Rails Rumble 09 Judging
Well, Operator didn’t pass the expert judging for Rails Rumble 09. Only 22 apps did. We did get some nice feedback, though, and there are some things we’ll definitely keep into account as we continue development. Here are our judge comments:
Private Alpha? How are we meant to judge it when it’s not open.
- Zach Inglis
I was really bummed when I read this. Mostly because nowhere in the Rumble rules does it say “Your app must be open for user registration and give them all the goodies they want”. The demo was fully functional, and it accomplished everything we wanted. There’s no way of knowing if he even played with the demo. Operator is powered by Twilio, and requires an account with them to work. Matt and I footed the bill for this, purchasing a number and paying per-minute for test calls. I’m willing to bet money that no one would have signed up for a Twilio number just to test our service. On the other hand, perhaps it wasn’t the best idea for us to build Operator with goals of winning something in RR. I also could have really used a question mark at the end of his question.
The visual design on this app is wonderful, though things do feel a bit spaced out and overly large sometimes. I’d prefer to see more calls on a single page. The phone interface worked nicely and showed up on the site instantly. I was hoping to see a way to classify messages as completed, or a way to integrate with other issue trackers, but I assume those are planned features. All in all, a very nice app.
- mojombo
My favorite feedback. He was positive and provided some suggestions. Most of all, he CALLED THE PHONE NUMBER. I can’t tell if any of the other judges did. This means he actually used the application fully. If he does that, he can say whatever his heart desires and I’ll respect it.
The visual design is a bit “large” in places as Mojombo says (I think Mojombo’s scores should double up as I seem to share all the same comments, lol). However, this is a great technical achievement given the time frame.
- Peter Cooper
Very nice guy. I talked to him on IRC a bit after he gave us a score. I would have liked some more in-depth suggestions, but these judges had to go through a whole bunch of apps in very little time.
This is damn cool and I’d love to see the code and learn how it works.
- gilesgoatboy
I guess this is pretty self-explanatory. We got an average rating on appearance from him, which I could have used a little explanation/suggestions on, but life goes on.
Last night when I was checking an outsiders collection of app scores, we sat at the number twenty spot. Today on the list posted for public voting, we don’t sit there. It was a wise move by the judges. I think the public wants to play with something they can fully use.
On the other hand, KC locals Microbrew Certified Partners (awesome name) made the cut with their app Lowdown, which Matt and I will definitely keep using. It’s pretty darn slick, so go sign up as a voter and give them some votes.