DESIGN AND
IMPLEMENTATION OF A MOBILE NOTE RECORDER APPLICATION
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Introduction
In
today’s modern world coupled with the advancement in technology, we have seen a
huge increase in the number of mobile users in the world, hence there is
need to
enable these users
record notes instantly
in their phone
without the need
for searching any extra
resources like a
notebook, pen etc.
This is a note recording application that provides a friendly interface
for instantly recording information. This will make note taking to android
users as easy as storing and accessing contacts.
Most people carry their phones and use them frequently for various tasks. The
trend shows that the growth of mobile phone subscriptions has been growing
rapidly. The latest statistics from The International Telecommunication Union
(October 2014) shows that there will be 5.3 billion mobile subscriptions by the
end of 2015. That is over 70 percent of the world population. These phones are
not only used for communication. Lately there is an increasing interest in
using mobile phones for interaction with people, places and real world objects.
People can use their mobile phones to take pictures of visual markers such as
data matrix codes. After recognizing the code, the information related to the code
is displayed on the phone. GPS positioning is used for various location based
services, such as “find nearest restaurants”. Other areas of mobile
interaction are smart objects such as advertisement posters.
One
of the building blocks for this trend in ubiquitous computing and communication
is the easy and natural interaction between humans and technology. Acquiring information, initiating actions,
transferring data, performing financial transactions, etc., can be done by
touch-based interaction, which is a way of establishing connections and
exchanging information between mobile devices just by bringing them close to
each other. It is interesting to see how technology can be utilized in an
academic environment.
Expert Note Recorder is the technology that
satisfies the need of those who want to take fast and easy note. The Expert
Note Recorder provides facilities for people to take note with their android
device be it android phone or tablets. The recorded note will be stored in the
phone memory which can be read later for reference purpose. This application is
very useful in taking note in the class since according to the mobile world
statistics, it is found that the number of android mobile users is up to 89%.
The reason why an android platform was chosen for the application is due to the
fact that it is cheaper when compared to other mobile devices on different
operating systems.
1.2 Background of Study
Android
is the most popular mobile platform in the world. Android development is
becoming an increasingly popular field. For developers who want to target a
huge, diverse audience, the use of computer system software has been
implemented from PC, mobile and even other means of technology and Applications
/ Games are now invading it. In recent years, Games are also being implemented
by the use of the World Wide Web. Programmers and developers continuously
discover and develop new faces, styles of games or applications which most of
the people were looking forward to. In line with this, several android applications
are being developed running to the tablets. Most are for gaming, application
system, knowledge base system and data processing.
An
Android application (commonly known as an app) is a program for smartphones
running the Android operating system. Writing applications for mobile devices
requires some extra consideration compared to writing traditional desktop
applications. A smartphone, compared to a desktop computer, has very limited
resources. The processor is slow, the memory is limited and power usage should
be kept as low as possible. Interruptions (phone calls, text messages, etc.)
may occur at any time or the device may simply run low on resources and
suspend/kill applications.
Android
devices usually have both internal and external memory. The internal memory is
where applications are typically stored, but this memory is very limited in
size, so storing large files is not advised. The external memory however, has
its own problems. Normally external memory means an external SD card, which might
be removed and replaced by the user.
Android
applications have to take all of this into account and still act reliably and
fast. This includes saving user data when applications are suspended/killed as
well as resuming as if nothing happened when the application is re-launched and
manually putting work intensive tasks on separate threads to offload the user
interface thread and keep the application responsive.
Applications
for Android are written in Java using the Android Software Development Kit
(Android SDK). An application is a complete package, containing graphics, text
resources and layout as well as the actual program.
1.3 Statement
of Problem
Note-taking
is widely regarded as being crucially important to learning in secondary and post-secondary
classrooms. Research on note taking
indicates that taking notes in class and reviewing that notes (either in class
or afterward) have a positive impact on the student’s learning. In general,
note-taking promotes a deeper level of understanding, because an assimilative
process is engaged.
This
boils down to the question “How should notes be taken to enhance effective and
quick learning”? Note taking with books and pen has inherent disadvantages such
as possible loss of notebooks etc. Considering the fact that people especially
the young generation are more inclined to their devices than notebooks, if
these devices are made to help them in the note taking process, then it will go
a long way in improving our learning standard. Hence, the need for this
application.
1.4 Aim and
Objectives
The
aim of this research work is to design a software for note taking.
The objectives of this
study are as listed below;
1.
To design a software
application that can be installed on android devices
2. To
develop a database which will act as a repository for storing notes to be taken
3. To
implement the application on an android platform.
1.5 Significance
of Study
We chose
the Android platform
because it is
one of the fastest growing mobile operating
systems in the
market and it is
an open source development. This project demonstrates
how mobile applications can contribute to enhancing the standard of learning in
Nigeria and the world at large.
1.6
Limitations of the Study
Due to time and financial
constraint, this research work was limited to the following areas;
·
The system cannot be
implemented on a computer system.
·
It is software created
only for touch screen pads, or touchscreen phones.
·
This is not compatible
except for android phones and smart phones.
1.7 Scope
of Study
Every project is carried out to achieve a set of goals
with some conditions keeping in mind that it should be easy to use, feasible
and user friendly. As the goal of this project is to develop an
application that will be able to take notes efficiently in the form of
recording so as to enhance the learning process, this system will be designed keeping in mind the
conditions (easy to use, feasibility and user friendly) stated above. The
proposed project would cover:
1.
Developing
the application for android devices
2.
Implementing
it on an android platform
1.8 Definition
of Terms
1. Android–
A Linux-based operating system designed primarily for touchscreen mobile
devices such as smartphones and tablet computer.
2. Launcher
– Collectively, the part of the Android UI on the home screen that allows you
to launch apps, make phone calls, etc. It is built into Android, or can be
purchased in the Android Market.
3. Window
– In an Android application, an object derived from the abstract class Window
that specifies the elements of a generic window, such as the look and feel
(title bar text, location and content of menus, and so on). Dialog and Activity
use an implementation of this class to render a window. You do not need to
implement this class or use windows in your application.
4. Note-Taking – Note-taking is the practice
of recording information captured from another source. By taking notes, the
writer records the essence of the information, freeing their mind from having
to recall everything.
5. Application – An
application is a program,
or group of programs, that is designed for the end user
to perform a specific task
6. SDK – A
software development kit (SDK or “devkit”) is typically a set of software development
tools that allows the creation of applications
for a certain software
package, software framework,
hardware platform, computer system,
video game console,
operating system,
or similar development platform. To create applications you have to download
this software development kit.
7. GPS – The
Global Positioning System (GPS) is a space-based satellite navigation
system that provides location and time information in all weather conditions,
anywhere on or near the earth where there is an unobstructed line of sight to
four or more GPS satellites. The system provides critical capabilities to
military, civil, and commercial users around the world. It is freely accessible
to anyone with a GPS receiver.