CSS 490/590: Assignment #1

Mobile Application Survey

 

Due time: Please refer to our course web-site

 

 

Objective

Starting thinking about your final project, a fancy cool mobile app. Now!

 


Specification

Survey the iPhone Shop, Android Market Place, and Windows Phone Market place, find three of your favorite apps, and for each app,

 

·         Publisher/Developer: bullet list on, it can be hard, but try your best to find out

o    how large is the development team (try to get some sense)

o    when was the app first publish (which revision/edition is it on)

o    where is the app developed (cities, countries, continent)

o    know your potential competitor!

·         What does the app do: one paragraph or bullet list whichever way allows clearest description

·         Why is it cool? Why you like it

·         Mobile specific functionality?

o    How does the app take advantage of the sensors: GPS, Accelerometer, Compass, etc.?

o    If the app does not take advantage of anything specific to mobile device (which is perfectly fine, e.g., Angry Bird), then, why is it a cool app?

 

The three apps can be for different platforms. We just want to have a sense of what’s out there. For your favorite of these three apps, please create a five-slide Powerpoint presentation:

·         Page 1: Your name IN BOLD LARGE font

·         Page 2: on publisher/developer

·         Page 3: on what the App does

·         Page 4: on why it’s an cool app and why you like it

·         Page 5: on how the app takes advantage of mobile device/environment

You will present this on next Monday in class. Please five slides exactly!! And please do use Powerpoint. We will combine all your submission into one presentation to facility going through these rapidly on next Monday.

 

 

What to submit

·         One written document: on the three apps, if you have more than 2 or 3 pages, something is probably wrong!

·         One 5-slide Powerpoint presentation. YES! Please do use Powerpoint and nothing else.

·         On next Monday:

o    Submit a hardcopy of your doc in class, beginning of class!

o    Each person will have around 3 minutes to present their 5-slides to the entire class. I want everyone to hear what everyone has found!

 

 

Credit distribution:

·         Write up: 3%: a check, check-minus, no-credit will be given for each of the apps. Warning, if you don’t have a hardcopy submission, you will receive 0.

·         PPT 1%: 4 page PPT.

·         Presentation 2%: one percent from peer, one percent from me. You will not receive presentation credit if the ppt is not received by due time (refer to the submission area).

 

This assignment counts 6% towards the grade for this class.

 

Reference:

There are the links to the shops:

·         Android Market Place: https://play.google.com/store/apps

·         Apple App Store (need to open via iTune)

·         Windows Phone Market Place: http://www.windowsphone.com/en-US/marketplace