Just a quick update.
My previous update stated that the intent for the new releases was last Autumn, which obviously has long passed.
I’ve been dealing with some health issues that pushed everything else back, so I apologise if you were waiting for the update.
With a new year on our hands, the intent is that progress will continue and I’ll post more when I have something concrete to announce.
Apologies for what will be a long post, but there is a lot we have to say, so please bear with us.
Firstly, can we just want to say a huge thank you to every one who has supported my little passion project and even bought a copy of Sub Buddy on either iOS or the supported Google platforms. We never expected that more than about eight people would be interested, so thank you everyone!
When I, Elphaba, started Sub Buddy I never intended to put it out for anyone outside my friend circle, but as I developed it (on iOS) the feedback I received and the effort it took made me think there might be some other crazy people out there that would enjoy it too. After some early device research it seemed there were more Google platform devices out there than iOS(?!) so I had to wonder, should it be iOS only or should I somehow get another developer involved?
My friend daxnova volunteered and took ownership of the version for the Google Platform, so whilst I spent months making the art and designing the UI/UX and features, she learnt how to build a comparable app to try and be as close to iOS as possible.
Development for Google Platform devices is a nightmare of weird hardware, poor performance / good performance devices running the same OS (Operating System) and a myriad of ‘company specific’ customisations that really screw with the compatibility of devices. It’s literally impossible to guarantee that an app will work on any device running a specific OS version, even when you design and build it for that OS version, so the fact that daxnova did as well as she did is a testament to her skills and fortitude, but it has also meant that a lot of potential customers have been frustrated when their devices just can’t be supported. Fortunately this has never happened on the Apple platforms.
Development has been quiet since the release of Sub Buddy in 2020, mainly because we haven’t had any bug reports and that’s especially thanks the the Apple Platform as it’s just always worked as new devices came out with new screen sizes and features. We’ve had some minor issues on the Google Platforms and a patch was made to try and allow it to run more fluidly on really old or obscure hardware and that was very successful.
For such a niche project we haven’t had too many suggestions or feature requests and the work required to add some of these that did come in just didn’t seem to be cost effective - especially if only one person in three years asked for something very specific!
Sub Buddy 1.0 just worked and did what we wanted it to, right out of the box and it was released as a joint partnership between myself (iDea Software) and daxnova.
However in the last few weeks we were made aware of a bug (iOS/iPadOS only) that could, on some newer OS/Hardware combinations, cause an issue where upon rotation, the menu or the settings cog would stop responding to touches.
So, on the 1st of May, 2023, I pushed an update (Sub Buddy 1.0.3) to fix that so now all iOS, iPadOS and even some macOS devices can now run Sub Buddy - from iOS 12.0 all the way to the current iOS 16.4.1(a).
The Google Platforms version has also run into a much larger problem…
Google API Changes
Last December we were made aware that Google were having a major policy change. They had decided that all existing apps on their stores would need to be updated to support at least API 31 (Android 12 - Snow Cone) and new apps would require support of at least API 33 (Android 13 - Tiramisu).
The deadline for this significant change has moved a few times but we have now been told the hard date is this summer.
This is a significant problem as when Sub Buddy was released on the Google platforms it was built on much lower versions that will no longer be accepted at all.
Recently Google released this support page and it has put some of our fears to rest. Existing customers will still be able to discover, use and re-install Sub Buddy 1.0 but it does mean that the version in the Google Stores is now End-of-Life. We aren’t even allowed to update it without building it against the new API as per the new guidelines.
To add any new features would require an entire rewrite of the whole app. Needless to say, we’ve spent some time talking, thinking and making plans on how best to handle this and that brings us neatly onto…
The Future of Sub Buddy
Google Platforms
daxnova did me a huge personal favour by stepping up and writing the Google Platform version of Sub Buddy. I don’t think either of us expected to be here when we started in 2019, facing the significant changes being pushed on us from Google and how to manage this without just cutting-loose all our Google Platform customers.
Four years later, due to life and other priorities daxnova has committed to the massive job of a complete re-write of Sub Buddy for the Google Platform version but after that it will no longer be in continued development, so after this joint release in the Summer of 2023, the Apple and the Google Platform version will be splitting, with only Apple devices receiving additional content, development and support. iDea Software and myself will now only be focussing on development and support of the Apple Platform.
At the moment we have no specifics on what devices will/won’t be supported in the new version that meets Google’s new API requirements. daxnova will be posting a support document when she has more information.
She has also generously committed to bug fixes only going forward, but as the Google platforms are ‘unstable’ at best, it’s expected that at some point in the next 3-5 years that Sub Buddy on Google platforms may, due to changes in those platforms and what the SDK requires, become End of Life and unavailable on newer OS/API/Devices. Its price will freeze at its current level.
With the next major Google release (Sub Buddy 2.0) the price will be increasing to reflect the huge amount of work required to re-write the app and support the latest frameworks.
You can contact daxnova directly for support and other Google Platforms specific related issues here: support@subbuddyandroid.com
Apple Platform
It should come as no surprise that the Apple OS’s and SDK’s have changed significantly since iOS 12. With iOS 17 looming over the horizon, there have been monumental changes in how Apple’s frameworks work, even the languages used to build Apps have changed, the features and abilities that have been unlocked and where they are going. New things like iPadOS, multitasking, external displays, Stage Manager, SwiftUI and entirely new frameworks that have deprecated the older ones I used when I wrote Sub Buddy on iOS have meant that if Sub Buddy is to be built upon there has to be a major change.
