websites are a visually rich, dynamic and above all social media, allowing for interactive storytelling. whether creating a site ground-up based on an original concept or redesigning & redefining an existing one, I use the web to connect people & realize ideas.
Alumni Project
This is just a simple social-networking site I made in an hour because I wanted to keep up with everyone from my high school graduating class. Users register and can fill out a profile where they answer questions about themselves. Others can then browse for users and see what they're up to and what their post-college plans are.
Also includes an iPhone version for faster viewing and updating on the go (also so I can check for updates when I'm not at my computer).
Active but not current
July - Oct 2007
FishEye
In an effort to speed up my web development process, I developed a few web tools to assist in file- and database-editing. FishEye is an entirely AJAXed version of phpMyAdmin which allows users to easily edit database information (without the waiting time).
The tool also includes the ability to store multiple databases and switch between them instantly. Additionally, The Indexer functionality creates a file-browser-like interface to view all files within the root of a site, allowing file uploads, text editing of all text-based files and previewing of all images.
FishoftheBay
Rather than sign up for a standard blogging service, I did what I always do: I made my own. FishoftheBay is meant to be a personal blog. With a standard PHP/MySQL backend for displaying and adding posts, I addtionally added the ability to email myself and automatically post text, images and links on the site.
That is, using my iPhone (or perhaps a computer if I can find one), I can shoot off an email with my post and it will display on the site whenever someone next views it. The code can also determine the type of post (such as if it's a link, a file, text, location, music, TV, etc.). This is done by adding a keyword to the start of the body of my email. The program then parses it and applies the appropriate icon.
FruiTunes
There are a few sites out there that let you search for - and play - music online. The problem is in the interface - it's often overcomplicated, poorly designed and hard to use. So, I used public search APIs and open-source media players to create my own music search site.
The result is a clean and simple user interface which allows for ease of use and personalized public playlists to share with friends. The player controls are custom-designed from images, HTML and Javascript, serving as a mask/wrapper to a hidden default Flash player. Also includes an iPhone version :)
GreekNet
This site was the product of a small startup of mine that was accepted into the Wharton Venture Initiation program at Penn.
A social networking site aimed at fraternities and sororities, GreekNet enabled you to connect with alumni and current chapter members outside your school and find jobs, friends, mentorships and events. GreekNet contains most of the core features found on Facebook but limits your scope as a user to those people only within your organization.
Refer to GroupTrak for more information on the background platform.
GroupTrak
A simple social networking site for friends. This originally started with a simple idea: create a place online where my group of friends could log on to daily to post their plans for the day so that later, we all could see who was free to hang out. Then I added more features to the profile (such as address and phone number for reference). Then I added several more features and it eventually became a full-fledged networking site that is now available to be licensed.
Users can create albums and upload photos. They can create events and invite other site members who will be notified both by email and when they login. Additionally, users can message each other internally and create an 'interest list' of their crushes, who will be notified only if they add you to their list too ;^)
Jokes Database
Here's a project created a while ago when I first started learning PHP/MySQL programming. An oldy but a goody, this site houses a collection of jokes that can be submitted by any registered user. *It's meant to be somewhat cheesy* because most jokes are and it goes with the whole "casual, unprofessional" style of joke-telling.
What makes it different than other joke sites is that it allows you to select certain jokes to add to your 'joke library' so you can quickly access them when you need to remember a favorite joke. Jokes are organized by category and can be rated by anyone.
The site design is simple and straightforward, making it easy to look up and submit jokes. Would make for a good iPhone web app.
MacWeb Toolkit
This is a website that looks like a mac. Well, okay it's more. This is a web GUI toolkit that allows you to create elements that mimic the look and feel of Mac OS X and a foundation for developing a web-based operating system. Heavily and generically programmed in a mix of PHP & Javascript, the system allows for module development solely in PHP and a translation via XML to Javascript and finally to HTML.
The nifty part is twofold: (a) that the interface looks like a Mac and (b) there's an entire underlying framework for module development that makes them really easy to make.
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NetSplurge
One of my first sites when I started learning web programming, NetSplurge allows users to create customized homepages of their favorite and most-used links. Although basic in its functionality and interaction, it includes a few customization options and a calendar for browsing dates and scheduling events. Made with PHP, MySQL and AJAX, this was also an assignment I created for students I taught at Penn for class as an intro for learning dynamic web development.
OneUpMe.com
OneUpMe.com is a wordplay site that fosters abstract and creative thought. Every morning a new phrase appears at the top which users have to respond to, attempting to 'one-up' each other in the clevernous of their response.
Fifteen months after its initial launch, it was re-designed and re-developed due to the idea that the site's fundamental essence could be expanded to allow for multiple different games. The backend was revamped to be more generic and incorporate a lot of AJAX and Javascript to make certain functions a lot easier. The site design both compliments the new features and overall increases usability and user experience. The entire site was re-coded and re-designed in three days.
And yes, for those of you who have seen the site linked to Jesse Eisenberg, he's my cousin.
PlaceMarq
On PlaceMarq.com, you can create maps of stuff. You could mark your favorite coffee shops, the addresses of your friends, the landmarks you visited on a trip, etc.
Essentially a giant wrapper for the Google Maps API, a nifty Javascript/AJAX backend makes for a flowing interaction as you create maps and add placemarks. This sort of idea would integrate well with iPhone if one could import a list of placemarks to the iPhone Google Maps...
Note: this site is still currently in development with plans to add a lot more functionality and features.
pTrak
In order to prepare living in a house with 13 people for my senior year of college, I decided to make a website to help keep track of the various payments we'd need to make. This site allows any group of users to keep track of all their bills and depts (either to each other or as a group).
