Final grades up on wolfware!
Final grades are up on wolfware, and totalled there. The class did well.
Thanks again for a fun semester.
Let us know if you have any concerns!
We will post these tonight.
Ben.
Project: Arrival (Aagaman)
- Multiple functions can be added to the application like creating groups for purposes like carpooling, grocery shopping etc.
- The application can be integrated with the University’s Office of International Services so that whenever a student enters the flight info, the flight information is automatically pushed as an e-mail to the office so that they can arrange someone from the University to pick the students from the airport.
Project: Dino Digger VR
Team:
Keven Desai, Paritosh Desai, Ryu Komiyama, Benjamin Lykins, and Nikunj Shah
Tagline:
We are always looking for ways to interest young students in pursuing higher education. By targeting their interests, we hope to inspire their imagination by creating an interactive virtual space where they can interact with a dinosaur excavation site. The goal of this project is to be an educational experience where students can learn about the excavation process, and also be an authentic representation of the quarry and the bones.
What we have accomplished:
We managed to finish most of the things we set out to at the beginning of this project. We created a virtual reality application that runs on the Android platform and uses Google Cardboard to represent a virtual dinosaur quarry. In the app, the user is able to collect bones and move around the quarry by moving to specific points around the environment. Five bones are scattered around the environment that the user can collect. After the bones are collected, the user can go to the tent at the center of the map to complete their objective. The user is then free to roam the environment for further exploration.
We also put in educational information about the fossils in the environment as that was part of the project requirements. We talk about the bones as they are being collected, as well as information pertaining to the process of excavating dinosaur bones, and what it is like to occupy an excavation site.
Future Possibilities:
- HTC Vive (when the price lowers significantly from $800)
- Camera function used to detect change in user coordinates outside of the VR environment
Screenshots:
Link to Youtube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hc-hE3NATPA&feature=youtu.be
Link to Github repo: https://github.com/NCSUMobiles/Spring16-dinodigger
Project : TreeFinder
#TreeFinder
Team :
Abbas Hussain , Abbey Lancaster , Bobby Radford , Daniel Streeter , Priyanka Puranaik
Tagline:
Learning about Trees will now be fun for kids.
Background:
You can always Google , check out on Wikipedia or ask somebody about information on trees. That is no fun. Especially if we want the children to know about trees that surround them. TreeFinder fills that gap , by helping children navigate to the most closely related tree that matches the physical qualities of the leaf they have found. The android application gets them to the tree , with a tree picture and a small description one step at a time, by answering questions about the leaves.
The original design was to use the existing Tilt-a-Story components to make it game like.
Future Work:
1. Trivia and Quiz.
2. Better , consistent and original graphics.
3. Picture taking and data gathering functionality.
4. Web services for images instead of permanent static links.
5. Extension to more number of trees.
6. Most importantly , interaction that makes it engaging for kids.
7. Similar app for iOS.
Representative Images :
Github: https://github.com/NCSUMobiles/Spring16-treefinder
Video : TreeFinder on Youtube
DinoRunner
Make running fun again!
Problem: For many gamers, running and physical activity is rarely a subject to be excited about. Dino Runner seeks to "gamify" running, and combine running with RPG concepts, allowing gamers to have goals to strive for, game, all inside their pocket.
How it works: DinoRunner uses the android phone's accelerometer sensors to detect when the user is running, and maps their distance traveled to the game interface. Players will have the option of picking different tracks, each with their special twists. For example, some tracks might have regions of water, where it will "slow" you down within the game, causing the player to have to run faster in real life. The track also spawns a monster that is specific to the track, and this monster will chase you around. Be careful of getting caught by the monster, because they are quite dangerous, and will reduce the player's health. Upon successfully completing the track, players will be rewarded with experience, items, gold, which can be used towards ingame items that can boost players speed (so they can tackle harder bosses!). With this reward system in place, we hope to make running an enjoyable experience, and hopefully make users forget they were running in the first place.
