Carbon Footprint Tracker App For Greenr

With the stage set, the teams were geared up and ready to execute the project. Since the engagement involved both designing and developing the app, the entire process was divided into two phases. The first phase focused on designing the look and feel of the app, followed by the actual development and implementation phase.

Throughout the development phase, code reusability was a major consideration, which aligned perfectly with the client’s decision to use Flutter as the framework for app development. We also suggested pairing it with Node.js for the backend and MongoDB for the database to ensure maximum efficiency and scalability.

For deployment, the Google Cloud Build suite was chosen. The GCB App Engine was used for API server deployment, while the GCB Compute Engine was used for the database server deployment.

The app flow was designed to be simple and intuitive. On the first launch, users were greeted with a sign-up/login screen, followed by a social media feed once logged in. Using the “Create Content” button, users could post pictures and log their meals and travel activities. A sidebar menu provided access to features such as profile management, competitions, adding friends, wallet access, business partners, and more, along with a detailed profile view for user management.

The first task was to design screens for all the app’s features and create a seamless user journey that aligned with the app’s overall goals. The design team worked tirelessly to ensure the app experience was smooth, user-friendly, and easy to integrate into users’ daily routines.

Once the designs were finalized, the development team began implementing them to create the MVP as quickly as possible. Advanced Agile methodologies, including Continuous Design and Continuous Delivery, were employed throughout the process. The development team also adopted a test-driven development approach, creating testing strategies during the development phase itself. This technique was primarily used to validate the logic behind the CO2 calculator. For the core functionality, a nested logic structure was implemented where every component was carefully tested and optimized.

The use of test-driven development proved highly beneficial for the project. It not only improved the overall quality of the application but also accelerated the development process significantly, reducing the overall testing time by nearly half. The MVVM architecture helped separate the UI and business logic, making the codebase more readable, maintainable, and scalable. It also enabled parallel development of the UI and application logic while encouraging an event-driven coding approach.

Post-development, the product underwent another round of testing to identify and resolve any remaining issues. However, since most of the testing and bug fixing had already been completed during development, the final testing phase was much smoother and less time-consuming. User Acceptance Testing (UAT) remained a critical part of the process. The builds were shared with the client for testing and feedback, and any reported issues were promptly resolved and validated.