Inspiration
As VenusHacks is a women-centered hackathon, we wanted to address pressing issues that women face daily and create something everyone can benefit from.
What it does
Sync'd is a period tracking app that allows women to connect with their partners to help them be supported during their period. Communication is incredibly important in any relationship, but it can be stressful and challenging. Sync'd offers easier ways to communicate how women are feeling day to day during their period. Women can share how they feel, their symptoms, what treats or food cravings are present, and even what hygiene products they prefer.
How we built it
We were very methodical in how we approached the project. We took a few hours to brainstorm, as our team was made on the spot, and we had few ideas coming into the hackathon. After deciding on an idea, we had several phases: a planning figjam, a wireframe, and several whiteboards detailing interactions between the front and back ends. The three of us split the work up evenly based on what we were interested in. With one person doing solely back-end, another doing front-end exclusively, and one facilitating the communication between the two, everyone got to learn precisely what they wanted to learn, work simultaneously, and gain hands-on experience.
Challenges we ran into
The first challenge we ran into was before any coding. We spent both the entirety of the first night and a handful of hours on the second day brainstorming ideas. We ran into a few technical challenges as nobody had any front-end experience, and only ICS 33 database experience, but the main challenge was communicating between the front and back ends using local hosts.
Accomplishments that we're proud of
We're incredibly proud of what we were able to accomplish in such a short amount of time. We were able to develop a diverse web app despite it being our first software hackathon, and our design is incredibly visually appealing. We didn't need to sacrifice the user experience for ease of work, but put people first, and we believe that is right in line with the message behind our app. Most importantly, we are proud of our effort and dedication while working on this project. It was intimidating to compete in a hackathon without experience, and even more so to learn as much as possible and dive far out of our comfort zones, but we took it in stride and challenged ourselves.
What we learned
We learned a myriad of technical skills, such as Flask with Python, JavaScript, and React. More importantly, we learned the importance of planning and communication. Just a few extra minutes of planning can save hours of refactoring code later, after realizing not everyone was on the same page.
What's next for Sync'd
The next direction for Sync'd is the app store. We couldn't create a mobile app due to a lack of experience and time, but a mobile app is more than feasible after this prototype. In fact, it was our initial idea. In addition, monetization by recommendation based on cravings and preferences in snacks is a potential avenue for revenue if the app ever picks up steam. We'd also like to dedicate more time to the partner's side of the web-app in the future.
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