[n00neimp0rtant]

OpenNotifier





We're all kinda aware the iPhone's notification system sucks. One popup comes in, overrides another. Close an SMS, it's read; close a push notification, it's not. No single unified place on your phone to see which apps are begging for your attention. And all that space in the little tiny bar at the top of your screen. On iOS 1, 2, and 3, we had a little nifty extension called StatusNotifier. It put icons in your status bar when one of your apps had something new going on; an IM, an email, a text message. It was a great way to know ipexactky what you might have been forgetting about on your phone.

But then 4.0 came. Not only were status bar icons completely broken due to massive senseless changes to the status bar, but the developer was nowhere in sight, much like the source code. A few developers have begun work on tweaks to provide notification systems to the iPhone, and many of them are quite good! (If you don't have LockInfo, you really should check it out.) But what many seem to lack is the simple ability to go out onto the web, pull down an icon, and set it to any app you want.

It's about time a proper, free, and OPEN status bar notifier hit the iPhone, and this is OpenNotifier. It is a joint project headed by me, with icon design by CallMeCodeName and preference bundle assistance from Dan Zimmerman. You will be able to download and install icons from Cydia like themes, and apply them to any app or event available in the settings. It will eventually do repeat notifications as well (with your support of course!)

In addition to OpenNotifier, which will always remain open and free, I will be releasing a feature add-on pack for only $2 that integrates right into the OpenNotifier settings. Planned features include left-aligning status bar clock to make more room for icons, Boxcar integration, and more. I may also include new features like repeat notifications in the add-on pack as a beta and move it to the free version once stable enough.

OpenNotifier is now available in Cydia! You can add more icons by checking out the App Addons (OpenNotifier) section in Cydia as well! And make sure you follow us on Twitter @OpenNotifier @n00neimp0rtant @CallMeCodeName @DanZimm

[skiptowncat]

nice!! I shall be trying this when it's out.

[jjr3211]

i will to it looks great

[chrislouter]

I'm gonna say it here too, Can't wait for the release...

[Cer0]

Bring it on. You got everyone waiting lol. Gonna be a hit when you drop it.

[chrislouter]

For sure...

[Mes]

Thanks for picking up the ball. Also thanks for making basic functionality free.

[theguyz]

Will this include repeat and audible alerts?


Sounds very good, and could beta if needed.

As well how is battery drain, notifier+ drops my battery dramatically, while mobile log seems to not affect battery life.

As well does it break any apps ( like mobilelog kills facetime )

[lolento]

So what's the news? Any release date?

Just release a beta for a wider audience to test.

I have never seen any software that is released bug-free in my entire life so just let the cat out of the bag.

[n00neimp0rtant]

I have been giving out betas on Twitter =P

[StealthBravo]

ScoreCenter notification:

[chrislouter]

Don't use twitter but do you have an extra beta???

[Cowboy]

Cant wait man needs to be released soon

[n00neimp0rtant]

I'm at work right now, so I can't work on ON, so I thought I'd at least stop by and give you guys an update =P

On Sunday, I sent out the first real beta, packaged with all of the icons. StealthBravo brought it to my attention that some apps, like Sportacular and ESPN Scorecenter, although we have made icons for them, DO NOT get badges from push notifications. I must admit--I kinda panicked at first, thinking about how many icons might have been made in vain. However, I quickly thought of a solution: pseudo-badges. I spent Sunday night and a lot of Monday working on this. You can now go into the settings and check off any apps that both 1) get push notifications, and 2) do not get badges from them. OpenNotifier will generate badges for the corresponding apps as their notifications come in so that you can still set status bar icons for them. (Keep in mind, however, that you can only use pseudo-badges if the app in question gets push notifications without badges.) If you look at Stealth's screenshot above, you can see the ESPN one is apparently working just fine.

Also, a big heads-up: OpenNotifier relies on a very important piece of code from Phoenix-Dev called libstatusbar, which, at this writing, is NOT COMPATIBLE with 4.2. If you're a beta tester or looking to use OpenNotifier in the near future when it's released, you will have to use 4.0-4.1. OpenNotifier is being written using 4.0 libraries and simultaneously tested on 4.1, but like I said, is not compatible with 4.2 until Phoenix-Dev is able to update libstatusbar. He is on Twitter @phoenixdev, so you can check progress there. (Please don't pester him though; he's a busy developer.) Also check our Twitter feed @OpenNotifier; we'll give the go-ahead when it is 4.2 compatible.

Thanks for all the support, guys. I can't wait to get this out to all of you. A free, retina-compatible StatusNotifier is well overdue, and I'm proud to be behind the code that will be bringing it to you.

[chrislouter]

So no more beta testers needed???

But I am so looking forward to this app..... Thanx dude!!!!

[Ins0mniac]

To say I'm excited about this release is an understatement! I'm officially begging to be a beta tester

[chrislouter]

I was first ;-)

[Cer0]

As long as we know it is not vaporware then I am good. He will release when it is his idea of perfection. Or close to it that it wouldn't mess anything up.

Keep on trucking n00neim0rtant.

[Ins0mniac]

I definitely consider notifications to be the single most annoying and poorly implemented aspect of iOS. I'm using Notified Pro at the moment and it's got some good things going for it, but it still doesn't integrate properly in with Apple's push notifications and feels "tacked on".

I really hope OpenNotifier is the solution we've all been waiting for and I'd like to help in any way I can with donations and testing etc.

Keep up the great work n00neimp0rtant

[Cer0]

Same here as notifications being top of my list. Actually that is usually the first thing I install. I hate it when I have messages and calls missed because when I cancel my alarm when it goes off it clears my screen and I don't notice I missed anything till I go into the phone and see the badges which can be hours after I wake up on somedays.