[mattaustin]

Originally Posted by venemo

We are still designing how to implement this app and what features should it have, so we are eager to hear your ideas too.
Please elaborate.

I think there could be a couple of approaches here. E.g. The Transperth app i had been experimenting with only lists the 'live departure boards' information, rather than detailed timetabling options. These are useful in different ways:

a) 'Planning/Timetabling' functionality: Great for planning a journey (and would be suitable for the calendar reminders which have been mentioned, applies more to cross-country journeys?). Use case: planning a business trip, holiday. Wants to select a start and end point and review the various travel options.

b) 'Live Departure' functionality: Shows when the next few service depart, if they are running late or any cancellations/route changes/special event services/platform alterations (useful for commuting / metro services?). Use case: A regular commuter who wants to find out if his services are running late or cancelled. Doesn't want to select a start and end point, just find out if the next service from station 'x' arrives in the next 15mins.

I think each serves a different purpose, and whilst they could all be included together, special consideration should probably be given to the two different use cases within the ux.

[mattaustin]

Originally Posted by venemo

Hey,

First off, thanks everyone for your interest and ideas!

Here are my thoughts on architecting how to make the app deal with multiple locations and web services:

• Make a generic abstract class that is to be used for data sources
• Each data source class could fetch information from a specific service in a specific country
• The app would instantiate every class
• When the user selects his/her starting point and destination, the app would query these objects to see which one is for the given country, and then it would query the web services through those instances that are for the country selected

This could make the app itself independent of the actual data sources.
Every one of us could implement such a class for his/her country, and we could join forces to develop the rest of the app.

The cab support could be then implemented in a similar manner too.

What do you think?

Sounds like a sensible approach - do you think it would be possible to abstract this 'generic class' further to allow 'plugins' from various languages? E.g. I primarily develop in Python? I'm guessing others are thinking C++?

[jaffa]

Originally Posted by venemo

• Make a generic abstract class that is to be used for data sources
• Each data source class could fetch information from a specific service in a specific country
• The app would instantiate every class

I wouldn't instantiate every class. I'd also suggest an approach similar to Hermes:

• Provider interface/abstract class which pulls everything together
• Configuration interface/abstract class for providing the configuration UI and load/save of settings
• Service interface/abstract class for reading/providing actual information.

All the providers are instantiated, but the UI & services are only created & used if the user turns them on.

[texrat]

This is community at its best! Nice work guys!

[mikelima]

I agree with mattaustin, the use cases are different enough that it may make more sense to have different applications for the two uses. Some infrastructure may be shared though.

[venemo]

Originally Posted by jaffa

I wouldn't instantiate every class. I'd also suggest an approach similar to Hermes
[...]

Sounds good enough to me.

Originally Posted by mattaustin

Sounds like a sensible approach - do you think it would be possible to abstract this 'generic class' further to allow 'plugins' from various languages? E.g. I primarily develop in Python? I'm guessing others are thinking C++?

That is a possibility. As for me, I can't develop with Python, but if someone knows how to make the app pluggable with Python, it's okay with me.

Originally Posted by mattaustin

I think there could be a couple of approaches here. E.g. The Transperth app i had been experimenting with only lists the 'live departure boards' information, rather than detailed timetabling options. These are useful in different ways:

[...]

I think each serves a different purpose, and whilst they could all be included together, special consideration should probably be given to the two different use cases within the ux.

If you have a way to include these ideas in our UI, you are welcome to do so.

[kyber]

We've had some discussion about this kind of app here at Tampere for about 3 months now. We're pulling together a team here. Tampere is going to open realtime data about bus locations after this summer. Our intention is to make in this thread described app 'compatible' with TKL (city transport company) data. Details about the TKL system are still vague, but discussions with the city have began already. Naturally they are most interested about this kind of app.

[venemo]

Originally Posted by kyber

We've had some discussion about this kind of app here at Tampere for about 3 months now. We're pulling together a team here. Tampere is going to open realtime data about bus locations after this summer. Our intention is to make in this thread described app 'compatible' with TKL (city transport company) data. Details about the TKL system are still vague, but discussions with the city have began already. Naturally they are most interested about this kind of app.

Yep, one of us is already interested in showing live tram locations. This TKL system could be also added in the same manner.

[venemo]

Qt Mobility 1.2 Location API could be used to display a map, and also on it the live trams and the realtime bus data from Tampere. (Could be two different classes derived from the same abstract class.)

[timoph]

Originally Posted by venemo

Yep, one of us is already interested in showing live tram locations. This TKL system could be also added in the same manner.

I had some ideas for the Tampere thing but I guess those could be useful elsewhere too...

Presuming the bus stops coordinates are know - let's say you walk to a bus stop and start the app: it checks your location and shows you where the next buses coming to that stop are currently going. In addition to that it could take user input for selecting a specific bus or bus stop and show it's details (where the next bus is, etc. - "will I be able to make it to the stop on time?"). And of course one could fetch the traditional time tables, check the bus routes on map, etc.

Those are the kind of features I'd like to see in an application like that.