Jina's+Wiki

=Jina’s Wiki =

==table // of // contents ==
 * 1) Abstract
 * 2) Statement of Interest
 * 3) Mind Map
 * 4) Competitors
 * 5) Inspirations
 * 6) User Personas
 * 7) User Scenarios (SSNiFs)
 * 8) Compatibility Chart
 * 9) Additional Feature Ideas
 * 10) Site Map
 * 11) Mood Board
 * 12) Branding
 * 13) Design
 * 14) Timeline
 * 15) References

 ==// 01. // Abstract ==

Sushi is a popular food that is delicious, relatively healthy, and aesthetically pleasing. While this cuisine's origins come from Japan, sushi in its present form can be found in many places throughout the world (especially places that are near water). Unfortunately, not all places are //good// places to get sushi (due to a number of factors: proximity to water, service, quality, etc).

This project, a **location-based iPhone application**, aims to help **sushi enthusiasts** find the best places to get sushi, relative to where they are currently located. It will enable you to:

> Using your current location, you will be able to find nearby places to get sushi. These places will be ranked according to both ratings and your preference settings.
 * **Locate**

> You can add content (ratings/reviews, tips, photos, etc.) about the places you visit. This will help you keep track of the places you like, and it will help other users of the application make their own informed decisions.
 * **Contribute**



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 ==// 02. // Statement // of // Interest ==

Some of my friends call me “sushimonster”. Like the Cookie Monster loves to eat cookies, I love to eat sushi. A lot. I also travel a lot. When I am visiting a different city, my friends who live there usually ask me if I’d like to get sushi with them. Occasionally, my friends have a place in mind for me that they think is “worthy”. However, in most cases, they had to go on recommendations or just choosing a place nearby. And within these cases, we unfortunately find some places that are not so great for sushi.

I would like to create a solution that I would personally use (and enjoy), as well as other sushi enthusiasts throughout the world. I want to find places that offer great quality food, and I want to have great experiences that fit the situation (night life, who you are dining with, budget, etc.) Finally, I want to use this application to educate people who are learning to become enthusiasts, or perhaps even aficionados.



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 ==// 03. // Mind Map ==



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 ==// 04. // Competitors ==

Yelp, Inc. is a Web 2.0 company that operates a social networking, user review, and local search web site of the same name. Over 25 million people access Yelp's website each month, putting it in the top 100 of U.S. Internet web sites.
 * [[image:jab-yelp-logo.png align="right"]] **Yelp**

|| || OpenTable is an online real-time restaurant reservation service founded by Chuck Templeton in San Francisco, CA in 1998. Reservations are free to end users; the company charges restaurants monthly and per-reservation fees for their use of the system. In 1999, the website began operations serving a limited selection of restaurants in San Francisco, since, it has expanded to cover restaurants in most U.S. states as well as in several major international cities.
 * Alexa Stats**
 * [[image:jab-competitors-opentable.png width="210" height="29" align="right"]] **OpenTable**

|| || Discover the hidden communities behind the places that you visit. Brightkite lets you make the connection and start a conversation.
 * Alexa Stats**
 * [[image:jab-competitors-brightkite.png width="180" height="59" align="right"]] **Brightkite**

|| ||
 * Alexa Stats**

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==// 05. // Inspirations ==

Create your own online wine journal, catalog your collection, and rate wines. Members can also keep tabs on friends' lists and share reviews. || || Share your experiences and discover new places. Everywhere you go. || || I like the aesthetic of various sushi-related cookbooks. They're clean, minimal, and modern, very simple and clean. || ||
 * [[image:jab-inspirations-corkd-logo.jpg width="124" height="42" align="right"]] **Cork’d**
 * [[image:jab-inspirations-gowalla.png width="134" height="36" align="right"]] **Gowalla**
 * **Sushi cookbooks**

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==// 06. // User Personas ==

