Week 6

It has now been several weeks since the start of the project. As mentioned in a previous post, all the menus are in place. Research for all sections has been completed and team members are in the process of formatting the info for the application. They will most likely use XML files. XML stands for Extensible Markup Language. This means it gives structure and definition to the text and display the user sees. It reads more like human speech than other programming languages (like Java) but is still "machine readable." The Android SDK uses Java files to do the main tasks of the program, but XML files provide the visual setup.

Each subtopic within a section will use a separate XML file. Since the General Info, Drexel 101, and How To Get To sections will all list the information, they will use similar XML layouts. The Freshman 101 section will have a separate layout for checklists. The Maps section will use XML files to format the different overlay layers.

Figure 1: Accepted Students Checklist

Figure 1 shows one of the checklists in the Freshman 101 submenu. Each item is clickable - that is, when clicked, the checkbox next to the task will show a green checkmark. The user can save his progress manually by clicking the Save button at the top of the page.

As of right now, the Freshman 101 section is nearly complete with separate checklists for Accepted Students, International Students, Transfer Students, What to Bring, Tips for Move-In Week, and Tips for Freshman Year. The menus have been laid out and information has been compiled for the General Info, Drexel 101, and How To Get To sections, but they have yet to be implemented cohesively into the app. The Maps section is currently facing a few technical difficulties but should be up and running by this Friday before class.

In Week 3, a project timeline was posted on the Project Overview page. Since has been a few weeks, it is time for a reevaluation of the proposed timeline.

Figure 2: Revised project timeline.

Figure 2 shows a modified version of the timeline. Learning how to program in the Android SDK took a little longer than expected, but it took less time than expected to set up the overall design of the app. This week and next week the sections will all be added to the app. Testing will commence this week, with the first round of testing being within the design group. Later rounds of testing will be performed by volunteers outside the project group. By the end of Week 9, the app should be finished, although the group will still have a short amount of time in Week 10 to do any final debugging.