The beta is open to the public!
This page is for anyone looking to use the public beta of “Phase 2” (i.e. app version 2.0) of the Family Diagram app. The goal of the beta period is to collect user feedback on how easy it is to use and how well it accomplishes the phase 2 goals.
Updates
- 2024-08-20: v2.0.0b1 released
- First run at simplified interface
- New “Add Data Point” form for every kind of event
- Automatically arrange new people on diagram
- Bottom timeline, diagram, right timeline all in lock-step
- New callout on bottom timeline showing events on current date
New Features in v2.0 Beta
- Simplified interface – original interface with all the extra buttons becomes “editor mode” enabled in the “View” menu.
- Hides many of the buttons
- Only uses three main variables: anxiety, functioning, symptom
- Hides tags / views
- “Add Data Point” form – the main, simplified way to create a diagram
- Bottom timeline, diagram, right timeline all in lock step
- Much easier to tell what date you are on, go to another date
- Callout bubble on bottom timeline (click to show event on timeline)
New Features Still Coming in v2.0 Beta
- Drawing shifts in anxiety, functioning, symptom on diagram
- Updated welcome screen with intro text and video for people new to Bowen theory
- Guided in-app tutorial
New Features Coming in v2.1, v2.2, v2.3 and v2.4
- v2.1: “BT Copilot” – AI chatbot trained on Bowen theory literature. Ask conceptual questions
- v2.2: Ask BT copilot questions about diagram file
- v2.3: Triangle View
- v2.4: In-App referral service for coaching in Bowen theory
Beyond the above features there is always the long-term goal if utilizing the app to collect data for model-based hypothesis testing in Bowen theory. That could mean running models on a single diagram, across diagrams, or some unforeseen way.
There is no telling what doors AI will open for this vision. v2.1 and v2.2 will be a big experiment and any number of things could come from it. Or it could be a dead end. But those two goals represent the entire world of AI potential application for Bowen theory today, technically speaking. There is a whole amazing world of AI-driven advancements in research and it is passing Bowen theory by. Hopefully v2.1 and v2.2 can help produce some experience with that gap.
How to get the beta
- Request to have a beta license added at your account: info@alaskafamilysystems.com.
- Beta licenses give full access to all the app’s features while the beta program is on.
- Beta licenses expire when the beta is over.
- Download and run the beta version (only works with beta licenses):
What Kind of Feedback?
All and any feedback of all kinds is strongly encouraged! Do your worst. Please do email me at patrick@alaskafamilysystems.com
What do you like? What do you dislike? What would you really love to see it do?
The beta is trying to accomplish the following, so these are particularly useful areas of feedback:
- Be useful by anyone on the street right from first downloading and running, not just Bowen people (lots to do here)
- Goal is just to click the green plus button and add data point after data point
- Need to update the welcome screen with a video and/or written intro
- Need to come up with help text at least for the three variables of anxiety, functioning, symptom.
- Going to have to add calls to action, like a bubble saying “click here to start”
- Click green button, just add events, and it builds the diagram for you
- Auto-arranges new people