Steve is a senior web developer at LinkedIn, a job he is in love with. He is very technologically savvy and he is an avid iPhone user. When it comes to sushi, Steve is not only a fan, but he knows his stuff. The more exotic and unusual, the better. "//I love great sushi. I'm a sushi snob and make no apologies for it.//" "//The best way to find a great sushi restaurant is to find like minded sushi lovers and share favorites with one another. I tend to avoid trial and error. Life's too short for bad sushi.//" "//I'm heading to Japan next year and hope to learn a thing or two.//" || Eugene is a case manager for the State of Tennessee Divisions of Intellectual Disabilities Services. He is fairly technologically savvy as he's used computers for a long time. He didn't like sushi before, but because his daughter (me!) is an avid sushi-enthusiast, he's started eating sushi. He still has a lot to learn about sushi and how to eat it. "//I used to think sushi was gross — and dangerous. I mean, I had always heard of salmonella poisoning from undercooked fish, and sushi IS undercooked! Besides, who would want to eat raw fish? That's bait! LOL I often wondered how restaurants that serve it pass health inspections. Don't they get dinged for having raw seafood exposed, especially if it sits out on the sushi bar for more than a few minutes?// //I started my sushi experience with eating Kim Bap — the Korean rice rolled in seaweed, that is similar to sushi, except for the bait part. But I finally manned up one day and tried sushi, and was pleased to see I didn't die. So now I eat sushi occasionally."// "//If I'm in an Asian restaurant that serves it, I will eat it, along with the mandatory ginger and sinus-clearing wasabi.//" "//To be sure, I'm no sushi expert. I'm basically a sushi novice. I don't know what a 'California roll' is or if that is even a legitimate type of sushi.//" || Michelle works at a hospital and volunteers as an activist in animal rights and care. She is very active in social networking and is technologically savvy. She is a vegetarian and is very eco-conscious. She eats vegetarian sushi. "//I'm a vegetarian, so I don't eat regular sushi. I like vegetarian sushi, though, like cucumber rolls, or tofu rolls. I also enjoy a good miso soup.//" "//Obviously, if I'm going to a sushi restaurant, it has to be one that offers vegetarian options. I also like to find places that are clean and quiet. I prefer traditional places over the swanky places. And even though I don't eat fish, I feel a lot better knowing that I'm going to a place that cares about sustainability.//" "//I am not really an expert on sushi, but I enjoy trying new things. As long as it's vegetarian!//" ||
 * media type="custom" key="4572418" || **Steve Ganz**
 * media type="custom" key="4572498" || **Eugene Bolton**
 * media type="custom" key="4572632" || **Michelle MacLean**

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==// 07. // User Scenarios (SSNiFs) ==

//SSNiFs: Stakeholder (user/customer) :: Situation :: Need :: Feature (solution)//

She is in a hurry to find a place very quickly. || He knows his friends are a little snobby, so he wants to impress them by finding a place that will be "up to par" for them. || She isn't really sure where to start, and doesn't even know her new zip code yet. || He is very new to eating sushi and isn't quite sure where to start. He is a little nervous about trying things that are too exotic. ||
 * ~ Big SSNiFs ||
 * ~  ||~ #1 ||~ #2 ||~ #3 ||~ #4 ||
 * **Stakeholder** || A person is on a business trip and wants to make dinner plans with some business people she just met. || A person just found out he got a new job and so he wants to celebrate with friends at a sushi restaurant. || A person has just moved to the area and she wants to the first place she goes to for sushi to be a good one. || A person has tagged along with friends to go to dinner and he finds they've gone to a sushi restaurant, which he's never been to before. ||
 * **Situation** || She is new to the area and don't really know what all is available.
 * **Need** |||||| …something to make finding good quality places to get sushi easier and faster. || …something that can help the user make a decision on what to order. ||
 * **Feature** |||||||| A location-based mobile application for the iPhone that is for locating and learning about good sushi. ||


