Ruboku
Begin with a grid of numbers. Apply mathematical operations to the rows and columns to get all the numbers equal.
Ruboku was an idea Huw had while going through a bit of a Rubik's cube obsession. Having mastered the Rubik's cube algorithm and always thinking of potential new app ideas; a 2D number version was born in Huw's mind.
The concept was simple, but a complicated one to explain to a user initially. For that reason the UI was all important. One prototype, two meetings and a load of sketches later, we had a version that would demonstrate the workings of the game, and a strong idea of how it should look and work.
The goal was to create an addictive game that takes very little memory, requires no internet connection, had a clean, easy to use interface but is also totally free and uses no ads or special permissions. We think that we've ended with all of this and then some.
Letters and Numbers
Our first app, Letters and Numbers, was our own take on the popular Countdown TV show, a puzzle game with three different mini games where users play against the clock. While we're not kidding ourselves into thinking the idea was groundbreaking, we made the app in response to what we felt was a gap in the Android Market for a reliable Countdown game with high quality graphics and an easy to use interface, and we were pretty excited for this to be our first release as a company.
We produced both a free version and a paid version with slightly greater functionality, which were both available on the main Google Play store, as well as the Amazon App Store, Samsung App Store and the Opera Market, which we think is pretty cool.
About The App Box
The App Box started out in mid 2012 as a bit of a fun project to try to step foot into the ever-growing mobile app industry. We are a duo consisting of Ryan Thomas and Huw Carpenter (originally a trio, but we'll get on to that later), originally meeting through a shared interest in snooker and later on at Cardiff University, where we both studied Maths and played for the all-conquering Cardiff Uni Snooker Team. Since we started, we've used up a lot of good faith from certain groups of people, so now's probably the time to pay it forward. With that in mind, we'd like to use this opportunity to thank:
- Starbucks and Costa Coffee for providing our numerous work venues.
- Nandos. Our think tank, occasional meeting space, and general supplier of the inspiration fuel that is Peri-Peri sauce.
- Chunky Chicken for providing a cheaper alternative to Nandos.
- Red Bull for providing Ryan with late nights and early mornings that would otherwise be impossible.
- Stack Overflow for getting Huw out of binds a little more than he'd care to admit.
The biggest thank we'd like to give is to Sam Evans, a founding member of The App Box whose graphic design was essential to getting The App Box going, providing us with our rather swish logo and all the design work on Letters and Numbers, as well as our motion graphics. Unfortunately, other work commitments have resulted in him no longer being part of the team.
We felt a little uncomfortable writing about ourselves, so here's what we each have to say about each other...
Contact Us
We're active Twitter users, and so the best way to get in touch with us, let us know what you think of our apps or just say hi is by tweeting us @TheAppBoxUK, using the button below.
In the interest of other Android users, reviewing our apps is the best way of giving us feedback, while letting others know what you think. You'll find links to both Google Play listings below.
Ryan Thomas - Creative Director AF (@Ryan_Lee_Thomas)
Ryan is a born entrepreneur, always looking for the next big opportunity, with a number of successful projects already under his belt, such as The Tee Club, Pro-Motor and LandJacker. One of the biggest Apple fan(boy)s you're ever likely to meet, he's naturally pretty big into design and all things tech, picking up the slack where Huw's interest in design begins to wane. Some of us might not think moving an image half a pixel to the right matters, but it matters to Ryan, which is what makes The App Box work. Also a fan of a motivational pep talk and philisophical saying, "the journey is the reward" being a personal favourite.
Tell us what you think about Letters and Numbers by reviewing it here.
Huw Carpenter - Chief Software Engineer GL (@huwcarpenter)
Huw defines indie programmer; he might as well be a Google brand Ambassador, taught himself the algorithm for solving the Rubik's cube, and even pays for software "out of respect for those who made it". Though he is both Welsh and a passionate software developer, he speaks Java better than he speaks his native tongue (see video). He's always in pursuit of ways to improve his abilities as a coder. Though he has mastered the technique of saying no to Ryan's requests for elaborate changes or little additions, he can always be convinced to create something new by posing it as a challenge.
Tell us what you think about Ruboku by reviewing it here.
We're an app making duo publishing apps out of coffee shops all over Cardiff.
We currently have two apps available on Android devices via the Play store. In the short time we've been making apps we've put together some big ideas, which we're excited to get through and hopefully make a dent in the tech universe.
Find out more about who we are and how we met by clicking here.
Alternatively, if you've got a question for us that you can't fit into 140 characters, you can hit us up at either huw@theappbox.co.uk or ryan@theappbox.co.uk - pick you favourite or just go with the shortest and quickest to type (clearly written by Huw).