Summing It All Up

Summing It All Up

As time passed and I learned about new and different materials in the technology field, my entrepreneurial idea has definitely evolved throughout the semester. Because of me gaining knowledge on so many things during IST 195 class, I was able to use the material I learned with my idea to make it an even great idea.

One way my entrepreneurial idea has evolved over time is after I learned about cloud computing in class. Cloud computing is such a useful thing that people use mostly everyday and I feel that if i added cloud computing to my app, it would be a greater success. While using the My Virtual Fridge app, one can now log on using any computer with a special login username and password and can access all their information that is stored on the application.

Another way my entrepreneurial idea has evolved throughout the semester is when I learned about it's current competitors. Knowing about my competitors really helped me make my idea even better because I found out what my competitors had and what they were missing. I definitely made sure my application were better than its competitors. One strong idea I stole from my competitors and used them with my application is the listing of prices from online websites too. Before I read about my competitors, my application only listed prices from local stores, I know made sure to include online prices with my application too so online shoppers can be able to use my application too.

Additionally, one really strong way my entrepreneurial idea has evolved over time was adding the use of Excel. I learned in my IST 195 class that Excl is currently being used with so many companies and that we are slowly relying more on it each day. With that being learned, I definitely incorporated Excel with my application. With the use of my application, A user can keep track of how much they spent weekly, monthly, or yearly at supermarkets. Charts can even be made from Excel to show the user’s finances in a visual format. The app will even categorize the items the user bought. For example, daily products, poultry, snacks, drinks, etc.

In conclusion, after I learned so many different topics in IST 195, I was able to use my knowledge to better my entrepreneurial idea. The outline to actually make my entrepreneurial idea into reality will be to first to make the application first. I found a great step-by-step guide online on how to make an application. After I make it, I will incorporate all the features, like the GPS function that comes with the phone and scanner, and a lot more.

My Virtual Fridge App Uses Computer Security

This app is a virtual fridge on your smart phone that tells you when your items are running low. Items are scanned onto the phone using the barcode scanner. When an item is running low, the app will notify the user. This app also allows users to save time by giving the quickest route to get all items at a supermarket along with helping users stay on their diet when they continue to scan and buy special products.  

My Virtual Fridge App Uses Computer Security

       When using an app like My Virtual Fridge, it it important to make sure that the app secures the information stored. In the My Virtual Fridge app, it contains many important information that can be private to some people like weight ( for users using the diet feature), items bought, supermarkets a user shopped at, amount of purchases and a lot more. With all this valuable information stored in this app, the app uses computer security to make sure all information is secured.

        The way computer security works with the app is that it protects the information from theft, corruption, or even a natural disaster. However, it still allows the information to be accessible for a certain user with a login username and password. The information that a user stores in the My Virtual Fridge app will always be secured because this app uses the best and most updated computer technology to keep valuable information secured.

         Because of the information being secured with the most updated computer technology, all information stored on the My Virtual Fridge app will not be affected by malware. Malware is a software that is used to create or disrupt computer operation, gather sensitive information, or gain access to private computer systems. With many programs being affected by malicious software  you can't ever go wrong with using this app because all of a user's information will be secured and protected at all times.

My Virtual Fridge App Compatible with Different Operating Systems

This app is a virtual fridge on your smart phone that tells you when your items are running low. Items are scanned onto the phone using the barcode scanner. When an item is running low, the app will notify the user. This app also allows users to save time by giving the quickest route to get all items at a supermarket along with helping users stay on their diet when they continue to scan and buy special products.  

My Virtual Fridge App Compatible with Different Operating Systems

          The My Virtual Fridge App can be used with many different phones, such as Apple, Android, and Blackberry. Although these smartphones all use different operating systems, this incredible app is functioned to work with all operating systems used by smart phones. The My Virtual Fridge App is very compatible since it is able  to work on all operating systems  and only a few apps can do that!

            The reason why this incredible app is able to work with many different operating systems is because the app only uses main functions that every operating system has. For example, the app's main uses are the camera which is uses as a barcode scanner, mobile navigation to help a user navigate while in a supermarket, and so much more!

           Many apps now a days are only compatible with some types of phones. For example, there are many apps that can only be used with Apple, and some that are not compatible with Blackberry phones, and some only for Android. But this app, unlike the rest, can be used with all smartphones, now you can't go wrong with this!

