Spring is for App Testing

Since April 1, I have been working with software developer and sound artist Halsey Burgund (and also his developer for the iOS app) to start on-site testing for the app. It’s so exciting to finally see how the original concepts are coming together, and I’m learning so much working with Halsey and his team.

Halsey is a sound artist and the founding developer of the Roundware platform – an open-source audio AR solution where users can freely explore an area to hear and record sounds. I actually had a chance to travel to Columbus, Indiana to experience one of Halsey’s Roundware projects in person. It’s a fascinating way to experience audio. When we think of augmented reality, generally it’s always about holding up a phone in front of you and seeing something added to the space. Or perhaps walking by and collecting Pokémons (I mean, I think that’s what that’s about?) The idea of Roundware combines these concepts into a purely audio experience, and I think it’s such an exciting space that’s full of artistic possibilities. A very special thanks and shout-out to Michael Reynolds at Gesso for connecting me with Halsey and Roundware. (Gesso is another audio AR guided tour app that you should check out!)

For the past month or so I have been testing prototypes of our app. Our project will focus on a native iOS app and a webapp that’s optimized to run on Chrome in Android phones. For these on-site tests, since I’m currently finishing up the semester in Hong Kong, Halsey created an alternative map for the piece where I can approximate the locations in Chinatown – but in Hong Kong. This has been such a time-saver because I don’t need to wait until I’m back in NYC to test, and hopefully we can iron out issues and troubleshoot well ahead of our launch.

After every test, I make video recordings of the user’s experience and upload them to YouTube. I send it over to Halsey, who is able to review it and then guide me to further refine the tests. I’m learning so much about the overall process of building such an app experience, and I can’t wait to get back to NYC and see how it comes together in Chinatown.