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Quikthinking Software Blog
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    0 The Great American Smokeout

    Almost every day of the week, your calendar has a special event. In November, The Great American Smokeout targets the third Thursday, encouraging smokers to think about a healthier life. The high cost of a highly taxed product  How can I tell that smoking in my community is diminishing? Not one empty cigarette box was tossed on neighborhood streets in recent years. Did the citizens suddenly quit litterbug habits? Not exactly. These empty cartons used to be a big problem. In New Jersey where we are, according to the SalesTaxHandbook website, an average pack will cost you $7.66. New York tops the list with an average cost of $10.45 per pack. When prices go up, demand for the product may change. Luckily, I have never smoked, but some family members have. A healthier community is a happier one. Watch this short 29 second video, showing you with audio the valuable resource we created: Quit Smoking Audiobook for iOS and Android. You'll hear sample excerpts from three of the twenty-five chapters. Bonus. Don't miss these three important updates in the blog: Smoke Free, Fresh Air Motivation Blowing Cigarette Smoke During A Pandemic Quit Smoking App Ignores Doctors Nicotine Knowledge

  • 0 Tears for X

    On November 14, 2024, I deactivated all three of my Twitter - X accounts, including the one for Quikthinking Software. The link to this account across this website will eventually disappear. I haven't posted to Twitter - X since February, 2023. The decision was made at that time to no longer support the platform. Why now have I chosen to deactivate the accounts? X changed their terms of service Effective November 15, 2024, this was added to their user legalese...  “By submitting, posting or displaying Content on or through the Services, you grant us a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to make your Content available to the rest of the world,” which includes the right to analyze any of that content “including, for example, for use with and training of our machine learning and artificial intelligence models, whether generative or another type.” Essentially, users must agree that X can use anyone's data to train its AI models. I can't go for that. See ya! More Thoughts on AI See these other two posts: * Will AI Create Your Next App? (Quikthinking) * When do you and ChatGPT cross the Milli Vanilli Line? (Powerhouse Radio - our sister website)  

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    0 Thanksgiving Game App Feast

    • Games
    • by Kingsley H. Smith
    • 11/13/2024

    No, the turkey is not really in our crosshairs. Some fun for Thanksgiving is! Jump onboard any of the following mobile game apps, even if you don't celebrate this iconic holiday as Americans, Canadians, and citizens of some other countries do.  Thanksgiving Game App Feast Thanksgiving Retro Match 3 is our people's choice, Android favorite. You'll see the gameplay in the video, followed by the iPhone - iPad version, Thanksgiving Match 3 Game. (Follow the link to go to the App Store). Always Thanksgiving (follow the link to go to Google Play) for Android is the most advanced of these three holiday games. Always uses swipe to score action with more levels for you to enjoy.  Development Details Thanksgiving Retro Match 3, created with Libgdx in Android Thanksgiving Match 3, created using Swift for iPhone - iPad Always Thanksgiving, created using Unity for Android The games were created in the same order as you see above. Play them anytime of the year, on the go, or while relaxing. History Speaks For a deeper, 'tongue and cheek' historical perspective about this USA holiday, check out my production of "Thanksgiving Story: No Game for Native Americans and Pilgrims," also on this blog.

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    0 Always Quikthinking Shop for Gifts

    • Shop
    • by Kingsley H. Smith
    • 10/30/2024

    Do you need some classy threads for yourself or for a timely gift? Did you miss our Holiday Cheer Sweatshirt last year? How about some mugs, magnets, or stickers? Choose from among the items in the Always Quikthinking Shop. Here are just a few I show you and talk about in this quick 28 second video! Enjoy. Touch "Quikthinking Shop" above to view the merch.

  • 0 Rock The Vote

    • video
    • by Kingsley H. Smith
    • 10/18/2024

    It's that time of the year that you may need a little chuckle! Election time in the USA. Watch this short 60 second video, featuring some reels we've created for social media, and my personal on-screen message just for you! 

