Chemical Forums
General Forums => Free Chemistry Advertising, and other links offsite => Topic started by: goodintentions on September 05, 2013, 09:09:56 PM
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Hello all, permit me to shamelessly promote my own software.
I have been working on a windows 8 modern app project for chemistry students. For now, I'm calling it the ultimate chemistry toolbox. It should show up on the windows 8 store soon.
The trial period is 7 days with full features. Those of you who have windows 8 and windows rt devices, I would appreciate you trying it out and then give me some feedback. I will be glad to take all the suggestions and constructive criticisms you have.
For more info on this app, please visit the following website.
http://livingenzymeapps.webbs.com/ultimate-chemistry-toolbox
Thanks all.
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The app is now published in the windows 8/RT store.
http://apps.microsoft.com/windows/en-us/app/ultimate-chemistry-toolbox/551ce0f8-0ab0-404c-b81d-41cbc30c3df3
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I just added a balancer. I've tested it with over 100 different types of equations with my algorithm. All worked just fine. Again, please visit my website at LivingenzymeApps (http://livingenzymeapps.webs.com/ultimate-chemistry-toolbox) to see the details. Scroll to the bottom for the balancer.
Here are a couple of screenshots for it.
(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/34225393/app%20screenshots/chemistry%20toolbox/balancer3.png)
(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/34225393/app%20screenshots/chemistry%20toolbox/balancer5.png)
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I've just updated the balancer to accommodate for very complex equations. I've also put in over 250 example equations for you to play with.
Ok... moving on to acids and bases.
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I just added a limiting reactant tool. :D
(https://www.chemicalforums.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fd2bm3ljpacyxu8.cloudfront.net%2Fwidth%2F789%2Fcrop%2F0%2C0%2C789x442%2Fdl.dropboxusercontent.com%2Fu%2F34225393%2Fapp%2520screenshots%2Fchemistry%2520toolbox%2Flimitingreactant.jpg&hash=7ba4c5e1b2f8316a189a465dc84ccdf517e0a921)
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There is now a desktop version of this app. I will continue to develop the desktop and metro versions side by side, so they will be almost identical in functionalities. Here's a screenshot of the desktop version. I've made it so you can open as many windows of the tools as you want. This is especially useful for people who are working on multiple problems at a time.
(https://www.chemicalforums.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fd2bm3ljpacyxu8.cloudfront.net%2Fwidth%2F904%2Fcrop%2F0%2C0%2C904x508%2Fdl.dropboxusercontent.com%2Fu%2F34225393%2Fapp%2520screenshots%2Fchemistry%2520toolbox%2Fchemtoolsdesktop.png&hash=fb6caee45700a877cfe0be0ebcd9a0dee39cad59)
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Does this only work on Win8?
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The desktop version will work in all windows based platform, even xp. I made sure it's backward compatible with all versions of windows.
I will make a few adjustments and then I guess I will start making the desktop version available to buy.
I'm scheduled to meet up with a phd chemist tomorrow to check my work.
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I'm scheduled to meet up with a phd chemist tomorrow to check my work.
You'll find truckloads of those on this forum too! ;D
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That is so cool.
You want to try the desktop version out? I'll send you a pm with a link.
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That is so cool.
You want to try the desktop version out? I'll send you a pm with a link.
I'd love to. Thanks.
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Couriouscat, have you ever checked ChemBuddy calculators?
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Couriouscat, have you ever checked ChemBuddy calculators?
No I haven't. I'd love to try them out too.
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There are 30-days free trials. www.chembuddy.com is the site.
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There are 30-days free trials. www.chembuddy.com is the site.
Hehe
(1) My app is way easier to use.
(2) My app is way cheaper for all those functionalities.
(3) I just spent some time trying out their trial. Trust me, most of it is lazy coding. Looks to me like they were rushing it.
@ that last point, the reason I say that is this. Let's take a look at their balancer. They make you insert each compound into a separate field. There is a limit to the number of fields. In other words, they don't have a parser. They make you parse the equation for them. They also force you to use compounds that are already present in their database. In other words, for all we know, there is no mathematical algorithm behind what they're doing. For all we know, they could be having the app check their database for known reactions. This is lazy coding. And it's ridiculously overpriced for a plug and chug program.
