Liquid Daffodil makes it easier for Windows developers to support Unification

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We've been informed by the developer behind Unification that Nuget support is now available for developers. Nuget is a tool present in Microsoft Visual Studio for developers to easily manage SDKs, libraries and other elements. Liquid Daffodil has also opened up identity management across all supported platforms - Windows Phone 7 & 8, Windows 8 and the web. Developers can now access authentication and identity elements of Unification to get a "universal, user-specific" Microsoft Id across all platforms. So, why is this a big deal? 

This essentially means any developer can now install Unification from Visual Studio and authenticate all versions of their apps across all Microsoft platforms. Pretty neat and user-friendly. It's still required to contact Liquid Daffodil requesting access to send notifications and use the service, but not for the identity features. Nuget support enables developers to simply add the elements in and get cracking with updates and documentation readily available.

The service has gone through testing and is now out in the wild, but there's still room for more support from the Windows Phone developer community. With consumers still calling for a unified notification service for the Windows ecosystem from Microsoft, Unification continues to fill the gap before Redmond comes out with a native solution. It's not a perfect centre (everyone would prefer a native hub), but it's definitely worth checking out.

Unification Nuget

If you've got an app or few published on the Windows Phone and Windows stores and are (or have been) interested in the notification centre, we strongly urge you to look into implementing support, which is now easier than before. Be sure to get in touch with Liquid Daffodil should you require further details.

As a closing note, the Unification service itself is growing steadily with over 2 million notifications being processed each and every week. If we see more support from developers with apps taking advantage of what's on offer, we can definitely see usage increase in the future.

Rich Edmonds
Rich Edmonds

Rich Edmonds is a word conjurer at Windows Central, covering everything related to Windows, gaming, and hardware. He's been involved in technology for more than a decade and knows a thing or two about the magic inside a device chassis. You can follow him over on Twitter at @RichEdmonds.
38 Comments
  • Wow.  This stinks of some serious spyware.
     
