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Cindy
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May 25, 2011 • After 2 eventful years in the Big Apple at one of the nation’s technologically advanced graduate program, I finally finished. Published the thesis, presented my research, and now I’m packing my bags to head to Microsoft Research as a summer design intern in Fuse Labs. But, this blog post, isn’t really about that. It’s about...
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Cindy
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Apr 5, 2011 • Left: New User prompt by in-game character, the Big Chief. Right:. Set initial fitness actions, choose to start out walking or jogging. Here’s a series of snapshots of my app under design, Doki Doki Dash. Thesis abstract that’s under development: Doki Doki Dash is a mobile fitness game app that uses a mystery to get...
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Cindy
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Mar 22, 2011 • So, what is Doki Doki Dash? Imagine a mystery game but instead of hunting criminals on-screen, your detective skills pay off by pounding the pavement, literally. Doki Doki Dash is a mobile exercise game I am designing for my thesis at NYU ITP. It’s a crime-solving game meets exercise app. I want to inject a...
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Cindy
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Mar 19, 2011 • Spending a Sat evening listening to this webinar: How to Design and Prototype for Mobile Devices led by Amir Khella and Josh Clark. I decided to jot my notes that I found really interesting from a user experience/product design focus from this 80-min. podcast. Mobile Design Context What is the STORY OF YOUR APP? What...
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Cindy
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Mar 7, 2011 • Wow, amazing what what 2 weeks can do. I came up with my thesis name, refined my game concept, started banging out a user experience flow…meet my thesis, Doki Doki Dash! (Website is pending). I decided to revise my thesis concept on 2 points: 1) Focus on the game/user experience over coding. I’d rather spend...
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Cindy
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Feb 22, 2011 • Last semester, my team and I proposed and pitched an emergency mobile health system to the Unicef Innovations team. Stemming from NYU’s ITP coursework, Design for Unicef, we examined the issues of mobile health from the framework of emergency humanitarian deployment. The result was: Code MAMA (Mobile Assistance for Medical Aid) is a mobile outreach...
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Cindy
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Feb 20, 2011 • Progress this week: Game Research - Interviewed two leading game designers, Adam Simon and Michael Dory of SocialBomb about my thesis idea. They led me to check out Nike’s The Grid and further inspection of Area/Code’s games and other outdoor games created by ITPers. - Continued adding to my thesis bibliography by researching user motivation...
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Cindy
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Feb 14, 2011 • This week: I gathered the brave players for my game test at Washington Square Park. Their test was simple. Bring their smartphones and play the audio file on their running app. The users were told to follow through the instructions/feedback heard in the 4.5 minute audio file. As a user researcher, I stayed on the...
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Cindy
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Feb 8, 2011 • (This is me back when I used to run more regularly) So far, I’ve tentatively named my Thesis as “Fitbotics: Gaming Your Way to a Faster, Stronger You.” My goal is create a mobile game that motivates people (non-exercise types) to run. Get gamers to work out and take them off their couch and out...
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Cindy
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Jan 27, 2011 • The first week of my last days in grad school just started. 14 weeks till the Final Countdown of thesis delivery and graduation. Thus, the mad scramble for me to think BIG THOUGHTS as I tackle my ITP thesis. During winter break, I scribbled down impressions of potential subject areas and core interests/wants for my future...
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Cindy
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Jan 12, 2011 • Top Moments/Habits of 2010, y’all. In no particular order, just scribbled down. 1. Featured in the BBC at the ITP Spring Show for SocialDrinkster, now known as Qmigo. 2. Moving out of the East Village to Brookyln into my own studio and finding the best neighborhood ever, Cobble Hill, Fall 2010. 3. Presenting at Microsoft...
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Cindy
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Jan 9, 2011 • A series of people have been asking me online about my experience at NYU ITP. This blog post was created as a way for me to direct potential applicants to common questions about the program, why I’m here, how it’s been for myself personally. I can say that NYU ITP has been a life-affirming program...
