G2Sk8

Umbrella project check in! Some changes have been made since my last post exactly one month ago on February 4, and today's prompt asks us to outline our workplan.

Updates:

I've made the decision to build a web app rather than a mobile app. I do want to build a mobile app when the time is right, but I need to stick with what I'm most comfortable with if I want to complete the project on time.

I've also had to change the name from SkateSpot to G2Sk8 to differentiate my project from some others that are already out there. I went with G2Sk8 as a logo for the real name, Go To Skate. I landed on this name because it speaks directly to the purpose of the app. I designed the logo with playful, gender-neutral and kind of retro font and colors to appeal to a broad audience. I also thought this font was neat because it's geometric style is reminiscent of roads on a map. I used a familiar speech bubble graphic with a skate wheel in the logo which I also plan to use as the marker on the maps.

The Workplan:

I'm feeling a little behind, but I'm not discouraged. I feel confident that I will complete this project on time, and even hope to hit some stretch goals on the way. I have a four phase plan for this project: Design, Develop, Evaluation, Launch/Present. Each phase has its own milestones, sprints, and timelines that I am tracking on a Trello board. Right now I am closing out the Design Phase and preparing to go into Development in a couple of weeks. I'm using the Agile method, so while I have a general idea of what I'm doing, it's all pretty fluid. I don't want to limit myself or fall short of unrealistic goals, so I think this is a great approach that gives me enough structure and holds me accountable.

Phase I Design:

• Minimum Viable Product: Identify key features (2 hours - Complete)

• Product Value Proposition: User journey map (1 hour - In progress)

• Product Strategy: Wireframes (2 hours - In progress)

• Tooling: Project environment (5 hours - In progress)

Phase II Development:

• Backend: Data structure, storage, and testing (20 hours)

• Frontend: UI, API calls, and testing (20 hours)

Phase III Evaluation

• Testing: Overall performance (5 hours)

• Refactoring: Improving performance (10 hours)

• Demo Prep: Review and final tweaks (5 hours)

Phase IV Present/Launch

And that's it for now! There's a lot within each phase's tasks so it will be interesting to see how well I've estimated the hours. The original idea of this project was to fit into 40 hours, but I will definitely go over that and it's okay in this unique circumstances. My client is getting all this work for free, so they can't complain! ;)