Final Blog Post

Now that the year has come to an end, as well as our final project, it’s relieving that it’s all over. Although I learned a lot from this experience, I can’t deny the fact that it was extremely stressful. In the beginning, it seemed that our project was going to be easy; it didn’t turn out to be so. It appeared simple; all we needed was the necessary tools to build the magnetic stripe reader and we’d be set. Unfortunately, it was much more complicated then that. The first major challenge we encountered was ordering the reader, which was a long process because of the approval it had to undergo. Of course there was smaller problems beforehand, such as finding out what we would need and how it would be compatible with our computers. Over time our project began to seem more and more complicated and in the end we failed L

            There are some things that we gained from this project though. I learned a lot from this project, not only about physics, but also about life skills in general, how to seek help outside of my comfort zone, analyze, problem solve in stressful situations, and of course, about magnetic stripes and wiring. Depending on the topic, these projects can definitely benefit students’ science education. However, one thing that this project can improve on is the emphasis on physics rather than problem solving in general because in the end, this is a physics class. I can honestly say that we as group bonded and became closer from our awkward stage back in March. We all added our own unique, weird, quirky personalities to form one great group. We failed together, stressed together, and learned together. Overall, this was a fun experience and I was glad to participate in it.

The Finale

http://goo.gl/sxkZX
I think that this was a very fun learning experience during the fourth quarter of physics. I learned that communication is key to having a successful and productive group. I also learned that it takes a lot of time to create a Magnetic Stripe Reader, especially when certain parts are soldered incorrectly and need to be redone. I believe this is related to physics because it required connections through soldering and magnetic attractions. There were times when the group didn't know who was going to blog that night but one of our group members created a schedule so we would know when it was our turn. We talked to each other and agreed we would all go down to create the magnetic stripe reader during our homeroom and lunch period because building it took a very long time. Some things went wrong with the soldering and we were unable to get the reader to function correctly. This was mostly because the group and Mr. Massad did not have a schematic of the construction. Another thing that went wrong was that our reader didn't ship in on time and we were unable to create a prototype by the due date. But, once it did come in, the group took the initiative to get it done hastily. I don't really have anything to complain about with the project besides the fact that the presentations took foreeever. Overall this was an enjoyable project and I learned a lot during the eight week period. Good job Mr. Blake

Final Post!

Our symposium on friday was to me a big success. Although our project didnt quite work the way we wanted it to, we learned a lot more about each other, and physics and also took a step closer to try and make kamehameha a more student friendly school. Although this class was physics, we helped not only our class but our school as a whole. Many groups that presented had great ideas and listening to them was very interesting. They each had a different and unique idea on how to make kamehameha a better place.

Through our project there were lots of up and downs. A lot of late planning and time management probably contributed to the unsuccessfulness of our project. But although that we were a complete failure we learned more as a group about physics and life lessons. We learned that sometimes planning early can contribute to a huge success or a complete failure. Preparation was a key part to in trying to complete our project, and sometimes things don't come in on time when you want them too. This project showed us what we needed to work on and how prepared we need to be.

But in the end i thought this project was a huge success. It not only gave us students a louder voice to show our ideas and show what could make our school a better place, we also could take the action that we needed to prove to administration that maybe our idea wasn't bad and could help the school a lot. I hope that this class would be implemented as a separate whole class. It gives students new ideas and opportunities. The students help the school overall and that's what we human beings do, help people and try to make our world a better place.

Final Post!

This past Friday, all groups were to participate in the symposium to showcase our projects and findings. It was really a great experience to learn of others' ideas and implementations around campus. I found it pretty awesome to see young adults making "large scale" presentations amongst their peers. To hear other groups success stories made us realize that there are problems that we could solve and changes that can be made!

Though our group had not been as successful as said groups, we learned a great deal about ourselves and each other. During the "planning" phase everything seemed to be going well; we had and idea and we were finding ways to make it a reality, but the "construction" process had not turned out so fantastic. Granted our idea- it seemed, was an innovative idea that could truly affect those around campus. Through this unfavorable cause, we as a group have collectively learned to take things upon ourselves. This project lead us to find that things won't get done for you, and you must take the initiative. We've also learned that you must really immense yourself into an idea that you are working towards- something that we might have not done 100 percent at times. But doing something like this for the first time has opened up our minds that change is possible.

In being Mr. Blake's "guinea pigs" you might say, it would be great to see this project be a class as Mr. Blake is pushing for. Until that happens, this activity shouldn't be too altered from the way this batch of students has faced. Meaning, the set up of this project has allowed for struggle, but growth nonetheless. The only suggestion is to somehow split up the Symposium days so it's not as exhausting. Maybe one class should present one day (attendance and evaluation from other period required) and vice versa. This way students' attention is fresh and really taking into account what their peers are saying and giving proper evaluations.

