Why use Adobe AIR?

I’ll try to explain the reasons behind the decision to use Adobe AIR to build the RunPee mobile apps.

• Download for Android – free
• Download for iPhone/iPad – free

First, I have been a Flash/Actionscript developer for over a decade so using Adobe AIR is very easy for me to pick up and work with.

Second, and most importantly, the Android and iPhone apps use one code base. If I were to build the apps using the native languages and tools for both Android and iPhone then I would have two entirely different code bases to work on. They wouldn’t share a single line of code between them. That would effectively double the work.

The World’s Most Indispensable Movie App

The RunPee app tells you the best times to
run & pee during a movie
so you don't miss the best scenes.

As seen on

Download the RunPee app.
100% free (donation supported)

     

Read more about the RunPee app.

Plus it simplifies testing to have just one code base. I only need to do rigorous testing on one platform and then do a quick check on the other to make sure something funky isn’t going on with AIR – which rarely happens. In fact I don’t even have an iPhone. I do all the testing on my two Android phones and then ask users/family to do a quick run through on their iPhones.

It goes without saying that every update to the apps that I make would also have to be done twice. In the end that becomes overwhelming to keep up with. I’m not a team or a company. I’m just one guy working with the time limitations of personal projects like RunPee and client work that pays the bills.

Thirdly, I would have to learn both Java – for Android – and Objective C – for iPhone – to be able to write native apps. There are many developers who can work in both languages, plus ActionScript. And I salute them. But I’m really not interested in putting for all that effort to write apps that only work on one platform. And it would be a huge effort. I’m not even sure it’s possible to write iPhone apps on a PC and there is a zero percent chance I would ever use Mac. To put it quite bluntly I’d give up using computers altogether if my only option were Mac.

What people are saying
about the RunPee app.

dd33803, 07/05/2023

This is a great app. I wish more people would support it

This app provides info about movies, reviews, ratings from people who have seen it before and after viewing. It has links to info about the movies. It let’s you know when there will be a lull in the action and how long it will last. If you want to know what happens during that time, you can check the brief synopsis (you have to click a link, so no accidental spoilers). It has a timer you can set (silent) to alert you to a break. It also tells you whether there is anything extra during or after the credits. It’s really a wonderful app. I’ve subscribed for a couple of years to support the developers, but I noticed some of the links to provide feedback didn’t seem to work today. They also made it free, with voluntary donations to see the pee-times. If you haven’t tried it, I encourage you to do so, and subscribe if you like it. I really hope the app is supported so it can continue to be maintained!

Developers note: RunPee doesn’t make much money but it supports itself nicely. Donations are appreciated, but not required. We’ll add as many movies to the database as we can until there are no more movie theaters.

View all reviews
Apple App Store | Google Play Store

Download RunPee app

     

So there you have it. If it weren’t for Adobe AIR there would be no RunPee app.