Introscape

FAQ section with answer to a specific question
deep question category
first encounter category
the small talk sections with categories to choose from
welcome page when opening the app
diary for users to keep track of their feelings

Inspiration

Many college students today struggle with social anxiety including us. We came into college hoping we may find friends through our classes, events, and projects. However, we faced many challenges our first semester, one of them being able to feel confident and comfortable while talking to peers. Many times we have connected with individuals on how anxious we feel when we walk into a room and there are groups gathered watching as we walk in. It is a feeling that makes you feel lonely and judged at the same time. We hope that our app will help individuals who go through this same hardship by providing them with leading questions for their conversations.

What it does

Introscape is an app that helps introverts escape and step out of their comfort zone. When they are in a social setting such as parties or group events, this app can help them to find starter questions. These questions are put into categories for easy access. Our goal is to increase awareness of social anxiety primarily in college students which will hopefully allow others to be aware of their surroundings and provide a more welcoming aura.

How we built it

After using multiple different programs like Velo by Wix, Anvil, and Microsoft Studios, we decided to continue with Replit and collaborate on our python programming skills. With the help of the Tkinter package, it was a learning experience that extended our knowledge of python programming and app development. In addition, we used our previous knowledge of python file operations, functions, and packages to effectively produce our desired product.

Challenges we ran into

Our first challenge was to find a platform we all could collaborate with. We first tried WIX but the program used JavaScript which we were not educated in. Then we tried Microsoft studios but not everyone had a Microsoft computer. Our third option was Anvil and the problem with this was that we couldn't add the appropriate buttons in the order we wanted. Lastly, we used Replit to do live coding and utilized the Tkinter package to show the graphics. Some other challenges we faced were how to import images into Tkinter, making the buttons work to where they would open a new pop-up, and randomizing the question suggestions. The biggest challenge we faced was imposter syndrome. This was especially because all the others looked completely engrossed in their coding and we had no clue where to start. After some research and planning, we were finally able to kickstart our project!

Accomplishments that we're proud of

All four of us came into this hackathon with minimal knowledge of program development and what it takes to create a project from start to finish within 24 hours. Despite our limited experience, we were able to create a basic model of what a functioning app would look like using the only programming language we knew (python). Taking what we learned from our first semester of college and being able to create an application with interactive aspects such as buttons and even a personal diary felt surreal and is definitely what we are most proud of and we are exceptionally glad that we were able to use this hackathon as a way to solidify our understanding of python.

What we learned

Using a completely new package, Tkinter, was a whole new experience for the team since we have little to no knowledge of app development. However, we learned many new features of how Tkinter helps programmers create a better graphical user interface and app. Configuring the interactive buttons, widgets, and windows while using Tkinter helped us understand how these different features work together to create the perfect app. After we kick-started our project, we learned that imposter syndrome is common. We learned that everyone is on a different page and that is okay. At first, we felt out of place, but after studying and practicing code we got the hang of it. This showed us that coding just takes practice and that we are not behind.

What's next for Introscape

Our next update will include a help button that will contact the individual's parent or friends when clicked. The individual can update who they want to send help to in settings. We will also have a button that will allow them to send their location to their loved one for extraneous situations.