A simple interface keeps the focus on the numbers. Because the site is heavily AJAXed and Javascripted, it makes creating new payments and dividing it up among people very easy. Additonally, an excel-like grid of user information makes it easy to get and update phone numbers, emails, etc. The site also includes email notification for new payments and reminders.
Seven-Minute Break
A simple blogging-like site built in under three hours that allows users to post stories and infuse them with uploaded images. Originally made for my English class during Junior year of college
SyncRave
As part of a startup idea carefully planned by a group of Wharton MBAs including myself, SyncRave was to be a means to watch videos online in sync with other people from anywhere. Users would be able to invite people to watch a scheduled show and would be able to chat and remotely control the video for everyone watching.
The interface is modular, made up of various self-contained PHP files, allowing for the greatest flexibility and ease of coding.
The site was designed to heavily brand the SyncRave name and maintain focus on videos: browsing, scheduling and seeing what's on now/next. The result was a fairly clean interface with a simple logo and dramatic two-tone color scheme. Actual site is now, unfortunately, inactive.
Travalor
Travalor.com is a travel site unlike any other. It turns travel into a game that gets you to experience your trips in ways you may never have before. It breaks you out of your comfort zone because you have to complete a variety of tasks and obtain photographic evidence. Compete with people all over the world!
The backend is a simple database of photos and hunts which allows users to add and rate photos. I didn't get around to making an iPhone application, but this sort of site would integrate really well with the various iPhone OS features.
Virtual Gradebook
The Virtual Gradebook allows teachers and students to communicate over projects and grades. It provides a simple interface for teachers to create a class, specify the grading outline and create/manage announcements, projects, homeworks and tests. Teachers can view individual student grades or a table of all the students and grades in the class and email grades to any number of students. The site will also calculate class grade statistics including average scores, the median, mode, standard deviation and expectation (in case you're a statistics buff). Students can login to view their progress and see their current class grade.
The site works great - I used it when I TA'ed for Intro Programming. I think the word just needs to spread more.
BetterThanTheBookstore
I designed this site along with a friend who built the backend (these were the days before I was very familiar with PHP and MySQL). Together, we thought out the idea for this website, a place where students could buy and sell textbooks from each other, "beating" the bookstore which wouldn't pay as much for a used book.
The design speaks not only to the Penn colors (blue/red) but has a layout designed to highlight book information and lists. The site was quite successful, garnering over 2000 users within only a few months and over 3000 books for sale. It also utilizes the APIs found at Amazon, eBay and Half.com to compare our site's price to theirs.
CG@Penn
The Digital Media Design program at Penn needed a newer, more current branding and website, one that would encompass all of the Computer Graphics @ Penn programs and entice prospective students to apply.
The goal of the redesign was to provide a sleek, attractive and informative website for the program I have a degree from. The original site wasn't terribly pretty or usable and it was difficult to find information about the program.
The result is a super simple interface that unites all graphics programs at Penn and provides an easy-to-read interface for finding information. Additionally, I added backend functionality to allow all the students in the program to create profiles and image galleries. Their personal work is then displayed randomly on other pages throughout the site. Administrators can easily add and remove users as well as update announcements and blog posts.
InternetSocial
Together with the friend with whom I worked on the BetterThanTheBookstore project, I created a social-networking site (a la Facebook) but meant for students in other countries.
Our version contained all the same features as Facebook had at the time (profile, friends, messages, groups, etc.) but we had the site translated into a few different European languages (and a few different versions of the same domain).
Mapping DuBois
The cartographic modeling lab in the design school at UPenn needed a website to display information about its latest project: creating a virtual mapping of historical philadelphia from WEB DuBois's accounts (he had written a book about life for the Philadelphia Negro).
The mapping application is a separate tool, but I created the rest of the site to incorporate photo albums, user profiles and a blog. Additionally, I started work on developing a subdomain project which would allow high school students to pick a historical figure they read about and create fake profiles to contain information about the person they had researched.
Finished and no longer active
Jun - Dec 2005
Penn Democrats
Although not live anymore (they've switched to a more "blog-like" site design), the goal of my redesign of the Penn Democrats website was to provide clarity to what was initially a cluttered and unstructured layout. In addition to the redesign and spacing of elements (such as the left navigation, the central content and the right highlights), I built a bit of administration functionality to allow people to post announcements and upcoming events.
Finished and no longer active
Jun - Nov 2006
Penn SIGGRAPH
The redesign of the Penn SIGGRAPH site was meant to highlight information about the group, its leaders and its event information. Though now redesigned because of new board members, my version was meant to look like a bulletin board full of various posts and pictures from the 3D animation projects. It included a mailing list / database to house information about all the 200+ members.
Szopinware Pottery
My aunt, an independent pottery and jewelry maker, needed a website to promote a busines she was starting. Because I wanted the site to emphasize the photos of her pieces, the site design is simple and sleek, but styled to convey the naturalness and earthiness of her products.
Functionality-wise, it includes a shopping cart and a checkout process which uses a third party service to retrieve credit card info. The product database is automatically updated when purchases are made, and custom emails keep both the customer and my aunt aware of orders and transactions.
The site also includes the FishEye database manager for her to add, remove and edit product descriptions as necessary.
Finished and no longer active
Feb - Mar 2007
Wharton Social Impact
The Wharton Social Impact group came to me wanting to create a website that mimicked the national organization (Net Impact). The design was simple and essentially copied in style. Additionally I added a members database and an administration panel to manage users and events. Members can login and search through the member list by providing various keywords to a search form.
