Newsstand iOS5 integration

[AvenNigera]

Hey Guys,

Does anyone know how "Newsstand" of iOS 5 could work?

Newsstand A custom newsstand for all your subscriptions. Read all about it. All in one place. iOS 5 organizes your magazine and newspaper app subscriptions in Newsstand: a folder that lets you access your favorite publications quickly and easily. There’s also a new place on the App Store just for newspaper and magazine subscriptions. And you can get to it straight from Newsstand. New purchases go directly to your Newsstand folder. Then, as new issues become available, Newsstand automatically updates them in the background — complete with the latest covers. It’s kind of like having the paper delivered to your front door. Only better.

We would like to use baker/laker but we need a "folder" which will include all magazines which anyone can download every month a new mag for free or for some cents. The question is does anyone know that we can develop or build the mag with laker/baker and use the "Newsstand" App when its published to get the functions of abonnements and the possibilities to download a new one in the background, to buy a new one, to have a list of all in one folder (not every magazine is one app) and so on?

Thanks alot

Aven

[folletto]

We are following that part, and we'll integrate in Baker as much as possible as soon as we get details about Newsstand - and iOS5 will be released (due to the legal restrictions of the prerelease of iOS5). :)

[AvenNigera]

This sounds awesome! Thanks :)

[jayohTM]

^ bump. certainly interested in this.

[Virtualsweden]

Ios 5 out now.. :-)

[folletto]

Reference links:

• http://developer.apple.com/library/ios/#documentation/StoreKit/Reference/NewsstandKit_Framework/_index.html#//apple_ref/doc/uid/TP40010838
• https://support.urbanairship.com/customer/portal/articles/140033-adding-newsstand-support-to-your-app

[folletto]

Ok, Newsstand is implemented in the current master (future 3.1), to show up the magazine in the Newsstand folder, it was quite simple, some documentation is on the wiki: https://github.com/Simbul/baker/wiki/Newsstand-support

For the full Newsstand support (background downloads) we need first to implement the multi-book issue / shelf support, Issue #20.

So, even if now Baker apps will appear in Newsstand, we keep this Issue open until we have the full support.

[nin9creative]

Do you know when there might be a release with this integration (the full multi-book / shelf / newstand integration)? I'm currently working on a single issue book/mag but it may have the potential to be a newstand subscription down the road.

[folletto]

First we need to close Issue #20, scheduled for 4.0 release, and that's pretty big. Only after that we will be able to see if we can do the full Newsstand integration. :) We have no date, unfortunately, since we can work on this only in our spare time.

[mutador]

Someone has created a free subscription to the Newstand? How? Baker needs to be implemented in xcode?

http://developer.apple.com/search/index.php?q=newsstand http://developer.apple.com/library/ios/#documentation/StoreKit/Reference/NewsstandKit_Framework/_index.html http://developer.apple.com/library/ios/#technotes/tn2280/_index.html

[tstegart]

Sooooo.... :) How much do I have to donate to move Newsstand to the top of the list. Don't joke with me, I'm serious :)

[mutador]

jajajaja me too , i am serios too.

newsstand is like the rain for the forest...

[folletto]

For our knowledge and prioritization... What do you need about Newsstand exactly? :)

About Paying... we can only accept donations because they help us to keep running, but we can't provide a specific schedule since it's not our daily work (unless we get enough donations, of course).

If you'd like to pay to have some kind of delivery date however, you might hire a developer and put him in direct contact with us so we can work together. ;)

[mutador]

http://www.viggiosoft.com/blog/blog/2011/10/17/ios-newsstand-tutorial/

this is for pdf, need a visor similar in baker for newstand

if i understand well, now you can upload the separated issues and make a visor general for all of them, by integrated whit newstand....it´s no easy we are try for a weeks, but our xcode developer is limited...how my english..

[folletto]

Ok, so you are basically asking about the Shelf, not Newsstand. ;)

The Shelf is on Issue #20. :)

Newsstand support will be after the Shelf implementation, and will be basically only the background download, that's the only missing step. :)

[mutador]

no

now . if you want to put a magazine in newstand , app store ask you for a visor integrated whit newstand suport ( not external downloads, not shelf) , better if you try to upload your book to newsstand and see what happend.... i thik @tstegart explain better

[folletto]

Uhm then I don't know, I didn't dig yet into too much detail, but from what I saw it's just an add-on to an existing shelf system, see the urban aircraft link above. If someone has more details it would be nice. :)

[tstegart]

So Newsstand has a few different elements. One, there is code identifying your App as a Newsstand App. This, along with new icons you make, puts it in Apple's special Newsstand Store and in the Newsstand folder on the user's iPad or iPhone. Two, to be accepted as a Newsstand App, you have to provide for the possibility of downloading multiple issues from within the App. There is a special software kit called Newsstand Kit that you guys at Baker and Laker would need to integrate into the code, which checks for new issues, downloads books or articles in the background and tells the App and the user when it is done.

