Set up your team's devices
Get each phone or tablet logged in, installed on the home screen and allowed the camera.
The Mobile app runs in the phone’s web browser, and installs onto the home screen like any other app. There is nothing to download from an app store. Setting up a device takes about ten minutes, and is best done with the person sitting beside you: most problems on the first day come from a camera or notification prompt that was tapped away.
Before you start
- A user for each person, with their email and password. See Set up a new team member.
- The right browser. On Android, use Chrome. On iPhone and iPad, use Safari. Samsung Internet can open the app but cannot install it, and the app suggests switching to Chrome.
- The Tradie address, the same one you use for the Mobile app yourself. To send it to a phone quickly, open Settings on a phone that is already set up, go to Permissions and tap Share. The other phone scans the code that appears.
Step by step: log in and create a PIN
- Open the Tradie address in Chrome or Safari.
- Enter the person’s Email and Password, then tap Login.
- On the Pin Code screen, enter a PIN of at least 4 digits and tap Save PIN.
- Tap Enable Fingerprint / Face ID if the person wants it, or tap Skip for now.
Step by step: add it to the home screen
On Android:
- Tap the Install app button at the bottom of the home screen.
- Confirm in the box Chrome shows.
If the button has been closed, open Settings, go to Permissions and tap Install App.
On iPhone or iPad:
- Tap the Share button in Safari.
- Tap Add to Home Screen, then Add.
- Close Safari and open the app from its new home screen icon.
The icon is called Tradie on Android and TOTM on iPhone. Open the app from that icon from now on, not from the browser.
Permissions
The phone asks before the app can use each of these. Tap Allow each time.
| Permission | When the phone asks | What it is for |
|---|---|---|
| Location | The first time the app opens | Recording where work was done. Can be switched off in Settings, under Location Tracking |
| Camera | The first time someone taps Take Photo or scans a barcode | Photos on jobs and materials |
| Microphone | The first time someone records a video | Sound on job videos. Without it, videos are recorded silent |
| Notifications | When someone taps Enable notifications | Messages from the office, and a 6pm reminder if work is left running |
The Enable notifications button only appears when your company has switched on Scheduler -> Mobile Notifications in the Settings. On an iPhone, notifications only work once the app has been added to the home screen.
If a prompt was tapped away by mistake, the setting has to be changed in the phone’s own browser settings for the Tradie site. For notifications, the app’s Settings screen says so.
Check it worked
- Open the app from the home screen icon and enter the PIN.
- Check the home screen welcomes the person by name.
- Open a job and tap Take Photo to confirm the camera opens.
Good to know
Working without signal
The PIN is what lets the app open without a connection. Time, materials and notes entered offline are kept on the phone and sent once it is back online. The bottom of the screen shows Device is OFFLINE while there is no connection. See Working offline.
Shared or replaced phones
The PIN belongs to the phone, not the person. A new phone asks for the email, password and a new PIN. Before handing a phone to someone else, tap Logout on the home screen, which removes the saved login and PIN from it.
How often the PIN is asked for
By default the app asks for the PIN again after 10 hours. Your administrator can change this with Mobile Device Pin Code Frequency in the Settings.
See also
- Mobile app introduction - a first look at the app your team now has
- Notifications - what the office can send to a phone
- The Settings screen - every option on the phone’s Settings screen