Unfinished work: A few of the team members are planning on continuing this project, hopefully towards a summer blockbuster release. Before release, we wish to have:
- MORE TRACKS
- MORE MONSTERS
- MORE ITEMS
- Immersive sound
- Ingame shop
- ...AND MORE
PROJECT : Tilt-a-Story
- Understanding the existing code and identify the refactorable components.
- Built Menu development APIs.
- Built Environment development APIs.
- Built Character development APIs.
- Built Movement APIs which uses accelerometer.
- Built Interaction APIs.
- Built Sound integration APIs.
- Recreated Old TiltAStory Game and built new levels using the APIs
- Support custom settings
- Support more interactions in the game
- Support 3D games
- Add more visual effects and animations
Post invites out, extra reading spots up
All teams should have invites to post at this time. Let us know if not!
I have added space for extra readings in your grading index.
Please continue to let us know if you have any concerns.
Thanks again for a great semester!
Prof Watson
Project: SquarePeg
Team
#SquarePeg
Tagline
Background:
Future Work
Video
https://youtu.be/j9WricenHlgRepository
Project: VR Timeline
- Gaze Triggered Buttons: all buttons with the application are triggered by the user’s gaze. The user must stare at a button for approximately 5 seconds to “click” it
- Help Screen: at the launch screen the user may select the help screen that will instructions on how to interact with the timeline
- Ease Scrolling: the user scrolls through the time by simply looking to the left or to the right. The further the user looks to the left or right the quicker they scroll through the timeline.
- Event Buttons: each timeline event is represented with a button and to learn more about a particular event the user triggers it with their gaze
- Information Panels: upon selecting an event button a panel above and below are set based on that event
- Some Additional Information: Above the timeline the user will be provided with a brief description of the event and a single image
- More Additional Information: Below the timeline the user will be provided with additional background on the event and/or extra images
- More Timelines: the user has the capability of switching to different timelines
- Currently each timeline must be individually created. If we can incorporate the Timeline JS excel template into the application, we can improve the efficiency of creating additional timelines and possibly allow each user to individualize what timelines he/she can view
- In the world of design a world event or economic crisis can have an impact on the design and construction of products. If we can identify the implications such an event or crisis had on production we can connect the two timelines and allow the user to see how current events influenced product development.
Project: Story Maps
#projects
Tagline: Every place has a story to tell.
Description:
Do you miss the old tourist maps that would give you curated content, specialized for your needs? Today, Google Maps dominate when it comes to travel. However, when one needs to explore new areas, where does one start? We don't have many options today to address this need. Thus, we present to you - StoryMaps.
The StoryMaps application allows you to access curated stories for Raleigh. Every story or map trail is based on a different theme. You can select any story that you like and follow the trail of locations provided to start exploring the new place! Each story provides a custom map and distances of all places from your current location.
Future Work:
Adding Search functionality, to search from a list of stories.
Providing direction between locations.
Adding different verticals, for example, stories with a global appeal.
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJirEhxwehM
Repository: https://github.com/NCSUMobiles/Spring16-storymaps
AppStore: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ionicframework.storymaps565921
Representative Image:
Recognize Final Project
Project: Recognize
Recognize is an imaged based quiz game that tests your ability to perform different mental operations on the main image to match it with one of four image choices as quickly as possible!
Recognize aims to create an innovative visual recognition game that targets school-aged children.
The application is android based and requires players to identify one of the image choices as being somehow related to the main image, which is filtered with some effect (ex: blur, vertical scanner, etc.). The content (images and fun facts) of the game is remotely managed via a Google App Engine.
Future requirements include integrating authentication into the server-side, creating easy/medium/hard levels, and having users upload their own images and albums into the app
Website: https://recognize-1210.appspot.com
Repository: https://github.com/NCSUMobiles/Spring16-recogneyes
Video: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7QAYFBHMrFhbGVzRHpBTEtfR28/view?usp=sharing
Apologies! Ignore visual experience note
Ignore the previous message about visual experience.
Posted on the wrong course!
Prof watson
Reminder: touch and maps questions
You might want to do our touch and maps questions to prepare for the corresponding quizzes during our last Monday class.