However, and here is the annoying part, every person who uses Baker would need to have their own server on which to put their issues up so the App can download it. I'm sure that would not be tough in and of itself, but each Baker user would need to go through the Baker code and add in our own server information in the right place, which is pretty complex for newbies and people who don't use XCode every day. So its probably a good idea for you guys as the developers to keep a good handle on what parts will need to be changed and document it well, or you're just going to be facing lots of questions from dorks like me. By the way, the user needs to be able to input issue names, dates and titles as well, so there is quite a bit of information that Baker users will have to enter into the code.

Lastly, and even more annoyingly, if you want to sell your books or magazine issues for money, there are additional requirements, with two aspects. Baker will need to integrate Apple's in-app purchasing software, and the Baker user will need to apply for an Apple certificate to use it. The Baker user then needs to go into the code and put his information in the right place again. This allows iPad/iPhone users to purchase some issues but not others, etc. and re-download old issues and all sorts of fun stuff. There are also push notifications, which alert the user to new issues being available. These are not required, but obviously helpful from a marketing perspective. They also require a certificate from Apple btw.

So that's a Newsstand summary. It seems simple from the outset, but once you dig into it its hard. On the other hand, I strongly suggest the Baker developers start work sooner rather than later on it, because I'm guessing Apple will eventually require books and magazines to use it and will start rejecting apps that don't use it. From their perspective, it would be silly to have some magazines in Newsstand and other Magazines floating around the user's iPhone. The only way to get them all in one place will be to start requiring developers to use it, and we know how Apple loves to have things all in one place. Tom

[folletto]

Ok, then it's exactly as I was saying:

1. Identify the App as Newsstand: DONE, it will be released as 3.1 (see above, on this thread).
2. Download multiple issues: PLANNED. It's this very issue, and it's dependant of Issue #20,
3. Purchasing: NOT planned, and so far nobody asked yet, but I think if it's the case, it's going to be after Issue #20 and after this issue as well.
4. Push : NOT planned, nobody asked for it so far. Again it's an add-on, and not Newsstand dependent.

:)

[tstegart]

You guys are awesome :)

[nin9creative]

@folletto I think as a framework you can only go so far. I think that if Baker supported multiple issues to download/archive/redownload and a shelf view that launched open the downloaded issues that is about as far as you can go in a generic sense. If someone is interested in using in app purchase and push notifications for background downloading and advanced stuff that would be on the shoulders of anyone developing that stuff for their apps to run with.

I'd just be happy if we could get #2 done :)

I forked Baker and have been trying to get a combined (siteless.org shelf) working with the current Baker release. The problem is that Baker as it stands now isn't really suited for being invoked as a viewer for a given hpub (at least from a shelf point of view).

[mutador]

only one thing for all and for @tstegart

http://urbanairship.com/

they do newsstand integration whit their owner hosting but we belive there are a way in itunesconnect.apple.com when you create a newsstand and upload the binary of the diferent issue to linkage the download directly to appstore hosting, understand?

if you upload the issue to appstore you can make a visor to download direct from appstore,(whitout external hosting) we read about this but....

[folletto]

Thanks guys. getting this kind of support, suggestions and attention is AWESOME. :)

Btw, if someone thinks that the other two things above (Purchases and Push) should be done, feel free to open an issue. Push in particular should be possible to be added independently of everything else. :)

We have also the code re-factoring to allow easier embedding, but that's a really big chunk, we are trying to balance out optimizations and features right now. :)

[tstegart]

I'm in favor of purchasing, because that's how we plan to make money with our magazine (like most magazines). Without it, you would have to release each issue as a separate App, which Apple is definitely starting to frown upon. So eventually it will be needed unless people using Baker only plan on releasing one book or giving away their stuff for free. I know there are a lot of people that will be doing that so it will come first, but we will be striving to offer subscriptions.

@mutador - I've checked out Urban Airship, the problem is with pricing. Lets say you want to sell a magazine, one issue per month and you offer a subscription for $9.99 U.S. dollars, which is reasonable. That means you will be making $7.00 after Apple's cut. In the Free Basic Urban Airship pricing, it costs $.10 per download and $.10 per user per month for subscriptions. So if you add that up it will cost you $1.20 for a user to subscribe to your magazine for a year, and $1.20 to download all 12 issues. Subtract that from $7.00 and you end up with $4.60 for each person that subscribes to your magazine for one year. If you need to pay people for content you need to get a lot of subscribers to make enough money. I'm not saying doing it yourself to make the extra $2.40 will be a huge difference, but it is enough to matter when you start figuring out how much we need to pay our writers and for overhead, etc.

[mutador]

vamos, que la integracion con newsstand es una cosa fundamental del proyecto, una vez estabilizada la versión, y los problemas que daba al girar etc...., ay que agusto me he quedado hablando en español

hey, integration with newsstand is a fundamental thing of the project, once stabilized version, and the problems facing the turn to and that agusto ...., etc. I stayed talking in Spanish

[tstegart]

Dude, that's totally awesome. I love it. It looks as if it's mostly working except for the UI design elements.

[AvenNigera]

This is AWESOME dude!

