Living Worlds: April, Live Wallpaper, and Stories!

When I started the Living Worlds project I knew nothing about Android development; I’ve been picking it up as I go along. The learning curve on getting live wallpaper working has been fairly steep, but everyone’s made it quite clear that it’s their number one feature request. I’m delighted (and relieved) to be able to announce that the new version of the Living Worlds app now supports Android live wallpaper! Now that it’s in, I have to admit it’s pretty magical to have the worlds right there on your lock screen, so I guess it was all worth it. :-)

Another, more subtle, feature in this new version (for both iOS and Android) is that the sequence of events is now the same for every device (though it’s a new sequence every day). This means you and a friend who both have the app can pull it up on your respective devices and see the exact same thing (assuming you’re in the same time zone). This includes every cloud in the sky, and even the path the fireflies take at night (though they may be off by a second or two, depending on how well your clocks are synchronized). This is another thing people have requested, and though I was skeptical at first, now that it’s in I’ve found this feature to be kind of magical as well.

Speaking of fireflies: the new release isn’t just about new features… Of course it also has the April scene! This one is lush and lovely, and once again there have been new challenges… At night there are fireflies and fairy lights that bob around; none of the previous scenes had animation at that level. Even though the fireflies are literally just one pixel each, I think they’ve got some lovely personality.

Last but not least, Mark, who’s not only an amazing artist, but a talented writer, has been inspired to revisit these worlds as a storyteller, writing a series of “logbook” entries from the point of view of someone exploring this strange land for the first time. The logbooks for the previous months are already filled out, and throughout this month new April posts will show up.

So, this has been quite the month of additions! Enjoy, and meanwhile I’ll dive into May…

Originally published at www.patreon.com.