How Blackberry cares about developers
This post is about how to encourage and help developers. Provide them with test devices, reward with money / smartphones / tablets.
It all started with this post of mine . I converted the Android app to the Blackberry Playbook. There were almost no downloads, as I wrote in a post. But in the summer I was invited to Blackberry 10 Jam Moscow.
The event itself was fairly well organized, the sessions for html5 and native developers were divided. Plus delicious food. At the conference, my first Blackberry Dev Alpha A. was issued.
The photo is not mine, because mine is no longer with me. The first version of the system was then absolutely not designed for any use, including for tests. But after the update, it was already quite possible to test new applications.
In December, Blackberry began to organize "Port-a-thon." In the very first one it was necessary to port for BB10 up to 20 games. For each they gave $ 100, if you port more than two, you get a Playbook, more than 5 - Blackbery Dev Alpha, more than 10 - a chance to get a paid trip to GDC (Game Developers Conference). I didn’t really expect to get a trip, but 100 bucks aren’t superfluous, right? In a short time it turned out to make, it seems, 17 applications, two of which were rejected.
A week later there was already Porth-A-Thon for non-game applications with similar prizes. I had about 11 programs there, but 5 were rejected.
In January, I started receiving letters about my prizes. At first they wrote to me that I would get a Blackberry Dev Alpha B and a Playbook on the first Port-A-Thon:
Playbook:
')
Dev Alpha B:
Then I received a letter that I was supposed to first $ 1500, and then $ 600, which will be transferred to paypal.
Then it was about another Blackberry Dev Alpha B on the second Port-a-thon.
And already at the end of the New Year holidays, I received a letter with the following content:
At first, when I opened the letter, I even thought it was another spam. But he ran his eyes a second time and realized what it was about. I got a paid trip to the States at GDC! Yes, and a couple of bucks for expenses. It was hard to believe, but I immediately realized that it was necessary to rush RIM (then it was still RIM) with an invitation, etc. for the visa. By early February, they sent me everything and I registered at the embassy for a visa. The waiting time was a month.
During this time, I still registered for Blackberry Dev Alpha C (and I got it just the other day):
If anyone is interested, it is really convenient to use the keyboard on a smart, although it is very unusual at first. But getting used to typing text quickly and do not want to use the screen. At the same time, the touch screen in applications works fine.
Everything went well, but I was not given a visa to the states. Something I did not like the thick black aunt (oh, if not politically correct) behind the glass. Blackberry offered to move the trip to Orlando in May on Blackberry Live while retaining all the privileges. But I didn’t see any special chances to get a visa after the second passage, and asked for the opportunity to transfer it to some event outside the states.
Then I came to the glass figurine Blackberry Dev Alpha.
No functionality, but still nice. It says "Thank you for your applications for Blackberry 10"
And now came the Blackberry Z10 Limited Edition. Red.
The last two parcels were brought by courier (as well as Blackberry Dev Alpha A was taken from me). At first, they used Russian mail.
Well, all the devices in one photo:
In fact, I mostly write programs on Android, but these actions attracted my attention to the BB10. Windows Phone in this respect loses much and does not attract at all.
So take part in contests, win. Even if you have not written anything for this platform before.
It all started with this post of mine . I converted the Android app to the Blackberry Playbook. There were almost no downloads, as I wrote in a post. But in the summer I was invited to Blackberry 10 Jam Moscow.
The event itself was fairly well organized, the sessions for html5 and native developers were divided. Plus delicious food. At the conference, my first Blackberry Dev Alpha A. was issued.
The photo is not mine, because mine is no longer with me. The first version of the system was then absolutely not designed for any use, including for tests. But after the update, it was already quite possible to test new applications.
In December, Blackberry began to organize "Port-a-thon." In the very first one it was necessary to port for BB10 up to 20 games. For each they gave $ 100, if you port more than two, you get a Playbook, more than 5 - Blackbery Dev Alpha, more than 10 - a chance to get a paid trip to GDC (Game Developers Conference). I didn’t really expect to get a trip, but 100 bucks aren’t superfluous, right? In a short time it turned out to make, it seems, 17 applications, two of which were rejected.
A week later there was already Porth-A-Thon for non-game applications with similar prizes. I had about 11 programs there, but 5 were rejected.
In January, I started receiving letters about my prizes. At first they wrote to me that I would get a Blackberry Dev Alpha B and a Playbook on the first Port-A-Thon:
Playbook:
')
Dev Alpha B:
Then I received a letter that I was supposed to first $ 1500, and then $ 600, which will be transferred to paypal.
Then it was about another Blackberry Dev Alpha B on the second Port-a-thon.
And already at the end of the New Year holidays, I received a letter with the following content:
Congratulations! BlackBerry for the Game Developers Conference 2013 - March 25-29th, 2013 in San Francisco, California.
Your Travel Package 2013 in San Francisco, California, USA will include the following:
- Inline Rectangle (RIM) from South Africa, California
- Up to six (6) nights of accommodation in San Francisco at a hotel selected by RIM
- $ 2,000 USD spending money provided in person at GDC
- One (1) All Access admission to the Event
At first, when I opened the letter, I even thought it was another spam. But he ran his eyes a second time and realized what it was about. I got a paid trip to the States at GDC! Yes, and a couple of bucks for expenses. It was hard to believe, but I immediately realized that it was necessary to rush RIM (then it was still RIM) with an invitation, etc. for the visa. By early February, they sent me everything and I registered at the embassy for a visa. The waiting time was a month.
During this time, I still registered for Blackberry Dev Alpha C (and I got it just the other day):
If anyone is interested, it is really convenient to use the keyboard on a smart, although it is very unusual at first. But getting used to typing text quickly and do not want to use the screen. At the same time, the touch screen in applications works fine.
Everything went well, but I was not given a visa to the states. Something I did not like the thick black aunt (oh, if not politically correct) behind the glass. Blackberry offered to move the trip to Orlando in May on Blackberry Live while retaining all the privileges. But I didn’t see any special chances to get a visa after the second passage, and asked for the opportunity to transfer it to some event outside the states.
Then I came to the glass figurine Blackberry Dev Alpha.
No functionality, but still nice. It says "Thank you for your applications for Blackberry 10"
And now came the Blackberry Z10 Limited Edition. Red.
The last two parcels were brought by courier (as well as Blackberry Dev Alpha A was taken from me). At first, they used Russian mail.
Well, all the devices in one photo:
In fact, I mostly write programs on Android, but these actions attracted my attention to the BB10. Windows Phone in this respect loses much and does not attract at all.
So take part in contests, win. Even if you have not written anything for this platform before.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/180807/
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