yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Android Apps and Games] bengtan:
I think that's needed because the game needs to retrieve the previous in-app purchases (which are recorded by the Google Play Services app) and then go talk to the game server and match them up against game items.

For the case of 8sms, there's no need to "match" purchases against "items". Any purchase tells 8sms that a donation has been made.

I don't quite see how "Restore in-app purchases" makes sense in the context of 8sms.

> I'm not sure to understand why 2 apps would be such a problem.

Technically, it's not really that big of a problem. If I needed to release two versions of 8sms, I am capable enough to do it.

It's just that ... having a single app (with in-app purchases) is (maybe 10-20%) easier to manage, and I didn't think there would be much disadvantage in doing so.

It's like ... if I have to go buy a blue widget and a red widget. All things being equal, I'd rather buy both widgets from the same place rather than buying from two difference places. Well, the logic is sort of something like that.

> but I should make a donation anyway

Please don't feel like there's an obligation to make a donation. It's entirely your choice.

Great! Thank you both for confirming.
[Android Apps and Games] Haik0:
[B]8sms[/B] shortcut disappears from homescreen after a reboot

The "8sms" shortcut disappears from my homescreen every single time I reboot my phone !

I am running the latest (4.6 Beta5) Paranoid Android and this shortcut disappearance occurs only with 8sms shortcut ! Any other app's shortcut stays on the where I placed it on my homescreen after a reboot.

Is there anyone having the same issue ? Is there a solution?

Thanks
[Android Apps and Games] phalkon30:
I think there is a version on his website called "google-fix" for that issue.

http://8s.ms/launcher-icon-removed-home-screen-google

Sent from my SM-G900R4
[Android Apps and Games] cas239:
[MENTION=5181263]bengtan[/MENTION] Saw on the Google Play info page for 8sms that a material design is in development. Is this still being considered, given the recent uncertainty of the future of the application development?
[Android Apps and Games] bengtan:
Hi,

Yes, a Material update for 8sms is coming, hopefully sooner rather than later.

As for the future of 8sms, I'll have more to say in the next few days or week or two, but on the present course, I don't think I'll be shutting down 8sms.

Thanks,
[Android Apps and Games] Liderc:
Update: looks like it may have been Google keyboard that was updated and turned grey. Anyone know how to fix this? This thing is hideous.

Update #2: So looks like all I had to do was change the material layout to Holo white....which is actually the stock grey from before. Who'da thought. Anyone else having this issue it's obviously not an 8sms app issue (sorry), guess I didn't realize Android keyboard was my main keyboard lol.

I did have one request, I believe there used to be a "delete" button at the bottom of the UI when you highlighted a text message thread, but when ads were added it was removed. For those of us who have paid to remove ads, can you put the trashcan/delete button back at the bottom? This is more of a habit problem for me.

Hi, big fan of the 8sms app (donated to remove ads), but today my Nexus 5 upgraded to 5.0 and now I have a bright grey keyboard and feel like it's a bit buggy.

I tried the dark version, but it's not anything like the previous version which was basically stock prior to Google messing everything up and using hangouts for SMS.

Is there a way to change back the style to the previous stock grey version? Really loved the stock look and this new bright grey keyboard is just awful, can't even tell between letters now.

I know 5.0 is brand new, and the app has had some difficulty staying profitable, but would really appreciate a way to switch back to the stock grey keyboard.

Thanks for all the work you do, the app has really served me well on my Nexus 5.
[Android Apps and Games] bengtan:
Thank you for donating and your support.

Yes, the keyboard is controlled by whatever keyboard app you are using, and it's not related to 8sms.

Yes, I unset the "SplitActionBarWhenNarrow" flag for the main screen of 8sms so the action bar doesn't split and always stays at the top now.

The delete button is still there, but it appears at the top. Did you realise it is there now?
[Android Apps and Games] bengtan:
8sms: To be continued for now

Hi all,

I've posted an update to the 8sms website:

8sms: To be continued for now

http://8s.ms/to-be-continued-for-now

Relevant excerpts:

Thank you all for your continued support.
[Android Apps and Games] fivejuantwo:
Donated a few bux, thanks for all your hard work.
[Android Apps and Games] JoeFCaputo113:
If you don't have enough time to fully develop/commit to it, why not open source it? Then, maybe someone else can work/improve it so users who already donated can get their full money's worth, and not receiving full attention... That'd make the most sense IMO.
[Android Apps and Games] bengtan:
Thank you.

