Application feedback
Feedback closes the loop between the people who use an app and the people who build it. A user of a running app can send a short comment, and the app's builders read those comments in App Builder, decide what to improve, and mark each one as read when it has been dealt with.
How users send feedback
Feedback is sent from inside the running app. An app does not have a feedback button by default, so you add one by asking App Builder for it, just like any other part of the app.
When a user sends feedback:
- The comment is saved together with the app, the app version they were using, the user's name and the time.
- The user only needs to type the comment. The app, version and user are filled in automatically.
- An empty comment is not accepted.
- Feedback only works in the running app. It is not available in the preview while you are building.
The comment is sent in the name of the signed-in user running the app.
Add a feedback button to your app
Start a build session, paste the prompt below into the chat, and adjust the wording and placement to fit your app.
Add a "Send feedback" button in the top-right corner of the app. When the user clicks it, show a small panel with a multi-line text box and two buttons, "Send" and "Cancel". Do not allow sending an empty comment. When the user clicks "Send", submit the comment using VinceApiBridge.submitFeedback({ comment }). While it is sending, disable the Send button. When it succeeds, close the panel and show the message "Thank you for your feedback". If it fails, keep the panel open and show the error message so the user can try again.
Then check the result in the preview, save, and publish a new version so your users get the button. See Publishing.
The preview is only for checking how the button looks. Sending feedback works once the app is running as a published version.
How builders read feedback
Feedback is collected per app and shown in the app's editor.
- Open App Builder and open the app you want to review.
- Select the version you are interested in.
- Open the version's actions menu and choose Feedback.
The Application feedback window lists the comments with these columns:
| Column | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Feedback | The comment the user wrote |
| Submitted by | The name of the user who sent it |
| Date | When it was sent |
| Status | A Mark as read button for new feedback, or a Read label once it has been handled |
If nobody has sent feedback yet, the window shows No feedback yet.
The Feedback menu entry is available for apps built with App Builder.
Filter the list
Two switches at the top of the window change what you see:
| Switch | What it does |
|---|---|
| Show read | Off by default, so you only see feedback that still needs attention. Turn it on to include feedback that has been marked as read. Read items are shown dimmed. |
| This version only | Limits the list to the version you had selected when you opened the window. Turn it off to see feedback from all versions of the app. |
Filtering by version is useful after publishing a new version: you can see whether the changes you made triggered new comments.
Mark feedback as read
Click Mark as read on a row once you have dealt with the comment. The item leaves the list, and appears again, labelled Read, when Show read is on. Marking an item as read does not delete it.
Who can see and manage feedback
Feedback is visible to people who can edit the app, that is, users whose role gives them Write (or higher) access to App Builder for that app. They can read all feedback for the app and mark it as read. Users who only run the app do not have the editor, so they cannot read what others have sent.
See Concepts & Architecture for the permission levels and Security & Roles for how to assign them.
Tips
- Ask users for specific feedback, for example by adding a prompt text such as "What would make this screen more useful?" next to the box.
- Review feedback after every published version and mark items as read as you go, so the list always shows what is still open.
- Use This version only to compare the reception of a new version with the earlier ones.