Archive for March, 2010

An article written by Sally Wilson, Web Services Librarian at Ryerson and myself has been published in RSR Quarterly.  Below is some information from the Abstract.  Leave a comment and let me know what you think.

Abstract:

Purpose – The purpose of this article is to review one library’s experiences of creating mobile services and illustrate how, by developing expertise in emerging technologies, libraries can foster partnerships with other groups on campus and play a leading role in providing relevant student centred services.

Design/methodology/approach – The paper begins with a brief summary of mobile services offered by the Ryerson Library prior to the fall of 2008, discusses the results of a mobile device survey conducted that semester , and outlines the resulting mobile services that were developed by the Library which lead to a campus-wide collaboration to develop the framework for a student led mobile initiative. The technical framework and project management issues will also be discussed.

Findings – A survey performed by the Ryerson University Library in the fall of 2008 indicated that smart phones were owned by approximately 20% of the student population but that within the next three years, this figure could reach as much as 80%. To remain relevant, it is important that libraries adapt their services to this new environment

Practical implications – This paper illustrates how library services that can be adapted to the mobile environment and how the library can play a role in broader campus mobile initiatives.

Originality/value – All libraries will be interested in exploring the library services that were developed and adapted for mobile devices and of particular interest to academic libraries will be the building of collaborative relationships with other academic department to provide services to students.

Ryerson Mobile Screenshot

If you’ve come here on a blackberry, iPhone, Google Android device, Palm Pre or a variety of other mobile devices… than you already know that this website has a mobile version.

I’ve been very intrigued with developing applications for mobile devices for the past few years.  Especially since these little handheld devices have begun rendering websites much faster and with vivid graphics.  *ahem* Since the iPhone came out… *ahem*

These mobile devices will definitely play a major part in shaping the future of computing.  They will also (continue to) define the way our society communicates and interacts with each other.  These disruptive devices are definitely game changers.

I’ve spent the last year and a half researching mobile devices and their utility within Universities and specifically Academic Libraries.  My newest article on the subject will be out in RSR Quarterly – Spring 2010 issue. (It will also be added to the Ryerson Institutional Repository)

Here are some links about mobile devices worth mentioning:

Mobile sites that I have been involved with

• Ryerson mobile – (link)
• Ryerson Library Mobile – (link)
• Mobile Study Room App – (link)
• Graham McCarthy Blog – (link) – Accessible on a mobile device
• iPhone Game – [Insert Game Name] – Coming Soon….

Mobile Surveys, Studies and Reports

• Ryerson University – Mobile Survey Results (2008, 2009)
• Pew Mobile Study
• Horizon Reports

Inspiring Mobile Sites

• NCSU Mobile
• MIT Mobile
• Stanford Mobile
• Facebook – Mobile
• YouTube – Mobile
• Amazon – Mobile

Over the last 4 months (and in my spare time…) I have been learning how to write Objective-C code in the hopes of one day releasing an iPhone application on the App Store.  The main objective is to make enough money to pay off my entire student debt using the software development “talents” that I have…. but I’ll be just as happy (albeit… not as financially happy..) if one person tells me that they like my app… basically validating me.

Learning Objective-C

Learning Objective-C was not that difficult once I got the hang of it.  After the first few barriers of not understanding what the heck ” @property (nonatomic, retain)… ” meant and finally getting the handle of the crazy nonsensical syntax, it was actually pretty easy to learn and fun to see your code come to life on the small screen.

What really helped me get a handle of it quickly was my familiarity with C++, DirectX and OpenGL frameworks. (I’m mostly making games…)

What this process has shown me is that the best thing I ever did, was go to College!  College is where I actually learned how to develop software, not just how to think about system design (which I learned at University [.. and is just as important]).

About the Game

Atari's Missile Command (1980)

The game is similar to the Atari’s Missile Command (1980) (shown in the figure above) with some major variations.

My game has Meteors fall from the sky, and you launch rockets by touching the screen in order to intercept and save the city.

Early build of my iPhone game

I am hoping to be finished the game by the end of April, depending how much time I have to work on it.

That is all I have for today.  (I’m also trying to update this blog more often with things I’m working on, tutorials, and other ideas that I come up with).

I felt it was necessary to create a new theme for my website.  One that would be able to highlight games and web applications that I’ve been developing, and also allow the ability to post project tutorials, ideas, and other ramblings that I might come up with.

Post a comment and tell me what you think this, or what you think I should talk about.

Coming soon:

- Information on the iPhone/iPod Touch game I am developing

- Integrating the various aspects of my online life into my website (Done! See the page footer!)

- Posting some ideas for new application developments