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AppGameKit Classic Chat / The AGK Community Ad Network

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Naphier
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Posted: 12th Jan 2014 05:26 Edited at: 9th Mar 2014 20:16
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Hi everyone.
This idea has been on my mind for awhile and I'd like to gauge the community's interest in such a service before moving forward.

The idea is fairly simple:
Basically anyone in the community would be able to upload their ad banners to my server. I would create a small library of AppGameKit Tier 1 functions that would download these images to your app once per week and allow you to display them like AdMob adverts. I would also provide tracking of the ad clicks by providing access to a simple web page that shows stats for each advert. Unfortunately, I would not be able to provide conversion tracking like AdMob, but we would at least know if our adverts are being clicked on.

I'm thinking that I'd also allow a few ad sizes so that we're not stuck with the banners like we are with AGK's implementation of AdMob. You would not get paid for displaying these adverts and I would not charge for the service (though I may ask for a donation for the use of my server and my time). If the service ends up being popular I may consider charging for showing your ad and paying you for ads clicked via your app, but that would be far in the future and at this point I'm more concerned with creating something the we can use which is community oriented.

AdMob pays so very little for ads displayed/clicked. I'm hoping that you all consider this as either an alternative or a supplement to AdMob.

If interested in this service then please respond here to this thread and let me know of any questions or suggestions. Also if you have any preference in image sizes for the ads then please include that info.

Cheers!


EDIT:
tl:dr
Go here to sign in and get the latest API
http://wordspionagedb.com/agkads/
The only ad sizes allowed right now are 480x80 or 300x50 PNG
I will email anyone who is signed up whenever I update the API.

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easter bunny
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Posted: 12th Jan 2014 23:44
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I'd be interested in this sort of thing.

In fact, I had been considering starting up something like this myself!

So, if it does end up happening, I'm in!


Audacia Games
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Naphier
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Posted: 12th Jan 2014 23:46
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Cool!
Let me know if you have any ideas on it.

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Naphier
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Posted: 15th Jan 2014 00:09
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Only one person interested out of 82 views... not looking good for the level of interest in this. Bummer...

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Rickynzx
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Posted: 15th Jan 2014 01:40
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Im in if you get it going.

we could all do with a few extra downloads that these ads would bring.
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Naphier
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Posted: 15th Jan 2014 01:42
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yay that makes 3 of us
not sure what my threshold will be before I start on it, but probably a network of 5 is enough to start.
Anyone else in?

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BatVink
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Posted: 15th Jan 2014 10:10
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Naphier, drop me an email with a few words about the way it might work, and I'll add the idea to the next newsletter.

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baxslash
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Posted: 15th Jan 2014 12:12
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I'm in although I'm a long way off a finished game at the moment! I'd also be happy to help where I can. If anyone wants help creating a banner I'm not bad at gfx.

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Funnell7
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Posted: 15th Jan 2014 12:31
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This is an excellent idea, although I think it will only benefit those who have either a paid app or free app with IAP. For me my only revenue stream is AdMob so it wouldn't make sense for me to replace these with community ads Any opportunity I get to display an ad will be AdMob as this has the potential to make me some wonga...

Having said that, I guess this doesn't have to be limited to just banners, right? Perhaps a 'More Games' button within the app itself could also display the games?
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baxslash
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Posted: 15th Jan 2014 12:37
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We did start a similar idea with the App Developers Group but it never really took off. If this gets set up properly it could be a pretty good community promotion system. You could even promote TGC products through it if TGC are interested? The more exposure AppGameKit gets the better the product can become, every little helps!

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JHA
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Posted: 15th Jan 2014 16:00
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I think it's a great idea! I would use it.
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Naphier
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Posted: 15th Jan 2014 18:50
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@Batvink - Email on its way

@Funnel7 - I'd be providing a basic library of functions that would access the server, download images, display the images and handle clicks. You would be able to easily implement it in a special section of your app under something like "more games" if you'd like. I'll keep that in mind as I design the functions.

@Everyone else - thanks for the interest. I'll get working on it soon. It'll probably take a month or so before it is up and running. I'll provide more details in the Newsletter.

