Meeting #2 -- Thursday 3/29/12

 http://howard-apps-dev.blogspot.com

The group held its second meeting today from 10 am until 11:30. Only four members were able to attend but, again, the meeting was very productive ... :-)

A. Members present

• Dr. Sonya Smith (Engineering)
• Mr. Tony Njoku (ETS)
• Mr. Timothy Staton-Davis (Computer Science)
• Dr. Roy Beasley (Office of the Provost)

B. Brief summary of main points

• Success for Howard-Dev-Apps = Big ideas + running code
• Immediate top priority is getting the software development kits (SDKs) for all four platforms loaded on the designated PCs and Macs in the iLab
• Members are encouraged to "hang out" in our iLab space, especially on Tuesdays and Thursdays, the days that the Survey Monkey survey found to be the best choices for weekly meetings.
• Dr. Smith will reserve workstations in the CLDC (Engineering Building) for the group's use on weekends ... rather than require special arrangements to be made for access to the iLab machines on weekends ... The SDKs will also be loaded on these machines
• Dr. B. noted that Mr. Tilmon Smith, who manages ETS enterprise applications, will be joining the group. Mr. Smith is OK with our group producing early betas for the Howard App. Eventually his office would assume responsibility for its management and subsequent upgrades as an official Howard University app
• It is likely that when the Howard App is fully specified, its implementation will require access to data in Blackboard, Banner, and Peoplesoft. We should anticipate that ETS will have concerns about sharing all of the data the full version will require. Some, e.g. Blackboard because of its own mobile template, will be easy to obtain; whereas other data will probably require considerable negotiation.
• Recommended strategy ==> We should strive to produce a beta asap that focuses on data that is easy to obtain AND would be useful to the Howard community. Success with the early beta will provide leverage for gaining access to more data for an upgrade ... and success with the upgrade will leverage access to even more data ... etc, etc, etc.
• Each beta will also elicit feedback from our user community as to what kinds of data they would really like to access via the Howard app ... we should incorporate these suggestions into subsequent betas
• A "virtual campus tour" that incorporated Google's "street view" should be part of an early beta ... it would be especially appealing to prospective students (and their parents)
• Mr. Anozie emailed a template to Dr. B. for the group's non-disclosure agreement that will be posted on the blog ... DONE

C. Tasks to be completed by next meeting

• Reserve workstations in the CLDC for our group ... Dr. Smith
• Load SDKs on designated machines in the CLDC (Engineering) for weekend access ... We need volunteers
• Write a short paper that spells out our strategy for developing the Howard App ... Dr. Smith
• Post Mr. Anozie's template on the group's blog ... Dr. B. ... DONE
• Compile a list of twitter feeds that deal with mobile apps ... Mr. Njoku
• Add the feeds to a twitter widget on the group's blog ... Dr. B.

D. Previous tasks not completed yet

• Collect SDKs for four platforms ... Prof Oliver
• Post SDKs in Google docs directory so members can download and install on home workstations ... Dr. B. ... DONE
• Install SDKs on PCs and Macs in reserved iLab areas ... Prof Oliver
• Obtain specs for apps that are similar to the Howard-App that have been created at other universities ... Marcus Carey
• Check out intellectual property laws and regulations that may impact our group's activities ... Mr. Anozie
• Assist Dr. B to manage the group's blog site ... Mr. Blackstone
  
• Find out who's developing' the "Scavenger Hunt" app being developed for Howard's MS2 middle school on Android ==> recruit them to our group ... Mr. Carey
• Identify other app developer groups on campus -- if they exist ... Dr. Coleman/Tony Njoku
• Recruit more members ... EVERYBODY ... :-)
  Note: Recruits should be directed to the Google Group site where they can request to be admitted. Dr. B will then query new recruits as to which group member recommended them. For the time being, we will only admit new members who have been recommended by a current member.
  https://groups.google.com/group/howard-apps-dev