Each team will develop a Rails-based online shopping app for a very, very specialized selection of purchasable things. Each app will have a combination of typical shopping-app features and niche-specific features.
niche
/niCH,nēSH/
denoting products, services, or interests that appeal to a small, specialized section of the population.
The niche-specific features must be highly original and will give your team’s app its special “personality”.
Features Required for All Shopping Apps
There are certain things that your team’s app must have:
Item descriptions with pictures that an admin can edit (including image uploads).
Item prices that can be adjusted by the admin.
Item quantities in stock that automatically decrease as items are sold and that can be adjusted by the admin.
A persistent cart from which a signed-in shopper can add/remove items.
Checkout features that collect payment and shipping/delivery/pick-up/etc. info and update the cart, item quantities, etc.
Features for browsing/searching/filtering item descriptions based on item attributes.
Product reviews by purchasers that include both a quantitative score and qualitative comments (including image uploads).
Your team’s shopping-app features should not be limited to just the above things, but it must include all of the above.
Team-Specific Niches and Features
Aqua – Flying Cars
Sell futuristic automobiles that can fly.
Attributes:
Make
Model
Year
Range: Distance can fly on a single tank of fuel.
Ceiling: Maximum altitude can fly.
Payload: Maximum weight of cargo and/or passengers can carry.
Special Features:
Car Show Event Organizing. User proposes an event, including date and location/venue. Admin reviews and approves proposal. Approved events are visible to users. User can register their previously purchased car to be shown at for upcoming invents (must use purchase data). Once an event has passed, it is commemorated on the website with photos, prize winners, etc.
Spells Mastery. A wand purchaser can register a public-facing verified spells-mastery portfolio (must use purchase data). User can schedule a spell exam with an expert wizard (including what spell is being tested). Expert wizards must be confirmed by admins. Once the test is completed, the expert wizard records the result in the system. If the test is passed, the user’s portfolio will show that they have verified mastery of the spell.
Fuchsia – Ornamental Trees with Bird Houses
Sell ornamental trees that each come with a bird house.
Attributes:
Tree Species (e.g., cherry, crabapple, dogwood; more ideas here)
Bird Species for Bird House (cardinals, chickadees, finches, sparrows, robins, nuthatches, wrens, titmice, bluebirds)
Bird House Material (recycled plastic, wood, metal, plastic)
Bird House Color
Special Features:
Birdhouse Resident Sightings. Purchasers can share sightings of birds using the birdhouses they purchased. Each sighting includes a location, name of bird species, link to relevant purchase data, and an optional photo of the bird using the house. Postings appear in a public-facing stream. Users can search by area and by bird species and can follow favorite posters. Only users who have purchased from the site can make posts and purchase data must be linked/used by the feature.
Gold – Live Tuna
Sell farmed live tuna fish.
Attributes:
Tuna Species
Tuna Sex (male, female)
Tuna Size (e.g., small, medium, large)
Special Features:
Expert Veterinary Help. Expert veterinarians can register with the system but must be confirmed by an admin. Confirmation must involve review of credentials. Purchasers can post questions (including image uploads). Only users who have made a purchase may do so, and the system must use/link to their purchase data. Veterinarians can view a stream of questions and can respond to the questions. Back-and-forth interactions can follow from a question. A user can view an organize all their questions. A veterinarian can view and organize all the questions to which they have responded.
Indigo – Singing Pansies
Sell magical live pansy flower plants that make music.
Attributes:
Pansy Coloration (e.g., yellow; bi-color orange and yellow; tri-color purple, yellow, and blue)
Song Danceability
Song Energy (0 to 1 scale)
Sone Loudness
Song Tempo (beats per minute)
Special Features:
Propose a New Singing Pansy. Purchases can propose new singing pansies. The system must use purchaser data to confirm/link. Proposals can include text descriptions, coloration, and songs/musical genres. Users can view a stream of proposals and can “like” proposals. Admins can review proposals. Admins can accept a proposal. Accepted proposals are listed on a hall of fame page that is viewable to all.
Trade Me a Dewback. A purchaser can declare that a purchased dewback is available for trade. The system must use/link to purchase data. One purchaser can propose a trade with another purchaser. The proposal includes the proposer’s offered dewback(s) and a selection of the proposal recipient’s listed dewback(s) for trade. Purchasers have a trade proposal inbox and can have back-and-forth negotiations. Once a trade is acceptable to both parties, it can be accepted.
Orchid – Frogs in Hats
Sell live frogs that each come with a hat that they can wear.
Hat Design Contest. Admins can start a new contest with a submission deadline Purchasers can submit their hat designs, including images and text descriptions. Once the deadline passes, voting begins, also with a deadline. During voting, a purchaser can vote for 1 submission. Once the voting deadline passes, the design with the most votes wins. In the event of a tie, the admins can break the tie, choosing a winner. Contest winners are commemorated on a page that features their designs. The system must use purchase data for this feature.
Purple – One Piece Time Pieces
Sell watches with designs inspired by the popular Japanese manga/anime/live-action series, One Piece.
Attributes:
Watch Movement (e.g., mechanical, electronic)
Watch Display (e.g, analog, digital)
Illuminated (true or false)
Watch Strap Material (e.g., leather, stainless steel)
One Piece Characters Featured (a list)
One Piece Version Featured (manga, anime, live-action)
One Piece Logo Featured (true or false)
Special Features:
Cosplay Photo Contest. The app supports cosplay contests in which purchasers dress up as One Piece characters and take pictures in costume wearing their purchased watch(es). An admin can start a new contest with a submission deadline. All purchasers can see open contests. A purchaser can submit 1 photo per contest. Once the deadline passes, no new submissions are accepted. Admins judge the contest and declare a winner. Each completed contest is memorialized on the website with the winning picture.
Slate – Lighthouses
Sell manufactured light houses.
Attributes:
Beacon Range (short, moderate, long)
Height (feet)
Power Source (grid, generator, solar)
Living Quarters (true or false)
Foghorn Equipped (true or false)
Special Features:
Lighthouse Scavenger Hunt. The app hosts an ongoing scavenger hunt in which purchasers visit each other’s lighthouses and share pictures. A purchaser can register their purchased lighthouse to be part of the hunt, including the lighthouse’s location. A purchaser can view all the registered lighthouses. A purchaser can declare that they have visited a lighthouse by posting a picture. A leader board shows which users have visited the most with a listing of each’s pictures/visits. The system must use user purchase data for this feature.
Look What I Found. Magic bean stalks frequently have treasures hidden atop them. Purchasers can share photos and descriptions of the treasures they’ve found. Users can like each other’s posts. Streams of posts can be sorted by recency, most liked, and trending. The system must use user purchase data for this feature.