Blogger Review

Blogger Review

                The professional blogger in the technology industry that I am critiquing is TechCrunch. The URL to this blog is http://techcrunch.com/. TechCrunch was founded in June 2005. TechCrunch is a very popular blog, it gets 2 million unique visitors and draws more than 37 million page views per month. 

                TechCrunch is dedicated to profiling startups, reviewing new Internet products, and breaking tech news. I noticed that TechCrunch stays very updated with all the new news in the Technology field. Whether its with a new technology product, or interesting news for people interested in Tecnology, they always stay on top of the stuff.

               What I really enjoy about TechCrunch's blogging style is their use of headings and pictures. I believe it makes the website very organized and easy to navigate. Their use of pictures make it easy for viewers to read an article that they seem attracted to by the pictures. Another thing I like is the colors, they go with the Technology field, and seems very techy. 

Blogger URL: http://techcrunch.com/

My Virtual App Uses Cloud Computing

This app is a virtual fridge on your smart phone that tells you when your items are running low. Items are scanned onto the phone using the barcode scanner. When an item is running low, the app will notify the user. This app also allows users to save time by giving the quickest route to get all items at a supermarket along with helping users stay on their diet when they continue to scan and buy special products. 

My Virtual Fridge App Uses Cloud Computing

            My Virtual Fridge app will use cloud computing in various ways. My Virtual Fridge app is able to maintain many data about a user over the Web, with the user's permission of course. Two different data types that My Virtual Fridge will be using with cloud computing is purchases made and fridge details. The user will be able to access this data over the web with a login username and password.
            When a user logs online with their username and password one of the data types they can access on the Web is their purchases made. A user will be able to see every item they have bought, including the name of the item, price of the item, and where the item was purchased. This will be very useful for the user because they will be able to keep track of the items they bought and how much they have been spending in the supermarkets.
             Another data type that can be found on the Web for My Virtual Fridge users is details about their fridge. When the user logs on the Web, they will be able to see every item that is currently in their fridge, and how long it is suppose to last for. This is useful because lets say a user is at work and they forgot their phone home that day, they can log onto the Web, insert their username and password, and see the items in their fridge and see what items they need to purchase at the supermarket before they come home.

Competitive Analysis

This app is a virtual fridge on your smart phone that tells you when your items are running low. Items are scanned onto the phone using the barcode scanner. When an item is running low, the app will notify the user. This app also allows users to save time by giving the quickest route to get all items at a supermarket along with helping users stay on their diet when they continue to scan and buy special products. 

Competitive Analysis

Competitor 1 URL: http://techland.time.com/2011/05/27/supermarkets-map-app-shows-quickest-routes-to-things-on-your-list/              This competitor is called Tesco. It is similar to my app because this app also gives a turn by turn route to give the user a suggested route  that is quickest way for finding all the stuff on a shopping list. The difference with my app is that it is for all smartphones and not only for Androids like this competitor. Also for this app, this is the only feature that is used for the app. On the other hand, my app comes with different features, for example, the virtual fridge, the diet feature, and the coupon feature.

Competitor 2 URL:http://redlaser.com/
                This competitor is called Red Laser. It is similar to my app because it also scans items and finds the prices of the item at different locations. This app is also available for all smartphones. The difference with this app is that it shows prices from local stores and  online websites, when my app only shows local supermarkets. After reviewing this competitor, I feel like it would be better if my app included prices from online websites too.

Summary

               In conclusion, after reviewing these competitors I have noticed that my app can add more features to top my competitors. The positive thing about my app is that it  does not only have one use for the app but it has several uses. This makes my application top my competitors because most of their apps have only one main use.

My Virtual Fridge Uses Hardware and Computer Forensics

This app is a virtual fridge on your smart phone that tells you when your items are running low. Items are scanned onto the phone using the barcode scanner. When an item is running low, the app will notify the user. This app also allows users to save time by giving the quickest route to get all items at a supermarket along with helping users stay on their diet when they continue to scan and buy special products.

My Virtual Fridge Uses Hardware and Computer Forensics 

Hardware Used for My Virtual Fridge App

One important hardware that is used for the My Virtual Fridge App is the barcode scanner built in the smartphone. This piece of hardware is the main component used for this app. The barcode scanner scans the barcode using a light source, lens, and a light sensor that translates the information from the bardcode. With the barcode scanner, it scans the product information of any item onto the smartphone using computer forensics, which is mentioned below.

