New Media Final Project - Research Blog

Having no previous knowledge or practice with app development before this project, I am incredibly proud of the product and what I have achieved. Time management was key throughout the whole process and my well-organised Gantt chart assisted me to keep on track and meet all deadlines. Implementing a thorough testing process was also key. Gaining a perspective from experts in the industry along with my target audience ensures that the product is fit for purpose. I think the design of the app complements the purpose and has a very contemporary feel. Please see some of my final designs below: Even though I am satisfied with the final product, there is still room for improvement. I have marketed the app as a beta version as there are some functionalities that don't work which are outlined in the screen recording. Taking Dan's (Dynamic contact) feedback into consideration, I have included a Tweet button on each card. In future development, users will be able to post the conten

Whilst I received valuable feedback from my client contact, it was also imperative to gain some feedback from different perspectives. I invited several Dynamic colleagues to test SmartByte. Each participant works with eLearning on a daily basis and have done for many years therefore the feedback I receive will be of the highest standard. Participants: Louisa Page (Junior Creative Developer) Elliot Overend (Senior Creative Developer) Callan Richardson (Creative Developer) Henry Fuller (Project Manager) Fin Pickford (LMS Technical Support and Developer) I gave each participant a vague  description  of the project and then asked them to use the app without any prior instruction on its  functionality . By doing this, I was able to observe the participants actions and how they  operated  the app. Throughout the user observation, I took note on requiring themes between the participants, such as: noticed there was no password protection on the 'Create an account'

As outlined in my  project   Gantt chart, I aimed to keep in regular communication with the client to ensure that the product is on track with the development and that the client is happy with the progress. It is very important to keep in regular communication with the client as they need to be satisfied with the product. It is also vital to conduct testing with the client with sufficient time remaining before the deadline ti implement any changes. I gave Dan (my contact for this project at Dynamic) a tour of the app and its current functionality in which he provided the following feedback: As discussed, I have a few comments for consideration re the functionality (I know you are planning to do more on the design so I wont comment on that) I wasn’t sure about the vote up/down feature for the whole course/topic. As there are up to 8 individual top tips/best practice shares in each topic, these should be graded for their own merit. Therefore I suggest a vote up and down / swi

Even though I am well underway with the development process on my app, it is also important to be aware of either new competitors to the market or even competing products that I might have only just discovered. In this case, I came across a company called Kineo . Kineo is an eLearning business who provides a variety of services, like Dynamic, making them a strong competitor. However, it is not this that challenges SmartByte. Kineo released a new and innovative responsive framework that can be used on multiple devices called Adapt. It is cost effective with only the production and maintenance of one version necessary. Being an industry revolution at the point of creation, Kineo decided to make Adapt open source so that other could take advantage of the product which also allows for custom design and not a fixed template. Adapt sounds like a really positive product to hit the market, but how does it compare to SmartByte? With Adapt being open source and therefore free, this would mak

My first major task of development was to produce a prototype that would showcase a segment of the product. As SmartByte's main features are the bitesize and swipe card aspects, I chose to create a working prototype consisting of these features (fig. 1).  (Fig. 1 - Xcode Storyboard of Prototype) I set this as an important milestone in the project and therefore it was imperative to gain feedback on my current progress so that I could apply it to the remainder of the development. I felt that conducting a focus group would be most beneficial for this task as I would receive an array of constructive feedback. I showcased the prototype to three peers in which we discussed the interface as well as it's functionality. Two well outlined points were raised and discussed: 1) With the swipe cards having a very similar functionality to the popular dating app Tinder, the user will swipe right to up vote the card and swipe left to down vote the card (as a means of regulation

