Although learning to program well while trying to develop a new product has been at times arduous and time consuming, I am pleased to report that I have finished the application EcoMap Editor. This app allows the ScrapZero company to edit data on the iPhone app (EcoMap) without having to be a programmer. Here it is running: (As you can see, I've left the last column open for me to add notes to myself for the future.)
I spent this last week finalizing what I am currently calling EcoMap Editor. I've had all of the code ready for a while, but once I exported the code to an actual project, I realized a few things. First of all, my code used commas to delimit the text files that it imports. Essentially this means that the user of the program is restricted from using commas in sentences. This was not a difficult fix as I simply converted these commas to "***" and then converted these symbols back into commas when the data was retrieved by the iPhone. This might make a little more sense with the following diagram of the program's workflow:
Essentially, the app that I just finished takes computer jargon and turns it into human-readable text which can be edited and converted back into computer-speak. But typing commas when running the EcoMap editor simply messed up the program making it useless.
The second problem was that the program would only import this text file that I mentioned in the java developing platform, Eclipse. This is where the programmer makes his or her basic code to later export. Once I exported my files to be run as a stand alone applications, the program could no longer import the text file. So I ended up having to find the current path of the running program through some slightly more complex methods. The complexity wasn't as much of an issue as was the strain of rewriting my (at once functional) code. But I finally fixed all of that and got to the fun part of programming, design!
So I finished the week making the icon for EcoMap Editor in photoshop. It's simple and elegant.
I know this blog post has been unusually technical and possibly confusing. Please ask anything that you don't understand.
Awesome work! :)
ReplyDeleteOther than the icon, what design elements do you plan on working out?
Design is really involved in much of the process after the hard code is written. These elements include logos, buttons, pictures, and all the other pretty things that go into making an app love good and be user friendly. As I am not finished with the code yet, I'm only dabbling in design thus far.
DeleteWith the speed in which you did the programming that you liked less, I am excited to see where you go with more exciting (your words) design aspect! You mentioned that ScrapZero will be able to make edits without much knowledge of programming. What types of things will need to be updated and how long do you think it will take a non-programmer to make those changes?
ReplyDeleteHello Mr. Peacher,
DeleteYes, the design process is exciting! It won't be a major part of the project, but it is necessary.
This EcoMap Editor makes it extremely easy for ScrapZero to make edits with no programming knowledge. It functions just like a table does in programs like Excel and Numbers, but it has more functionality, like Geocoding (which outputs longitudes and latitudes of input addresses from a google geocoding API). Honestly, I don't know what API means yet, but this is part of the fun of learning all of this computer science.
Updates might include new compost/recycling locations that start up as well as updates like what materials are needed most at each site. It will take nearly no time at all for a non-programmer to make these changes because of this application I made.
I am thinking I might do a demonstration of how the EcoMap Editor works with EcoMap real time at the presentation! (if there is time)
Have you already decided to use the colors in your logo as your color scheme? And did you choose them for any particular reason?
ReplyDeleteI only chose black and white for the EM Editor because it looked clean, simple, and unobtrusive on my desktop. For the iPhone app itself colors have a little more meaning. I have chosen a color scheme that consists of light greens, light blue, and white. These colors seem to symbolize (at least in my mind) life and growth, which of course this app is promoting.
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