Belong-Buddy

Login page
Home page
Add Asset form
Add Friend form
Generate Reports page
All Assets Report
Available Asset Report
Issued Asset Report
Asset Issue to friend
Asset Return to owner
MySql table

Inspiration

Living in a hostel as students, we often found ourselves in a mess trying to remember where we kept our valuable items or electronics. This repeated hassle sparked the idea: if we have to-do lists and event planners on our phones, why not a digital asset manager? We realized this problem isn't just for students but for professionals too, and that every individual could benefit from digital system that manages their belongings.

What it does

Belong-Buddy provides a user-friendly platform where users can:

Add assets and Friends.
Issue and Return items.
Generate Report of their belonging's history.
Track borrowing and lending activities, including borrower details and return dates.
Receive timely notifications to remind both owners and borrowers about pending returns.
Streamline asset management through an intuitive interface accessible via web browsers.

How we built it

We ourselves being the first customers of this product understood and listed key objectives that needed to be addressed. So, we approached the development of Belong-Buddy with thorough planning and collaboration:

System Design: Started with a comprehensive system diagram and flowchart to visualize interactions and functionalities from point of view of an end user.
Technology Stack: Decided to use Tomcat for web server hosting, JSP for dynamic content generation, MySQL for database management and Html CSS JavaScript for GUI.
GUI designing: we kept the GUI simple so as to make the learning curve of users almost negligible.
Team Collaboration: Although Tasks were distributed based on individual strengths, suggestions from all team members were discussed and addressed, ensuring efficient development and integration of features.

Challenges we ran into

As beginners, operating with technologies like Tomcat, JSP, and MySQL resulted in significant learning curves:

Technical Hurdles: Configuring and deploying the application on Tomcat servers required understanding server-side operations and troubleshooting.
Integration Complexities: Connecting frontend HTML pages with backend JSP files while ensuring seamless data flow posed initial challenges.
Time and Task Management: Balancing development tasks within given time duration required disciplined management and teamwork.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

Despite of the challenges faced, through perseverance and collaborative effort, we achieved several milestones:

Successfully deploying a functional web application on Tomcat servers.
Implementing a database structure to manage asset data and borrowing records.
Developing a notification system that alerts users about upcoming return dates, enhancing user experience and accountability.

What we learned

The development of Belong-Buddy taught us various invaluable lessons and enhanced not only our technical but interpersonal skills also:

Technical Skills: Enhanced proficiency in web development technologies like Tomcat, JSP, and MySQL.
Project Management: Improved task allocation, communication, and coordination within a team.
Problem-Solving: Learned to resolve technical challenges independently and collaboratively.

What's next for Belong-Buddy

Moving forward, we plan to enhance user experience by following methods:

*Automated Notification System: * We plan to develop an autonomous script to monitor due dates from MySQL reports and send reminders to borrowers and owners three days before the return date.
*UI/UX Enhancements: * Continuously improve the interface for better usability and accessibility.
*User Feedback Integration: * Gather user feedback to implement additional features and optimize existing functionalities.