With the pre-production of the project complete, it was time to turn my attention to the design process and produce a series of designs that would showcase the functionality of the app whilst maintaining an aesthetically pleasing interface. With my client being Dynamic Business Services Ltd, I had initially branded the product to their brand guidelines. However, after pitching my concept to my peers and tutors in a concept critique, I received various feedback with the requirement of a sub-brand being a priority.  " The project desperately needs a suitable name though! You should give some careful consideration to the title of this new platform." ( Dr Tom Jackson -  Lecturer in Digital Media, Deputy Director of Student Educatio n ) For this particular design process, I chose iterative design as the method to ensure that the logo is represents the product in a clear and creative manner. Iterative design is the process of producing a design, testing and evaluating it, and t

In order to produce a successful product, it was key to gain insight and receive feedback from experts in the industry. I therefore organised a focus group with Dynamic Business Services to discuss the possibilities and potential implications of the product in questions. I selected colleagues who have a wealth of experience between them and know what it takes to produce a highly successful eLearning product.  I discussed how I was originally going to build a collaborative eLearning Network but with some research and deliberation, changed to a mobile exclusive eLearning application. The initial reaction and discussions were positive with a collaborative mobile app being something that has yet to penetrate the market. As the users will be the source of learning by posting content, an important issue of regulation was mentioned. It was pointed out that the content posted might not necessarily be correct which would defeat the object of producing a learning tool. Therefore, it was

It is important to gain an insight from the target audience in the early stages of the project to ensure that the product is fit for purpose. I composed a questionnaire that aimed to discover how the sample of participants rate eLearning from previous experience and if bitesize/mobile learning is something that they would benefit from. It was imperative to target the questionnaire at people who are in a workplace environment. To ensure it was distributed to the correct demographic, I had a contact at Aviva's office in Sheffield in which the questionnaire was sent out in which I received 49 responses. Firstly, I thought it would be intriguing to see what style of learning was most popular. As you can see from the results in fig. 1, just under 80% of the participants preferred a visual style of learning. I will therefore ensure that the functionally of SmartByte includes visual elements as well as having an aesthetically pleasing design.  (Fig. 1) With SmartByte being

To gain an insight to the target market, I have decided to conduct some research into several competing companies. I will be specifically looking at what services they offer and how they compare to SmartByte. It is important to acquire this information to ensure that SmartByte differs in functionality (Unique Selling Point) and that it is able to challenge the market. Udemy Udemy is an online platform that allows 'experts' to create and upload courses for the public to buy or in some cases, acquire for free. Currently, there are over 65,000 courses available in which users can learn a new language, learn to build a website or learn how to run a business. Users would simply purchase the the course and follow the set tutorials. Udemy is available on both computer and mobile and therefore is easily accessible. With Udemy's highly rated reputation and with them utilising the app market, this makes them a strong competitor. The aspect that differentiates Udemy from SmartByt

In terms of education, digital media has dramatically change the way we think, especially in terms of how we learn with new technologies providing new and innovate methods. eLearning was introduced as a more cost effective but more efficient way of learning which only became more successful with the rise of technologies. In recent years, gamification, virtual reality (VR), and augmented reality (AR) have been tested as an alternative learning method to make the users interact and engage more with the content. Hayles (2012) purposes that: "The classroom is no longer sufficient for the needs of web pedagogy; needed are flexible laboratory spaces in which teams can work collaboratively, as well as studio spaces with high-end technologies for production and implementation" (p. 5). However, the introduction of SmartByte intends to take this a step further by not requiring the need of ' studio spaces with high-end technologies' in order to collaborate. Having a collab

eLearning is predominately restricted to the workplace or access via a portal requiring a desktop or laptop; therefore with SmartByte being mobile exclusive, this will allow users to interact and distribute content with ease. Taking this into consideration, I intend to investigate the current state of mobile learning and what it takes for it to be successful. The book, 'Mobile Learning: Structures, Agency, Practices' outlines how mobile learning is an "emerging, and rapidly expanding field of educational research and practice across schools, colleges and universities as well as in the work place" (Pachler et al., 2010), and it is of my interest to produce SmartByte in order show how learning on a mobile devices has a prosperous future. I want the product to feel informal so the user can participate in the available courses at home, on the go or wherever convenient. Pachler (2010) also raises the concern that do we really need to add yet another form of learning to s