Inspiration
I was struggling to think of a good idea for this project. I asked myself how I could possibly help spread Snapchat's message. I ran through all the categories and brainstormed all the possible projects. As I sat at my desk at my University that happens to be isolated from anything fun or exciting, I realized, why not make something that can be a means of spontaneity no matter where you might be.
What it does
Bring Your Own Memories, or BYOM for short, provides users with a variety of dares, activities, etc. that encourage them to go out and explore the community. These might include complimenting the next person you see, making a new friend, learning a new sport, etc. After finding one they like, users can export a sticker to snapchat and record themselves doing whatever it is they chose.
How we built it
I was somewhat familiar with Swift app development before the project, though this would be my first actual application. I was comfortable with Java, but I don't like working in Android Studio. I decided on IOS native and began working. I was unsure if I wanted to work in SwiftUI of UIKit, but ultimately decided on SwiftUI. I did have to crash course a few topics and look at examples for UI but it wasn't too difficult. For the Snapchat kits (Login kit and creative kit) I used Ruby and cocoapods with a podfile to add it to my workspace.
Challenges we ran into
Many of the tutorials for LoginKit online, in fact all, were for UIKit and Objective-C. I guess the call I made to work in SwiftUI was unlucky here, but I had already built the whole UI and didn't want to restart the whole thing, granted there was only 2 weeks left to submit. It took a little bit of digging but I figured out how to use LoginKit with SwiftUI.
Accomplishments that we're proud of
There were many instances which I felt like not completing the project. It felt too difficult and farfetched. I am proud of myself for sticking through it and completing my very first Application.
What we learned
App development is not an easy process. It takes a lot of creativity and perseverance because nothing will go as planned the first time around. While I learned app development is hard; I also learned that it is fun. It's fun to see your ideas come to life and work as intended. This opens the door for future app development and excites me to learn more languages for this purpose.
What's next for BYOM - Bring Your Own Memories
The app is still a prototype. It isn't launched on an app store or anything but I hope to in the future. I want to add more customizable features and user options within the app. As far as the content users can use in Snapchat, it's quite limited, granted I have to come up with ideas and hard code all of it into the app.
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