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The MobileSheets Windows 10 beta has now started, so I want to provide basic information about things that are different about the Windows 10 version.
Major differences between the Android version and Windows 10 version
I look forward to hearing what people think about the Windows 10 version!
Mike
The MobileSheets Windows 10 beta has now started, so I want to provide basic information about things that are different about the Windows 10 version.
Major differences between the Android version and Windows 10 version
- There is no longer an option to turn on/off "Let MobileSheets Manage My Files" - all files must reside inside the MobileSheets storage location. The reason for this is that the file storage model Microsoft uses with UWP apps is very restrictive. Applications are only given direct access to files within their application data directory. In order for MobileSheets to have access to any other file or folder, the user must explicitly pick that file or folder using Microsoft's file/folder picker. The good news is that MobileSheets can save access to a folder once it is picked, but the number of folders that can be saved is limited. This means that you can still change your storage location to any folder you want, but all of your files should reside in that folder. If you happen to change the storage location, but some files are still in the old storage location, you will still be able to load those files as access to the previous storage location folder is saved. For users that like to manage their own files, don't worry - as long as you set the storage location as a root folder that has access to your files (i.e. you can pick the entire hard drive if you want), MobileSheets won't move or copy the file when it's imported as it detects that it's inside the storage location.
- There is no longer an option to expose the database. There seems to be an issue with SQL where it will not allow the database to be located outside of the application data directory. Luckily, you can access the application data directory (just search for MobileSheets under C:\Users\<Your username>\AppData\Local\Packages) if you need to get to the database file.
- When importing from Dropbox or Google Drive, you will see a file browser that is very similar to the one used on Android. When importing a local file, I am required to use the Microsoft file picker in order to get access to the file (a custom file browser won't work). I personally find the Microsoft one a little harder to use on a touch interface, but I don't have any other option. Due to this change, there is no longer a way to toggle between the different storage types on the file browser screen. Instead, when you are required to select a file or folder, a popup will be shown asking which type of storage you want to access (local, dropbox, google drive). One change I'm going to make is that I will allow users to disable storage types they don't need. If you disable dropbox and google drive, for example, you won't get prompted to pick a storage type - the local file picker will always be used.
- Reordering is a little different on Windows 10. Instead of there being a little handle that you have to press and drag up or down, you can just press and start dragging up or down to reorder. I actually find this more intuitive, so I think people will like it better.
- Windows 10 supports an interesting feature for lists with alphabetic grouping where you can click on a letter heading to zoom out to a list of letters. When you click one of those letters, it scrolls the list to that spot. It's slightly redundant with the alphabet list on the side, but it may be easier for people to tap the larger letters faster than the alphabet list. I'll be curious to hear if people like this feature.
- When entering artists/albums/genres etc in the song editor or import dialog, you no longer have to pick from a list (although this is still supported by tapping on the dropdown arrow). Much like the companion app, you can just enter in the value you want to use, and an auto-completion list will be shown if the value already exists. If you hit enter, it will commit the text you entered as a new value. I believe this should be much faster to use then the approach used on Android.
- MIDI devices must be picked on the settings screen (the initial connection will not happen automatically). Once you've picked a device to communicate with, that device will automatically be connected to in the future.
I look forward to hearing what people think about the Windows 10 version!
Mike
