Week 10 Blog Post: Value Proposition

The objective of this week's post is to identify a direct competitor to my product and articulate the value proposition of my product (i.e. why my product is better).

A main competitor I found to my product is Mealime a "healthy meal planning app" on the Android App Store. (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mealime&hl=en)






VALUE PROPOSITION

The Mealime app provides a complete meal planning experience. This experience includes creating a calendar, creating meal plans, adding in recipes, and inputting all of the nutritional information for each of your foods. While it might be an all encompassing experience perfect for those who want complete control of their diets, it is not the experience for the average busy user that I am targeting. Everybite is superior in this aspect because it provides a very simple, yet functional interface that allows users to create a new meal-minder in the app with only three taps. My hope is that my streamlined interface will draw in more potential users to this kind of meal-planning app that might be turned off my traditionally complicated apps.
In additional, the underlying goal of Mealime is different from Everybite even though they appear similar on the surface. The goal of Mealime is merely to create meal plans and set up recipes such that they can be referenced later when it is time to cook a meal. In this sense it is more of a meal calendar notebook. Everybite's goal on the other hand is to be the ultimate meal-reminder app. It leaves all of the "what am I going to eat?" up to you, but that's okay because its focus is to remind busy or forgetful people so they don't completely miss that meal. In addition, the possible add-on feature of a meal-reminding coach to the Everybite app would make it even more superior by providing feedback to the user instead of being an input-only interface.

Week 9: Project Status Update

The purpose of this week's post is to provide a brief status update to the lab group and to those unfamiliar with my project.

The product that I am creating is called EveryBite. It is a meal-scheduling mobile app that allows users to set up a meal plan using the device's interface and then reminds them when to have their meals and provides feedback about their performance. The first stage of the project was planning out what I wanted to include in the app and how I wanted to lay out the user interface. After doing some user testing with paper designs and questioning with my brother who is skilled with mobile apps and people in my dorm, I determined that the current design of having a clock interface on the home menu and tabs to access each of the different activities, such as the coach and viewing the schedule, would be the best design moving forward. At this point in the project, I have started developing a prototype of the app in Android Studio for the Android platform to have the basic functionality of creating and viewing meal plans. Specifically, the functionality I have developed so far includes viewing the currently scheduled meals on a clock interface in the main menu, creating a new schedule, and removing events from a schedule. The next steps of this project include adding the functionality to edit events and cleaning up the interface to begin user testing on a finished prototype of the app.

Week 7: Reflecting on User Input

     The topic of this week's discussion is reflecting upon the user feedback that I have received on my project so far and explaining the effect that it has had on the course of my project. Some of the first people that I talked to were my friends from around my dorm. They mostly helped in the early stages of my idea creation when I was deciding on the direction of where I wanted my app to go. I had originally proposed a meal-coach app that could be used to help people with eating disorders and they helped to push me to the idea that I could broaden its focus a little and cater to all varieties of people whether dieting or with a disorder who might need to be reminded on meal times. This helped to broaden the focus of my app but also through this process I was also able to tweak my understanding of my app and better determine what service I wanted to deliver to my audience.
     The second set of user feedback I got was from my brother on elements of the UI for the app. He has had a lot of experience with designing mobile apps from apps that he has made at hackathons and through time at a startup and therefore I thought that he would be a good candidate to ask for critique. I had originally proposed an app style where it would be all based around a single home screen and the clock in the center would be tapped to create new events on the calendar. However my brother believed that this was not intuitive enough to him and therefore would not be very intuitive to most users as a whole. He suggested instead that I create tabs at the bottom of my app so that users can switch between different activities and know what they activity they are in now and where they can go at all times. To me, I thought this was a good improvement to the app because it simplified the design on my end, but also added clarity to the layout of the app.

Week 6: Project Planning

Project planning is an important task in the development of a prototype, particularly when the project timeline is short. Share your current project plan on your blog in whatever form you would like (image, text list, spreadsheet, etc.). Regardless of the form, describe the tasks you plan to do for each week of the project through the end of the term (e.x. week of 10/24 - conduct user observations and draft a paper prototype of the application). Briefly remark on how the work you do each week incrementally builds value in your prototype. 

