From the Forum — Issue #140

From the Forum — Issue #140

From the ForumWelcome to the latest installment of From the Forum. In this series, guest blogger Alex Jackson highlights outstanding threads from the Corona Forum. The goal is to bring attention to the most captivating, interesting, and thought-provoking discussions taking place in our very own backyard.

Please visit the forum to join these conversations or start your own!


Firebase plugin open-sourced

With the shuttering of support for Coronium and all of its various derivations, Corona developers are running to locate the next best option for their back-end server solution. Coronium was ideal because it was written in Lua and the original developer was fantastic when it came to providing support.

Fortunately, superstar Corona devotee scottrules44 has open-sourced his Firebase plugin which hooks into the popular Google-owned platform. It has far too many features to reference here, but suffice to say, it should cover everything you need when looking for a server solution. Head to the original forum thread to learn more about this option!

Launching Google Maps from within a Corona app

We’ve talked about hook-ins and URL schemes in From the Forum before, and for good reason: they are a great tool to extend the utility of your app without having to reinvent the wheel and leverage Corona Enterprise functionality. After all, allowing users to open other apps on a device is key for many productivity-minded programs.

When working on an app that is directly related to a real-world location, having the ability to open Google Maps to that direct location is always a nice option. In this forum thread, one developer has hit upon the magic elixir needed to get Google Maps to bend to your will, every time! Check it out and add these tips to your repertoire.

Security-minded app data

Obfuscation and app security always go hand-in-hand. The next best thing to hiding is, quite simply, encryption. With the proliferation of ad networks and the popular option of rewarding users with in-game items after watching videos, it is more important than ever to ensure that it’s difficult to wrongly manipulate the system.

For the second time this week, developer extraordinaire scottrules44 comes up big, donating some killer code snippets in the form of encryption functionality. No real preamble is needed here: it’s just some really sweet code! Check it out in the forum thread and don’t forget to say thanks!

About Alex

Alex Jackson is an indie developer and the founder of Panc Interactive, specializing in retro-style gaming. He has created several mobile applications, enjoys long walks on the beach, pixel art, and reading the Corona forums. Contact him by email or follow him on Twitter: @pancinteractive. Check out his new game Segreta on iOS, Android, Windows Phone, and Amazon devices.

alex
5 Comments
  • Vishnu Agrawal
    Posted at 04:29h, 11 September

    Please delete my a/c

  • Vishnu Agrawal
    Posted at 04:33h, 11 September

    Please delete my a/couple. Beacuase all reddy my a/c in Facebook Agrawal Vishnu

    • Rob Miracle
      Posted at 19:06h, 11 September

      You will need to email support AT coronalabs.com with this request.

  • Marcus
    Posted at 09:35h, 11 September

    Coronium ‘was great”? What’s wrong with it today? Last time I’ve checked Chris was still developing it 🙂

    • scottrules44
      Posted at 14:19h, 11 September

      Coronium is no longer supported by Chris.