That might not be a bad idea. Let's see how the next 3-ish months go and then I'll review this possibility. Thank you.
[Android Apps and Games] zurk78:
Hi,

Love this app, just made a donation. Hope you can keep the good work.

Thank you,

JP
[Android Apps and Games] cas239:
[MENTION=1588242]bentang[/MENTION]. The latest Hotfix v1.47, when replying to a message through the notification bar (swiping down and selecting reply) after sending the reply the notification fails to clear
[Android Apps and Games] atrix4g18:
I understand the developer's situation, but I thought it would be worth mentioning that the CM12 stock SMS app is material design and would make a nice base for this app.
[Android Apps and Games] bengtan:
I apologise for this.

I accidentally put a bug into the 8sms version 1.47 release.

I've made a fix and released version 1.48 onto Google Play and it should be available in the next few hours. Please update to it and let me know how you go.

If you don't want to wait a few hours, you can also download and install version 1.48 directly from the 8sms website:

http://8s.ms/download/releases/8sms-1.48.apk

Thank you,
[Android Apps and Games] 1droidmod:
[MENTION=5181263]bengtan[/MENTION], Hello, as always I much appreciate your app. I have a request? Would you consider putting the icon for starting a message and settings back on the bottom? Why? Accessibility!! My thumb is to short to make that reach, in return a shuffling process with my device occurs..

Thanks!!
[Android Apps and Games] JoeFCaputo113:
Hopefully a Material Design update will fix that :)
[Android Apps and Games] rsngfrce:
8sms conversation sorting issue...

Well, the last time I find this reported was quite a long time ago and then the answer was apparently ROM related, but I am having a similar issue. 8sms sorts my messages on the "conversation list screen" (the screen that shows each person I have had a conversation with) not randomly, but by the last time that I sent a message TO THEM. This SHOULD be sorted by the last time I sent a message to them or THEY SENT A MESSAGE TO ME, whichever is newer. It used to work this way and I'm not sure why or when it stopped. It is VERY inconvenient, because if I receive a message from somebody, they should be on top of the list, but some notification messages I never reply to so those "conversations" remain way down the list and sometimes I have trouble figuring out WHO sent me a message if I clear my notifications.

I'm not personally sure how it could be a ROM issue, although since nobody else is seems to be having this issue, it seems to be something unique to my phone (which seems like the story of my life...). Galaxy S4 Stock rooted 4.4.2 NAE ROM, Ktoonz KT-SGS4 4.4 kernel. This hasn't changed since it WAS working correctly, but the kernel may have been updated or reloaded. I haven't tried clearing the 8sms cache, don't know if that might help? :confused:
[Android Apps and Games] bengtan:
Sounds like corruption in the datestamps for the threads table.

SMS and MMS messages are actually stored in a shared messages database which is managed by the system (ie. Android). There are two database tables of interest here. One is the messages table, the other is the threads table. The threads table is actually calculated from the messages table (ie. it's a cache) whenever the messages table changes.

When a new message is received and created, or when an existing message is deleted, the system is supposed to update the threads table accordingly.

I have come across bugs in Android before where, for some random or weird reason, the threads table doesn't get updated correctly.

In the ConversationList, 8sms displays the threads according to the date (of the thread) descending ie. it just uses the values in the database that Android gives it.

It sounds very much to me like your ROM is having trouble keeping the threads table up to date. Maybe see if the version of your ROM has bugfixes? Or maybe see if there are any suspicious error messages in the logs?

A more comprehensive test would involve temporarily changing back to the S4 Samsung stock ROM and seeing if the problem occurs then (I suspect it won't).
[Android Apps and Games] DurhamHusker:
I have on occasion run onto strange problems like this. Usually happens when bouncing back and forth between messaging apps and letting each manage the message tables at different times.

I'm rooted, but here's one thing I've done that can clear up some issues.

