1. Text Deck
Case study
What is Text Deck?
Text Deck is a widget developed for the Mac Dashboard that allows Mac users
to simply and quickly send SMS messages from their computer. Text Deck Pro
is a full featured Mac desktop application that sends SMS messages, and stores
previously sent messages in a Mail.app like interface. Text Deck Pro integrates
with users’ AddressBook and Google Contacts to allow fast selection of the SMS
recipient, removing the need to manually enter phone numbers, although this
can still be done.
2. How it works
The Text Deck Widget was developed as a standard
Widget to run within Dashboard on a Mac. This
uses HTML, CSS and JavaScript to provide the user
interface, and communicates via a Javascript bridge
with a framework developed in Objective-C to abstract
the BlueVia APIs. The framework uses an open source
OAuth framework that I customised, and the open
source JSON processing library YAJL.
Text Deck Pro is a full Mac desktop application
developed in Objective-C. It reuses the same
framework that I developed for the BlueVia integration
of Text Deck. Integration with Google Contacts was
facilitated via the GData Objective-C library that
Google provide. The UI on the Mac was created in
Interface Builder and uses part of BWToolkit, and data
storage is provided by Core Data.
The creation of a standalone framework was an
important part of the applications’ development, as
now accessing any of the BlueVia API services from
within an application on the Mac is a simple activity, and
significantly decreases the development time required.
3. How is BlueVia
helping Text Deck?
Text Deck is exclusively powered by the and control that technologies such as OAuth offers
BlueVia SMS API, allowing Glimmer Design makes it very clear what applications can and cannot do
to directly monetise all the SMS traffic on their behalf, as well as giving them simple interfaces
created by the application. In addition the to approve and deny applications access to their
BlueVia SMS API provides great functionality like accounts. I believe Telefonica are an innovator in the
ensuring the sender field in all the text messages mobile and internet integration space, and the BlueVia
generated are populated with the originators real APIs are ahead of other services I have seen.”
mobile number.
This ensures that the recipients’ phone or device can
“On a personal level, I am
easily match the inbound text messages generated always keen to try out new
by Text Deck to address book entries, producing a
real name, rather than some off-putting machine technologies and platforms
generated originator address.
to understand the value they
“As a developer who is very familiar with recent web could bring to projects I am
technologies such as OAuth, REST APIs and JSON,
I was excited to see that BlueVia supports these. working on.”
From a developer’s perspective these technologies
simplify integration and offer access to services Hamish Rickerby
previously unavailable. For consumers, the security Owner, Glimmer Design
4. About Glimmer Design
Glimmer Design began releasing online web based
applications in 2006. From 2008, Glimmer Design
has released Apple App Store apps. The company
was incorporated in 2010 and currently has 11 apps
in the app store (6 have been released under the
happtic brand), for both iPhone and iPad.
You can contact Glimmer Design through the
following links:
Glimmer Design: glimmerdesign.com
happtic: happtic.com
Blog: hamishrickerby.com
LinkedIn: uk.linkedin.com/in/hamishrickerby
Twitter: twitter.com/rickerbh
twitter.com/happtic
Glimmer Design Apps: itunes.apple.com/us/artist/glimmer-design-limited/id302871163
happtic Apps: itunes.apple.com/gb/artist/happtic/id385076451
5. For Press and Media Enquiries:
33 Digital
BlueVia@33-digital.com
+44 (0)20 7608 2500