Sub Buddy 1.0.3 (which is live on the Apple App Store) will continue to be supported for bug fixes and will continue to support devices from the original iPhone SE 1st Generation and all devices that can run iOS 12+, however this is now a ‘Legacy’ product meaning no new features will be added.
Anyone who has previously purchased Sub Buddy from the App Store but whom’s devices cannot run iOS 16+ will continue to be able to download, buy and run Sub Buddy 1.0.3. It has even been tested on recent iPhone 14 Pro Max running iOS 16.4.1 and the 12.9” iPad Pro 2022 running iPadOS 16.4.1(a) and it’s working perfectly, but as the SDK’s and language used in its creation, it is unable to take advantage of the best of iOS 16 because it has to support all the older iOS/iPadOS versions and all those customers with older hardware that still want to keep using it.
Unlike Google, Apple will continue to support its older devices for as long as it is possible and so I will be keeping Sub Buddy 1.0.3 in the Apple App Store for all existing customers and I will continue bug fixes if/when they arise and I will continue to support iOS 12+ for it, but with the features and capabilities that Apple both require and that I want to add to Sub Buddy going forward I have to draw this line in the sand and move the platform to the most recent and capable SDK. Its price will freeze at its current level.
That does mean however, that any new features and functionality will have to be made in an entirely new version of the app. One that starts with the base OS / SDK (Software Development Kit) support of iOS 16.0 and will continue on into the future. It will harness all the new features, power and capabilities of the new SDK’s and allow me to do a lot more with Sub Buddy than I ever imagined when I started.
With the next major release of Sub Buddy the price will be increasing to reflect the huge amount of work required to support the latest frameworks and features on Apple Devices. Significant parts of the Apple version have to be re-written and redrawn (we have a completely new TADS coming and a significant rework of the Attack Disc) and these alone will require several months of work.
Due to the dissolution of the joint partnership it means that as Sub Buddy comes back under my personal company’s account (Zoe Summers, iDea Software) it will require Apple Devices that fully support iOS/iPadOS 16+ or macOS 13.0+) and as such, it cannot be a free upgrade to existing owners but a separate App entirely, at a higher price, called Sub Buddy Pro.
Sub Buddy Pro / Sub Buddy 2.0 - Roadmap
As our last ‘joint’ release (coming Summer/Autumn 2023), we are aiming for as much commonality as possible.
Separation of development & support paths on Apple and Google Platforms
Sub Buddy 1.0.3 and Sub Buddy Pro will be under my account and iDea Software will focus solely on App Development for the Apple Platform only.
Sub Buddy 1.0.2 & Sub Buddy 2.0 will stay with daxnova and a new site and details will be forthcoming and these will be for the Google Platforms only.
New App - Sub Buddy Pro (Apple App Store)
- iOS/iPadOS 16.0+ & macOS 13.0+ MINIMUM
New App - Sub Buddy 2.0 (Google Platforms)
- OS / API TBD*
Joint Apple & Google Platforms New Features
Add - Stosstrupp's Transcription of U-boat Torpedo Firing Regulations (PDF) to the Library
Add - Updated & Improved Graphics for Attack Disc & TADS
Add - Attack Disc - Snap whilst dragging option
Add - Attack Disc - Allow Outer Ring to move option
Add - TADS - Distance in Metres or Yards Toggle
Add - TADS - Time in Seconds or Minutes Toggle
Performance Optimisations
Apple Only New Features (in addition to the above Joint New Features)
FULL SUPPORT FOR iOS/iPadOS16+ & macOS 13+
Add - Rebuilt/Redesigned Menu optimised for each OS Type (iOS/iPadOS/macOS Only)
Add - Resdesign of AoB Helper (iOS/iPadOS/macOS Only)
Add - AoB Helper - New LIBERTY Ship Model added (iOS/iPadOS/macOS Only)
Add - Remove Full Screen Requirement for iPad (iOS/iPadOS Only)
Add - Support for PopOver, Split View & iPadOS Multitasking (iPadOS Only)
Add - Stage Manager Support (iPadOS/macOS Only)
Add - Unified Library Popover (iOS/iPadOS/macOS Only)
Add - Airplay 2 Support (iOS/iPadOS/macOS Only)
Sub Buddy Pro and beyond…
I have plans and am already in the initial design stages of adding some really cool, unique and useful additions to Sub Buddy Pro - even some things that have never been done in a mobile device. Most are universal (iOS/iPadOS and macOS) but some are specific to the iPad. These will be available as optional In-App Purchases and the plans I have take Sub Buddy Pro to version 3.0 and possibly beyond!
I will share more about those as they get closer to release.
But if anyone has any wish lists or things that they want to see, please reach out to me at
support@iDeaSoftware.uk
I’d like to remind people that I value Privacy above most other developers; We do not use any analytics in Sub Buddy. We do not collect any usage data or personal information and we never will. The Apple Platform version will be supported as long as I am alive and able to do so.
Finally, please join us in a shout out to - Stosstrupp and Onkel Neal. They are as dedicated to this genre and Submarine history as anyone I’ve ever known.
www.subsim.com is proof that Neal is the biggest advocate and organiser of Sub Simulation fans in the entire world and what a wonderful resource it is and has been in the development of the first version of Sub Buddy.
Thank you for reading. I hope you’ll join us in seeing where Sub Buddy will go next…
iDea Software,Pouty Bat Face Studios, Sub Buddy, TADS, TADS Computer, Visual AoB Helper are copyright protected and wholly owned by Zoe E Summers. 2019-2024. Any image, video or duplication is prohibited unless written permission has been obtained.
Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone, and iPad are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries and regions. App Store is a service mark of Apple Inc.
The "Android" name, the logo, and other trademarks are property of Google LLC.