Professor Watson
Find: EU lodges formal antitrust complaint against Android
// The Verge - All Posts
The European Union has notified Google of formal antitrust charges against the company relating to its Android mobile operating system. The charge sheet focuses on the company's prioritizing of its own services on Android devices, including practices that mean that Google Search is "pre-installed and set as the default, or exclusive, search service on most Android devices sold in Europe." The EU's investigation, which was originally opened last April, claims that this and other measures prevent companies from effectively competing with Android.
Find: Intel cuts 12,000 jobs in wake of falling PC sales
// The Verge - All Posts
Intel is laying off 12,000 employees globally, or about 11 percent of its workforce, the company said in a statement today.
Next #appfight in @NCState's @mobiclass: Google vs OpenStreet maps
Team evals
As we approach this semester's crescendo, please make sure that you perform for your team.
For those of you who feel one or more of your team members are not performing, you can ensure that failure to perform is reflected in their course mark by filling out this form as a team. Your feedback about your team members is anonymous.
Prof. Watson
Next #appfight in @NCState's @mobiclass: Twitter vs Facebook
Don't forget to post your thoughts about this week's social app fight! Remember to focus on comparing basic interactions, not feature differences.
Dual-camera phones are the future of mobile photography
// The Verge - All Posts
Smartphone cameras can do astounding things nowadays, however they are starting to reach some hard physical limits. There's only so much you can achieve within the tight constraints of a device that's 7mm thick, and phone companies are looking for alternative means to keep improving. This spring, LG and Huawei have led the way with their new Android flagships, introducing two very different dual-camera systems that nevertheless signal the direction that the entire industry is about to head in. Apple's iPhone 7 Plus is rumored to be following their lead later this year. One day soon, we'll look at dual-camera phones the way we think of dual-core devices today: just a logical progression with nothing remarkable about it.
LG's G5 will be...
People interpret the same emoji in completely differently ways
// The Verge - All Posts
Although emoji fill in where words are lacking, their true meaning might be getting lost in translation. People interpret emoji differently, according to a new study from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. This holds true even if chatting is happening over the same operating system.
Take the "grinning face with smiling eyes" emoji, , for example. The researchers surveyed online respondents on how they interpreted the emoji's sentiment, rating it on a scale from -5 (strongly negative) to +5 (strongly positive). Seventy percent of people put the face in the negative area of the chart, with most people ranking it at -3. But still, 27 percent of respondents thought it conveyed a more positive emotion. The chart below breaks down the...
Next #appfight in @NCState's @mobiclass: Google vs Bing search
Don't forget to post your thoughts about this week's search app fight! Remember to focus on comparing basic interactions, not feature differences.
Next #appfight in @NCState's @mobiclass: gPhotos vs Flickr
Don't forget to post your thoughts about this week's photos app fight! Remember to focus on comparing basic interactions, not feature differences.
Next #appfight in @NCState's @mobiclass: gMusic vs Spotify
Don't forget to post your thoughts about this week's music app fight! Remember to focus on comparing basic interactions, not feature differences.
Next #appfight in @NCState's @mobiclass: Autodesk Sketchbook vs Tayasui Sketches
Don't forget to post your thoughts about this week's drawing app fight! Remember to focus on comparing basic interactions, not feature differences.
Next #appfight in @NCState's @mobiclass: gDrive vs Dropbox
Don't forget to post your thoughts about this week's storage app fight! Remember to focus on comparing basic interactions, not feature differences.
Assignment: projects are up! Please indicate your preferences at catme.org
Our projects are set! Please indicate your preferences for them, along with other team making info, at www.catme.org. Do so ASAP!
Professor Watson
Next #appfight in @NCState's @mobiclass: gMessenger vs Facebook Messenger
Don't forget to post your thoughts about next week's messaging app fight! Remember to focus on comparing basic interactions, not feature differences.
No class today!
See you Wednesday!
Professor Watson.
#goodquestion from @NCState's @mobiclass: how do we control text size on mobiles?
