Expat in China designs phone app for easy language pickup

Although he is app-savvy (uses a cellphone app to know how long a bus will be before it arives at the stop where he's waiting), he had no prior knowledge of designing apps. "I make a sketch in my head but I didn't know anything about programming," Nikolov said.

Nikolov knew a freelance programmer from Finland, a friend of a friend, who agreed to help him. They officially began the project about a month and a half ago.

Thinking from a user's perspective, Nikolov has tried to enhance the element of fun on the app. The unlocking of achievements also results in users scoring points and competing with each other.

Until now, Nikolov has invested about 15,000 yuan ($2443) in the project, with most of it going into programming. The app is a "minimal viable product", meaning it has the highest return on investment, and he expects to launch it next month, he said.

At first the app will be created for the Android platform. With the launch of the app there will be a crowd funding campaign on www.dreamore.com, a Chinese website, to gather resources and generate user interest for an iOS version, he added.

The app will have a free version with limited functions, but for more functions, users must pay. Nikolov also plans to keep updating the app with trends and open Wechat stores for easy user access.

"I'm not sure if the app will catch on, but hopefully it could be a fun way to use cellphones and learn languages."

Contact the writer at sunli@chinadaily.com.cn