  • 0 Blackjack 21 AA Mobile App Plays Busting a Move

    • video
    • by Kingsley H. Smith
    • 09/04/2024

    In my early Atlantic City, New Jersey radio days, when $2 Blackjack hands were all the thing, I would occasionally part with $25 at the bunny casino to see if I could win. Usually, my instant player emotion was the agony of defeat, rather than the thrill of victory. Players learn that the house always wins, a majority of the time.  What's better than playing with real money? How about using currency that never runs out! It never runs out because it is not real. Blackjack 21 AA app uses simulated money, not real money. I love video poker 'jacks or better,' and I like blackjack. That's why we created two non-money mobile game apps for you to satisfy this enjoyment of playing guilt free with the same exciting real game experience. Here is a 29 second Blackjack 21 AA video I present for you. How was this done? I created the game in Unity, a cross-platform game engine, built by Unity Technologies for application developers. Cross-platform means it can create Android, iOS, and other mobile, console, or desktop format code used for those devices. Xbox by Microsoft is a console device. In the screen shot below, you'll see Unity on a Windows PC. There is also a Unity version for iOS. The simulator section in the shot has an iPad loaded into it to test the screen layout for this particular Apple device. Below Unity is a quick snapshot of some of the Blackjack 21 AA software code in another editor (Visual Studio). The Game Manager module that you see in VS controls the game and gets the card dealing going so you can play.  Phone Based Betting Apps Recently, one of those live online betting apps (that costs you real money) was fined by regulators for accepting bets on some live game elements (that had already ended). Sorry, you money dream purveyors of cash bounty windfalls, you can't operate your business that way for your customers! I haven't tried any of those sports betting apps, nor do I have a desire to do so. I'll stick with the simulated fun, without concern about any real loses.

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    0 Searching for Relevance On A Website

    • video
    • by Kingsley H. Smith
    • 08/14/2024

    Not finding what you are searching for online? A website without a search box is useless, especially if it has lots of cataloged information you are looking for. Crash City The webserver (software) hosting all of our websites operated by a big, corporate, web hosting company was updated twice in 2024, first in March, and again in mid-July. A mandatory, enforced summer upgrade crashed three of our search engines for three different websites, including the one here at Quikthinking.com (but not the blog search). That's separate software. Website domain owners usually have to supply their own search system for their webpages (that are hosted on and by an independent webserver operator). The not so charming corporate webhost people said to me "sorry, but we didn't design the new third party backend system we installed to all of our servers, you and your websites are on your own!" The big fix How did I resolve this explosive headache? The cure was stepping up to a new search system. It took one month of work, evaluating new systems, and finally picking the one that worked best. About two hundred webpages were updated across two different websites including Quikthinking.com. There's one more website to go. That one has over three hundred web pages to update. You'll still see this search engine glitch on that website until we systematically complete the fix. This is part of what you'll see... Nine More Updates to Android 14 done in June and August for: Black History Inventors Black History People Black History Expert Black History Museums Black History People Name Game Thanksgiving Retro Match 3 Game Pizza Burger Match 3 Game  Halloween QuikMoji Game Word Sprinters - Spelling Runners Game Black History People Name Game is completely updated with a new look, new questions, and more features. Here's a quick video:  This is a more advanced Black History game, just waiting for you right now!

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    0 Google Play Interview and Black Inventors App Prime Time

    Google contacted me in March, 2024 requesting an interview about my mobile app development work. I talked to them for 45 minutes on a Zoom call. They asked me not to disclose the conversation until publication date. The feature was finally published on July 23, 2024.     I'm between two other developers who have recently been featured for their Google Play app success. Here is a screen shot of the page telling the story about Black History Inventors.   In the feature I talk about the development of the Black History Inventors app. The text is small in both of the screen shots above. Direct linking to the page is not supported.   If you want to see it online:   1) Go to https://play.google.com/console/about/weareplay-us/  2) Scroll down to the map of the USA on the Google page 3) Select New Jersey!   None of the states have text on them. New Jersey is a small state. Not from the states? See our map, two images below to locate the state.   On mobile using the Google We Are Play map, it's tricky, but you can do it!   Thank you for your support since 2011, when our first Android app was released on Google Play!       Map of the United States    

  • 0 AAeMojis App Stickers for Text Messaging on an Android 14 Mobile Phone

    • video
    • by Kingsley H. Smith
    • 06/19/2024

    With a solid history of upgrades and updates since 2018, over 24 of them to be exact, AAeMojis app stickers for text messaging on an Android 14 mobile phone has nearly completed final testing. In the video, I describe to you on mic how to install the AAeMojis app on an actual Android 14 mobile phone. Android 6 through 13 is still supported by this new version as is the version for iOS. The iOS version update with new stickers was released on the App Store May 30, 2024. Android's update release to Google Play is coming as soon as possible. The  app / stickers are designed to be used with text messaging apps. Enjoy!  