The question came up in class recently: how can we control font size and maintain text legibility across the wide range of mobile devices? Is a font point 1/72 of a physical inch, as it would be on paper?
Short answer: Neither length nor pixels will reliably size text across mobile devices. Legible length depends on viewing distance (see below), while the legible number of pixels depends on pixel density. Both vary across devices. But no matter which device displays text, the human eye always views it. According to both the FAA and the FDA, legible text covers roughly 1/4 degrees of visual angle. iOS, Android and web apps all use some sort of device independent unit to control the angular size of text. On iOS, this unit is the point (pt). On Android, this unit is the "device independent pixel" (dp). On the mobile web, this unit is the "CSS pixel" (px). None of these units has a fixed physical length, in contrast to the traditional typographical point.
iOS
Responsive legibility is a simpler problem on iOS than other platforms, because the number of different iOS devices is relatively small, and because Apple controls the full technology stack (both OS and device).The device independent unit in iOS is the point (pt). Points can span one, two or three pixels:
- non-Retina devices: 1pt = 1 pixel, at 163 dpi 12 points = 1/4 deg
- Retina devices: 1 pt = 2 pixels, at 326 dpi 12 points = 1/4 deg
- Retina HD devices: 1 pt = 3 pixels, at 489 dpi (scaled to 401 dpi) 12 points = 1/4 deg
Android
Things are more complex for Android apps, which must function on an extremely wide variety of devices, most of which Google does not control. Android assumes that these devices will be viewed at roughly the same distance, and adjusts text height based on purely on pixel density.The device independent unit in Android is the density independent pixel (dp), which similar to iOS, is sized relative to a 160 dpi pixel:
- Kindle Fire: 1dp = 1 pixel, at 160 dpi 12 points = 1/4 deg
- Nexus S: 1dp = ~1.5 pixels, at 233 dpi 12 points = 1/4 deg
- Nexus 6: 1dp = ~3 pixels at 493 dpi 12 points = 1/4 deg
Mobile Web
Maintaining legibility is most complex on the web, since the variety of devices includes not only mobiles but also desktops and laptops. In particular, drastic differences in device size create large differences in comfortable viewing distance, meaning that text size cannot be controlled based on pixel density alone.As google points out on its search ranking pages (where legibility is a factor), the device independent unit on the web is the "CSS pixel" (px). According to the W3C CSS2 standard:
The reference pixel is the visual angle of one pixel on a device with a pixel density of 96 dpi and a distance from the reader of an arm's length.Surprise! 12px is 1/4 degrees. Likely the variety of devices the web must support led the W3C to adopt a device independent unit based on visual angle rather than a pixels, since this makes no assumptions about viewing distance. Mozilla illustrates how a CSS pixel translates to different lengths on different devices:
- desktop screen at 28": px = 1/4 mm
- laptop screen at 22": px = 1/5 mm
- phone screen at 16": px = 1/6 mm
Closing Thoughts
Note: submit your grading index often if you want up to date feedback
Submit your grading index often so that we can see what you've done promptly.
There is no need to save up URLs to your online work outside of the index. You can always come back and edit your grading index to add more URLs after you submit.
Prof Watson
Next #appfight in @NCState's @mobiclass: GKeyboard vs Fleksy
Don't forget to post your thoughts about next week's keyboards app fight!
Next #appfight in @NCState's @mobiclass: Chess Free vs lichess
Don't forget to post your thoughts about tomorrow's games app fight today!
Next #appfight in @NCState's @mobiclass: gCamera vs Z Camera
Don't forget to post your thoughts about tomorrow's camera app fight today!
App Fight Posts due today!
Don't forget to post your first app fight today! In this week's app fight, two dialers face off.
Tomorrow, student Borland, Chiavegatto, Agrawal and Ankam will lead discussion of the app fight. Thanks for going first, folks!
You can learn more about good app fight posts and presentations here.
Professor Watson
Announcement: make sure you fill out our exercise
If you haven't already, please make sure you fill out the exercise form for today's activity on our notes page, as best you can.
Professor Watson