It’s finally over!

The university year is officially over for me!

Having completed all exams, I have finally found time to make my final blog for DECO1200.

What a journey it has been (even if most of it did not get blogged)!

From being barely able to do a website, to making a somewhat nice one (even though most of it was self-taught), I actually had fun with it all.

The iPhone application has been fun as well, and I’m not particularly sure if I’d like for us to be able to implement our application in future (I don’t want to think about the amount of work required for some of our apps!).

This isn’t to say the iStyle is over…

It’s been an eventful semester, and the knowledge I have gained from it (from surveying to making websites), I’m sure will be useful in coming years.

Thanks for reading,

Michael

Apologies for the lack of blogging…

First of all, I’d like to apologise for the lack of blogging I’ve done.

One of my main gripes about having to blog as our documentation is the amount of time it actually takes to produce these blogs. I understand that writing a normal document would essentially be the same thing, but for those who are really less inclined to blog, it’s a pain in the rear side. Not to mention those who have to focus on other subjects (which require study and the such) need to find extra time to do their blogs.

Now, I could simple go around copying blogs from other people, but that’d be just a waste of time- especially since I don’t know if this blog has been written in due time before Rob actually marks it.

New Idea! (No, not the magazine)

With thanks to Rob for pointing out the limitations and difficulties with clothing recognition, and throwing in the idea of having special tags which users can “scan”, I’ve finally got something to work with that’s a little more feasible than my fantasy of having super-ultra-mega-special-awesome software which will make it possible for users to take pictures of clothing items and have the software match the photo with similar items from the online database.

 Possible working solutions:

• Stores with online catalogues can contribute to our database.
• Super-special-ultra-awesome-mega-cool-photo-recognition software powered by monkeys will work it all.
• Manufacturers can attach a special tag on clothes for users to scan.

Discussions regarding “solutions”:

1. Not all stores have online catalogues. This will be a problem with producing the database and for users to use the iStyle with the store which don’t have the catalogues.
2. Super-special-ultra-awesome-mega-cool-photo-recognition software powered by monkeys is not really a feasible option at this moment in time- because quality of the photos will depend on lighting/camera quality (2megapixel might not be sufficient).
3. Manufacturers attaching special tags can be costly – not a known fact, but theorised to be expensive. While it may be expensive to set up, I think it’s the most feasible and reliable method out of the three.

The Grand Idea with iStyle, üStyle, iüeStyle

Hello again. What’s new? Well, my internet has been scheduled to be installed on the 31st August 2007 (hooray!). So this means I’ll be able to blog and do other research much easier. I know, this will be a real disadvantage to me, as I’ve been without internet for a while now, and as you can see, I haven’t been blogging much. Of course, this isn’t to say I haven’t been thinking about the assignment. I’m finally going to write up my idea in a nut-shell.

 Here we go:

General pitch: My product is a package for fashion-goers. Users will have the ability to take photos of clothing items and have our software compare that particular item with ones already on our database. Ideally, our online database will have a vast range of clothing items to give our users a more concise search. If, however, no matches were to be found, then the user will have the option to add the item onto our database (should they wish to do so- of course we’d like to encourage them to). If the software finds matches with the user’s item, then a list will be available to the user and he/she will be able to read comments/ratings/suggestions from other users. Another interesting concept I would like to implement, is a comparison on pricing with that particular item and any matches from nearby stores. This will be a great incentive for users to keep using our program and more reason to join and participate in the online community.

iStyle: Software for iPhone users to access our online database and community.

üStyle: Other iPhone users have access to the database to build the database and community.

iüeStyle: Final stage for the product. iüeStyle is the enveloping idea to bring together the web 2.0 community. Users can discuss things (ranging from fashion to movies to music to food) via forums, live chats, etc. All accessible using the iPhone or a home computer via the internet.

So that’s the general idea of it all. I’ll be posting problems and the sort later…I am aware of the feasibility of the whole package as well. Watch out for that!

More dibble dabbles about the iPhone…

First of all, I’d like to apologise for my lack of blogging, but I haven’t had time to blog anything as I am still without internet. This problem will hopefully be rectified shortly and without too many hassles. Now with that out of the way, let’s get down to business!

 

The iPhone. Docked in all its glory.

Well, I’ve been researching the iPhone at a more geeky level (reading forum discussions from those techno-dorks), and I’ve found that (as usual) people are kind of torn about their feelings for the iPhone. Some were very enthusiastic about it (albeit, probably Apple fan-boys), while some think it’s a really expensive piece of technology with very limited functionality. I’ll reserve judgement until I try the iPhone out for myself, but I’m very skeptical. What have I found?

