Subject area

Mobile Apps

The words you meet when you build an app for a phone and put it in a store.

28 concepts in this area

A

App Download Size App download size is the number of megabytes someone has to spend before your app will even open on their phone for the first time. Read the definition App Localization App localization is making an app feel as if it were built in the country using it, from its language and screen direction to its dates and prices. Read the definition App Maintenance Cost App maintenance cost is the money you spend every year after launch to keep an app working, and it is the part owners forget to budget for. Read the definition App Permissions App permissions are the yes-or-no questions your phone asks before an app is allowed to touch something private, like the camera or your location. Read the definition App Ratings and Reviews App ratings and reviews are the stars and short comments on your store page that most people judge your app by in about three seconds. Read the definition App Store Optimization ASO App store optimization is the work of getting your app to show up in the App Store and Google Play when someone searches for the thing it does. Read the definition App Store Review App store review is the check that Apple and Google run on every app and every update before they let it into their store. Read the definition

B

Biometric Login Biometric login lets you open an app with your fingerprint or your face instead of typing a code, because your phone does the checking for it. Read the definition

D

Deep Link A deep link is an address that opens one exact screen inside an app, such as a single invoice, instead of leaving the person on the home screen. Read the definition

E

Enterprise App Distribution Enterprise app distribution is the way a company puts its own app straight onto staff phones, without ever listing it in the public App Store or Google Play. Read the definition

F

Forced Update A forced update is the screen that stops an app until the newest version is installed, because the older one can no longer work with your system. Read the definition

G

GPS Tracking GPS GPS tracking shows you where a vehicle or a member of staff is on a map, using the position their phone or tracker sends over the mobile network. Read the definition

H

Hybrid App A hybrid app is a phone app whose screens are mostly web pages, wrapped in a small shell so that it installs from the app store like any other. Read the definition

I

In-App Purchase IAP An in-app purchase is a payment made inside a phone app through the store's own billing, where Apple or Google keep 15 to 30 percent. Read the definition

J

Jailbreak and Root Detection Jailbreak and root detection is a check an app runs when it opens, to see whether the phone has had the maker's safety limits removed. Read the definition

K

Kiosk Mode Kiosk mode is a setting that locks a phone or tablet onto one app, so whoever is holding it can do the job and nothing else. Read the definition

M

Minimum Viable Product MVP A minimum viable product is the first real version of an app, built to do the one job that matters most so everything else can wait. Read the definition Mobile Device Management MDM Mobile device management is the software a company uses to control its staff phones and tablets from one screen, right down to erasing one that goes missing. Read the definition Mobile Website A mobile website is your ordinary website built to work properly on a phone, so visitors arrive at the same address and have nothing to download. Read the definition

N

Native App A native app is built in the phone's own language, which makes it fast but means paying for an iPhone version and an Android version separately. Read the definition

O

Offline Sync Offline sync is the way an app keeps working with no signal, because it saves the work on the phone and sends it up once the network comes back. Read the definition Over-the-Air Update OTA An over-the-air update is a change you make on your own server that every phone picks up by itself, without anyone downloading a new version from the store. Read the definition

P

Push Notification A push notification is a short message your system sends to a phone while your app is closed, so the person reads it without opening anything. Read the definition

Q

QR Code Scanning QR QR code scanning lets a phone camera read a printed square of dots, so a price, ticket or stock item appears without anyone typing a number. Read the definition

U

Uninstall Rate Uninstall rate is the share of people who delete your app after installing it, and the fastest honest signal that something on the first screen is wrong. Read the definition

V

Virtual Private Network VPN A virtual private network is a sealed tunnel through a public connection, so what your staff send on café or hotel wifi cannot be read by anyone nearby. Read the definition

W

WebView App A WebView app is a phone app whose screens are your live website shown inside a window, with the browser address bar taken away. Read the definition

Z

Zero-Day Vulnerability A zero-day vulnerability is a hole in software that has just been found and has no fix yet, so everyone using that part is exposed until one arrives. Read the definition

Other subject areas

Web Development The terms that come up when we build or rebuild a website or a web application. 4 Cybersecurity How systems are attacked, and the words we use for defending them. 31 Hosting & Infrastructure Where software actually runs, and what the numbers in a hosting contract mean. 2 SEO & Marketing The vocabulary of being found — search, content and measurement. 30 Programming Languages The languages software is written in, and what each one is genuinely good at. 12 Frameworks & Platforms The toolkits built on top of a language so teams do not rewrite the same foundations every time. 6 Databases & Data Where your records actually live, and why the choice changes what the system can do. 4 Cloud & Operations How software gets shipped, run and kept alive after it is written. 5 AI & Automation What the machines are actually doing when a product says it uses AI. 4 Design & User Experience How a screen is laid out, and why some sites feel easy while others feel confusing. 0 Digital Marketing Paid ads, email, offers and the numbers that tell you whether any of it worked. 29 Social Media Posts, followers, reach and the everyday words of running an account well. 0 E-commerce Systems Selling online: the cart, the checkout, the stock and everything after the order. 29 Shops & Point of Sale The counter, the barcode, the till and the stock room of a real shop. 1 Maintenance Centres Repair jobs, spare parts, warranty and getting a device back to its owner. 0 School & University Systems Students, classes, attendance, marks and fees — the software a school runs on. 0 Hospital Management Beds, admissions, departments and the file that follows a patient through a hospital. 0 Clinic Management Appointments, visits, prescriptions and payments in a small medical practice. 0 Medical Laboratories Samples, tests, reference ranges and how a result reaches the person who ordered it. 0 Radiology Centres Scans, images, reports and the systems that store and share them safely. 0 Property & Rentals Units, tenants, contracts and rent — the paperwork of property, done in software. 0 Property Developers Projects, phases, instalment plans and selling a unit that is not built yet. 0 Salons & Spas Bookings, chairs, staff commission and keeping regulars coming back. 0 Gyms & Fitness Memberships, check-ins, classes and trainers — how a gym keeps track of everyone. 0 Web Applications Software that runs in a browser and does real work — dashboards, portals and systems staff use all day. 23 Custom Software Building a system around how a business actually works, instead of changing the business to fit a product. 0 Integrations & APIs Making two systems talk to each other, so the same number does not get typed twice. 0 Payments & Billing Taking money online, sending invoices and knowing exactly who has paid and who has not. 0 ERP & Accounting One set of books behind every department, so the numbers agree at the end of the month. 0 Software Projects How a software project is scoped, priced, built and handed over — and where they usually go wrong. 0 CRM & Customer Support Keeping track of who your customers are, what they asked for, and what you promised them. 0