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Project Management Application - What features would you want

(@Anonymous)
New Member

I am a BSc Computer Networking student in my final year. I am required to do a final year project for which I have chosen to develop an opensource web-based project management application. This is something along the lines of Microsoft project but I intend it to be web-based.

I am particularly interested in developing an application that has a specific interface for touch based mobile devices such as tablets and smartphones for accessing information about the project on the move. This would include information about tasks (and there project), events and resource assignment both human and other resources. In addition, I hope to able to provide file access to mobile devices.

I am also interested in the usability aspect of such an application in order to make accessible to all users not those who are technically orientated. Therefore later in the duration of the project I am going to need data on what makes a web page usable.

Currently I am looking for information for about features that people in business actually need from a Project Management Application. In addition I would like to know what kind of information you would like to be able to view about your projects. Any ideas?

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Topic starter Posted : 03/01/2012 11:24 am
(@Anonymous)
New Member

Re: Project Management Application - What features would you want

I guess you can create an application that can connect all of the other connections all together. I mean in my mobile device, I have a different application for my notes, my tasks, my scheds. etc. something like that. It would be pretty neat to have that in a mobile device if you get what I mean.

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Posted : 10/01/2012 11:57 am
(@Anonymous)
New Member

Re: Project Management Application - What features would you want

Yeah that is kind of what I was thinking, although it would be a bit more projectised. Therefore it wouldn't just be the your tasks, it would be your tasks and all the people that you are in charge of say if you were the project manager. But if you plan on being a team member, then yes you would be able to access just your tasks, but team members find it helpful to everyone else's tasks available to them because they are dependent on everyone else. However they would be your tasks for that particular project, not in general.

Your idea of notes would be similar to comments which could be about a file, task, event or resource. Personal notes about the project I personally feel are out of scope. However I see the need to be able to take your notes about a project with you, it wouldn't be to difficult to implement.

Your thinking more along the lines of Exchange and being able to sync all your data (which is already possible). Where as I am more on about Microsoft Project but networked and in a browser.

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Topic starter Posted : 10/01/2012 8:41 pm
(@Anonymous)
New Member

Re: Project Management Application - What features would you want

I think what you want to focus is on making the interface touch friendly. That would be your selling point. Feature-wise, project management softwares have been done hundred times over. You couldn't possibly be more feature-rich than MS Project. Just an opinion ๐Ÿ™‚

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Posted : 11/01/2012 11:53 am
(@Anonymous)
New Member

Re: Project Management Application - What features would you want

I agree that I couldn't possibly hope to out do Microsoft Project (or most other management software) in features. But Microsoft Project has one fatal flaw, it's a local desktop application which is contrary to project management. There are ways of making it portable but none of them are very good (network shares, file hosting). There are other project management applications that are web based but I have found none with a mobile interface for touch based devices.

Therefore data mobility would be the killer feature and yes that would require me to have a decent touch friendly interface. The best touch friendly interface I have seen so far is Apple IOS, therefore I would have to make them my model. The best mobile (and possibly desktop) platform I have seen so far is the web browser (whether it's based on Andriod, IOS, WP7 or WebOS is irrelevant).

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Topic starter Posted : 11/01/2012 12:45 pm
(@Anonymous)
New Member

Re: Project Management Application - What features would you want

Interesting... doing project management from a mobile phone. I'd love to see it when it is done. ๐Ÿ˜Ž

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Posted : 13/01/2012 12:34 pm
(@Anonymous)
New Member

Re: Project Management Application - What features would you want

As a project manager for a long time I find these types of project extremely fascinating. If you want to think about features here is a pretty decent project management tools feature list that I have used in the past:

http://www.atlassian.com/software/jira/features

I guess my one question is what would your project management system have that an option like Jira would not. I think it is also worthwhile to note that most mobile devices are becoming so advanced now that phones are virtually laptops and vice versa. This is allowing for huge leaps in micro and mobile computing, employee connection and project execution.

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Posted : 15/01/2012 12:11 pm
(@Anonymous)
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Re: Project Management Application - What features would you want

I will look into Jira, it has been mentioned to me several times. Just a note, I am not intended to compete with a commercial company and my intention is to build an opensource and free product which you download and install yourself. Therefore I probably can't compete with Jira on features but I will compete with it on price, although opensource applications tend to cost on the maintenance and management front. I will however do the best job I can to match it's features even if I die trying by the looks of it.

Yes but most portable devices still have touch based interface which is the reason why (out of the ones I have seen so far) current applications will not work with them very well because their UI was designed for the keyboard and mouse not fat fingers. Portable devices do not lack the processing power, memory or screen resolution for this type of application. You can of course have a keyboard and mouse with most portable devices (tablets mostly) but this ruins it for me because I might as well carry a laptop.

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Topic starter Posted : 16/01/2012 2:44 pm
(@Anonymous)
New Member

Re: Project Management Application - What features would you want

Do I understand it correctly that you basically want to look for developing some kind of webbased 'Cloud Computing Project Interface' or something like that?
If that's the case when you can make something like that with a 'Touch Friendly Interface' than I can imagine it to be something that could possibly be practical.

I do believe that there already are some sites that offer 'Cloud Computing' type of service for Project Management (also see the page with Startup Links & Resources on my Blog)
Possibly you might be able to create a Special - Touch Friendly - Dashboard for such services with easy 'Dragg and Drop'-type of Tasking
or something like that?

To answer your question, I do think that one of the most important components would probably be a Practical Dashboard with a Dragg and Drop Tasks & Resources Manager
or something like that, like a painter has his 'Pallet' to choos colors, instead of typing tasks, hope this makes some sense and can help to give you a perspective to look at it....?

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Posted : 27/01/2012 4:19 pm
(@Anonymous)
New Member

Re: Project Management Application - What features would you want

Thankyou for your feedback. I like the name Cloud Computing Project Interface, it sounds so geeky.

I like the idea of a drag and drop task and resource manager. What I am thinking and what I got from you, is a dashboard with all the latest status updates for all tasks and projects your involved in. The ability to drag resources that are assigned to the project onto the different tasks and for the system to automatically know if resources are available at the time of the task (i.e. not assigned to any other task or event it knows about). The same concept could also be applied to people (along with email notifications), this could be done for both tasks and events. Therefore the system would provide you with a list of people who were not involved (well not 100% utilised) in any other tasks or events.

Development of the application has already begun but it not too late for a new feature. I will be posting a link to the application here when it's released as beta (as it's web based). Don't expect too much, I am only one BSc student.

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Topic starter Posted : 28/01/2012 1:09 pm
(@Anonymous)
New Member

Re: Project Management Application - What features would you want

Software project management is an interesting topic where different models to run a business are discussed. The different steps involved like in waterfall model and spiral model are present in it.Then there are ways to recruit people in it. There are steps to do business on the whole.

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Posted : 31/01/2012 11:08 am
(@Anonymous)
New Member

Re: Project Management Application - What features would you want

I agree that I couldn't possibly hope to out do Microsoft Project (or most other management software) in features. But Microsoft Project has one fatal flaw, it's a local desktop application which is contrary to project management. There are ways of making it portable but none of them are very good (network shares, file hosting). There are other project management applications that are web based but I have found none with a mobile interface for touch based devices.

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Posted : 02/02/2012 10:59 am
(@Anonymous)
New Member

Re: Project Management Application - What features would you want

I believe what you desire to aim is on making the interface feel amicable. That would be your trading point. Feature-wise, project administration software have been finished century times over. You couldn't possibly be more feature-rich than MS Project.

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Posted : 20/11/2012 1:39 pm
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