There is an app for that. Or at least for a lot of things.
In December alone, more than 2 million apps were downloaded worldwide. That’s about 76 apps per second, said Matthew David, vice president of sales and evangelism for The App Builder, which is a downloadable software that helps businesses or individuals build an app for Apple, Android and Windows devices in minutes with little technical knowledge. David spoke to Sara Steffes Hansen’s new and emerging media class last week about all things app-related.
“It’s day two of the semester and we’re already building an app. How cool is that?” Hansen said.
The students, too, were excited and also immediately full of ideas for their very own app using the drag-and-drop, easy-to-use software David presented. He encouraged students to get involved with building apps and even add it to their resumes in the class, which focuses on teaching students the most up-to-date media and communication tools and trends.
“People are hungry for apps. If you are a business, it’s a fantastic time to build an app,” said David to the students. “Everything you do in your life has the potential to be an app.”
And so, with just an hour and a half to work, the students in Hansen’s class brainstormed ideas for an app and used the software David pitched to create their own, which doesn’t require any knowledge about writing code.
Students created apps that revolved around their lives as students, their interests and their involvement with on-campus groups and activities.
Matthew Hietpas, a senior journalism student, said he’d love to eventually create a public app for something. In class, the apps were built using the software but were not submitted to Apple, Android or Windows for approval as a final step in the process, which would need to occur before the apps could show up in any app store.
“There is so much money to be made in apps that it makes you think about your future,” he said.
Hietpas said he appreciates using apps as a student because they are quick and easy to use on the go, which he always is.
“I don’t really even use my computer since I got my smartphone,” said Brittany Farrell, a senior also studying journalism. “People always want the quickest thing, one route. An app is just one touch.”
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