Kwik Project Properties – Video instruction

The Project Properties window helps to configure features that are going to work across the entire project. It also creates all necessary icons and default images for the final app. When selected, the following window appears:

Five tabs are available and described below.

General (shown above)

Showcase features mostly related to navigation and screen display for all project pages.

Features panel

There are the options provided (definitions for the cases where the checkbox is enabled):

• Enable auto-bookmark: saves the last visited page by the user. When project is opened again, the last visited page will be the first one seen;
• Export thumbnails: export thumbnails (dimension will be based on the Width field) of each page. It can speed up the process for creation of navigation pages;
• Create navigation panel: opens the follow window, creating an automatic navigation menu (it uses the thumbnails created) according the settings established below. A button needs to be created to activate/show the navigation menu.

• Position: defines where the navigation menu will appear (top, bottom, left or right side of the screen);
• Color: background color of the navigation menu (use the picker button to select a color, or simply enter its RGB number as above);
• Alpha: transparency amount for the navigation menu;

Gestures panel

There are the options provided (definitions for the cases where the checkbox is enabled):

• Enable page swipe in all pages: allows users to navigate between pages swiping fingers, according the minimum distance required (defined by the field Spacer);
• Read right to left: switch regular (Western languages) swipe direction in the case of languages read from right to left;
• Support Landscape/Portrait in both orientations: rotates the full project when device rotates. If enabled, Physics gravitational force will not be applied when device rotates (more on that in the Physics Settings);

Scale panel

• Stretch: If necessary, stretch the full page content to fit the entire screen of the device;
• Even: If necessary, zoom the full page content proportionally to fit the entire screen of the device. Part of the image (mostly the borders) may not be visible;
• Letterbox: If necessary, zoom the full page content proportionally to fit the entire screen of the device. Black bars may be seen to keep the screen ratio;

Advanced Settings (shown below)

Presents options for work in teams and how to control the application in the cases of suspension and how to submit large files to Android.

Preload pages: when checked, preloads the next page for a faster transition. Preload pages is also available in the Page Properties panel, and its settings there have precedence over the project settings. For example, if you set your project properties to NOT preload pages and later you set page 10 to preload, no pages will preload (as set in this window here), with the exception of page 10, which will preload page 11.

End app. on suspend: quit the application in the case of an interruption (user left the app, phone ring, etc)

Expansion Files panel

Google Play has a 50MB size limit on APK files. Large apps, like storybooks and games, usually are larger than that. Expansion files is a feature offered to allow apps download “the rest of content” above the 50MB (more about here). If your project targets Android devices, this panel will be enabled (in the screenshot above, as the project was created only for iOS devices, the panel is not enabled):

• Enable expansion file for Android: if checked, automatically creates code for expansion (files will be downloaded when user opens the app for the first time);
• Key: you will need to enter the application key created by Google Play, when you register your application at the store;

Team Project panel

This new panel is useful for projects where team members are working on different projects that, later on, will be merged in just one final project. For example, designer A is working on pages 1 to 15 and designer B, on pages 16 to 30. While designing different projects, when done, all pages will be merged together. In this scenario, designer A will set Start page to 1 and End page to 30. Designer B will set Start page to 16 and end page to auto.

• Start page: Set the initial page number of the project;
• End page: Set the last page number of the project;
• Auto: Set the last page number automatically;
• Manual: Set the last page number manually, based on the entry in the text field in the right;

Monetization (shown below)

Prepares the project for in-app purchasing and advertisement.

Ads panel

Captures information about ad keys for (depending on the device targets) iOS and/or Android. iAds will work only for iOS devices, while adMob works for both platforms. If both are in use, AdMob will be used only for Android connections.

• Enable iAds (iOS only): if checked, will show iAds (banner format) in the app (it requires the iTunes Bundle ID below);
• iTunes Bundle ID: it is the app bundle id, created by iTunes Connect;
• Enable AdMob: if checked, will show adMob ads (banner format) in the app (it requires the adMob Key below);
• Key: it is an unique key the identifies your app in Google’s adMob;
• Add Ads in all pages: if checked, loads and display different banners in all pages of the app;
• Ad position X: x axis position of the ad in the page;
• Ad position Y: y axis position of the ad in the page;

For more information on how to setup your adMob key, check this link: https://support.google.com/admob/v2/answer/3052638

Important: Ads only show in the devices, not in the Simulator.

In-App Purchase panel
Allows you to setup products that can be purchased from the app. It requires customizations in the stores you want to connect (Apple and Google Play only at this moment) that are out of the scope of this guide.

Important: This feature requires Corona SDK Basic, Pro or Enterprise. It will NOT work with the free Corona SDK Starter version.

Below, a quick overview of the process (an even better document to follow comes from Corona Labs Tutorial: Understanding In-App Purchase):

Understanding IAP

IAP is complex mostly because it does not allow you to test your application in the Simulator and, part of the code needs to reside in Apple or Google’s servers. As several “how-tos” mention (see some below), you are going to spend more time working in Apple/Googles’s side (configuring profiles, etc) than with Kwik.

Start reading this great walk-through from Troy Brant’s (the code part is not important as Kwik will handle it for you):

• Basically you will need to create a Unique App ID
• Create a new provisioning profile
• Add you application to iTunes
• Upload your app binary (even if it is not finished) – you need a binary to create a product
• Add your product(s)

IAP in Kwik

As mentioned before, Kwik only works with internal asset purchases. Considering it uses the concept of pages, imagine that some pages will be unlocked only when the user purchase them. You may have a free storybook that allows the reader to read until the middle of the story. To finish it, he/she needs to buy the rest of the pages.

If you previously entered products, they will appear in the Products for Sale list. To delete a product not desired anymore, select it in the list and press the trash button. To add new ones, just press the + (plus) button. Doing so, the following window appears:

• Name: enter a name for your product, as set in the appropriated store (we strongly suggest you to have the same product name and id if you are connecting with more than one store);
• ID: is the ID created in the appropriated store (this is the string used to get your product from Apple/Google’s store;

Languages (shown below)

Sets the idioms of a multilingual app.

Multi-Language Panel

Allows you to setup different languages to be used in your project. Instead of creating the same app many times for different languages, Kwik facilitates the process, allowing, in just one application, the use of multiple languages.

All previously entered languages will appear in the list. To delete a language not desired anymore, select it in the list and press the trash button. To add new ones, just press the + (plus) button. Doing so, the following window appears:

• Name: enter a name for your language;
• ID (2 chars): is the locale ID for the language. If the id is the same as one of the accepted locales by Apple and/or Android, the code created by Kwik will automatically start your application using the default language from the device. If the device language id does not match with any id from your project, your app will start in the “default” language (the first one configured) – for the full list of IDs, check this link;
• Read right to left: informs that the language reads from right to left (Kwik will create a different code for swipe in these situations);

Publish (shown below)

Helps the creation of external files for the app (icons and launch/default images). It also captures information that may be used in the Rate App interaction.

Ratings and Reviews panel

• App ID (iOS only): captures the string ID assigned to the app by the iTunes App Store;
• App EAN (Nook only): captures the string ID assigned to the app by the Nook App Store

Project Icons panel

When your app is ready (or any time you want), click the default icon button and browse to a PNG image that will act as a master icon (it must be a square image with, at least, 144×144 pixels). Kwik will then automatically create all the icons needed according the selected project device.

Launch Images panel

When your app is ready (or any time you want), click the default Kwik icon button and browse to a PNG or PSD image that will act as a master default page (it must be an image with the same size of a project page). Kwik will then automatically create all the default image sizes needed according the selected project devices.