 

This is the project plan that I made in class for the timeline of my project. Each week has different tasks that should be completed within that week with some tasks extending over a period of two weeks. At the end of every two weeks there are also certain incremental milestones that should be completed in order to progress the project. Each milestone builds on the others and is self-encapsulated so that if the last few are not completed it does not affect the rest of the project.

Week 5: Basic App Layouting and User Testing + Android Re-familiarization, the purpose of this week is to reintroduce myself to Android Studio and begin making the basic buttons and screens in the app in order to have a framework to work from.

Week 6: Basic App Layouting and User Testing + Learn to store/access local data, this mostly builds upon the previous week, but with the layout nearing completion user testing should also begin which adds value to the product by making sure that possible users are happy with the way that things are layed out in the app. In addition, with the layout completed, I will also begin to learn how to store data inputted into a local database so that I can store meal plans.

Week 7: Add ability to create calendar events and view, this week is mostly about building off of the previously established framework and the knowledge of local data storage to add the ability to create events and add them to a calendar that can be displayed in the app. The first milestone is this week, being an editable calendar and this is the first feature which really adds usability and value to the app.

Week 8: This week is important because it has the proof of concept demo for the entire class. This will mainly consist of the calendar that was completed at the end of last week. In addition to that, other goals for this week are to add advanced layouting to the basic functionality of the app and improve its overall appearance. With this completed more user testing should also be conducted to get feedback on the basic functionality and feel of the app.

Week 9: Notifications are the main focus of this week and they will be used to add value to the app by being able to notify users of their mealtimes without them having to physically open up that app each time they want to check. The next milestone is also this week with the ability to create and edit notifications completed.

Week 10: This marks about the halfway point in the development cycle of the app where all of the basic meal-planning and reminding is complete. Now the main work is going to be put into developing the AI meal-coach that accompanies the app. Week 10 is mostly about testing the waters for this concept by learning about what needs to be done to develop the AI and doing user testing on what they would find useful in a coach.

Week 11: The goal of this week is to finish of the basic work done on the coach last week and have a working prototype by the end of the week as the third milestone. The main goal of the coach is to add value to the app by providing encouragement and feedback to the user beyond just a faceless notification-calendar service.

Week 12: This is the week of the refined demo which should have the capability to add/edit meal plans, provide notifications to the user, and a basic prototype of a meal coach. This should include all of the main value points of the app, with the only additional value to be added being polishing off the coach and the overall appearance to provide a smoother experience for the user. Beginning this polishing process is the main goal for the remainder of the week after the demo.

Week 13: By the end of this week the final milestone should be met of having a complete coach with a personality and the ability to ask questions to the user. Advanced graphics for emotions for the coach should also be completed during this week.  Once these items are finished all of the value points for the app will be complete

Week 14: Selected demos in lecture, let's hope I'm good enough to make it!

Week 5: Competing Design Ideas

This post is a layout of the two designs I plan on possibly implementing for the main screen on my app. To recap, the purpose of my app, called everybite, is to help the user in creating a meal-plan schedule and remind them when and how to eat with a series of friendly questions and feedback questions.

This first design is a simplified layout that features a large clock in the center which displays meal times along with the current time and displays the friendly AI helper who will prompt the user with questions and helpful advice. This design mainly addresses the question of how can users most effectively and efficiently view all over their data. All of the events are clearly visible on the one screen in the clock and by tapping the clock a user would be able to pull up a separate calendar list menu where they can configure the individual events.

The second design is a tab layout that is designed to provide more specific data to the user in a immediately available format. This design addresses the question of how can we better organize the data in the app. It accomplishes this by putting each of the major functions of the app such as the clock, calendar, and coach into their own separate tabs so that each function can be separate from the others but yet still easily accessible by a single tap.

(P.S. This post is a little late but per the email that you sent out I hope this is okay)

Week 3 Lab: Project Ideas

1

A. Project Name: IoT Sensor Nodes for Smart Hospital Rooms

B. In one sentence, describe the project: The goal of the project is to create a wireless networked system of sensory nodes that can accept sensor input and communicate those inputs among the nodes to produce real-world mechanical or digital outputs.