In the end, this was an excellent success in educating students by educating themselves, with identifying a problem, and solving that problem. No matter how hard other students or teachers may try to belittle this project because we aren't truly applying physics, they're wrong. Though this is a physics class, need not forget the definition of "science":

Now, we don't know about you reader, but we've found that all groups have gained an immense amount of both knowledge and facts of either the physical or material world by observations and countless experimenting. So as far as the scientific aspect, that's pretty much covered. And as we hope that our reader can be used on a larger scale, this project should as well. It should be to the availability to all students, not just the wonderful one's of Mr. Blake's. Lastly students, and whoever else would want to read this, a final word: Change is possible!

Decision Made!

After coming to our "crossroads", the decision that needed to be made asap has been made! Either way, we wouldn't have been able to get our own magnetic stripe reader working properly, so it was really a question if our efforts would be worth it or not. Like we've said before, Andrei got back to us claiming that there is a magnetic stripe reader available for our use. But I've learned recent knowledge that Mr. Puchert would lend the reader to us, because he knows that we won't be needing the reader past the end of this school year. As generous and awesome this would've been, it is too late for our group to set up the reader and collect data in time for our presentation on Friday. So, we're sticking to the plan of speaking of our plan, application/process, and failure. And though we really have nothing to show, at least we tried something really out there!

http://www.pollsb.com/photos/o/377370-important_decision_made.jpg

Peer Edits

Today in class we were doing peer edits for other groups and we were pleased by the grades we received. This was also good because we learned about what things we can improve with our powerpoint to make it better. One thing that people noticed with our powerpoint was that we needed to use our space in our slides better, such as adding more pictures so there isn't spots with nothing on it. Students also suggested that we maybe make the font more exciting and have less writing on certain slides. There are some slides that are really bulky and I guess people don't always want to read so much. This was a good idea to do peer edits so that groups know how they can progress further. We will definitely look to improve our Powerpoint soon.

Good News, But Not Good Enough!

Sorry Rpizzle I know you really wanted to blog tonight but I have some great news! Well, as great as news can get at this point anyways...So, if you already don't know our great plan has failed!!!! What we wanted was for our TTL to work to demonstrate that students can be responsible and independent by having to take their own attendance with the ease of swiping the card, etc. but as a group we couldn't even get the reader to be wired correctly-let alone swipe a magnetic stripe card. My first thoughts were to scramble to find a new project; but Makana reminded me that it's too late to do anything else, and we're going to just present what we have. But not all hope is lost. I've finally received email from Andrei(Gebco Guy) and he has a reader for us, now though this is (sorta kinda, but not really) big news, I shouldn't get too excited before I hear more information, which I will get as soon as I can speak with him on the phone.

http://www.openclipart.org/image/800px/svg_to_png/nicubunu_Emoticons_Worried_face.png

A Picture's Worth A Thousand Words

 
 

 

  

WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO

      The fail safe plan we thought we had didn't turn out like so. After a brutal national physics test today, we learned that we might need a plan B for our magstripe card design. Turns out that our swiper isn't working. We don't exactly know what we did wrong specifically because there was so much room for error before. It could've been anything which makes it so tough. With the presentation less than a week away, there's not much that we can do. We've already put so much time and effort into this. Everything that seemed simple in the beginning turned out to be much more difficult in the end. Too bad our construction couldn't consist of just buying blankets and chairs. That's a bit more simple than soldering different wires so that it will transmit data from a TTL reader to a computer.

Blogger Down Last Night:(

Last night, there was also another problem with blogger and we weren't able to blog last night, so here we are...so, our TTL isn't working- go figure. To solve this problem I thought that I would go to see Mr. Massad yesterday, but that didn't end up happening. At first our group thought we might've been lied to, and that the cards weren't encoded! But, thinking on a bigger scale, there could be so many reasons why this isn't working. Mana'o suggested that maybe the wires shouldn't have been soldered to pin 5 and 6, instead, pin 8 and 9. This is because on the data sheet, it says that the pins 8 and 9 are in use for readers with double tracks. I also thought that maybe the use of an apple USB was disrupting the PC's from transferring the data, but that's highly unlikely because USBs would all have to correspond to universal computers. I've emailed poor Andrei again to confirm that the cards/"software system" is not the problem, so we can focus on the reader itself. I plan on visiting the CAD lab during my lunch and free period, and maybe a little into study hall if I must. We need to find a solution to this obstacle!

Wednesday Post!