1: Use Titanium Backup to backup all messages

2: Use 8sms to delete all messages

3: Use Titanium Backup to restore all messages

It seems to reformat the message tables and clean things up a bit. Of course this only works if you're rooted. Not sure if there are ways to do this on a non rooted device.
[Android Apps and Games] scottjb:
On a stock device you can use something like the SMS Backup Restore app. Backup your messages, clear them with the messing app, then restore them using the backup/restore app.
[Android Apps and Games] gdold:
O2 delivery report problem

Love this app, installed it because of a bug in the stock OnePlus One cyanogenmod messaging app interfering with notifications, and delighted with the extra features this provides.

In particular it's great that you've included a fix for O2 not respecting delivery report requests, by automatically appending *0# to the message, first time I've seen this in a messaging app. But there seem to be a few problems with it.

1. It appears to be appending "*0# " rather than "*0#". The extra space means that every message sent from my phone begins with an extraneous space character.

2. Unless I'm very mistaken, these extra characters still count towards the 160 character limit for an SMS message, but the character count displayed above the send message button doesn't seem to account for these 4 (should be 3) extra characters. As a result it is misleading about the number of SMS messages required to send the message.

3. When the number of characters means that the messages has to be sent as a long message, it doesn't pick up on the response from the network properly, and instead of displaying the little 'tick' icon it displays as an SMS message instead.
[Android Apps and Games] bengtan:
> 1. It appears to be appending "*0# " rather than "*0#".

Yes. When I implemented this, testing was done by another 8sms user (since I can't test this myself). At that time, "*0#" didn't work but "*0# " did so I put in the extra space. I can't explain why your testing yields different results though.

> 2. Unless I'm very mistaken, these extra characters still count towards the 160 character limit for an SMS message,

I don't know whether this is the case or not. There's no documentation to suggest anything.

> but the character count displayed above the send message button doesn't seem to account for these 4 (should be 3) extra characters.

True. 8sms doesn't consider the extra "*0# " when calculating the character counter.

The "*0# " is added at a very late stage ... immediately just before the message is handed to Android for delivery ... so the calculation for the character counter doesn't know anything about it.

> 3. When the number of characters means that the messages has to be sent as a long message, it doesn't pick up on the response from the network properly, and instead of displaying the little 'tick' icon it displays as an SMS message instead.

Hmmm ... testing from the other user suggested it was the O2 network just being unpredictable. Perhaps this is true and we didn't realise.

At this point ... *rant* this "*0# " hack for O2 is a bit silly anyway. I wish O2 would just fix up their network. *end rant*

If you wish to pursue this issue further and see if we can improve on it, please email me (using the registered email address of 8sms). Thank you.
[Android Apps and Games] TRusselo:
I find this whole "end of road" thing to be a bunch of bologna.

if your "monetization strategy" was your only goal.... glad to see you -and the app- go.

If a developer requires money to develop an app, 90% of all development costs are during the creation of an app, and 100% of that 90% is all cost of TIME. Not that all that much can be found to be original development in this application. This is a marginally modified version of the messaging found in CM and AOKP last year. the thought of you collecting money for something that is 90% someone elses work is just appalling now that i think about it.

The app has been "created" for quite some time now, the thought that NOW it costs you money to maintain is bull.

Maintenance updates and pulling code commits from CM to add features, do not have any costs associated with them besides time as well.

If you cannot afford the TIME to continue, dont. leave it as it is. and stop spending time on it.

If you wanted to be paid for your time, and run this as a business, do so from day one.

Its very frustrating for a user to see a developer take advantage of an apps success, after the fact of it becoming a success.

Don't bait and switch. Dont ask to be paid for someone elses work either.

GOOD BYE
[Android Apps and Games] bengtan:
I'm sorry you feel this way, but I acknowledge that you are entitled to your perception and your opinion ... and it seems we have wildly differing viewpoints.

I don't think there is much I can do or say which will convince you otherwise so thank you for giving this feedback, and all the best to you.
[Android Apps and Games] bengtan:
Last version of 8sms before advertisements is available from the website

Just some more thoughts ...

> This is a marginally modified version of the messaging found in CM and AOKP last year.

I wouldn't describe it as marginal. There are fixes for a lot of weird and not-so-weird bugs, and there are enough extra features that people seem to want to continue using it.