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    0 Wacked Out Mobile App Permissions

    • Apps
    • by Kingsley H. Smith
    • 05/22/2024

    Have you had any problems getting one of your mobile apps to operate with a smile? 'Allow camera to make and manage phone calls' popped up on our favorite, constantly used 8.4 inch Android 14 tablet. Some of these permission requests are mind numbingly bizarre. My other 10 inch Android 14 tablet, or my trusty 10-1/4 inch iPad never walked down this peculiar path! Accept the permissions or you lose I've had the naughty 8.4 inch tablet for more than a year. Never used it to take pictures. It is not used to make phone calls. Those duties are assigned to multiple phones. You may have guessed that I denied the camera app on this tablet the permission to 'make and manage phone calls.' So, I can't use the camera without allowing it to 'make and manage phone calls.' This month we updated nine apps to Android 14 / Level 34. In our apps, we don't ask for permissions we don't need. We don't ask for permissions that don't make logical sense for the app to work correctly. Camera error If your Android 14 camera app shouts "the app does not have critical permissions needed to run. Please check your permissions settings." Do the following, in order. Go to: > Settings > Apps > All Apps > Camera > Clear Storage > Delete App Data (it delete's the camera's app data, not your pictures) Now you should be able to go to Settings > Camera > Open, and grant the permissions that are necessary for the camera to work. By Android 15, these steps may change, as the operating system constantly moves around setting options. Moving right along to other Android 14 handshaking... What Apps did we update to Android 14 this month? Always Thanksgiving Blackjack 21 AA Black History Picture Puzzle Black History People Game Black History Quotes Express Black History Quiz Black History Express RnB and Hip Hop Quiz Any Updates for iOS? AAeMojis New emojis were added and released to the App Store. The Android version was also updated, but not released yet. We'll have more comments about this the next time we write some fresh thoughts to keep you informed.  

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    0 Free Pizza for Your Phone

    • Games
    • by Kingsley H. Smith
    • 04/24/2024

    Here's a nice update of our Pizza Burger Match 3 Game for Android and iPhone. It's a food fight that keeps your hands clean! 

  • 0 Apple’s iPhone Ecosystem

    I've never been an Apple "fan boy." I migrated into the world of "i" for professional reasons. After dabbling with an early Texas Instruments computer donated to me by a family member, I used an Apple Macintosh in an early workplace gig. After that job, DOS, (digital operating system), then Windows computers ruled the roost of my media employers. The first personal computer I purchased was as DOS pc. A long string of Windows computers followed from Windows 98 through Windows 11 today. After I began developing mobile applications for Android to get experience, I knew that expanding the app titles into iOS would broaden their base of appeal. iPhones a Poppin' My first iPhone cost me $1. It was a Verizon promotion that I took advantage of. When I upgraded that 4S to iPhone 6, I paid $200 to get it via the pre-owned market. Next, it was another pre-owned unit, this time an iPhone 7 for $217. iPhone X cost me $369, again, it was a just like-new pre-owned unit. I also have a bunch of pre-owned iPads and MacBooks. All of these Apple devices still work, and I have never had issues with any of them. During the iPhone journey, Android remained my mobile phone of choice. I just like them better. I've never paid more than $200 for any of my Motorola or Samsung Androids. My latest Android phone, a brand new one sporting Android 13, cost only $129. Captured in the ecosystem? The U.S. Justice Department and 16 attorneys general filed a lawsuit on March 21, 2024 alleging that "Apple's iPhone ecosystem is a monopoly and that its anti-competitive practices extend to the company's Apple Watch, advertising, browser, FaceTime and news offerings." Some of this might be true, but let's face it. Apple's world is essentially a pay for play experience. If you want to spend thousands on their offerings, you can do so. As I've detailed, there are other options for sober minded, cost conscious individuals. When I became an Android developer in 2011, the one-time cost of the Google Play developer application was $25. Apple charges an annual developer fee of $99. I’ve been paying it since 2018. Who does the media love? The media pushes Apple products as cutting edge technology. If you want to be with the cool kids, you know that television, radio, print, and digital push Apple's annual updates as must have swag. In the press, Android has always been ignored, especially in the United States. Bulletin. According to Statistica.com, Android commanded 70.11% of mobile operating systems worldwide. iOS is behind in 2nd place at 29.19%. These stats are for the fourth quarter of 2023. It's a hard argument to assert that "Apple's iPhone ecosystem is a monopoly," if you are not forced to be a gloating participant in their techno culture. Yes, the green or blue bubbles in iMessages are cute. Go without them using Android messaging and you’ll be just fine. I do agree that it is much harder for a developer to exist inside of the App Store world based on their assessment of submitted applications. Their use of psychological tactics imploring you to embrace their suite of Apple tools is never ending. In the end, "i" universe users will just pay more if the Justice Department wins this case that is sure to drag on for a long time. Do you think the iPhone ecosystem is a monopoly?

