Focused apps are built with map.apps, tailored to the needs of users and easy to use. A brief explanation of individual functions, even with very focussed apps, can contribute to making a much more positive user experience, especially for new users.
These explanations should be directly related to the application and the respective functions, and appear at the right time in the right place. To achieve this and avoid that extra help on a separate page must be called, there is now a new free bundle download: IntroJS
Using this new bundle, a guided step-by-step introduction of an app can be created. The user is guided through the application while individual functional areas are highlighted and explained with a short text. The administrator has the ability to control any element using its CSS class and describe. Thus, for example, individual tools, search or the map controller will be explained.
The user is informed on theduration of the introduction via a progress bar. They always havethe possibility to end the introduction, and completely skip the introduction the next time the app is started.
The administrator can complete manage the introduction via the map.apps Live configuration and, for example, specify what items are displayed for each step instead of a progress bar. In addition, they can set the introduction to be not automatically shown at the start, but rather can be accessed via a tool.
Further details regarding the new bundle and its configuration can be found in our GitHub repository: https://github.com/conterra/mapapps-introjs. Here, we will also gladly take new suggestions for the bundle. In addition, everyone has the opportunity to further advance the development of the bundles with their own code additions (via pull request).
Currently the bundle is optimised for use in desktop applications. A version for responsive apps will follow in a second step.