Thoughts about graphical profile

Final Presentation (PPT)

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1i1Ef0qNj1kkmEJcNW9MT9HiA3ndBfUmJ8hssEBomn-0/edit?usp=sharing

Making changes based on the final feedback

The feedback we got indicates that we are really heading in the right direction with this app, and that it shows how much fun we have had making it. Although there are some things that should be changed for better user experience and for a better working application. The main points were to focus more on the concept and main function. We had many small, fun functions in our app and some of them would probably not be used or would be confusing when first using the app. The network customization and its functions could also be overlooked (with the right motivation) which was a huge relief to us since we had been discussing that a lot not knowing what to do about it. There were also some suggestions to change smaller things, which we’ve taken into account. So here are the changes we have made to our design:

We have taken into consideration that when our app is completely finished and launched (in about a year or so) all the roaming fees in Europe will be the same (http://ec.europa.eu/news/science/130916_en.htm), which will make it a lot easier for European backpackers to use the functions on their smartphones which require them to be connected to the Internet. Considering that this still leaves out the backpackers who are from outside of Europe, the solution for them would be to block data roaming from the phone-setting, just the same way that we had inside the app. Also, most pubs in Stockholm have free wi-fi. Therefore we have:

• removed the network options in the settings menu
• removed the “Download Map” and “Sync Crawl” functions from the drop down menu

The settings menu will still be named “Settings” though, not “Profile”, because profile can easily be interpreted in a more personal way than it is here, and also to leave the freedom for us to be able to add options.

• We have removed the “Name” option from profile, since there was no function to it (invite friends function will work with a link)

Settings menu before/after

To focus more on the primary functions of the app, which is to guide backpackers through a pub crawl, we have also decided to change some of the smaller features it offers:

• The “Buzz” function is removed (it was also unclear for new users what it did)
• We will not implement a star-rating system for the pubs, since this would require one more step for the user (rating the pub) and decided to only give the five words description when choosing a pub on the map. If that is not enough, the rating system will be implemented in a later version of the app.

Removing the Buzz, Sync and Download options leaves our drop down menu almost redundant, since the only function left in it is “Invite Friends”. Therefore we decided to:

• remove the drop down menu and replace it with an invite friends button. This also fulfills the comment about how the drop down menu wasn’t distinct enough and could be missed.
  
  
  

  

  Crawl screen before/after

  

  Choose pub screen before/after

  
  

We also got the question if the time and order of the pubs shown on the “History” page were necessary. When discussing it we came to the conclusion that it would be a lot more fun to:

• Show a map with the route you took and timestamps with arrival times to the different pubs instead of the space used for “Visited Pubs”

History screen before/after

We also got comments on that the "Private" and "Public" buttons on the "Create a Crawl" screen were a bit missleading, so we have: 

• changed the design on these to a more self-explanatory

Create a Crawl screen before/after

Preparation for the final presentation

The Prototype: 
https://popapp.in/projects/52780cc1ca8fb41d4900084b/preview

The Presentation: 
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1pzoCN-Sw_twVFQOH7cwvXwS8qP9_nzVJ9TIij6tiVYw/edit?usp=sharing

Description of the app:

STHLM Pub Crawl makes it easy to find nearby pubs, organize pub crawls with your friends and socialize with new people in Stockholm. Experience Stockholm in a completely new way! Not from Sweden? You don’t need to rely on mobile network as the app can be used offline. The app also helps you to manage your alcohol intake.

Have a blast with STHLM Pub Crawl!

• Organize public or private pub crawls
• Join crawls from public lists, NFC or QR codes
• Get to pubs quickly with in-app directions
• See where your crawl members are in real-time on the interactive map
• Switch between online and offline mode, and synchronize your crawl only when you want to
• Track your alcohol intake
• No account or registration required

Discussion post & main scenario

Discussion

Whilst working on the prototype and using the app in the new scenario, we realized that there are some smaller things we would like to have or change that would require us to redo most of the prototype. With little time to spare, we therefore decided to write these down and have them in mind until some day in the future when we develop the actual app.

• There should be a search function on the map, so that you can look for a street, your hostel or a specific pub you want to visit.
• There should be an option to put in your resident address in the “settings” menu and a function that takes you home when you have finished a pub crawl.
• Other participants in a public crawl should be shown as dots on the map.
• The app should have a dark/black background so it doesn’t light up the whole pub when the user opens it, and also to make it easier on the users’ eyes (since pubs are often dark, which makes bright lights annoying).
• There should be more screens: inviting, downloading the offline map, changing some crawl settings, only for the crawl leader (changing visibility)

Main scenario

With our concept getting clearer and clearer we decided to put our ideas to test. So we used the STHLM Pub Crawl app into our first scenario with our main persona Tom, to see how it would help and benefit them, and to find possible flaws with it.

Scenario: They're tired and thirsty after traveling.

Goal: Finding a pub near the hostel

Thomas and his friend just arrived in Stockholm this afternoon. They dropped their bags at the hostel and are now looking for a pub where they can chill and relax after their travel. They go to the desk and Steve, one of Thomas’ friends, asks the receptionist for some nice pubs nearby. He tells them about the new smartphone app they use to organize pub crawls. He explains that it will allow them to discover nearby pubs, and they can use it to create or join a pub crawl. Steve downloads the app on his phone and the group decides to join an already ongoing crawl. Steven then scans a QR code on the hostel desk to join the ongoing pub crawl they organized. They can see that 6 people are already at a pub 5 minutes away from the hostel. They follow the indications of the app, get to the pub and start buzzing until they locate the others and join them. They all make friends and after a few beers they decide to go to the next pub. Steve opens the app and chooses a new pub for the whole crawl, and leads the way there. They are then joined by two other backpackers who just came from the hostel.

Later in the night, Thomas and his friendsp decide that they will go back to the hostel and not finish the crawl with their new friends, as they are tired and are going to have a lot to do the following day. Steve clicks the “End Crawl” button and they all enjoy the statistics of the crawl on the way home.

The Prototype

We chose to use the prototype tool “POP”. It’s an application that allows you to connect pictures with clickable links. At first it’s looked really cool, but when I started to work with it I found out that it wasn’t optimal.You need to make the prototype on your phone and that’s what makes it not that userfriendly. It was really hard to change pictures, for example when you added a picture and the clickable boxes to it and then realised that you missed to draw someting on the picture, you basically had to retake the picture and remake all the clickable boxes. In total our prototype contains 64 pictures and each picture has 2-10 clickable boxes. If you do the math you’ll get a lot of links.

First i started to make a template of the screen with the menu-row in illustrator and printed them out so I didn’t have to draw a new one for each picture.

Then I drew the rest of the pictures by hand and made small pictures to lay over the original when we supposed to have small changes in the pictures.

Since it wasn’t an optimal tool, it took me a very long time to create the prototype. I spend in total 12 hours, drawing and making clickable boxes. But atleast we have an prototype. I’ve missed some funktions that we came up with, so we list them in out blogpost called “Discussion Post”

Navigation chart - Wednesday 30/10

We spend a lot of time making a navigation chart. This was very helpful in understanding the application and to pinpoint our problems. We made new decisions about the way the navigation works, for instance we moved the profile page to be a part of the settings page. Our main goal was to make the navigation consistent and to achieve that we decided to always have the same functions at the menu bar (not depending on which page you’re at) and not to have too many different choices at the same page.