During Covid, I got bored and started watching SwiftUI videos. A months worth of long nights later, I launched my first app, and now it’s big hobby with around 2500 downloads a week on App Store.
So, this was mostly just a fun idea, but after almost 50 years of not smoking, and the askance looks of smokers whenever I ventured too close to one of their outside hangouts, I decided it was time for an app that allows you to smoke a cigarette, without smoking.
The app will prompt you for regular smoke breaks, and let you smoke a virtual cigarette. It will even allow you to track how many cigarettes you don’t smoke, and put a price on a 20-pack so you can track how much money you don’t spend on not smoking.
It works both on your phone, iPad, and Apple Watch.
I created a second version of Qualk because I was unhappy with how complex it was to create Qualks. It is not a lot easier to create and share them. Here is the sales text from App Store:
Qualk lets you create Quiz Walks (Qualks), and share them with friends, family and colleagues for fun, exercise, or training.
Qualks are simple to create and even simpler to play. Create stops on a map, add activities to each stop, and share via link, QR code or id. People who click your link will be taken directly to your Qualk, directed to each stop, and each activity will pop up automatically when they reach it.
Afterwards you can compare results and read feedback, which makes it ideal as both fun geo hunts for kids, training and education or company activities.
Key features:
– Use templates for instant fun
– Publish via mail, sms, QR-code or custom ID
– Get stats and feedback from everyone who participated
– Create as many Qualks as you like
– Allow others to use your Qualks as templates
Before you begin:
– Stay safe – Qualks are fun, but always be mindful of traffic and surroundings. You’re accountable for using this app safely.
– Don’t delete your content unless you mean it – We do actually do delete everything, so we can’t restore it
– Relax about your location – Although the app uses it to find each stop, the information never leaves your phone
Sometimes a project just sticks with you for a long time. Kathrine pitched the idea of making an app that would allow everyone to make their own geohunts for their friends, and although it’s a bit beyond my development skill level, I’ve managed to put together something that actually work.
EDIT: This was the 1st version, and I’m currently working on 3rd iteration, so this is starting to be one of those multi-year projects that I just can’t let go of until I’m happy.
My first app attempt is a simple unit converter app, but the simplicity of the app itself made it possible to play around with the UI. Getting everything to work together was a total nightmare, but in the end it was worth it creating a very unique looking tool.