 * ~ Little SSNiF #1 ||
 * **Stakeholder** |||||||| A person is on a business trip and wants to make dinner plans with some business people she just met. ||
 * **Situation** || The people she is inviting are business men. || She doesn't want her business guests to have to travel too far. || She knows one of her guests is a vegetarian. || She is in a hurry and wants to make sure she is able to secure a table. ||
 * **Need** || She needs a place that is not too loud. || She needs to restrict her search results to a certain zip code. || She needs to make sure the menu offers vegetarian options. || She needs to be able to make a reservation. ||
 * **Feature** || Relevant search filters. || A toggle for distance preferences. || A menu viewer. || A reservation system. ||


 * ~ Little SSNiF #2 ||
 * **Stakeholder** |||||||| A person just found out he got a new job and so he wants to celebrate with friends at a sushi restaurant. ||
 * **Situation** || He wants to make sure that the place he chooses is a good one to impress his friends. || He wants to have drinks as part of his celebration (preferably sake). || He wants to spend quite a bit of money to ensure a great experience, as part of his celebration, but he wants his friends to be able to afford it. || He wants to sing karaoke as part of the celebration after dinner. ||
 * **Need** || He needs to find out which places are the best. || He needs to see if the restaurant offers alcoholic beverages. || He needs to choose within a price range. || He needs to see if the place offers karaoke. ||
 * **Feature** || Ratings and reviews. || An alcoholic beverage indicator. || A price range indicator and filter. || A karaoke indicator. ||

A journal for personal notes. || She needs to be able to direct message a friend for feedback. ||
 * ~ Little SSNiF #3 ||
 * **Stakeholder** |||||||| A person has just moved to the area and she wants to the first place she goes to for sushi to be a good one. ||
 * **Situation** || She doesn't have her new zip code memorized. || She wants to see where new friends she's met have eaten before. || She wants to document the places she goes so she can refer to her experiences later. || She wants to be able to get feedback from her friends on a place even if they haven't checked in or posted reviews from there before. ||
 * **Need** || She needs to be able to find a place near her (without knowing her exact location details). || She needs to see her friends' previous dining experiences. || A rating and reviewing system for shared feedback.
 * **Feature** || A GPS location-based feature. || View friends' previous "check ins". || A price range indicator and filter. || A contextual direct messaging system. ||


 * ~ Little SSNiF #4 ||
 * **Stakeholder** |||||||| A person has tagged along with friends to go to dinner and he finds they've gone to a sushi restaurant, which he's never been to before. ||
 * **Situation** || He wants to start off a little slow since he's not eaten sushi before. || He doesn't know how to pronounce certain things. || He wants to remember the things he likes so he can try them later. || He wants to learn the proper way to eat certain types of sushi. ||
 * **Need** || He needs a guide that helps him gradually move from basic stuff to more exotic stuff. || He needs to read and hear phonetically how to pronounce things. || He needs a journal that is easy to refer back to by venue and by type of sushi. || He to know how to handle certain types of sushi. ||
 * **Feature** || An order recommendation tool. || A pronunciation guide. || A journal with meta data based on keywords and venue. || An eating guide/tutorial. ||

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==// 08. // Compatibility Chart ==


 * ~  ||~ Yelp ||~ OpenTable ||~ BrightKite ||~ My sushi application ||
 * **Relevant search filters** || ✓ ||  ||   || ✓ ||
 * **Ratings and reviews** || ✓ || ✓ ||  || ✓ ||
 * **Filter by distance** || ✓ || ✓ || ✓ || ✓ ||
 * **Menu viewer** ||  ||   ||   || ✓ ||
 * **Reservation system** ||  ||   || ✓ || ✓ ||
 * **Venue details spelled out** || ✓ || ✓ ||  || ✓ ||
 * **Location detector (GPS)** || ✓ || ✓ || ✓ || ✓ ||
 * **Check-in/check-out system** ||  ||   || ✓ || ✓ ||
 * **Direct message system over SMS** ||  ||   || ✓ || ✓ ||
 * **Sushi ordering reccomendations** ||  ||   ||   || ✓ ||
 * **Pronunciation Guide** ||  ||   ||   || ✓ ||
 * **Journal/notes** || ✓ ||  || ✓ || ✓ ||
 * **Eating Guide** ||  ||   ||   || ✓ ||