C. Who exactly is the user for this?  Incapacitated patients in a hospital room who cannot adjust basic aspects of their room.

D. What actual problem are you trying to solve for them? Trying to solve the problem that the patients are not able to physically get up to turn off lights or adjust blinds if another person is not present.

E. What actual value/solution does your project give the user? It provides comfort and convenience to the patient users

F. Who exactly would pay for it?  The owner of the hospital

2

A. Project Name: Healthcare Diagnosis App

B. In one sentence, describe the project: To create an iOS or Android app that takes users health data and extrapolates on trends between data points to suggest certain health concerns.

C. Who exactly is the user for this?  Any patient who wants a basic health diagnosis without having to go to the doctors office and setting up an appointment

D. What actual problem are you trying to solve for them? Trying to solve the problem of healthcare costs being driven up by too many patients going to the doctor's office or emergency room for a condition that could be diagnosed and handled at home

E. What actual value/solution does your project give the user? It lowers healthcare costs for the user

F. Who exactly would pay for it?  The user of the app

 

3

A. Project Name: Study Buddy Locator

B. In one sentence, describe the project: A web app that allows students to coordinate and find out where students from certain classes are studying so they can form study groups together.

C. Who exactly is the user for this? College students who feel as though they can never find people in their classes to study with

D. What actual problem are you trying to solve for them? They are unable to study in groups for their classes because they never know where their classmates are studying

E. What actual value/solution does your project give the user? It provides a location-based system that notifies users where the study groups they want to find are located.

F. Who exactly would pay for it?  The users of the app

 

 

Week 3 HW: The System Diagram

1. Consider the original Edison electric bulb, as well as the Philips Hue bulb. Diagram the 5 system elements in each case. What additional system(s) has to be present for the Philips Hue to work? Can you diagram it? 
2. Consider self-driving cars. Identify (& diagram) the 5 system elements needed for self-driving cars to work? If you have a choice between making very smart or somewhat less-dumb roadways, which would you choose & why? How would you improve safety?
3. Identify the Packaged Payload in (B). How do you make money if you’re Ford? How do you make money if you’re Google? Is the packaged payload the same? 

Edison Light Bulb System Diagram
Source: Power plant to generate electricity
Distribution: Power lines to bring electricity to the light bulb
Packaged Payload: Electrons in the wires of the power lines
Tools: Physical filament in the light bulb that receives the electrons
Control: The original light bulb system had no control system, but meters were soon implemented by Edison to control the amount of electricity that goes to each business or residence

Phillips Hue System Diagram
Source: Power plant to generate electricity
Distribution: Power lines to bring electricity to the light bulb
Packaged Payload: Electronics in the wires of the power lines
Tools: RGB LEDs in the light bulb that illuminate with an applied voltage
Control: Electricity meter, but also an integrated app that allows control of the brightness of the bulb, the color of the bulbs, and the timing for the illumination of the bulb.

Self-Driving Cars Diagram
Source: Factories that produce the cars (if manufacturer) or engine that runs the car (if examining driving behavior)
Distribution: Shipping used to send the cars from the factories to the dealerships (if manufacturer) or crank shaft that converts the chemical energy in the engine into rotational mechanical energy that drives the wheels (if examining driving behavior)
Packaged Payload: Individual cars being shipped (if manufacturer) or bursts of energy being provided to the drive train of the car (if examining driving behavior)
Tools: Buyers who purchase the cars from the dealership (if manufacturer) or drive train of the car that accelerates and maneuvers the vehicle (if examining driving behavior)
Control: Logistical systems to control and streamline the manufacturing and shipping process, could include automated factories in the source stage (if manufacturer) or AI system that accepts sensory inputs including LIDAR and camera feed to determine where the car should drive and what it should do (if examining driving behavior)

In the self-driving cars diagram above I separated it out into two distinct sections with the manufacturer representing Ford and the control of the driving behavior being Google. They each have a different packaged payload that they can make money off of because Ford makes money for each individual car that they ship from the factory and sell to a dealership and Google makes money on licensing out their AI control systems that control the driving to companies such as Ford or other manufacturers.