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easter bunny
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Posted: 29th Jan 2014 06:23
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Any news?


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Naphier
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Posted: 29th Jan 2014 06:35
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I've not had a chance to work on it yet. I sent an email off to batvink a couple of weeks ago with details so that he could put something about it in the next newsletter, but I haven't heard back from him so I just re-sent the email in case he didn't get it.

I've been super busy with the first major update to Wordspionage so I've not had a chance to do anything further yet. Would love to see if there is more interest in this. I would give it a go with just the handful of folks that have responded so far though. There just might not be a web front end for uploading images or seeing stats. I'd do that manually.

Feedback/ideas on this venture are welcome if anyone has them!

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Naphier
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Posted: 30th Jan 2014 03:15
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Just a further update. I heard back from batvink and he'll be putting an article in the newsletter about this. Hopefully we'll see a bit more turnout after that.

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SoftMotion3D
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Posted: 30th Jan 2014 06:23
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oh! im in!

this would be great to use in app advertising that only advertises agk applications.

I think its a great idea!

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ThrOtherJoJo
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Posted: 1st Feb 2014 00:04
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I'm in.

Joeisms
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Naphier
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Posted: 1st Feb 2014 03:30
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Glad to see more and more people interested!!
Hopefully we'll see even more soon.
In the meantime I have created a basic upload form so that folks can start submitting ad banners:
http://wordspionagedb.com/agkads/
The only ad sizes allowed right now are 480x80 or 300x50
Once I have a few banners available I will get working on the API so folks can grab ads and display them.
Right now I'm debating between 2 methods:
Grab images as needed (i.e. when CreateAGKCommAdvert() is called)
or
Grab a specific number of images so they are able to be shown quickly. This would likely work by a command where you specify the number of ads you're willing to keep stored locally and then you can display them without worrying about them taking time to download. They'd also refresh every few days and I'd likely use ZIP compression to transfer them so they come through even faster.

I'm welcome to hearing feedback on how you guys would prefer it. Both methods will be written asynchronously so they can work in the main loops of your program without interrupting flow.

Cheers!

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Naphier
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Posted: 4th Feb 2014 10:14
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Yay! We're in the newsletter. I'm working a little more on the website so that it has a login and some stats as well as the ability to update or remove your banners. Still a bit of work to do and then I'll move on to the tier 1 api. Please go to the above page to make submissions as soon as you can. The more banners I have to work with the better I can test. Thanks!

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Naphier
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Posted: 6th Feb 2014 02:01
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Hi everyone!
I've finished the setup of the database and now you can log in to the site with a user account. I've sent information to those of you who've already uploaded images so you can log in.

I'll be working on the "API" for Tier 1 over the next couple of days. I've decided not to grab multiple ad banners for now since I've not had any response that it is desirable and it is a bit more work.

The API will simply grab image files as needed, but will display any locally stored image first so there isn't any missing images.

Please submit some more banners so I have more to work with. Thanks!!

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Naphier
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Posted: 10th Feb 2014 22:04 Edited at: 10th Feb 2014 22:04
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Hi folks!
So just bumping this thread here and hoping that some more of you will submit banners soon. We need more than 2 people to make this work!
I have the website all set up
http://wordspionagedb.com/agkads/
Just go, log in and upload your banner.
They can be 300x50 or 480x80

I really need to see some more submissions by the end of this week otherwise I'm not sure I can continue to justify spending time on this. I'd really like to do this, but I need your game banners to make it work!

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Naphier
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Posted: 14th Feb 2014 18:47
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Hi folks. We now have a few ads (but it would be great to have more).
I'm now working on the API for displaying/downloading the ads.
Hopefully it will be done by the end of next week (I'm working on a lot of stuff with improvements to Wordspionage too).
Cheers!

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swissolo
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Posted: 15th Feb 2014 21:40
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I don't have anything to contribute at the moment but I'll keep this in mind

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Naphier
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Posted: 15th Feb 2014 22:02
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Thanks! We'll be here when you do

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Mobiius
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Posted: 4th Mar 2014 19:56 Edited at: 4th Mar 2014 20:16
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I'm interested in joining too. (For a chance to win a nexus 10, I'll do almost anything!)

