Digicel Be Extraordinary winner Gyasi Ambrose (left) being presented with his prize by Digicel’s Product Manager, Dinesh Ramsundar.
The first mCentre Code Rush Challenge brought together members of the app community in Trinidad and Tobago to test their skills through innovative problem-solving. The Caribbean Industrial Research Institute’s (CARIRI) mCentre hosted the ground-breaking event in collaboration with Microsoft and Digicel.
Code Rush is a team event aimed at identifying and solving the various socio-economic challenges that affect us within a global and regional space. Participants’ technical and creative skills were put to test through pre-defined themes designed to encourage innovative thinking and provide frameworks for the development of a diverse series of solutions.
Judging criteria for the designs of participants included: User Experience/Design/Functionality, Innovation/Creativity, and Commercialisation. Among the members of the judging panel were Digicel’s Product Technology Analyst, Videsh Ragoonanan and Digicel’s Sales Director, Aidan Hoey, who presented the Digicel Be Extraordinary Award, which included four Nokia 920 handsets awarded to the winning team.
Among the other prizes donated were: cash prizes for the top 3 apps; a Microsoft Software Subscription for the Best Azure App and a Windows Powered Tablet for the Best Windows Metro App.
List of Winners
1. Gyasi Ambrose:
App: Smap It
“Snap it and map it” is a Windows Phone 8 application whose aim is to encourage environmental awareness of Trinidad and Tobago’s wildlife in a fun and interactive way. Smap it, allows users to take photos (using their Windows Phone 8 device) and upload these photos to the Smap it server for Smap Points and badges. The users are encouraged to correctly identify the wildlife captured and the location where the photograph was taken by using their device’s GPS features. “Smappers” (or Smap it users) can then share their captured wildlife albums with friends to show off their wildlife expertise and also compete for points and special badges.
2. David and Daniel Hamilton
App: We Music
We Music is a streaming music service that leverages Facebook to allow users to easily share the music that they are listening to with their friends. Users login using their Facebook credentials and can opt to allow music to be automatically shared to their page. Our application allows users to easily discover and listen to local/regional music on the go and allows artistes to get paid via contributions to COTT.
3. Stephen Modoo
App: Rendezvous
A web based dating service similar to those in the United States such as Match.com. Users are categorized into groups depending on their interests and special events are planned for users to socialize within their designated groups.
4. Turnell Yearwood and Yohance McDonald
App: Word Ace
A classically designed 8 bit feel side scrolling flyer shooting game. The objective of the game is to make hit collisions with words spelling them out as you go along designed to teach English skills to students.
5. Sharda Beharry and Devin Excallier
App: Trash It
Trash-It is a delightfully simple, time-stealing game where the player racks up points by disposing of trash hurled at him in bins designated for different kinds of waste (paper, plastic, glass and cans). Different types of trash and bins are introduced at different levels. In this game the player can earn points for each item properly disposed and earn multipliers through combos. Tips and interesting facts about recycling and its benefits are embedded throughout the game. Trash-It educates and entertains its players. It encourages environmentally friendly behaviour that may be translated to reality