> If you wanted to be paid for your time, and run this as a business,

> do so from day one.

It was my intention to run it as a "business" from day one. However, plan A flopped spectacularly so I could either shut down 8sms or kludge up a plan B (which is the current situation now).

> If you cannot afford the TIME to continue, dont. leave it as it is.

> and stop spending time on it.

This option is actually available.

The last version of 8sms before I added advertisements is version 1.43 and it is available from the 8sms website:

http://8s.ms/download/releases/8sms-1.43.apk

http://8s.ms/download/releases/8sms-1.43-googlefix.apk

It has always been available.

So if you want to use the "leave it as it is" version of 8sms, you can use that.

(But please be aware that if you stay with this version, you will effectively no longer get any future updates ... including fixes for some Lollipop incompatibilities.)

> Don't bait and switch.

It wasn't my intention to bait and switch.

However, the so-called "bait" (ie. a no-ads version 1.43 of 8sms) is still there so you're welcome to continue using it.
[Android Apps and Games] phalkon30:
Protip: don't feed the trolls

Sent from my SM-G900R4
[Android Apps and Games] hackertom:
mms backup?
[Android Apps and Games] migueldbr:
[MENTION=5181263]bengtan[/MENTION] have you checked out the CM12 messaging app?why not change to that?it looks much better than the CM 10.2/11.

btw just so you know, the CM12 one also has that bug that you fixed with the logs i gave you regarding delivery reports
[Android Apps and Games] bengtan:
Sorry, messages backup is a low priority since there are already existing apps which can do it. Furthermore, since there are lots of other more urgent issues, it might be some time before I get around to this. Thanks.

Sorry, but I haven't got around to it yet. I've been busy because I have to work on some other (non-8sms) things as well now. I'll have a look into it hopefully soon.

Thanks.
[Android Apps and Games] Grzesiek1010:
anybody know why led notification dont work ? rom or kernel problem ?

temasek 162.1 Boeffla-Kernel 2.4 beta 8 NG or application problem ? i turn on led on application settings
[Android Apps and Games] LossyDragon:
Are other apps able to use the LED lights? (KIK, LightFlow, etc)
[Android Apps and Games] bengtan:
In most cases, LED settings do work.

However, sometimes the LED won't light up if the phone is charging, or if the screen has been toggled, and random stuff like that.

If you have anything that interacts with notifications (ie. Light Flow), that might affect it as well.

Also check your rom to see if there are any LED settings in it as well.

If you feel lucky, you could try clearing the 8sms app cache:

http://8s.ms/clearing-8sms-app-cache

and rebooting the phone.
[Android Apps and Games] IsolatedKM:
thanks for sharing. downloading
[Android Apps and Games] 1droidmod:
[MENTION=5181263]bengtan[/MENTION] Hello, do u think you could find a few minutes to move the "start a conversation" icon back on the bottom please :cool:

Thanks

Got bored, too dam bright..
[Android Apps and Games] bengtan:
Yes, noted. Sorry for the inconvenience. Will look into it. Thanks.
[Android Apps and Games] Cataract2:
bengtan, I have a simple question. I started using 8sms recently and I must say that it is thus far a good replacement for the stock messaging app that my phone came with. I was just wondering about having a preview of the message on the lock screen. Is this a feature that is not yet implemented?
[Android Apps and Games] bengtan:
Hi,

Yes, that is true. It has not been implemented yet.

However, since Lollipop implements this automatically and eventually everyone will move to Lollipop or newer, there's probably not much priority for me to do this.
[Android Apps and Games] JoeFCaputo113:
I think a redesign of this app is much needed. It really has been forever since any REAL changes have been made!
[Android Apps and Games] phalkon30:
Change for the sake of change? Look how will that worked for Tapatalk.

Sent from my SM-G900R4
[Android Apps and Games] anonymous-bot:
Didn't the dev say a material redesign was already planned?
[Android Apps and Games] JoeFCaputo113:
Not to be rude but also said themeing was gonna come eventually, about a year ago...
[Android Apps and Games] bengtan:
Yes, I did.

Unfortunately, it's taking more time than I expected, and I also have less time to spend on 8sms than I expected too.