I'll create an account now and get to work on some Ad Banners.

[EDIT] That's me registered.

[[edit]] And Ads submitted.


Now Visit My Website
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mr_d
DBPro Tool Maker
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Posted: 5th Mar 2014 06:18
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Hi Napthier, like swissolo, I don't have anything that would apply at the moment, but I'll check out your site and setup an account for future use.

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Naphier
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Posted: 5th Mar 2014 06:26
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Cool, it'll be around. It's all set up and pretty easy to maintain at the moment.
You should be able to see a live demonstration of it in Wordspionage when we release the next update in about a week.

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Naphier
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Posted: 5th Mar 2014 22:41 Edited at: 9th Mar 2014 20:13
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Just a quick update:
I've added some new error checking methods to the API for everyone to use if they'd like. Basically it just stops checking for ads after a set number of fails and then can try again after a set number of seconds. The old API still works, but doesn't have any error checking, so it will just continue to try and try, which might be a bad idea if your user has no connection or something happens with the ACAN network. So please use this new API to ensure a good user experience.

If there are any questions please don't hesitate to contact me directly. Thanks!!

The new API is available from the site once you log in
www.wordspionagedb.com/agkads

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The Zoq2
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Posted: 5th Mar 2014 22:43
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Are there any plans for a T2 API or should I just port it myself when I need it?

Say ONE stupid thing and it ends up as a forum signature forever. - Neuro Fuzzy
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Naphier
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Posted: 5th Mar 2014 22:44
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You'll have to port it for yourself, sorry. I don't know C++ well enough to do it in a timely fashion. If you do port it over then I ask please share it with me so that I can host it on the site for everyone else to use. This would be really awesome if you could help with this

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The Zoq2
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Posted: 5th Mar 2014 23:08
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Sure, i'll post it here when im done

Say ONE stupid thing and it ends up as a forum signature forever. - Neuro Fuzzy
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Naphier
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Posted: 5th Mar 2014 23:09
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Very cool. Thanks!

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Ched80
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Posted: 8th Mar 2014 09:08
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This is a grrrrrreat idea. I just need to actually finish and publish a game now!

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Clonkex
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Posted: 9th Mar 2014 14:12
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Quote: "This is a grrrrrreat idea."


Have you been watching Corner Gas? No ignore me no one watches bizarre Canadian comedies

Sounds like a good idea, Naphier. I'm entering the Nexus comp so I'll actually have a game to put ads in


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Cliff Mellangard 3DEGS
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Posted: 9th Mar 2014 14:33
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I have already tested this add api
I only noticed once that the game stutterd down to almost a halt when it tried to update the banner while I recorded?

But when I record so do the fps drop to around 30 I belive?

Could you please have the always latest in your first post with dates so I easy can see when its updated.



Android 2.3 , ZTE Skate , 480x800 , 800 mhz , Samsung Galaxy Y , 240x320 , 832 mhz , Sony ericson arc 480x854 , 1 ghz
Android 4.0 , Dmtech 3g 9738B , 1024x768 , 9.7 inches , 1.2 ghz
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Naphier
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Posted: 9th Mar 2014 20:08
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@Cliff - the newest API is always available on the site after you log in.

I do see some stuttering in your video around the time that the ads are being downloaded. It is probably when AppGameKit is writing the file to disk. Unfortunately there's nothing that can be done about this.

Here are some suggestions:
You might not want to call for banner updates when you have lots of action going on. You might just want to show a static ad, which can be done by setting gACAN.time# to something really large and then altering it again when you get to a point where you want to call a new ad.
Another suggestion is to modify the API heavily so that it downloads multiple ads and stores them. You'd have to record the acan_ad.dat differently to store multiple lines of information on the ads. And you'd have to create a new handler to read the data file correctly. And you'd have to create a new deletion method to make sure it deletes all of the ads.
I'd go with manipulating the timer.

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BMacZero
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Posted: 10th Mar 2014 00:18
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This is a neat system. Clearly this is designed for AppGameKit games - do you have a stance on integrating this API into a DBPro game or a game made with another TGC product? What about submitting banners for games made with other TGC products?

