Turnipsoft Limited

A limited company registered in England and Wales: 7227430

Registered office: 1 Priory Grove, London SW8 2PD

LobsterConnect: the free sign-up app for London On Board meetings

LobsterConnect is a free sign-up app for London On Board meetings. It's available for Windows PCs, Android phones, iPhones and iPads (and if your Mac has Apple Silicon, it can run the app too).

Notes for Testers

The app is currently available for testing, and I'm asking attendees at LoB meetings (starting with the current LoBsterCon) to give it a try, so that:

We can see whether the cloud back end sync service works properly, under realistic loads (number of users, amount of activity, etc.)

I can get your suggestions about desirable changes to the app's functionality and look-and-feel

The app is currently populated with test data (a list of real games, a hundred or so fake users, some fake gaming events including a 'convention', and fake game sign-ups and 'would like to play' requests). Please download and use it. You can sign in as one of the fake users (in every case, the password is the user name) or you can create your own user name and password. Please try doing all the things you usually would while looking for games to play and setting up sessions to play them. Use the 'would like to play' function to suggest a game to play (and see how many others are interested). Try setting up gaming sessions yourself, or joining sessions proposed by someone else, try entering and using chat links to WhatsApp/BGG GeekList/Wix/whatever, try copying and using 'share' links to gaming sessions, and try cancelling sign-ups and declaring your sessions FULL or ABANDONED ... . The goal is just to try the app out under realistic conditions, to see what works and what does not. There's no need to enter real information into the app - it will all be wiped at the end of the testing period anyway.

Please send me feedback and questions at lobsterconnect@turnipsoft.co.uk. It would be helpful to include a descriptive subject line - 'HELP...' for questions about how to use the app, 'SUGGESTION...' for thoughts about how it might be improved, 'BUG...' for bug reporting. We've also created a LoBsterConnect General Testing WhatsApp group chat, under the overall LoBsterCon Community chat, for comments, discussion and questions.

But ... but ... but .. wait! I have questions! Maybe there is an answer for you in the FAQ.

Quick Start:

The app needs an internet connection so it can send and receive information about what games are being played, and who is playing them. When you first start the app, please make sure you have a good internet connection, so it can download everything. After that, the app can be used off-line - it will keep track of any changes you make, and sync them just as soon as it has a connection.
You can view the schedule of planned games without logging in to the app, but if you want to propose gaming sessions, or join existing sessions, you'll need to sign in. Tap the 'person' icon at the top right of the page to set up a new user name ('user handle') and password.
LobsterConnect can manage schedules for many different events; to pick an event, tap the event name above the schedule table (or tap the 'hamburger' symbol at the top left to open the main app menu, and pick the 'Change Event' option).
To see what gaming sessions are planned for the event, scroll around the schedule table. Note that sessions can be OPEN (still looking for extra people to join), FULL (the game's going to be played, but the organiser isn't looking for any more players to join) or ABANDONED (the organiser has decided that the game isn't going to be happening after all).
When you tap on an item in the schedule table, you'll be able to see the game details, including a link for chat about the gaming session (if the organiser has set one up).
At the bottom you'll see a button with a 'people' icon on it, and maybe some user names next to it; tap that button to sign up (or if you're already signed up, tap on it to remove your sign-up).
If you want to propose a new gaming session (to play a particular game at a particular time), tap in a blank space in the schedule table (or choose 'Add Session' from the main menu). Then fill in the details of the session, including the game that will be played. The app comes with a list of 500 popular games, but if your chosen game isn't on the list,there's an option to add a game (take care to enter the correct Board Game Geek URL, because it's hard to change this after the game is added).
Once you've created the session, you'll be prompted to add notes if you like, and then you'll be given the opportunity to link to a chat for discussing sign-ups for this session. For a BGG Geek List link, just paste it from your web browser; for Wix use the 'share' button to get a link; for a WhatsApp link, set up a new group (or use an existing one that you own) and copy the 'invitation to group via link' link from it, and paste it into the popup in LobsterConnect.
If there's a game you're hoping to play, you can add it to your 'would like to play' list. You'll be able to see whether any other people have also listed it as 'would like to play', so you can see whether it's worth trying to organise a session.
There's a 'filter' button above the schedule table, which you can use to show only some gaming sessions (only ones involving a particular game, or organised by a particular person, or signed up to by a particular person, etc.)
If you prefer to see all the gaming sessions in a compact list (without gaps for empty time slots) there is a toggle control at the bottom right that you can use to switch to a list view.
Keep an eye on the scrolling list of messages at the bottom of the screen. If people join or leave a session that you organised, you'll get notifications in this area. Or if a session you joined is declared FULL or ABANDONED, you'll also get a notification here. You'll also get notified here if someone proposes a session to play a game that is on your 'would like to play' list.

The LobsterConnect privacy policy is here, and our legal terms are here.

The software consists of two parts, the LobsterConnect application and a cloud back-end service, LobsterConBackEnd. The software is open source, under the GNU General Public Licence.

The app is free to use, and doesn't display advertising (though it's possible that future versions might display a 'sponsor message').

You can contact me by email at lobsterconnect@turnipsoft.co.uk or by using the 'support' item on the main menu in the app.