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Discussion Board for iPhone Released

The Discussion Board just went mobile.

Our iOS app just got a whole lot sweeter. We've added the Discussion Board! Now you can browse Discussion posts, comment on threads or create your own topic all from the comfort of your iOS device.

In version 1.2 of the app you will be able to access the Discussion Board for your church and all your groups. Discussions no longer have to stall while you are away from your computer. No more waiting. That's what we love about mobile! So, download that update get to discussing.

For more details on our mobile strategy check this out.

To download the app click here.

As always, we invite you to share any feedback you have for us via email at questions@tableproject.org or Get Satisfaction.

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iPhone Notifications

We upgraded our iPhone app with the ability to do notifications. Version 1.1.1 of our iPhone app primarily includes push notification, but also has some other minor updates. If you already have the Table app installed, you can upgrade it by going to the App Store, clicking on Updates and scrolling down to the Table app.

When you upgrade and open the Table app for the first time, it will ask you if you want to allow push notifications. On the web version of the Table, notifications alert you to activity on the Table. On the iPhone app, these notifications can appear within the app, as a numbered badge on the app icon on the home screen, as a pop-up alert and as a sound.

As you can imagine, this is a powerful way to instantly know what's happening in your church. 

You can adjust these settings two ways:

1) Within the Table: On the web version of the Table you can access your profile, go to Edit Profile and then Notifications & Email. These recently updated settings allow you to turn notification and email alerts on and off for different aspects of the Table. These settings control notifications for both the web version and the iPhone app. So if you're getting too many notifications about prayers on the iPhone app, this is where you can turn off those notifications.

2) Within the iPhone: On the iPhone itself you can turn different styles (badges, alerts and sounds) of notifications on or off. Go to Settings, Notifications and then to the Table app. Then you can turn the badges, alerts or sounds on and off.

Note that you'll only receive notifications on the iPhone for things that currently work on the iPhone app, namely prayer requests, Serve items, friend requests and quicknotes. Discussion board and photo app notifications, for example, will not appear on the iPhone because they're not a part of our mobile app (Yet! We do hope to add them eventually—one step at a time!).

And for our eager Android friends out there, we do hope to roll this functionality out to our Android app soon, along with some other needed improvements.

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The Table's Mobile Strategy

The future is mobile.

If you've looked at any mobile usage stats, they're ridiculous.

• 63 million smart-phone users in the U.S. at the end of 2010, a 60% jump from 2009 (Clickz).
• Mobile Internet use has quadrupled in the last four years (Fixed Mobile Convergence) and will overtake desktop Internet use by 2014 (Morgan Stanley).
• One out of three smart-phone users would give up chocolate to keep their mobile device (Google). That's dedication.

Mobile is coming and it's not just for businesses.

That's why we've made mobile an integral part of our strategy for the Table.

Real World Connection
Mobile technology increases real world connections, and that's what we're all about at the Table. It's not about people hiding behind their devices, but it's the technology allowing us to better connect while we're on the go.

Look at what you can do with the Table's iPhone app:

1) Pray On the Go
You can post prayer needs on the go, like on your way to the hospital, when you can't access a computer. That's powerful.

2) Remember Names
If you're at church and you forget someone's name, you can pull out your iPhone and look them up. Oh yeah, that's Maria. Here's her profile: She likes knitting. Instant conversation starter.

3) Serve One Another
You can respond to needs in real time. Steve just had a baby and they need meals. Sign up to help out and pick something up on the way home.

The examples are endless. We're convinced that mobile technology makes the Table exponentially more valuable to churches. That's why it's a priority.

The Great Commission & Technology
The majority of your congregation may not have smart-phones yet, but they will. And we want the Table to be on the cutting edge of mobile adoption, so the church can be on the cutting edge of technology. From the printing press to the radio, the church was there early on, understanding the seismic shift that was coming and using it to spread the gospel. Today churches are being left behind as technological innovation is happening everywhere but in our congregations.

It doesn't have to be that way.

That's why we released our iPhone app earlier this month. That's why we'll continue to roll out mobile options as we move forward. That's why mobile is core to our strategy.

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iPhone App Gets Staff on Board

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iPhone Announcement Slides

We've created some announcement slides you can use to announce the new iPhone app to your congregation. Just download the slides, pick the size and look that works for you and add them to the announcement slides for your next service.

Set of 5 iPhone Slides (3 MB ZIP file)

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iPhone App Reaction

Yesterday we announced the release of our iPhone app. It's been so encouraging to see people respond. We're not the only ones who think it has potential to impact churches:

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The Table iPhone App: Church on the Go

Our long-awaited iPhone app is now available. You can download it right now from the Apple App Store (it's free!).

Now you can bring your church with you. Be the church 24/7 and on the go.

What Can I Do?

Pray: Pray for one another and post prayer requests right from your phone. You can also set reminders so you remember to pray again later.

Learn names: Have trouble remembering names? Play the Name Game to help you learn and remember names of people in your church. Tap on a face to reveal the name and swipe across to see more faces.

Serve: Find volunteer opportunities, sign up to help, map locations and set reminders.

Connect: Send and receive quicknotes on the go (check out the new conversational view!). Be an encouragement even when you're on the go.

Like it? Rate it!
We'd love to hear what you think about our new iPhone app. You can rate and review the app in the App Store and you can share stories of how you're using it.

Questions or Problems?
Check out our frequently asked questions. If you have problems you can post them in our customer support system, Get Satisfaction, and we'll help you out as soon as we can.

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iPhone App Submitted

Now there's a pretty sight:

We just submitted our iPhone app to Apple for approval. Now we wait.

We'll let you know as soon as Apple approves it and adds it to the App Store. You can pass the time by checking out some screenshots.

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iPhone App Sneak Peek

Next week's Round Table webinar will offer a sneak peek of our iPhone App. We'll give a demo of the app in progress and show you all the cool features.

Our team is currently testing and having way too much fun doing it. We hope to share the fun later this summer—and no, we can't give an exact release date yet (there are too many variables, from unexpected bugs to Apple approval). But do you want an early sneak peek? Check out the screenshots. Come to the webinar to see it in action.

Tune in on Wednesday, June 22, 2011 from 3-4 p.m. CDT. Register now.

If you're busy then, don't worry. We'll record the webinar and post it to our site a few days later. But if you tune in live you can always ask questions and get instant answers.

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My Page Becomes Me

You may have noticed a small change in the Table: We've changed the title of the "My Page" tab to simply "Me." This is a purely cosmetic change—everything works the same.

There are two basic reasons we made this change:

1) With our coming iPhone App the "My Page" name didn't make sense. "My Page" references the web and the iPhone takes us into new territory, so we thought a name change would better reflect that and enable the content of your space to be more flexible for different formats (web and mobile).

2) "Me" is shorter, simpler and more focused than "My Page." It's also more consistent with our other single-word tabs (Groups, Church).

So if you noticed that little change, that's why we did it.

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