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    0 An Android Flirt with Windows 11

    I do most of my digital game playing on tablets or mobile phones: Android, iPhones, and iPads. I have never owned a game console, although I have played games on an Xbox. My Amazon Fire TV module had a game controller awhile back, but I never used it. Once upon a time, I did play a few games on early Windows pc’s. In 2023, I experimented with the Android implementation on Windows 11 created by the Amazon – Microsoft partnership. The Amazon Appstore Preview on Windows 11 was teased in 2022. Good News Arrives In October of 2022, I received an email from the Amazon App Store saying: "Good news - at least one of your apps is included in Amazon Appstore on Windows 11 developer preview, expanding your reach to hundreds of millions of new users." Hmm. I did not ask for any of my apps to be added, so I was flattered that one of the Quikthinking Software titles was selected. Amazon explained how to find the app they selected on their developer console, but I never could find the one that they branded "Windows 11 included" in their portal! March of 2023 brought this communication from Amazon: "Good news - your app catalog is eligible to be included in Amazon Appstore on Windows 11 developer preview." OK. The Windows Subsystem for Android It was also necessary to download and install "The Windows Subsystem for Android" on my Windows 11 laptop. This was a headache. After installation I did watch some game trailers and was intrigued. The platform seemed to have potential, but following much thought, I realized there was a huge investment of time that would be needed to change our apps for Windows 11 Android. Despite promises, it seemed that very few Amazon Android apps would be 100% compatible out of the box to work inside of the Windows 11 subsystem. I concluded that there would not be a global rush to embrace Android on Windows 11, so I deleted the Windows Subsystem for Android from my laptop. The real test for me came at the end of 2022, when I tried as an experiment to submit one of our newest apps to the Amazon Windows 11 app store. When your Google Play and Apple App Store approved app is flying fine, you have high hopes for Windows 11 inclusion. Unfortunately, the app was not approved for the Amazon Windows 11 club. Normally when your app has an issue, you make the changes and work with the app store in question to implement a fix. The requested changes meant a major overhaul. Goodbye, but is it Farewell? I had a feeling that the Amazon – Windows 11 bromance was not going to last. I did not follow through on my submission and cancelled it. In early March, 2024, this note arrived from Amazon: "Amazon Appstore on Windows 11 will no longer be supported after March 5, 2025." On the Amazon App Store Developer blog, additional information was provided. "Starting March 6, 2024, customers will no longer have the ability to install new apps. They will still have access to previously-installed apps." Did you even notice or know? The vast majority of our app downloads come from Google Play and The Apple App Store. So the Amazon Android – Windows 11 experiment failed. As the Amazon update on their developer blog states: "Microsoft is ending support for the Windows Subsystem for Android (WSA), Amazon Appstore on Windows 11." From my developer perspective, one must be cautious when jumping into new digital territory. This one adventure just wasn't worth it for me. I'm glad I made the right choice!

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    0 Musical College of Tune Driven Knowledge

    • Games
    • by Kingsley H. Smith
    • 02/14/2024

    Here's a photo I took of Chaka Khan, performing in an intimate 2007 Atlantic City, NJ setting. I've seen her with and without Rufus six times in different U.S. towns. Another one I took is of Public Enemy below, who also appeared in the shore casino city in 2015. Here's The Revolution at, you guessed it, another Atlantic City venue in 2017. Remember Prince and the Revolution? Yes, same band.   Shows, music, and experience Lots of shows, lots of music, and lots of experience contributed to my college of tune driven knowledge, while working as an on-air and off-air radio broadcasting professional, before diving into the world of mobile app development. You can read or listen to my story in Powerhouse Radio: Rough Roads, Radiance, and Rebirth at Amazon. Two of the three artists above represent R&B and hip-hop. I created a mobile game RnB and Hip Hop Quiz featuring trivia about both genres. Half of the questions I wrote are hip-hop, half are R&B related. We separate R&B into 12 game levels. Hip hop also gets a dozen levels. Checkout the game on your iPhone or Android and have some musical fun!

  • 0 Smoke Free, Fresh Air Motivation

    • Apps
    • by Kingsley H. Smith
    • 01/10/2024

    Saving money is a goal many of us never master. Excuses rescue us from discipline, but wasting money on the other hand is easy. Live for today, forget about tomorrow. Some know this drill. One of the easiest ways for smokers to put money in their purse or pocket is to give up the habit. I am not a smoker, but I loved playing around with the calculator at Smokefree.gov, created by The National Cancer Institute (NCI) to help you or someone you care about quit smoking or vaping. Smokefree.gov is a part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Worldpopulationreview.com in their U.S. cigarette prices by state chart, show the median price of $9.00 per pack. Someone smoking 3 cigarettes per day at $9.00 per pack saves $493.00 per year. Listen to the full first chapter of our Quit Smoking audiobook.  Your browser does not support the audio element. Our iOS and Android Quit Smoking mobile app includes 25 audio chapters. Follow the link above on our site for more info and discover the audiobook.  

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