title: Development of a Smartphone App for a Genetics Website: The Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Online Genetics Database (ALSoD).
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The ALS Online Genetics Database (ALSoD) website holds mutation, geographical, and phenotype data on genes implicated in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and links to bioinformatics resources, publications, and tools for analysis. On average, there are 300 unique visits per day, suggesting a high demand from the research community. To enable wider access, we developed a mobile-friendly version of the website and a smartphone app.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  We sought to compare data traffic before and after implementation of a mobile version of the website to assess utility.
  
  
  METHODS
  We identified the most frequently viewed pages using Google Analytics and our in-house analytic monitoring. For these, we optimized the content layout of the screen, reduced image sizes, and summarized available information. We used the Microsoft .NET framework mobile detection property (HttpRequest.IsMobileDevice in the Request.Browser object in conjunction with HttpRequest.UserAgent), which returns a true value if the browser is a recognized mobile device. For app development, we used the Eclipse integrated development environment with Android plug-ins. We wrapped the mobile website version with the WebView object in Android. Simulators were downloaded to test and debug the applications.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The website automatically detects access from a mobile phone and redirects pages to fit the smaller screen. Because the amount of data stored on ALSoD is very large, the available information for display using smartphone access is deliberately restricted to improve usability. Visits to the website increased from 2231 to 2820, yielding a 26% increase from the pre-mobile to post-mobile period and an increase from 103 to 340 visits (230%) using mobile devices (including tablets). The smartphone app is currently available on BlackBerry and Android devices and will be available shortly on iOS as well.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Further development of the ALSoD website has allowed access through smartphones and tablets, either through the website or directly through a mobile app, making genetic data stored on the database readily accessible to researchers and patients across multiple devices.
authors.affiliation: King's College London, Institute of Psychiatry, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Olubunmi
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Abel
authors.forename: Aleksey
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Shatunov
authors.forename: Ashley R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: Peter M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Andersen
authors.forename: John F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Powell
authors.forename: Ammar
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Al-Chalabi
keywords: ALSoD; Web-bases; amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; app; bioinformatics; database; frontotemporal dementia; genetics; mobile website
references.citation: Acta Neuropathol. 2012 Sep;124(3):339-52
references.pmid: 22903397
references.citation: Amyotroph Lateral Scler. 2011 Jul;12(4):238-49
references.pmid: 21702733
references.citation: J Med Internet Res. 2010 Jun 14;12(2):e19
references.pmid: 20542858
references.citation: J Med Internet Res. 2011 Dec 31;13(4):e126
references.pmid: 22209829
references.citation: J Telemed Telecare. 2001;7(2):82-9
references.pmid: 11331045
references.citation: Hum Mutat. 2012 Sep;33(9):1345-51
references.pmid: 22753137