Inspiration
One night when I was out with my friend, we went to a restaurant, and she said, "Why are there no pictures on this menu? I want to see the food that I am going to eat." I told her I would ask the waiter what the most popular meal was, so she could get a recommendation. Then it clicked! I had an idea for an app that would be able to show pictures of the menu items taken by multiple people and also give a recommendation for the best meal that's on the menu.
What it does
Connoisseur displays a list of restaurants and their menus. On any restaurant's menu, one can pick an item and see all pictures that users have uploaded of that dish. They will also be able to check the health information of their meal and the rating of a specific dish, completely within the app. Our app also allows the user to take pictures in the app and upload them directly to the database of menu items. Connoisseur also allows for the user to connect to Google Maps to find nearby restaurants they might not know they're looking for. Functions include:
- Map integration
- Camera integration
- Adding new restaurants
- Adding new menu items
- Adding new photos to existing menu items
How we built it
Once I had my idea, I started envisioning the potential features and some basic designs this app could have. I pitched these sketches to my teammates, who contributed their own ideas and suggestions. Our team was well-rounded, and we each offered our own expertise throughout our time at Hack ISU 2017. With a team of 3 software engineers, we decided to use Visual Studio for our IDE and C# as our language of choice. This gave us easy access to GUIs and Windows Forms, allowing us to create the interface we had visualized. We split the work up into third-party integration, back-end engineering, and front-end design. As we hacked away, we drew upon each other's strengths and gained new skills as a team, utilizing GitHub's collaborative platform. By the end of Hack ISU, we created a working prototype of Connoisseur, producing a new way to enjoy culinary delights.
Challenges we ran into
Using GitHub to register our changes and keep track of them, Using C# for cross form interactions and the unfamiliarity of the language, Getting the webcam to turn off and on safely, Auto population of items, lack of Database.
Accomplishments that I'm proud of
We learnt how to use GitHub competently. Got the webcam working with our software, Creating a piece of software that could be used by many people.
What I learned
How to use GitHub, Collaboration and Communication is very important when working with a team. Work on one thing at time. Make sure to have a plan before diving in to the project. Ask for help when you need it. Anyone can learn how to code.
What's next for Connoisseur
Making it into a mobile app that can be handled by a phone. (Android and IOS), Have some more restaurants on the list and have their menus updated. Have language integration so that people from other countries can use the app when they travel abroad. Use for handicap people with geotagging and GPS tracking to find which restaurant they are eating in. This enables them to be more independent by having an app read the menu items to them. Having accurate health information for all items on a menu, helping people who have allergies make sure that they are safe. Then Launch to the world. We want this program to be a mobile app that any user can use inside a restaurant to take pictures of their food and share with not only their friends, but the rest of the world.
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