google seemed unsure about that as Hangouts has been available as both an extension as well as an app for quite some time. As a user I'm really glad to see this move, along with the move towards android apps on Chrome OS since I'm hoping it will unify the Google-driven ecosystem a bit more.

Chrome apps can have extensive permissions that web platform does not provide. - Full TCP/UDP socket support (AFAIK this is never coming to the web platform) - Bluetooth support (Web platform is getting this, though) - Filesystem support (e.g. get persistent read/write access to user selected directory. Web platform probably won't get this) Notably the socket and filesystem permissions are not available to extensions…

> - Full TCP/UDP socket support (AFAIK this is never coming to the web platform)

While it could never be allowed unconditionally (because it allows scanning internal networks), I don't see any reason it couldn't be allowed with a permission request.

Re: From Chrome Apps to the Web

#39

Post by [deleted] »

skybrian wrote: post #37
seanwilson wrote: post #27

So what are developers of existing paid Chrome packaged apps suppose to do for existing users? "Starting in late 2016, newly-published Chrome apps will only be available to users on Chrome OS." As someone who has been building a Chrome app this sudden change with a lack of notice has made me very nervous.

Why do you say "lack of notice?" This is the notice. Maybe it's surprising news, but nothing is actually changing today.

[deleted]

Re: From Chrome Apps to the Web

#40

Post by seanwilson »

skybrian wrote: post #37
seanwilson wrote: post #27

So what are developers of existing paid Chrome packaged apps suppose to do for existing users? "Starting in late 2016, newly-published Chrome apps will only be available to users on Chrome OS." As someone who has been building a Chrome app this sudden change with a lack of notice has made me very nervous.

Why do you say "lack of notice?" This is the notice. Maybe it's surprising news, but nothing is actually changing today.

Four months notice to be told there's no point releasing a Chrome packaged app you might have been working on (which may not work as an extension) isn't very much notice.
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