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 ==// 09. // Feature Ideas ==


 * Use existing APIs to pull in data (Yelp — maybe even get some sort of integration)
 * Promote sustainability through raising awareness of mercury and PCB levels, overfishing, and species extinction.
 * Allow users to not only review the restaurant, but review individual aspects of the restaurant (which is not as common in apps like Yelp), such as:
 * Consideration for sustainability
 * Quality and freshness of fish
 * Presentation
 * Authenticity
 * Quick access to a list of what's in season
 * Showcase the sushi chef! Not enough restaurant review sites do this (in fact, I don't really know of any that do).
 * Book reservations and events (integrate with OpenTable ?)
 * Try to somehow automate a "today's specials" type feature
 * Educate people on what makes sushi good sushi!
 * Searchable database of sushi (using both Japanese and English names)
 * Tasting notes
 * Get the Japanese pronunciation
 * Sortable (veggie, shellfish, cooked, raw, etc.)
 * Add notes/journal entries for future reference (on both the types of sushi as well as the location)
 * Add sushi types to favorites (or use tagging?) for quick reference
 * Easter egg: Shake to get a random sushi suggestion?
 * Instructions for various aspects of the dining experience
 * Example: Directions on how to use chopsticks?
 * Maybe compile your order through the app so you can read off to the waiter/waitress?

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 ==// 10. // Site Map ==



View full size Site Map at Writemaps

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 ==// 11. // Mood Board ==

The top part of the mood board represents a clean, earthy, modern, minimal aesthetic which is very reminiscent of sushi and and the way it is presented. The bottom part of the mood board represents the trendy, stylistic, modern restaurant interior type feel that I like. I'd like to play with both themes for the branding. For example, the interior pages of the book can have the mood of the top half, but the exterior (cover) can have the mood of the bottom half, creating a nice contrast. For the actual app, I'm picturing more like the bottom half, which is actually pretty common in the iPhone itself.



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 ==// 12. // Branding ==



Tagline: **We** **love** //**live**// **Sushi**

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 ==// 13. // Design ==



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 ==// 14. // Timeline ==

[soon]


 * Interesting timelines and timeline-related resources found elsewhere:**
 * Curio
 * Simile Web Widget for Visualizing Temporal Data
 * Excel Timeline Templates
 * Smart Draw

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 ==<span style="color: #666666; font-family: 'Hoefler Text',Baskerville,Georgia,serif; font-size: 1.25em; font-variant: small-caps; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: 0.125em; text-transform: lowercase;">// 15. // References ==


 * ~ Resources ||~ Books ||
 * **iPhone Design & Development**
 * Wire Frames for iPhone Web Application Design
 * Showcase of Designs Optimized for iPhone


 * Sustainability**
 * Seafood Watch Program : A Consumer's Guide to Sustainable Seafood : Monterey Bay Aquarium
 * Fishwise (used by Bi Rite's fish department)


 * Personas**
 * Death To Personas! Long Live Personas!
 * Putting personas under the microscope
 * Personas and the Role of Design Documentation: How it’s less about deliverables, and more about design.


 * Information Design Examples**
 * Digg Labs
 * Jonathan Harris


 * Research Tools**
 * Amazon
 * Alexa
 * Compete
 * Mindomo
 * Quarkbase
 * Social Mention
 * Survey Monkey
 * Technorati
 * Visual Thesaurus
 * Wikipedia
 * Immersive Design
 * User-centered Design || **Design & Development**
 * The Information Design Handbook


 * Sushi**
 * The Story of Sushi: An Unlikely Saga of Raw Fish and Rice (P.S.) (Paperback)
 * Sustainable Sushi: A Guide to Saving the Oceans One Bite at a Time (Paperback)
 * The Sushi Economy: Globalization and the Making of a Modern Delicacy (Paperback) ||

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