Mind Pal Project Documentation

The project topic is to build a task management (to-do) app using APIs and designs provided by another team.

Recap of previous work

So let's pick up from where we stopped, we implemented extra features into our basic task management app which are the bucket list and shared tasks but first, a quick recap on what did last week.

We made a task management app used to create and track the completion of our user's tasks. It starts by authenticating it's users, as we recognize the need to keep some of your goals private, the authentication process is very quick and not information is needed. Then we come to the home screen which shows you the ongoing tasks as well an a linear progress indicator that keeps track of how many tasks you have that day and how close you are to completing them. From the home screen, you can navigate directly to a page that lets you add tasks. This page is also reachable from a few other screens.

The home screen also has a menu button which navigates to the menu screen. This provides four buttons representing different things you can do with the app. One of which leads to a page where you can view all tasks that are are still pending. You can also filter the tasks shown if you are looking for something particular.

From this page, you can navigate to another page where you can edit the content of the task, you can also change the time or any other property of the task. And lastly, you can delete the task altogether.

Extra features added

This post is less technical as the last post covered a lot of the technical aspects. We mostly used the same techniques here but for different features.

Bucket List

We all have dreams and lofty goals that can't be accomplished within a week or a month, lifetime goals that keep popping up in our minds and then disappearing till it is triggered again. Some studies have shown that writing your goals down increases your chances of fulfilling them but we know you can't always take a pen and paper with you everywhere you go. So how can you document your dreams and aspirations as they come to you? Your mobile phones. They're with you everywhere you go and it'll only take a few seconds to whip out your device, open an app and type the jumbled thoughts in your head, your dreams, into reality.

We got a beautiful but simplistic design from the product design team. We built this feature in a way that allows you to make more than one bucket list, you could have some goals with different deadlines and section them in different lists or you could have just one big list for a lifetime.

You could give your lists memorable names that'll keep your dreams floating at the back of your head all the time or you could be plain like Fego here and just name it your goals.

The process of transferring your thoughts to the app is made easy by shortening the steps you'll need to take. And all this functionality is made possible by the magic of APIs running in the backend. We already covered that in the previous post so we won't go over it again.

Shared Tasks

Sometimes we share common goals with our families, friends and colleagues. Rather than go through these tasks alone, why not carry your comrades along for the ride? As they say, team work makes the dream work!.

Last year my friends and I had a collective goal of teaching ourselves a new language. Long story short, it ended in tears. It wasn't properly organized and responsibilities we're not being fulfilled. This feature of ours changes all of that.

With this feature, you'll be able to create a space and add what category it falls under. You can invite your friends via email and then create the shared task as you would a normal one. This task can be viewed by everyone sharing the task with you.

Future updates

This is not the end of the line yet for this app. There are still a few things that need to be done before we can call it completed.

Secure the app better

This is a no brainer, every application needs better security so the privacy and security of it's users is not compromised. This is still a work in progress.

More APIs

Due to our initial backend team messing up, we don't have all the APIs we need to make this fully functional so that's also a work in progress. Expect at least one final update from us with more good news.

Debug and Test

This is the iterative phase where we focus on eliminating bugs and optimizing app performance. We'll also be creating tests to achieve this but that's content for another blog post.

Conclusion

Although the app is almost completed, it still needs some extra work and cleaning up before it can properly go live. The main part of the app building process is done and I hope we were able to carry you along with us, you can be sure to expect more posts from us on this space. Questions and comments would also be appreciated.