Phumudzo, a second-year BSc IT student at the North-West University’s (NWU’s) campus in Vanderbijlpark, recently launched his Campus Lost Now Found app on the popular operating system-native store, Google Play. The app allows students from multiple universities and campuses to report misplaced items and by means of digital interaction users of the app can help in relocating these items.
According to Phumudzo he developed the app during the recent winter recess and although app development is only part of his third year modules, his interest in programming aided him in “figuring out” the ins and outs of app development. His recipe for success may bring a smile to your face: “What works for me is to find a great idea and then team it up with multiple cups of strong coffee whilst putting my programming skills to the test,” says Phumudzo. It took him just more than two weeks to come up with the final version of the app, after having fixed the initial programming glitches.
Students and staff members can download the app for free and Phumudzo explains that it is very easy to use. The app requires users to input the following information: a keyword describing the item, a picture of the item (if available), a short description of where and when the item was misplaced and the selection of the relevant university or campus. This information is then submitted to the programme (via email or smartphone) and allows users to comment, share and even trace posts. “I wanted to make it as easy as possible to find lost or misplaced items, since I know from my own experiences that finding such items can be a very timely process. By introducing a tool to instantly share items that are found to be out-of-place or misplaced, I hope that students will be motivated to go the extra mile and help one another out. Now there is no excuse not to report it when you either loose something of value or found something that does not belong to you,” explains Phumudzo.
More about Phumudzo
Phumudzo hails from Limpopo and completed his secondary schooling at the Makhado Comprehensive Secondary School.
He remembers getting his first cell phone in Grade 10 and since then he has had more phones than he cares to remember. The top spot on his technology wish list belongs to a Google Pixel Phone, and according to Phumudzo this phone separates the proverbial men from the boys.
As the oldest of three children and the son of a farmer, Phumudzo has his sights set on becoming a professional developer and if his latest venture is anything to go by, he is on his way to future success.
Did you know?
- It is estimated that by 2020 mobile apps will generate around 189 billion US dollars in revenue.
- As of March 2017, there were 2,8 million available apps in the Google Play Store and 2,2 billion apps in the Apple’s App Store, the two leading app stores in the world.
- According to the app-tracking company Flurry, the world has adopted smart phones and tablets 10 times faster than it embraced personal computers in the 1980s, twice as fast as it logged into the Internet boom of the ’90s, and three times faster than it joined social networks in the new millennium.
Thanks to the innovative thinking and programming skills of NWU student Phumudzo Muvhango, retracing your steps and finding your misplaced keys have just become a lot easier.