Storing Product Information onto Smartphone

Using the My Virtual Fridge app on your smartphone will definitely be using a lot of computer forensics in multiple ways. One way that this app uses computer forensics is when it stores product information into the cellphone. Once the item is scanned onto the phone, the phone will now have a full description of the product. Some information that will be stored on the phone is the name of the product, the price, the size, and etc.

Storing User Information onto Smartphone

Along with storing product information onto the smartphone, the My Virtual Fridge app will also be storing information about the user onto the phone. Some information about the user will be stored, for example, what supermarket  did the user buy items from, what items the user bought, what time did the user buy items, what diet the user went on, and a lot more.  This will be stored on the phone just in case a user needs to look back on their phone to see some information that might come in handy to them.

My Virtual Fridge Uses Social Media and Excel

This app is a virtual fridge on your smart phone that tells you when your items are running low. Items are scanned onto the phone using the barcode scanner. When an item is running low, the app will notify the user. This app also allows users to save time by giving the quickest route to get all items at a supermarket along with helping users stay on their diet when they continue to scan and buy special products.

My Virtual Fridge Uses Social Media and Excel

My Virtual Fridge can be related with social media by connecting a user’s social network accounts with the application. A user can log on to their social network and let their friends or followers know on Facebook or Twitter which supermarket they are currently at, like a check-in feature. Of course this feature is optional, if a user does not want to share this information on their social network they do not have to.

This app will definitely have privacy settings because not every user may want others to know what they are buying, what diet they are currently on, or what supermarket they shop at. The user can change these settings to what they want to be private and what they want to be shared on their social networks. For example, a user can chose to not show the supermarkets they shop at but choose to make the diet they go on public.

My Virtual Fridge can even be related with Excel in a very useful way. A user can keep track of how much they spent weekly, monthly, or yearly at supermarkets. Charts can even be made from Excel to show the user’s finances in a visual format. The app will even categorize the items the user bought. For example, daily products, poultry, snacks, drinks, etc. 

My Virtual Fridge App

ABOUT THE APP

                  Many people open their fridge while they are in the middle of making something and notice an item they need is not there. Many people also waste valuable time at supermarkets looking for items they think they would need at home. Many people also go to the supermarket and buy items and notice they forgot something. To help stop these current problems, my entrepreneurial idea is an app for iPhone, Android, Blackberry, and all smart phones users. Technology is rapidly increasing and almost everyone has a smart phone and uses apps to help them go through the day.  With this new app, it is like a virtual fridge on your smart phone. Every time you go to the supermarket, this app will scan the items you buy, using the barcode scanner, and store it into your phone. Once you scan the item, it will appear in the virtual fridge. Every time an item is scanned, the app will automatically put in how long they think the item will last in the fridge. For example, if milk is scanned into the phone, the app will automatically put 2 weeks. Once 2 weeks is approaching, the app can send push notifications to the phone alert that the milk is running out.  The user of the app can manually adjust the settings to their own time also. While at the supermarket, a user can see what items are currently running out of stock of and won’t have to waste time.

COOL FEATURES

                This app will also have many features on the side that can be very useful. With this app being partnered with many other supermarkets, the app can help you when you are in certain supermarkets. For example, many people spend a lot of time walking around a supermarket to find the items they need. With the special Quick Route feature in the app, it will tell a user the quickest route to get all the items they need.  A user can uncheck any item they do not want to be on the route also. This feature will help the user save time and the supermarkets become less busy.

                 Another feature in the app will be to help our users save money. Using the barcode scanner again, the app can scan any new item or any items already scanned onto the phone and find the prices of them at different supermarkets. With this feature, a user can find the lowest price for an item or the lowest price at a supermarket for their total purchase.

 Finally, this app can help our users go on a diet and successfully stay on it. With this feature, the app will generate what type of diet one will need to go on and then generate a list of items the user should buy. Once the user buys items and scans the items into the phone frequently, the app will notice that the user is successfully staying on the diet. For the users who successfully remain on the diet, the app will randomly send coupons to the user’s phone to reward the user.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, supermarkets would love to be partnered with this app because it will make them have fewer crowds and shorter lines. Supermarkets would enjoy this because they wouldn’t have to hire too many people and their supermarket can be more organized. The app will also help people financially, physically (with their body), and with their time.