A Video Look at App Switching on Windows Phone 7

[Jason Dunn]

<p><object width="600" height="360" data="http://www.youtube.com/v/DNfpPrto07Q&amp;ap=%26fmt=18" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"><param name="src" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/DNfpPrto07Q&amp;ap=%26fmt=18" /></object></p><p>A bunch of us reviewers with devices are trying to wrap our heads around how the back button works in relation to applications. There's a bit of controversy here, because a few people are saying that this behaviour is correct - that re-launching the application from scratch is the proper behaviour, while others are saying there's a lack of proper state saving. From my experience using an iPod Touch (pre-multitasking), some apps save the state (also called "Tombstoning") very nicely; if I'm typing an email, and I hit the home button and check a Web site, then hit the home button again, and go back into the email app, the email I was typing is right there. Other apps, such as games, don't handle that same scenario very gracefully, but that's not surprising. <MORE /></p><p>Ultimately I think this issue comes down to Windows Phone 7 developers not fully understanding how to save the state on their apps; hopefully over the next few months they'll figure this out. Microsoft needs to do a better job though of making it crystal clear how apps are ideally supposed to work; this is the first mobile OS from Microsoft in a very long time that hasn't allowed for traditional multi-tasking, so developers might not be thinking about things in the right way.</p><p>One thing is indisputable though: the fact that Windows Phone 7 has a back button means it introduces a completely different method of thinking about application states and moving between apps. Microsoft needs to work with their development partners to bring a level of consistency to this experience, or customers are going to be confused - because some reviewers already are!</p>

[037]

One thing you haven't tested in this video is this:

1. Go to App A, then exit via Start Menu
2. Go to App B, then exit via Back button
3. While on the Start screen, press Back again

That should return you to App A. And I wonder if that the state of App A is saved in that case? I tend to think that launch from Start Menu means that you want to start from square one for the app you chose.

Cheers.

[jimmyfal]

Very intelligent review, the type we want to see.

Hopefully MS and the developers, will grasp some these well made points

[Jason Dunn]

One thing you haven't tested in this video is this

Well, it's not my video. ;)

1. Go to App A, then exit via Start Menu
2. Go to App B, then exit via Back button
3. While on the Start screen, press Back again

This works; Flixster was "App A" for me, and when I went back to it via the back button, it had the same state; when I started it via the start menu, it was back to scratch.

I tend to think that launch from Start Menu means that you want to start from square one for the app you chose.

That's confusing for users, and it breaks the illusion of pseudo-multitasking that tombstoning gives you. On my iPod Touch 2G, no matter how I got into the app, it was as I left it...which is the whole point.

[stlbud]

Why is this a Microsoft problem. We had the same problems in the early days of the web then, the shopping web site developers got a clue - Oh, Sh*t we have to save the status of the customers session so we can restore it when they come back.

The discussion went on and various techniques were developed then someone discovered cookies and decided we should store information about the previous session in cookies so we can restore it.

Now, they are back to the beginning, there are no cookies or they haven't discovered the Win Phn 7 equivalent. They need to store the information on the server and get over it.

Microsoft has not done anything unusual here. It is not their responsibility to make the applications work for the third party developers.

[Fritzly]

Why is this a Microsoft problem. We had the same problems in the early days of the web then, the shopping web site developers got a clue - Oh, Sh*t we have to save the status of the customers session so we can restore it when they come back.

As Jason correctly stated this issue could negatively affects people experience with the new platform ergo MS has all the interest to have it resolved ASAP.

Third parties developed apps are strategic for the success of a platform, "Windows Desktop OSes" docet. this is the reason why MS "invested" so much to have apps available at the launch of WP7.

[bobrhine]

Now I don't know if this works or not since I don't have a phone yet but from what I remember Microsoft saying, if you launch anything again by going back to the start menu and clicking the icon, it will always restart the applications. If you launch the app again using the back button, it will always go and pick up the information you tombstoned and go back to the saved state. This is how Microsoft was saying it worked before for 3rd party apps. So lets say you open Shazzam then hit the Windows key and then open Ebay. After that, if you hit the back key to get back to Shazzam, your state should be restored. However, if you hit the Windows key while you're in Ebay and then click the Shazzam icon from the start menu, it will reset the state. This was supposed to be a design decision. Don't know if it really works like this though, because I don't have a phone yet.

[Kevin Daly]

If a user exits an application using the back button, it will be shut down completely and the next time it starts it will begin from scratch.
If the app is started from the Start menu (rather than using the back button to return to a previously open app) it will also be started from scratch.

If on the other hand an app is running and the user hits the start button and starts another app, then returns to the original one using the back button, they will return to whichever page was opened when they left - it is the responsibility of the developer to ensure that any necessary state (such as at the simplest level, the contents of fields) is saved an restored in this situation (if the developer has made no provision for saving and restoring state the app in this situation will return to the page that was active when it was interrupted, but it will have "amnesia", so any user input or selections for example will be lost).