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Naphier
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Posted: 10th Mar 2014 01:01
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I've been thinking about it and will continue to do so.
The only problem I see is it might be confusing to users to see an ad for a game that is for windows when they are playing from an iPhone. Right now it only shows ads for iOS if you are on an iOS device, and android on android.

Although I am the creator and organizer for this project, it is a community project and I'd like to hear other opinions before i do this.

I can easily add in some options for preventing Windows/Mac game ads from showing up if someone wants to prevent them.

How does everyone feel about advertising Windows/Mac games along with the mobile games?

I would also need someone to port the API to DBPro since I don't really have the time to.

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BMacZero
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Posted: 10th Mar 2014 01:06
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I'd be happy to port the API code if opinions are positive.

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nonZero
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Posted: 10th Mar 2014 08:47
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I'll second DBP integration.

ver 7.5 /// int 145 /// str 45 /// dex 85 /// end 200 /// mat 3
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Clonkex
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Posted: 10th Mar 2014 11:03
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Quote: "I'll second DBP integration."


I don't care either way 'cause my game's AppGameKit Maybe in the future when I finish one of my many game ideas for DBPro I'll care


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nonZero
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Posted: 13th Mar 2014 07:41
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Well, I suppose we could just use a getter. Depending on the API, could use other languages.

Naphier, what did you write the API in?

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Clonkex
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Posted: 13th Mar 2014 07:51
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Quote: "Naphier, what did you write the API in?"


I assume it's pure tier 1, otherwise tier 1 integration would be impossible.


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Naphier
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Posted: 13th Mar 2014 17:15
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The client-side API is all Tier 1 and simply sends the proper HTTP post requests to the server's PHP scripts.
You do need to create an account to use the service since I will be tracking usage via your API key.
The account is free, but donations are appreciated
The Tier 1 client-side API is available once you make an account.
If you're unsure if you'll use the service and want to check out the API, please don't hesitate to create an account just to get the API.

On that note, please remember it is a community project and if you see room for improvement or want to post the API to Tier 2 or DBPro or FPSC(?) I encourage you to do so with the stipulation that you make your code available to the Community by submitting it to me. Another reason for this is that if I ever change anything I can also inspect the other APIs for changes and notify the person who wrote them. Mobiius recently submitted some changes to the API to me which are great and have made the API a self-contained library. I'm still reviewing those changes and waiting to make some of my own before I release it, though.

AAaaand...on that note, it seems that everyone is either indifferent or supportive of adding support for ads for non-mobile platforms. So I will be adding in support to the server and API for Windows/Mac applications. Please be patient for this as we are in the middle of prepping Wordspionage for a new release. So it may be a couple of weeks before I can finish it up. It will likely require minimum changes to how you use the API (likely just a simple flag to allow Windows and Mac app ads, which will be off by default).

I'll report back here as soon as I have some progress on that.

Cheers!

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Java Man
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Posted: 17th Mar 2014 00:16
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Using Agk Ads now - think it's a great idea.

We should all get behind it. It might lack some sophistication at the moment, but all great things start with great ideas.

If I only had the time...
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Java Man
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Posted: 17th Mar 2014 00:17 Edited at: 17th Mar 2014 00:18
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GET BEHIND IT!!!!

If I only had the time...
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BatVink
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Posted: 18th Mar 2014 20:19
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The ads are appearing in Wordspionage, and I've clicked and downloaded a game, the first time ever.

I'm impressed at the number of ads already cycling.

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Naphier
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Posted: 24th Mar 2014 17:05
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We need more!
I'm now recording the daily impressions and clicks and will soon be showing them on the site. There's a fair amount of clicks and many impressions for Android apps. Not so many for iOS yet because Wordspionage's new update was just released on iOS.

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Ched80
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Posted: 26th Mar 2014 07:50
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Hi, one comment I do have is that the ACAN_CreateAd function creates sprites in world coordinates, it would be nice to have the option of screen coordinates for games where setviewoffset is used.

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Naphier
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Posted: 26th Mar 2014 15:37
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Hi Ched80, the API is ultimately an example of how to connect and get data from the server. Please feel free to modify it to your particular needs however you see fit.

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