[folletto]

May I just ask you to proceed on Issue #20? Because here is a bit off topic, the Shelf is there. ;)

[nin9creative]

Sure! In my head Newsstand and this is all smooshed together... lol Is there any way to move my comments?

Warm Regards, Andrew

Sent from my iPhone

On Dec 16, 2011, at 12:49 PM, Davide Casalireply@reply.github.com wrote:

May I just ask you to proceed on Issue #20? Because here is a bit off topic, the Shelf is there. ;)

---

Reply to this email directly or view it on GitHub: https://github.com/Simbul/baker/issues/100#issuecomment-3181091

[folletto]

Awesome, thanks! :D It's ok, nice idea of summarizing. ;)

[mutador]

I must be very short but I do not understand, in the email you send , you say that baker has a Newsstand basic support, but the reality is you can not post a magazine make with baker in the Newstand , that asks you to programming expecific fot it whit a visor, a free or pay suscription, etc...

actually can not have a magazine in the Newstand whit baker, or yes?, if it´s possible put it on the newsstand and someone made it, could explain how?

thanks

[folletto]

As you can read from the comment above, Newsstand is a set of different features:

1. The UI in the Springboard to visualize the app as a magazine
2. The Background Download feature

Currently Baker implements (1), not (2), both of them are "Newsstand". :)

[mutador]

sorry folletto but you say there are examples of baker in the appstore in newsstand? can you show me one?

[folletto]

Not that I'm aware of. But 3.1 has been released only today, so that would have been hard. :)

[mutador]

if the only thing u have done is add to the plist the line 'Application presents content in Newsstand=YES', apple will reject your app because don't have the way to manage subcriptions. I did it before, and apple reject my app.

[tstegart]

You're correct mutador. I think what they're trying to say is that they're currently still working on the other parts.

[mutador]

thanks @tstegart , and thanks @folletto. the really for the moment is we can not put a baker magazine in newsstand.

i´m going to open a issue to talk about profesional editorial and magazine whit baker, problems, future...., we are in spain and we like to colaborate with other people whit a professional project if this is about fashion, photo, arts...

I think baker , with their simple book currently working with does not have the same problems and needs with a large magazine

[folletto]

Do you have any evidence of a iPad Newsstand magazine rejected because it's missing a multi-issue download? We'd like to see exactly the reasoning behind that to have a clearer view. :)

@mutador please don't be misled by the default book. We use that just as a simple test, to show how simple it is to publish with the platform, it's not by any mean expression of our understanding of the full possibilities of Baker, as you can clearly see. We are well aware of the needs of professional publishing for magazine. :)

[tstegart]

While the App Store Approval guidelines don't cover the subject, the iTunes Connect developer guide (Newsstand) states:

"To submit a Newsstand app, your app must be enabled for Newsstand, offer at least one auto-renewable In- App Purchase subscription, and the Info.plist of the associated binary must include UINewsstandApp=true. In addition, UINewsstandIcon must be included in the CFBundleIcons key."

That makes it sound like you need to offer subscriptions (even if they're free) to be a Newsstand app.

[mutador]

hi tstegart

https://github.com/Simbul/baker/issues/20#issuecomment-3237216

[folletto]

@tstegart Uhm, yes. If someone could try to submit a magazine with Baker 3.1 without the auto-update we can see if that will get you rejected... or not. :)

[mutador]

yes , we have been rejected... because baker dont have implemented a free/payment suscription system..... and apple force you to implement this

[folletto]

Ok, thanks. :)

[mutador]

http://www.viggiosoft.com/blog/blog/categories/newsstand/

[tstegart]

Can I suggest turning off the Newsstand implementation in the current download of Baker? By that I mean set the UINewsstandApp to "NO." I suggest this because without full Newsstand integration (subscriptions and downloads) your app will always be rejected. So a person downloading Baker to make a book and forgetting to turn it off will be rejected. It is better to have it off right now so anyone using Baker doesn't have to change it before submitting. I know its seems trivial to change but for a lot of newbies its not and will end up tripping them up.

[folletto]

Yes, it's a good point. :)

[mutador]

https://github.com/DeenNa/SimpleNewsstand

[folletto]

Uhm there's no documentation or links. Do you know what it does and if there's a source?

[mutador]

no really, i only think its good to see how it works....its for pdf´s whit a external download

[folletto]

TODO:

1. Implement Newsstand Subscriptions to be a fully Newsstand app (a "Subscribe" button in the toolbar and the underlying code to manage it).
2. Implement icon switch support with the icon of the latest publication.

[folletto]

If someone has more informations on the MINIMAL set of features we are missing to be accepted as a Newsstand app it would be great. Right now it seems we have to create "Free subscriptions" with the app that can barely acknowledge them.

This answer: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/11895035/do-newsstand-apps-require-push-notifications

No, Apple's guidelines do not mandate the use of push notifications, and your app should not be rejected for not using them.

Seems implying that we might not even implement a portion of that to allow Newsstand apps to exist, even if of course it would be ideal.