[Jason Dunn]

If a user exits an application using the back button, it will be shut down completely and the next time it starts it will begin from scratch.
If the app is started from the Start menu (rather than using the back button to return to a previously open app) it will also be started from scratch.

Here's the thing though: a user will take the easiest path to get to the app. Unless the app is only a few presses of the back button away, it's faster for them to press START > App menu > click on the app (or even Start > tap on pinned home screen tile). Thus, I think the tombstoning needs to work in all instances - you have to anticipate the user will do the easiest thing every time, not the technically "proper" thing.

This is further complicated though if the app developer doesn't provider an in-app way for navigating from one level of the app to another...if they're relying on the back button for navigation, well, that becomes a bit of a nightmare.

[037]

Well, it's not my video. ;)



This works; Flixster was "App A" for me, and when I went back to it via the back button, it had the same state; when I started it via the start menu, it was back to scratch.



That's confusing for users, and it breaks the illusion of pseudo-multitasking that tombstoning gives you. On my iPod Touch 2G, no matter how I got into the app, it was as I left it...which is the whole point.

Thanks for testing this out, Jason! :D

I read it from somewhere that the Back button functionality is reminiscent of a web browser. In fact, imagine your whole OS as a web browser.

For example, if you browse a few pages in Site A, then type a new address in Site B, a back button will take you back to the last page of Site A. Meanwhile, choosing Site A from a Favorites/Bookmarks menu will always take you back to the first page of Site A.

Once you understand this logic, the Back button all in a sudden makes a lot more sense. The reason why we are confused is because we assumed the Back button is a folder tree hierarchy (i.e. back means going up to the top of start>app>page structure), when Microsoft actually chose a linear hierarchy (i.e. back means going back in time/browsing order).

In long run, I can see Microsoft implement elementary multitasking (ala quick app switching) in the form of a browsing history list when you hold down the Back button. The list will act like a history menu in a desktop browser, which not only let you switch between apps, but also pages within an app. That would be awesome if they do that. :)

[Jason Dunn]

In long run, I can see Microsoft implement elementary multitasking (ala quick app switching) in the form of a browsing history list when you hold down the Back button. The list will act like a history menu in a desktop browser, which not only let you switch between apps, but also pages within an app. That would be awesome if they do that. :)

That would be pretty sweet - it would speed things up, because the problem right now is that you don't want to have to hit back ten times if it's faster to jump back to the home screen...

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

Geez, why is this even necessary? App should always save its state; worked perfectly fine for us old Palm users, works fine for iPhone users, so why did MS think it necessary to complicate things this way?

[Jason Dunn]

Geez, why is this even necessary? App should always save its state; worked perfectly fine for us old Palm users, works fine for iPhone users, so why did MS think it necessary to complicate things this way?

Well, I think it's supposed to, but developers might not have entirely figured that out yet. :)

[Kacey Green]

Well, I think it's supposed to, but developers might not have entirely figured that out yet. :)
Exactly, always assume your user is going to get a phone call or text message, that's how I got into thinking about WP7 app dev, and at my second dev session the MS reps were saying the same thing, you don't know when they'll leave or why, tombstone properly and be ready.

[jazboy01]

Very good review.. i wanted to see such review..

[Kacey Green]

That would be pretty sweet - it would speed things up, because the problem right now is that you don't want to have to hit back ten times if it's faster to jump back to the home screen...

Yes that would be great especially if it let you switch back and forth between all apps with saved states (or) running first party apps in a long press, and if you normal pressed the back button on the apps main page then exit the app. Nothing needs to change for the developers to support this. Then back and start would hold alt functions on long press.

If an XNA app uses back as an actual control then you can still hit start and do a long press to get back in. All they'd need would be to listen for long presses, watch for any apps they haven't closed yet and present a menu of all "open" apps.

[SassKwatch]

That's confusing for users, and it breaks the illusion of pseudo-multitasking that tombstoning gives you. On my iPod Touch 2G, no matter how I got into the app, it was as I left it...which is the whole point.

You prefer the Touch behavior? I suppose there are apps where that might be preferable, but I can see occasions where it would be annoying as well. I.e., if every time I opened Pocket Excel, the s'sheet from the last session was loaded, I'd find that annoying.

[Jason Dunn]

You prefer the Touch behavior? I suppose there are apps where that might be preferable, but I can see occasions where it would be annoying as well. I.e., if every time I opened Pocket Excel, the s'sheet from the last session was loaded, I'd find that annoying.

Yeah, I can understand why that would be annoying in the case of Excel or Word...but on the other hand, how often do you open up one of those apps with the intention of starting from a blank slate? I'd guess most of the time those apps get opened via clicking on an email attachment more than "I need to start a new Excel file now". For most apps, I think the previous state is where you want to be - though in the case of games on the iPod for instance, it doesn't bring you back to where you were before - it loads the game from scratch and you restore you saved game or whatnot. So there's clearly some way of starting over if you want to.