Somehow my post for Wednesday has been deleted! If anything, this is what it pretty much had said:Wednesday, the date for which our final project had to be implemented, was the day Makana was informed that our TTL reader had arrived the previous day/night. As excited and relieved we were, we then had to scramble to solder Cat 5 wires to the TTL reader. Mr. Massad was very helpful and helped us to do most, if not all of the soldering. With Google's help we found information that told us which wire should be soldered to the corresponding pin. Our TTL reader is a double track, which can use the 8 and 9th pin as opposed to the single track readers that use pins 5 and 6. Mr Massad also hooked us up with a USB wire that we connected to the other end of the Cat 5, allowing us to connect our reader to the computer. Unfortunately, our rushed work had caught up with us and as we swiped that very first card, nothing happened!!!!!

Belatedly Getting Started :/

Today has been quite a day. Makana was informed that our TTL reader had finally arrived! YAY!- Except, that means we would have to scurry down to Mr. Massad in hopes that we would have our final project implemented by the end of the day. Well, mission failed. Being that our entire group (except for one) are all in the same homeroom, we used our time, including lunch, finding information about how we would complete our magstripe reader. With the help of Mr. Massad, we were able to finish soldering on the CAT 5 cable to the Magnetic Card Reader. Thanks to Google, we were able to attain useful information about the schematics of the reader, helping us to figure which wire needed to be place in which pin. The data sheet led us to believe we should connect our wires to Pin 1, 2, 5, and 6. After testing the reader, and the cards being swiped, nothing happened! We were so bummed and upset because we spent two hours with Mr. Massad working on our reader. Ultimately, things have finally caught up to us. All of our waiting has resulted in this race to the finish. There are soooo many things that could be wrong, so we must find the solution to this fast. The problem might be within our soldering, should we have soldered to the Pin 8 and 9? Is the USB connected correctly/or even working? Do the cards truly have information on them?....The list goes on. But I think that with much collaboration from my group members and other sources, this could really work. We just need to move faster and accurately.

Survey Today, Suicide Tomorrow

Student Survey Results

Teacher Survey Results

      So I'm not emo and literally going to kill myself but basically, we are so screwed for this project. Our TTL reader STILL HASN'T COME IN YET. We haven't been able to construct anything nor do we know if everything will work with our MagStripe cards. Our prototype was due last week and we still have nothing to show for. I'm getting stressed out. However, in the mean time, we've been getting a lot of work done. Mana'o has been working on the powerpoint and Pua's detailed eye made some adjustments in class yesterday along with some help from RP. We also sent out two surveys yesterday with some help from Mr. Blake. One survey was sent to both of his classes and the other survey was sent to the teachers in the science department. Above is the data that has been collected so far. As you can see, NONE of the teachers have taken the survey. Hopefully it's due to a technical error, or maybe they just don't love us. Either way, it would be nice to hear a teacher's perspective. On a brighter aspect, the data collected from the student survey has been extremely helpful. We can see that majority of students believe that we should be allowed more independence and 100% believe that we shouldn't have to remain in homeroom the entire period. It's not a trick, there is over 20 people who have taken the student survey and all of them agree. This data is very enlightening and will most likely be presented with our final presentation. It provides background information with the possible idea of using our scanners in order to take attendance for teachers. If it's used in homeroom, students could simply scan their ID's and be off. Simple as that :)

Waiting...

Our TTL has not yet come in.. we are almost near our final prototype due and we still have not recieved the most important piece of equipment. We have been doing not alot of things during class, we just have been preparing for our final presentation and doing our powerpoint for our visual aid. Hopefully we recieve the TTL Reader by tomorrow so we can start putting together the parts that we need to complete our project. With two days left we really need to start to plan our time wisely. We need to communicate better on what is going on and how we are going to complete our construction of the TTL reader. All we can do is communicate and wait for the TTL reader to come in, besides that i feel that our team is well prepared but lacks communication.

Survey

On Friday Makana created a survey for students/teachers to fill out on surveymonkey.com. This will help us get a better understanding on what our peers and teachers think about our Magnetic Stripe Reader creation. We will have to somehow send a large amount of people the link, most likely by email. It is short and I believe there are currently only two questions which they answer by writing down what they think. We are still waiting on our TTL Reader to arrive so that we can hastily work on our prototype which was sadly due last week Wednesday. Now we must wait for the surveys to be answered and our TTL Reader to be delivered.