Yes, that is true. I did say that. Guilty as charged.

Unfortunately, it's not going to help make things any faster.
[Android Apps and Games] JoeFCaputo113:
Then why not make it open source... so someone who does have the time to work on it can, and provide good support.
[Android Apps and Games] bengtan:
I acknowledge this is a potential upside to open sourcing 8sms. However, I emphasise "potential". Whether the upside actually happens or not, nobody can predict. If it happens, whether the benefits are worth the cost, nobody can predict either.

However, there is a definite downside of open-sourcing 8sms. The downside is that, if I open source 8sms, I will no longer have an adequate reason nor sufficient compensation to keep working on 8sms. Since it is already more than satisfactory for my own usage, future development and support of 8sms by me will come to a screeching halt.

Here's the reasoning.

The initial premise and monetisation model for creating 8sms has failed. I contemplated shutting it down ... because it was economically and financially unviable. As much as I would love to keep working on it 100%, unfortunately, the world isn't like that. I still have to pay the bills and be compensated for the opportunity cost.

So that's a failed enterprise, and it's in the past.

With the pivot to "trial-ware", there is now some money coming in from donations and ads. Preferably all from donations, but statistics show that some users prefer to have ads rather than donate.

(In other words, even when I show ads, they still continue to use 8sms but won't donate. Shows how broken the "donation" model is.)

I am using that money as compensation for continuing with 8sms. True, I don't spend as much time on 8sms anymore (I have since started a new unrelated project), but I also don't get that much money from it either. Overall, I think it's a fair-valued exchange.

By corollary, if there is no revenue coming in from 8sms, then I will no longer spend any more time on it either.

Now ...

The only reason 8sms brings in revenue is because it is "sellable". People use it because they judge (in their mind) that 8sms meets their needs better than the alternatives, and monetisation can happen because I am the only "supplier" of 8sms.

If I open source 8sms, I expect that an ad-free/trialware-free clone will spring up immediately, and everyone will switch to it. That means no more revenue from 8sms.

(Sorry, but unincentivised donations are not adequate. That has already been proven.)

No revenue from 8sms means no more support and development by me. I'm sorry, but my time is not free. It might have seemed so in the past, but not anymore.

So ...

If I open source 8sms, it means I am also going to give up on it. Open sourcing 8sms destroys any economic reason for me to continue working on it.

At the moment (and hopefully for the foreseeable future), I am not ready to give up on 8sms yet.
[Android Apps and Games] KonTemPt:
Ignore those impatient trolls. The tweaks you've made to this app are really great and am glad to hear you want to still stick with it. Thanks for your work!
[Android Apps and Games] JoeFCaputo113:
Ok, well what's good with this app?? Seems to me like you have given up on it and are just looking to milk out any money that you can.. :rolleyes:
[Android Apps and Games] bengtan:
Nothing. It's a terrible app. I'm sure you can find another messaging app on Google Play which will keep you happier :)

But seriously, I've already explained my situation. If you don't want to believe my intentions, then I doubt there's much else I can say that will change your mind.
[Android Apps and Games] JoeFCaputo113:
Just seems as if $$$$ is the only thing driving you and since none is coming in, you don't focus on the app.
[Android Apps and Games] User_99:
This is called business ;)
[Android Apps and Games] andeld:
I wonder if guys like you have any idea about business. Would you like to work hard on your free time to make something that it's good, just works and then give it to anyone for free? I really don't think so.

And now about money, 1 or 2 bucks are a fortune, you can build 3 houses at Miami with them.

Are you even real? Jesus Christ, in which era do you live? I would be ashamed if would think like the ones that have your thinking.

Instead of writing stupid things like that, maybe you can show some respect and appreciation for the devs that make their apps on Android free with or without ads. If you don't like it, move on!

Start to write your own apps and see how "easy" it is to give something free to the public, then maintain it also for free.

Sorry for off-topic, but I really hate when things like this happen.
[Android Apps and Games] jasvncnt1:
I'm sorry but I am so tired of coming into this thread and seeing OP get "beat up" over what he decides to do or not to do with HIS app. If you don't like what he's doing then go find another app. Or...go make one yourself.