Week 2 HW: Dominant Design

List of Dominant Designs

QWERTY Keyboard

            Competition in the late stages of the stages of the typewriter for different layout of the key on the keyboard to maximize productivity. The Dvorak style keyboard is often cited as the major alternative to QWERTY.

Microsoft Windows

            In the Late 1980s and early 1990s there was major competition and different for operating systems for different PCs, such as between Apple’s OS and different distributions of Linux, however Windows emerged as the most dominant in the computing industry.

VHS Tape Format

            Competition between the VHS and the Betamax formats for the leading standard using for recording and storing video tapes. VHS ultimately won this “format war” because it was significantly cheaper in the U.S. market and could record up to twice as much footage per tape.

AC Power Electric Grid

            In the late 1800s there was a large feud between Tesla and Edison to determine what would be the type of current used to deliver electricity to the masses over the power grid. Tesla was an advocate of AC power while Edison advocated DC power.  Tesla’s AC power ended up prevailing because it is safer and much more efficient than Edison’s DC power which he had all of the ownership rights too.

Philips Ambient Health Experience

            This refers to a patient treatment style used throughout the healthcare system developed by Phillips where the patients are put in a relaxing environment that calms their senses when they are undergoing stressful procedures or operations. There was not much of a precedent for this kind of system, but once it began to be implemented, hospitals began to imitate it all of the world because of the peace of mind that it brought to patients.

The Next Dominant Design

I believe that in the field of education at least, the next dominant design is going to come in some form of a new teaching model with traditional classroom style learning time done through online video lectures and an in-class lab or discussion period that can be used to cater to the specific needs of each student. This will allow all students to have access to a level of education appropriate for them and will allow more students in general to have access to that education.

Week 1 HW: Remarks and Reflections from iPod Intro Video

I thought that there were several elements of this video that were particularly remarkable for its time. The one that first stood out to me was how Jobs never actually displayed the physical product until the very end of the keynote, and spent the rest of the time merely describing what the device did. I felt like this was done in an effort to emphasize the fact that it wasn't the form factor of the device that mattered but what its capabilities were. Another part of the video I found interesting was how Jobs kept comparing the new iPod to many of the current devices on the market. However in this process he kept emphasizing not that his device was merely better but that it was x10 or had specs that were at least ten times greater than what was currently available on the market. I also noticed that many of the 10x comparisons that were being made referred to the storage capacity of the device which seemed to be the major breakthrough for the iPod. Jobs was really trying to market the fact that you could now no longer have just 15 songs in your pocket but your entire music collection that you have ever owned. Here he was really trying to appeal to the mass audience of people who all listen to music and make a call out to them.

Week 2: Using Noodl as a tool for real-world development

Think of some of the ideas you sketched in class for projects targeting specific problem frames in heathcare and education in the 21st century. How might you be able to use Noodl or a similar tool to prototype a product that might address those problem frames? What would be the advantages and disadvantages of using a tool like Noodl? Do you think a Noodl-based application could be used to develop the final product? Why or why not?

Noodl is a web-based chrome extension that allows users to quickly construct their own web apps using an easy to learn visual programming environment. In our entrepreneurship class, we are trying to examine if this tool would be at all valuable in developing apps in the real world for solving the current problems in the healthcare and education industries. I personally believe that Noodl has some use as a preliminary design tool and for allowing ideas to be quickly developed into a prototype that can be deployed and tested on users. However Noodl is also limited in its potential longevity for use on a project and once the real application needed to be developed, more engineers would need to switch to programming in actual HTML and JavaScript.

These reasons lead me to believe that Noodl potentially does have use in the development of a final product that can be used to solves problems in one of the outlined areas, however the usefulness of this tool will just be limited to initial prototyping and proof-of-concept designs. Ultimately the tool will most likely be ditched as the app becomes more refined and more features that can be found in more advanced tools will become necessary.