How to Add RallyHub to Your Home Screen (iPhone and Android)

Deuce has his coaching cap on for a quick how-to, because the fastest way to use RallyHub more is to stop typing the address.

The fastest way to use RallyHub more is to stop typing the address. RallyHub runs in your browser, but it is built to live on your phone like a real app. Add it to your home screen and you get a proper icon you tap once, a full-screen view with no browser bars in the way, and the app right there next to your other apps instead of buried in a tab. It takes about thirty seconds and costs nothing. Here is how, on both iPhone and Android.

Even easier: RallyHub will often offer to do this for you. Right after you set up your profile, and again on your dashboard, you will see an "Add RallyHub to your phone" card. On Android that is a single tap. On iPhone it walks you through the same Share steps below. If you have already done it that way, you can skip the rest of this guide. It is here for anyone who wants to do it by hand or missed the prompt.

Why bother adding the icon

A home screen icon is not just a shortcut. When you add RallyHub this way, your phone treats it as an installed app:

• One tap to open. No browser, no typing, no hunting through tabs. The RallyHub ball is on your home screen with everything else.
• Full screen. It opens without the address bar and browser buttons, so you get the whole screen for the court map, your matches, and Courtside.
• You stay logged in. Open it and you are straight back where you were, the same as any app.
• You actually use it more. This is the honest reason. The apps you use are the ones you can see. An icon on your home screen is a small nudge to check your hits, accept an invite, or log a score instead of forgetting until next week.

iPhone and iPad (Safari)

On Apple devices you need to use Safari for this, not Chrome. It only takes a moment:

1. Open Safari and go to rallyhub.au.
2. Tap the Share button at the bottom of the screen. It is the square with an arrow pointing up. On an iPad it sits in the top toolbar.
3. Scroll down the share sheet and tap Add to Home Screen.
4. You will see the RallyHub icon and the name. Leave the name as is or shorten it, then tap Add in the top right.

That is it. The RallyHub icon is now on your home screen. Tap it and the app opens full screen, no Safari bars in sight.

Tip: if you do not see "Add to Home Screen" in the share sheet, you are probably in Chrome or another browser on iPhone. Copy the address, paste it into Safari, and try again. Apple only allows this from Safari.

Android (Chrome)

On Android, Chrome usually offers to do this for you, and you can also trigger it from the menu:

1. Open Chrome and go to rallyhub.au.
2. Tap the three-dot menu in the top right corner.
3. Tap Add to Home screen, or Install app if you see that instead. They do the same thing.
4. Confirm the name and tap Add or Install. If your phone asks, tap Add automatically.

Chrome often pops up its own "Add RallyHub to your home screen" banner near the bottom of the screen the first time you visit. If you see it, just tap it and you are done.

Tip: using Samsung Internet or another Android browser? Look for "Add page to" or "Add to Home screen" in that browser's menu. The wording changes a little, but almost every Android browser can do it.

Make it easy to find

Once the icon is on your home screen you can move it wherever you like, the same as any app. Press and hold it, then drag it onto your first page next to the apps you open every day. If you check your messages app out of habit, put RallyHub right beside it. The whole point is to make opening it the easy choice.

Turn on notifications while you are at it

The icon gets you in. Notifications bring you back at the right moment. RallyHub can let you know when a friend sends a hit request, when someone accepts your invite, when a match is waiting for you to confirm a score, or when there is a new reply on Courtside. The first time something happens your phone or browser will usually ask if you want notifications. Say yes, and you will not miss the things that actually need you. You can always fine-tune what pings you from your notification settings later.

That is the whole trick

No download, no app store, no updates to install. RallyHub is a website that behaves like an app the moment you add it to your home screen. Pop the icon on your phone, drag it somewhere you will see it, turn notifications on, and you will find yourself using RallyHub the way it is meant to be used: a quick tap to line up a hit, log a score, or see who is around to play. Go to rallyhub.au and add it now, it takes less time than reading this did.