B+ - Blog Post Makeup

      When I'm worried that my grades are bad, I avoid KS Connect. Today, I trekked forward and finally checked them. As I was looking at my physics grade, I noticed how many missing's there are. Total, there are 4 blog posts that are marked as missing. Maybe this is because the blog posts that were made to compensate the missing ones were not clarified as such. This is a problem that we encountered a lot (obviously) during our project. The problem was that we couldn't keep track of who was going to do a blog post or because no one was assigned to do a post for that night, it wouldn't get done. THANKFULLY, we've worked out a solution. On our schedule, each person is assigned an equal amount of days to post. This way, everything is fair-- that is, as long as everyone contributes to the main project equally as well.

Tick Tock

      Unfortunately, both Pua and Mana'o weren't in class today. However, there isn't much we can do these days anyways. As Pua said in her post yesterday, the TTL reader probably won't be in until Monday. The final project is due on Wednesday which means that we have very little room for error. For the construction, all we really can do is hope all goes well and that our TTL reader gets here in time. In the mean time, we really just have to work on our presentation that will take place next week friday. The time is starting to really crunch down and I'm worried that we might not be ready by the deadline. I think as soon as the TTL reader comes in, everything else will simply fall into place.

Sh-emails, H-emails

I've been in contact with Andrei Puchert, and recently Reya Li'ili'i, an employee of our Science Department, regarding our magnetic stripe reader and "softwares". In the last few days, if not hours, I've recieved (somewhat) great news! As I was emailing Mr. Puchert, he brought to my attention that I don't necessarily need a software in order to read the cards. He explained to me that through "Notepad" on a PC, if we were to push F5 before swiping the card, the date and time would also be recorded- WHICH IS EXACTLY WHAT WE NEED! Only problem is that we don't have PC's. But the good news is that we have two options. Our group could make use of the PC located in the back of our classroom, (which hasn't been used in ages, probably) and use this for our prototype. This way as we take the data, everything will be recorded within one swipe. Buuuuut, we could also use our laptops use word, or maybe excel, but only the swipe could be recorded (no date & time), as far as Mr. Puchert knows. This is new information that my group has yet to find out, hope you guys are stoked too! Lastly, I've also been on brief terms with Miss Li'ili'i (through email of course) and she has recently replied that the TTL has been ordered. And what did I think: ONLY NOW!?!?!?! Miss Li'ili'i suspects that THE earliest we could receive the reader is Monday, May 9!!!!!! AGGGGH. Sorry Miss Li'ili'i, we know this isn't your fault, but daaaaang man we have to get going!

Prototype Due

Today our prototype was due. We unfortunatley did not recieve our TTL piece yet(our main piece).Without this piece we are stuck and currently have just been preparing for the construction and preparing our final powerpoint. We have recieved our magnetic strip cards today by pua. Today we got alot done though.... We are almost done with our final powerpoint that we will present and created a more thourough design. We have not yet gone down to see Mr. Masad though although we cant do anything with our TTL reader. Hopefully our TTL reader comes in soon so that we may get to work ASAP! Its getting down to presentation day and we need to hustle.. Time is ticking too fast and we are kind of on the boundary line of completing this project and making this project work the way we want it too. Next class we should get our TTL Reader in so that we may start the construction but all that we can do now is wait and prepare!

Progress Progress Progress

Progress Progress Progress: We are making progress, though it won't be in time for tomorrow's prototype due date! As of now, our TTL reader has yet to arrive, and construction of that portion of this project is slow, if not nonexistent :/ Our group is having a somewhat difficult time deciding when we are going to meet Mr. Massad, something that needs to be done soon enough. Otherwise, today I was able to pick up our (FREE!!!!!!) magnetic stripe cards from Gebco Hawaii - http://gebcohawaii.com/- Thanks to our buddy, Andrei Puchert <---, the cards were ready for pick up at the front desk. Though the cards were not "much", and certainly not the least of our troubles, it was nice to finally get some piece to this extraneous puzzle figured out. I sent Mr. Puchert an email making sure that the cards had numbering data within the magnetic stripe (cards are numbered outside of the stripe, as shown).

I've also asked him if he could lead us in the right direction in finding a compatible software that corresponds to the cards and TTL reader. Hopefully these cards will turn out just fine. Thanks again Gebco Hawai'i!!!!!

Busy Days

This weekend, our group had been searching for softwares that are compatible with the Magnetic Stripe Reader that we are creating. There are multiple programs that are available online but we aren’t sure which version to use. Gebco is a local company we found that is generously going to give us 20 ID cards free of charge. The ID cards are needed for the presentation and to make sure that the Magstripe reader and software is functioning correctly. We cannot work on the prototype yet because we can’t really do anything without the TTL Reader that has yet to arrive. Today, we are working on improving our proposal and working on our detailed design. We are focusing on getting organized and noticing due dates. Hopefully our TTL Reader is delivered soon.