CrossMinder

Inspiration

I've tried meteor once earlier when it was in 0.X version, and be impressed by the real-time feature it provides. So I want build a tool to make it easier to do brain brainstorming with friends and workmates.

What it does

You can get a unique URL of a mind-map document. Everyone can edit this mind-map, and the modification will reflect in other user's screen in real-time. You can also create an account or login with github, so it is possible to distinguish modifications of different users .

How I built it

Thanks to baidu FEX team, we have a full featured front-end mind-map editor with amazing UI called KityMinder, so I don't need to write the front-end from scratch. I use ShareJS to provide the collaborative feature. Currently I only did json diff and patch apply, I hope to integrate the OT function later. And the meteor accounts packages make it really easy to add an account system.

Challenges I ran into

24 hour is really short. I take some time to be familiar with the existing libraries. further more, I spent most time in debugging since every modification to the source code will trigger a rebuild of meteor server and the rebuild takes some time.

Accomplishments that I'm proud of

Build a useful tool in a short time.

What I learned

I learned a lot of meteor, especially the amazing DDP and transparent reactive programming.

What's next for CrossMinder

It needs some time to fix the bugs. Maybe I'll add a WebRTC audio chat to make communication easier.

Built With

• kityminder
• meteor.js
• sharejs