Wednesday, April 26, 2017

Editorial: Is Smartphone Addiction a Problem for Developers?

Is smartphone addiction a good thing for developers?

You know the directive: " make great apps that users love. "

And what's the sign that a user _loves_ your app? They use it _frequently_. Frequent relations with your app are a sign of commitment, and commitment is a sign of love. But how does this scale?

As it turns out, a recent report has found that a third of British children are not able to achieve a good balance between screen time and their other activities. Elsewhere in the world, "smartphone rehab" centres (yes, really) are opening up to offer recovery programs for people whose use of electronic devices is excessive. In other, cruder, words, they are smartphone addicts.

A smartphone dependency might not be as flagrant as you'd think. It's a dependency when it prevents you from adequately engaging in other activities. Consider the simple activity of having a dinner with friends or family. If you see a smartphone placed on top of the dinner table, with attention automatically diverted to it whenever its screen periodically flashes up, then its owner is not fully engaging with the rest of the diners. They are in two places at the same time.

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by Ariel Elkin via SitePoint

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