The specifications as listed on Apple’s website are:

• Screen size: 8.9 cm (3.5 in)
• Screen resolution: 320×480 pixels at 160 ppi
• Input method: Multi-touch screen interface (the “Home” button is the iPhone’s only physical front panel button)
• Operating System: Darwin OS X
• Storage: 4 or 8 GB Flash memory
• Quad band GSM (GSM 850, GSM 900, GSM 1800, GSM 1900)
• Wi-Fi (802.11g), EDGE and Bluetooth 2.0 with EDR
• 2 megapixel camera
• Built-in rechargeable, non-removable battery with up to 8 hours of talk, 6 hours of internet use, 7 hours of video playback, and up to 24 hours of audio playback, lasting over 250 hours on standby.
• Size: 115×61×11.6 mm (4.5×2.4×0.46 in)
• Weight: 135 g (4.8 oz)
• Digital SAR (Specific Absorption Rate) of 0.974 W/kg

An analysis of the iPhone’s firmware has revealed that the main Samsung chip (designated S5L8900) contains an ARM1176jzf processor, together with a PowerVR MBX 3D graphics co-processor.  <Reference Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPhone> (Thanks Wikipedia! Where would the world be without you?)

Some useful (or not) facts:

• MMS not supported

• Bluetooth file transfer not supported

The reason I’ve chosen these two examples as to what isn’t supported by the iPhone, is to highlight that this provides boundaries for my idea. I had previously thought of ways for the user to send images to our servers via different methods, and the fact that the iPhone doesn’t support some file transfer modes, limits my possibilities. Looks like it’s back to the drawing board!

More dibble dabbles about the iPhone…

First of all, I’d like to apologise for my lack of blogging, but I haven’t had time to blog anything as I am still without internet. This problem will hopefully be rectified shortly and without too many hassles. Now with that out of the way, let’s get down to business!

 

The iPhone. Docked in all its glory.

Well, I’ve been researching the iPhone at a more geeky level (reading forum discussions from those techno-dorks), and I’ve found that (as usual) people are kind of torn about their feelings for the iPhone. Some were very enthusiastic about it (albeit, probably Apple fan-boys), while some think it’s a really expensive piece of technology with very limited functionality. I’ll reserve judgement until I try the iPhone out for myself, but I’m very skeptical. What have I found?

The specifications as listed on Apple’s website are:

• Screen size: 8.9 cm (3.5 in)
• Screen resolution: 320×480 pixels at 160 ppi
• Input method: Multi-touch screen interface (the “Home” button is the iPhone’s only physical front panel button)
• Operating System: Darwin OS X
• Storage: 4 or 8 GB Flash memory
• Quad band GSM (GSM 850, GSM 900, GSM 1800, GSM 1900)
• Wi-Fi (802.11g), EDGE and Bluetooth 2.0 with EDR
• 2 megapixel camera
• Built-in rechargeable, non-removable battery with up to 8 hours of talk, 6 hours of internet use, 7 hours of video playback, and up to 24 hours of audio playback, lasting over 250 hours on standby.
• Size: 115×61×11.6 mm (4.5×2.4×0.46 in)
• Weight: 135 g (4.8 oz)
• Digital SAR (Specific Absorption Rate) of 0.974 W/kg

An analysis of the iPhone’s firmware has revealed that the main Samsung chip (designated S5L8900) contains an ARM1176jzf processor, together with a PowerVR MBX 3D graphics co-processor.  <Reference Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPhone> (Thanks Wikipedia! Where would the world be without you?)

Some useful (or not) facts:

• MMS not supported

• Bluetooth file transfer not supported

The reason I’ve chosen these two examples as to what isn’t supported by the iPhone, is to highlight that this provides boundaries for my idea. I had previously thought of ways for the user to send images to our servers via different methods, and the fact that the iPhone doesn’t support some file transfer modes, limits my possibilities. Looks like it’s back to the drawing board!

Forced to blog…With ideas for the iPhone!

Yes, the title suggests it. I’ve been FORCED to blog- going against my will and my beliefs that blogging is eeeevil.

Welcome to my first entry to the blogging scene- like, ever. I’ve delayed writing up something due to some technical difficulties (i.e. my internet at home has died – it was dial up too, so I don’t think it could get anymore depressing). While that may have slowed down my documentation, it didn’t stop me from processing thoughts and ideas about the assignment.

Dibble Dabbles about the iPhone:

While I have an extreme loathing for Apple and their i-series (mostly the iPod), the interesting concept behind the iPhone is its innovative and interactive connection with its end-user. I’m hoping to utilise the camera function and its ability to go on-line, to produce a program sophisticated enough so it’s able to recognise clothing- and identify the same/similar styles in an online database. Ideally, there will be a massive database full of different styles of clothing, and users can rate them.

The iPhone user will then be able to go to a store, take a picture of the item of clothing they’re interested in, and the program will connect to our database and match something similar/the same with ratings and comments from users. This would work for single items as well as combinations. Of course, in the case that no clothing items which are of similar style exists, the user will have the option of uploading pictures of the clothes for other users to view/rate/comment on. This will hopefully produce an online community of people with similar interests.