Project Milestones (Winter 2015)

• Milestone 0.0: Exploration of Project Ideas. [Week 1 - Week 3]
  • Identify an application domain for your Android project.
  • Gather information from end users (i.e. people who will use your app).
  • Do market research (e.g. Google Play Store) if needed.
• Milestone 1.0: Submission of a Project Proposal. [Week 4 - Week 5]
  • date of submission: February 15, 2015
  • Watch the video (approx. 7 minutes) about creating user stories. [1]
  • Create a business statement.
    • key questions
      • What kind of Android app are you going to build?
      • Have you found similar apps on the market (e.g. Google Play Store)? If so, please include some links in your proposal.
      • How does your app differentiate from other similar apps on the market?
    • focus: application domain, end-user needs, business values
  • Create user stories (or use cases).
    • key question
      • How is a user going to use your app?
    • SCRUM User Stories (from the perspective of an end-user) [2] [3]
    • an example from a CDOT project [4]
  • Create a list of features on your app.
  • Create a sketch of your design.
    • Note: The design may change as your project goes through the iterations.
  • Create a system diagram of your app.
    • identify the key components (e.g. UI, database, Web API, server)
      • an example:
  • Create a tentative timeline.
    • based on the priorities of user stories/use-cases
    • identify checkpoints/milestones
  • Your proposal must include the name of your app, names of team members, and the date of submission.
• Milestone 2.0: Design and Implementation. [Week 7 - Week 12 (February 15 - March 31); 6 weeks]
  • Submit
    • the revised project proposal 2.0
    • the Design Report
      • Read the design requirements below.
  • Weekly GitHub activities
  • Weekly standup meetings on Fridays [5]
    1. What have I done since the last Scrum meeting (yesterday)?
    2. What will I do before the next Scrum meeting (tomorrow)?
    3. What prevents me from performing my work as efficiently as possible?
  • Sprints (i.e. iterations) [6]
• Milestone 3.0: Project Presentation and Final Report. [Week 14]
  • April 13, 2015 (Monday)
• Milestone 4.0
  • Final Project Report (Template) [7]
  • Submission Requirements [8]
• Project Evaluation Rubric [9]

Design Requirements

• Create detailed system diagrams.
  • UI mockups (created by Pencil or a similar tool) [10]
  • interaction between back-end components and the UI screens
  • the flow of data between the UI screens and data stores such as database and Android file system
  • the flow of data between the UI screens and Web API servers (URLs) or other devices, if applicable
• Apply Android Design Patterns or Material Design Guidelines.
  • Note: If your project is UI-intensive, you are expected to apply Android design patterns or Material Design Guidelines as much as possible. If your project is data-intensive (e.g. use of database and graphics) or back-end intensive (e.g. use of networking and Wifi connectivity), you may apply Android design patterns or Material Design guidelines at the minimum.
  • Android Design Patterns: Interaction Design Solutions for Developers by Greg Nudelman. Wiley, 2013. (Available as ebook at Seneca Libraries.)
  • Android User Interface Design: Turning Ideas and Sketches into Beautifully Designed Apps by Ian G. Clifton. Addison-Wesley Professional, 2013. (Available as ebook at Seneca Libraries.)
  • Smashing Android UI: Responsive User Interfaces and Design Patterns for Android Phones and Tablets by Juhani Lehtimäki. Wiley, 2013. (Available as ebook at Seneca Libraries.)
  • Material Design Guidelines (Android 5.0, API Level 21).
    • Material Design (Android Developer website) [11]
    • Google Design Guidelines - Material Design [12]
    • Creating Apps with Material Design
      • Android Developer website [13]
      • Implementing Material Design in Your Android app (24 October 2014) [14]
    • Examples
      • Develop android weather app with Material Design (November 3, 2014) [15]
      • Google Play Books for Android gets Material Design, skimming and browsing features (October 31, 2014) [16]
    • Android 5.0 Lollipop Material Design in pictures and video (October 17, 2014) [17]
    • UI Regions and Guidance [18]
    • Visual Guide to Android L Material Design - 7 Insights [19]
• Create the Testing Environment.
  • Android versions (API levels)
    • dashboards (Android Developer website) [20]
  • configurations of emulators and/or Android devices
  • screen orientations (portrait and landscape)
• Compatibility Issues (optional) [21] [22] [23]
• Organize the Design Report.
  • title page (like the one used in the project proposal)
  • list of features (with priorities assigned, 1-highest, 10-lowest)
  • timeline (organized by the list of features and sprints)
  • system diagrams (including URLs of Web API servers, if applicable)
  • design principles
  • testing environment