Rob Chat
Explanation
Robchat is a web application that allows users to chat with one another in real time. I wrote the code in AngularJS and used Google’s Firebase as my database for all the messages. In order to have AngularJS and Firebase interact with each other, I used AngularFire as a binding language between the two.
Problem
This was the first time I had used AngularJS, which has similarities and differences to plain Javascript, but using factories was foreign to me and I found it difficult to understand at times. This was also the first time that I had used any database, and although I was really excited to see how the database would populate my site with information, I had the most trouble with connecting to my database.
Solution
I definitely used every resource that I had available to me to figure out how to get the application to function properly. Whether it was YouTube videos on AngularFire to successfully connect the application to the database, or StackExchange to understand what a certain error meant, the internet truly gave me nearly all the answers I needed. When I got absolutely stuck, I did talk to Raj, my mentor, and together we were able to fix any outstanding issues.
Results
I was definitely pleased with the results. With Bloc Jams, my first web application, there was no way to input any information and it was nice to do a completely different project where two people can interact with each other via messages. Stylistically it isn’t the most beautiful web application, however I was just excited that with it functioned properly and interacted with the database properly.
Conclusion
There are several takeaways from this project. It boosted my confidence in my own abilities that I could learn a new language and connect it to a database. However, languages are ever changing and this is already visible with the release of Angular2, so that is something I would like to learn in the future. This is also a very basic app, so I would like to also try a more complex angular application in the future. For not even being 2 months into the Bloc program, I’m very happy with my progress and look forward for the challenges ahead! Cheers!