Salix Monitor 360 • Launch update
The path to Salix going live, almost there!
Written by Graeme Moignard
Published:
Last updated:
Salix Monitor 360 is getting close to the point where it can step out from behind the curtain and stop pretending it is only a development project with a very full notebook.
The plan is still careful rather than noisy: tidy the loose ends, test the app hard, open the public-facing parts quietly and then start telling people about it without firing a glitter cannon into the server room.
The likely launch window
August is expected to be mostly about polishing off the remaining loose ends in the Salix Monitor 360 app. That means more testing, more small wording fixes, more user-flow tidy-up and a final hunt for anything that still feels wonky when the product is used from front to back.
If that goes to plan, the current aim is to bring salixmonitor360.je, the sales website and signup area, and monitor.salixmonitor360.je, the main Salix Monitor 360 app, into public view sometime in September.
A quiet opening first
The first public step will be quiet on purpose, allowing clients to sign up, try the app and give it a proper look without turning the launch into a brass-band parade on day one.
After that, Salix Monitor 360 marketing will become more steady. Adoption speed is impossible to predict, so a sensible growth plan is also being prepared behind the scenes. Ideally, all of that stays boring and invisible, which is exactly where infrastructure belongs when it is behaving itself.
Companion apps are getting close too
The Android companion app is staying as a direct APK download for now. The Google Play route is paused while the main product is still being finished, because the current tester and release requirements need more administrative time than is justified at this stage.
The APK download is already available from the Salix Monitor 360 downloads page, while the rest of the sales website remains locked down until launch.
The iPhone and iPad version, Salix Alert Desk, is now compiled and being tested through TestFlight by multiple users. It is running well in current testing, and the aim is to have it on the official Apple App Store in August.
iPhone and iPad companion app
Salix Alert Desk is in TestFlight testing
A few helpful testers are now using the iOS companion app before it heads for the App Store. The screen shown here is the current iPhone overview, with alerts, monitors and agents shown in a compact mobile view.
Tap the screenshot to view it larger.
Android
APK for now
The Android app remains available as a direct download while the Google Play route waits its turn.
iPhone and iPad
TestFlight testing
The iOS app is now being tested properly and is moving towards App Store submission.
Windows
Working installer
The Windows companion app works, with installer signing still to be sorted properly.
The Windows app and installer signing
The Windows companion app is fully working, but the installer is currently unsigned. It installs, although Windows SmartScreen warns about it, so the proper code-signing route for the Windows installer still needs to be completed.
Google, Apple and Microsoft all have their own hoops for releasing software properly. Some of those hoops are useful, some are paperwork with a hat on, but they are still part of putting the companion apps out in a way people can trust.
A short pause before the final push
The main personal priority right now is a proper family holiday in mid July. The timing also happens to overlap with the World Cup final, which is a nice bonus regardless of which two teams make it there.
That also means weekly blog updates will probably go quiet until the beginning of August. After the break, the focus will be on finalising anything that still looks crooked, testing Salix Monitor 360 from back to front, and getting the public launch path ready without tripping over the last few loose cables.