My app does more than simple plug and chug. Say you know what the final molarity is but you don't know the initial amount, my app will automatically calculate the initial amount of solute. And the amounts you input don't even have to be in grams or they don't even have to be in the same units. You can input one in kilograms, one in neutron mass, one in mole, etc. and my app will automatically recognize which is which and convert them appropriately for the result.
Yes, they have functionalities that my app currently lack. My to-do list has all of those plus more.
And notice how archaic their windows look. They wrote the app back when everyone was still using windows 98 and they haven't upgraded it since. Again, that tells me it's lazy coding.
The world is very quickly changing into touch-based interfaces. Not completely there yet, but will be there. We as app developers need to take that into account and design our apps for both desktop and touch friendly.
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They make you insert each compound into a separate field.
Not true. That's one of the ways of using the program, but not the only one.
There is a limit to the number of fields.
128 reactants and 128 products is not a serious limit.
In other words, they don't have a parser. They make you parse the equation for them.
Not true. There is a parser that either uses equation entered as a string, or taken directly from the clipboard.
They also force you to use compounds that are already present in their database.
Not true. There is a database, but you don't have to use it. You can use it, but it is not obligatory.
In other words, for all we know, there is no mathematical algorithm behind what they're doing. For all we know, they could be having the app check their database for known reactions.
For all we know you are lying to make the competing program look bad. Trust me, that won't work here.
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There are 30-days free trials. www.chembuddy.com is the site.
Thanks! I didn't know you had trials. I'll try.
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Going through name change and major UI overhaul. Too bad I can't edit the post to change the name. It is now called ChemCat.
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It is now called ChemCat.
Another Cat!
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(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/34225393/SplashScreen.png)
I've added printing support for my app.
Working on redox reactions right now.
I sent out some sample apps to various chemistry departments. 2 professors from 2 different colleges contacted me asking if I was available to give a short presentation in their class. They really like it. So, I got one scheduled for me to go in to give a short presentation on the tool next week. Woohoo!
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For all we know you are lying to make the competing program look bad. Trust me, that won't work here.
Well, not really. It's all there for all to see.
They have you input the compounds in separate fields. When I first developed my app, that's how I wrote it, too. Then I realized how lame it was to make the user parse the equation for me. So, I rewrote my code to read the equation.
The interface is as bland as it gets. Some may like it that way, I suppose.
I was just telling my first impression of it. Knowing how coding works, it really does seem to me like the whole thing was put together in a hurry.
Here is an experiment you can try. Use their equation balancer. Keep adding more compounds. After 6 or 7 compounds, you will notice that their window goes right off the screen. You can't scroll. You can only drag the window left and right off the screen to take a peak at what's on the other side. We call this in the industry poor coding. Whoever that was behind designing that window didn't account for long equations. It makes the whole program look awkward.
What strikes me the most is the price.
But if that's what you like, then more power to you. For me, there were too many red flags of lazy coding when I used that program. And I'm not talking about subtle things. I'm talking about upfront in-your-face stuff like a window shooting right off the screen without the ability to scroll.
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They have you input the compounds in separate fields. When I first developed my app, that's how I wrote it, too. Then I realized how lame it was to make the user parse the equation for me. So, I rewrote my code to read the equation.
You keep repeating things you were already told are not true. You can enter the reacting as a string and the program will parse it for you. You can enter the reaction entering each reagent separately. It is called flexibility.
Here is an experiment you can try. Use their equation balancer. Keep adding more compounds. After 6 or 7 compounds, you will notice that their window goes right off the screen. You can't scroll. You can only drag the window left and right off the screen to take a peak at what's on the other side.
Again, you keep repeating lies and half truths. 8 compounds easily fit my screen - and at 1280 horizontal resolution it is not particularly wide. Reactions with more than 6-7 substances are pretty rare and of no practical importance. Finally, when the reaction gets too long you can switch to alternate UI where reagents are listed in a column. You loose some of the additional functionality then, but you still have full control over the most important things.
We call this in the industry poor coding.