    MS need to get off thier duffs and build this stuff into their OSes.
  • Hilarious and misleading comment, but there will always be "naysayers". :)
  • Not a naysayer. But really dislike the way you troll your own products' blog posts. I think unification is a great idea...if built into my phone. Your app sets a dangerous precedent and MS needs to move quickly to obsolete it: This app harvests all kind of personal information. Whether or not you ever use it for evil doesn't make it any more or less spyware. Most WP users are WP users because they're the types not to trust Google, the reigning king of spyware companies. Otherwise, there is little to recommend WP over Android. You should not expect this audience, in particular, to take kindly to this kind of dangerous application.
  • Actually most WP users are average people who aren't obsessed with tech giants battling each other. My wife is one of those people. I don't talk tech with her cause it doesn't interest her in the slightest. She knew her phone (Lumia 900) is a product from MS but had no idea that Android was a Google product. 
    I just asked her if she is aware of Google spying on her (she uses Gmail) and she said "You mean cause of those cars that drive through the neighborhood?" 
    I work for in a IT department and the people I help, end users, are the same way. Not all, but most.
    People who like Windows Phone like it cause it's different and dynamic compared to Android or iOS. Not due to the scare tactics that people regurgitate on the internet. 
    -Chris
  • To google: "You sit upon a throne of lies!" lol! ( web security definitely needs to improve.) wrong reply button. I address The post above this one⬆⬆⬆
  • I guess it could be used as spyware, but why does LD care about your twitter notifications? LOL
    Anyway, WP will have a notification center sometime between this Fall and early 2014. So unless you actually use one of the few apps the Unification supports, its useless. Even if the app started receiving nearly universal support, I doubt that would even be close to happening before the WP is updated with a notifications center.
  • It's ridiculous that we have to have to turn to third party devs to deliver simple things because MS dropped the ball! I love my phone and could never imagine moving to iphone or god forbid...android! But these things really annoy me and make it harder to convert new adopters!
  • If you list all of the OS-specific apps, I think Windows Phone is doing better than iOS and probably better than Android. People still use other solutions straight from the source (Facebook, twitter, linkedin), but to complain we use third-party apps is kind of silly unless you stick to using the stock OS apps. I understand your point, but this is just one of those things. Apple doesn't have wireless charging, NFC, methods for updating information without launching apps, etc. In those cases there are no third-party solutions. I guess if you don't have something you get used to it. Many of us don't know what life would be like with feature x, y, z because we have never had it. Do you complain your car doesn't have this feature or that feature? I guess to me it's the same thing.
  • I see you're point and agree...just felt like having a rant I guess, lol
  • I'm confused. Will this give me tile counts of say wpc app from my phone, on my PC unification tile?
  • Yes, it can and does currently. Just get the Windows Store version of the Unification app, and you can see all your notifications from your WP apps.
  • ...that has added support for unification. In other words, like 3 apps.
  • What took so long? THANK YOU.
  • Good old LD.. I would like to buy you a cheese burger.. Where do you live?
  • He would take it...he's in Texas...i believe they eat beef there. :)
  • I wonder where in Texas.. I'm in Arlington, TX.. You know, home of the Dallas Cowboys, and the Texas Rangers!!! I think I'd take him to Chaps Café.. They have awesome burgers!! Lol..
  • Let me know when y'all hook up and I'll be there too! N. Richland Hills resident and I believe LD is somewhere in the DFW area. Think I picked that up from the Outsiders app but I could be wrong.
  • I'm working on this FB group called "DFW WP Supporters" im starting the group because I think its a good way to get the local apps that we need.. Our local banks, credit unions, and other businesses have failed to make WP apps, so I think the issue needs to be attacked with local WP groups around the country.. My idea is that if we can get enough local WP users to show a need for specific apps from local businesses then we'd have a better chance at getting them sooner.. Of course links to post where demand for certain apps will be shared with these businesses. So, it's still a work in progress, but I know Dallas Fort Worth has a lot of WP fans so I know this will have a impact. Look up the page and start adding any local WP related pictures, or news.. Everyone's welcome. And, I hope we can find LD so he will join us, that is if he really is located here in the metroplex.. Lol!
  • Texas here too! DFW ftw!
  • https://www.facebook.com/pages/DFW-Windows-Phone-Supporters/528488330547749
  • "If we see more support from developers with apps taking advantage of what's on offer, we can definitely see usage increase in the future". What'$ thi$ "we" $tuff?
  • Free love for all. No $ ever involved of course. :)
  • How can you sustain the service if you plan on keeping it free? At 2 million messages a month you would be over the free message allotment if you are subsidizing with Bizspark and if you aren't using Bizspark but bootstrapping it yourself it would be even more expensive, especially if it ever takes off. Are you hoping to raise VC money? Normally a developer's monetization would be his or her own business but since you are providing an infrastructure service that could impact other developers it seems like a fair question.
  • Spyware.
  • X I'm tc, I'm sure liquid daffodil has more things to do than look over your Twitter notifications, lol beside what apps do you use that have real confidential info that are integrated with Unification. I'm a developer myself and I fully trust liquid daffodil, heck I talked to those guys for hours on integrating unification in to my apps. Very nice and helpful guys
  • Most of the apps that actually work with Unification are made by the same developer, and they cost $.
  • > Most of the apps that actually work with Unification are Meade by the same developer, and they cost $. Fair enough, if Unification was marketed as just a means to have all your LD apps notifications in central repository then that would be fine. But Codesmith in the past has referred to Unification as an "enterprise" class service, enterprise software isn't free. If he is going to market unification as a service to other developers then any pragmatic developer would want to know that it's a sustainable business. At some point the bill is going to come due for an enterprise class messaging service, that will mean either all the devs that bought into the "free forever" thinking will get hit with a bill to continue use or they will get cut off and find their apps start throwing exceptions (if they're sloppy) or they'll have dead code that may even continue to be making network calls but isn't providing any benefit and probably generating a bunch of complaints now that functionality seems to have gone missing. The other possibility is Codesmith isn't willing to charge for something he said would remain free, which is admirable, but shuts down unification because the costs are unsustainable, which makes the option even worse then getting a surprise bill for continued support.
    All I'm asking is that the realities and economics of software development and running a business be addressed. Or not, I'm probably just not the target market for this.
  • Please add disclaimer: "This is a promotional post." with these Liquid-Daffodil posts.
  • Lolol :)
  • How is this any more or less "promotional" than any other article about any other app, service, or hardware?
  • If you've been tring to implement Unification in your WP7 based app, do it this way.  I had this up and running in about an hour (more experienced devs will probably have it working in minutes).  I spent tons of time trying to implement this the old way for Water Log (which is built against WP7) and found the experience quite frustrating, and was not happy with the way the authentication worked, so I put it on hold.  This is the way to do it.  It's simple.  If you have an app with notifications, go do this.  Right now.  I'll wait.
  • You still waiting?
     
  • I cant install unification bcoz noy available in my country, what should i do?
  • Scream at the top of your lungs "curse you unification"!!
  • Sphincter says what
  • You're a sphincter?
  • Unification does not work anyway. That was a waste of a couple of quid. At 1 point it actually told me what apps I had that worked with it. That lasted 1 day. It just sits there and does nothing at all.
  • Thanks, LD!