Challenge Summary
Through other Studio competitions, we have created a Flex 3 Framework, which will be used in the next generation of TopCoder applications. In this contest, you will be redesigning the look and feel of the My Projects widget. The widget lists out all of the user's projects and contests with the various associated details.
This is where the fun stuff happens! We DO NOT want the current boring open and close functional widget, but a highly interactive and engaging experience for the users. Get creative, see what is out there!
We are looking for a highly creative and interactive Flex visual design for the My Projects widget. This widget must be very cool and exciting, so we highly encourage you to use fun interactions and animations. You do not need to follow the existing widget look and feel. Really push your design! Flex We encourage you to do research on all of the capabilities of Flex. There are many sites and samples of some great Flex interactions, animations and transitions, which you can implement into your design. As a starting point, you can view examples in the Adobe Flex Library at: http://examples.adobe.com/flex3/componentexplorer/explorer.html Flex is a very versatile application - do not think that these examples are the only interactions available for the calendars. Push your design and your interactions to make a highly engaging experience. Widget Requirements - View all projects and drill down into the contests under that project - The ability to filter the projects listed in the widget by status or date range. - Search functionality by project name - The ability to show and hide the filters and search - The ability to show and hide the project description (accordion, page flip, etc.) - User can add a new contest under a project. This does not have to be a button. - User can open this particular project in its own tab. This does not have to be a button. - Display the various contest data currently shown in the widget. - Edit the contest via an icon or button. Design Requirements - Innovative and Creative - Good use of white space. We are looking for a clean and open design. - Larger font sizes - You DO NOT need to follow the existing buttons or styles in the current Flex application. We are looking for something new and innovative. - Use the content in the existing My Projects widget as content for your design. - Show the hover state of the project rows, text links and any buttons you create. Status Icons There is a status assigned for every stage of a contest. You will need to redesign these status icons to be easily understood and work well with the overall widget design. The statuses are: - Draft - Scheduled - Active (Public) - Action Required - Completed - Abandoned Our Design Feedback For every submission that is received by Saturday, February 21st at 10pm EDT, we will provide feedback on your designs in the forums. Your design itself will NOT be viewable by the other competitors. They will only be able to see the feedback you receive. This is a great opportunity to find out how you are doing and give you a stronger opportunity to be successful in this contest. Current Flex Application Access You can view the current Flex application at http://174.129.182.175:8005/cockpit2.1/. You can log in using the following: - User: "user" - Password: "password" You can see the My Projects widget under the My Projects tab. You will only be redesigning the full-size view of the widget. Submission Deliverables You will need to submit two (2) versions of your widget design placed in the blank widget in the provided "Widget_Template.jpg". Screen #1: Widget with all the projects closed Screen #2: Widget with several projects open In your submission screens, you will also need to show: - An example of each hover state. - Each of the status icons and the edit button/graphic Judging Criteria Your submission will be judged on the following criteria: 1. Usability - How well the design enhances the user experience and how easily the user understands the tasks at hand. 2. Consistency - How well this widget design fits together with the new look of the overall application and provides a complete user experience. 3. Clean, Open Design - Clean and spacious designs with simple (but slick!) touches. Preview Image Use a Screen #2 listed above as your preview image. Do not skew, enhance or modify the image for dramatic effect. The client should be able to focus on the design itself.
We are looking for a highly creative and interactive Flex visual design for the My Projects widget. This widget must be very cool and exciting, so we highly encourage you to use fun interactions and animations. You do not need to follow the existing widget look and feel. Really push your design! Flex We encourage you to do research on all of the capabilities of Flex. There are many sites and samples of some great Flex interactions, animations and transitions, which you can implement into your design. As a starting point, you can view examples in the Adobe Flex Library at: http://examples.adobe.com/flex3/componentexplorer/explorer.html Flex is a very versatile application - do not think that these examples are the only interactions available for the calendars. Push your design and your interactions to make a highly engaging experience. Widget Requirements - View all projects and drill down into the contests under that project - The ability to filter the projects listed in the widget by status or date range. - Search functionality by project name - The ability to show and hide the filters and search - The ability to show and hide the project description (accordion, page flip, etc.) - User can add a new contest under a project. This does not have to be a button. - User can open this particular project in its own tab. This does not have to be a button. - Display the various contest data currently shown in the widget. - Edit the contest via an icon or button. Design Requirements - Innovative and Creative - Good use of white space. We are looking for a clean and open design. - Larger font sizes - You DO NOT need to follow the existing buttons or styles in the current Flex application. We are looking for something new and innovative. - Use the content in the existing My Projects widget as content for your design. - Show the hover state of the project rows, text links and any buttons you create. Status Icons There is a status assigned for every stage of a contest. You will need to redesign these status icons to be easily understood and work well with the overall widget design. The statuses are: - Draft - Scheduled - Active (Public) - Action Required - Completed - Abandoned Our Design Feedback For every submission that is received by Saturday, February 21st at 10pm EDT, we will provide feedback on your designs in the forums. Your design itself will NOT be viewable by the other competitors. They will only be able to see the feedback you receive. This is a great opportunity to find out how you are doing and give you a stronger opportunity to be successful in this contest. Current Flex Application Access You can view the current Flex application at http://174.129.182.175:8005/cockpit2.1/. You can log in using the following: - User: "user" - Password: "password" You can see the My Projects widget under the My Projects tab. You will only be redesigning the full-size view of the widget. Submission Deliverables You will need to submit two (2) versions of your widget design placed in the blank widget in the provided "Widget_Template.jpg". Screen #1: Widget with all the projects closed Screen #2: Widget with several projects open In your submission screens, you will also need to show: - An example of each hover state. - Each of the status icons and the edit button/graphic Judging Criteria Your submission will be judged on the following criteria: 1. Usability - How well the design enhances the user experience and how easily the user understands the tasks at hand. 2. Consistency - How well this widget design fits together with the new look of the overall application and provides a complete user experience. 3. Clean, Open Design - Clean and spacious designs with simple (but slick!) touches. Preview Image Use a Screen #2 listed above as your preview image. Do not skew, enhance or modify the image for dramatic effect. The client should be able to focus on the design itself.
Please read the challenge specification carefully and watch the forums for any questions or feedback concerning this challenge. It is important that you monitor any updates provided by the client or Studio Admins in the forums. Please post any questions you might have for the client in the forums.