Wow. How many years have you spent in the industry?
Whoever that was behind designing that window didn't account for long equations.
As stated above - whoever was behind the design, was well aware of the problem.
Having each reagent listed separately has an important advantage - you can very easily modify it separately of all other reagents.
What strikes me the most is the price.
Which suggests your contact with the "industry" is a pretty new one, as you compare desktop software prices with prices of smartphone apps, which are much, much lower by design - this trend started in 2008 when the App Store was opened. But obviously that's not something you have learned during your years in "industry", as they don't exist.
Stop posing for a vet when you are a greenhorn, stop twisting facts, stop the negative PR. This is a serious warning.
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@goodintentions
If you are trying to sell a product
You might want to read about Dale Carnegie
He wrote
How to Win Friends and Influence People
Check WIKI
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dale_Carnegie#How_to_Win_Friends_and_Influence_People
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Influence by Cialdini,
49 Laws of Power by Robert Greene.
lots of great books out there
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Thanks for the advices, everyone.
Things have been hectic at work. Haven't had much time to work on this app. I did send out an update, though. I've added several thousand common compounds into the library of the app. The compounds are fully searchable with suggestions by their names and molecular formula.
Currently, I'm working on 2 main features which I hope to finish soon. One is redox reactions. For the most part, it works. There are still a few things I'm not happy with, so I'm not going to add it to an upgrade any time soon.
The other is 3-D modeling of molecular compounds. This one is really cool. Remember those little colorful model elements you can attach with each other to model molecules? This update will allow the user to visually build any compound they want. And since these are 3-D models, the user can pan around, zoom, and see the molecules from any angle.
Anyway, here is a screenshot of the redox equation balancer. Like I said, I'm still working out some kinks with the algo behind it.
(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/34225393/app%20screenshots/chemistry%20toolbox/redox.JPG)
And again, I'm working on both metro and desktop versions parallel to each other. The metro version is already published in the windows 8 store. With the desktop version, right now only a few college professors have it. They really like it. One of them actually asked me to give a short presentation in her class next week.
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Update.
Well, this project will slow down by quite a bit. See, up to now, I've been working from home. So, as long as I get the job done, I can use the extra time to work on this project.
My company just reassigned me to another project as a field engineer starting tomorrow. So, the time that I will have to commit to this project will significantly be reduced.
I'm still committed to getting the 3D molecular modeling engine up and running, though. Running into a lot of stumbling blocks. Mainly how to design the UI to make it easy enough for the regular user to use. Before, I was going to make it so the user can pan around and drag whatever element they want into position. When I got the prototype running, I realized that it is harder to work in a 3D environment than I thought. The regular user will definitely get confused.
So, instead of allowing the user to drag and "snap" the molecules together in a 3D environment, I will try to come up with something a little easier to use but still have the same visual effects. The user will still be able to pan around and zoom in and out, but he won't be able to directly control the positions of the molecules. There's got to be an easier way to do this and still have a pleasant user experience. I'll let you know when I come up with something.
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So, instead of allowing the user to drag and "snap" the molecules together in a 3D environment, I will try to come up with something a little easier to use but still have the same visual effects. The user will still be able to pan around and zoom in and out, but he won't be able to directly control the positions of the molecules. There's got to be an easier way to do this and still have a pleasant user experience. I'll let you know when I come up with something.
You might be reinventing the wheel. PyMol, VMD, JMOL etc. must have code or plug ins you could use to do these 3D bits.
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Unfortunately, it's not as simple as that.
Like I said before, I'm trying to develop the desktop and metro versions parallel to each other. Touch UI really is the way of the future for learning. And none of the aforementioned programs is compatible with metro UI.
And despite popular belief, I actually don't care that my app sells or not. My day job is being an engineer. It pays the bills just fine. My previous career was a computer programmer. Lately, I've been picking it up again to brush up on my programming skills. There is now a growing demand for structure engineers that can do programming, particularly 3D applications hint hint. Having used one of my apps I wrote for company personnel (engineering app to calculate very quickly some stuff in design), my boss suggested I look into combining the two skills.
So, you could say this reinvention of the wheel is my way of getting back into the game.