Mobile App
Web or Mobile App Paper
CIS 207
Tim Thacker
J Adam Hendricks
05 AUG 2013
The topic of discussion for this paper is going to be on the mobile app “Gas Buddy” for Android. Gas Buddy is one of the most practical apps that I use. I use it on average only about once a week, but it can potentially save me hundreds of dollars a year in gasoline charges if I use it effectively. The way Gas buddy works is that it allows it’s users to locate the nearest gas stations to them or the gas stations in a location they will be in later in the day.
This is enabled by utilizing the smart phone’s location services or GPS. In addition to that, Gas buddy will also list the prices of gas at each station for each fuel grade. Since Gas stations vary their prices based on their competition, this app really empowers the consumer by allowing them to see the prices of all the stations in the area. In the old days, we could only compare the prices of gas stations by physically seeing them AT the different stations with our own two eyes and word of mouth. Gas buddy has become our new source for word of mouth communications for gas prices.
Gas Buddy is designed so that it’s users post the prices themselves, with the users becoming the dynamic source data that is required for and displayed by Gas buddy. This means that Gas buddy is constantly changing and always up-to-date. On the flip side, Gas buddy is similar to Wikipedia in that it uses open-source data and that data is not 100% reliable. It could, in theory, be 100% unreliable at times. It is completely dependent upon the integrity of it’s users. That said, Gas buddy is successful because it’s pool of users share a common and very important goal: saving money. Gas buddy users have a sort-of blind trust and that enables them to successfully use the Gas buddy APP. Some possible future uses of the app could be the possibility of the Gas stations getting involved and signing up as consumers to help them become more competitive
CIS 207
Tim Thacker
J Adam Hendricks
05 AUG 2013
The topic of discussion for this paper is going to be on the mobile app “Gas Buddy” for Android. Gas Buddy is one of the most practical apps that I use. I use it on average only about once a week, but it can potentially save me hundreds of dollars a year in gasoline charges if I use it effectively. The way Gas buddy works is that it allows it’s users to locate the nearest gas stations to them or the gas stations in a location they will be in later in the day.
This is enabled by utilizing the smart phone’s location services or GPS. In addition to that, Gas buddy will also list the prices of gas at each station for each fuel grade. Since Gas stations vary their prices based on their competition, this app really empowers the consumer by allowing them to see the prices of all the stations in the area. In the old days, we could only compare the prices of gas stations by physically seeing them AT the different stations with our own two eyes and word of mouth. Gas buddy has become our new source for word of mouth communications for gas prices.
Gas Buddy is designed so that it’s users post the prices themselves, with the users becoming the dynamic source data that is required for and displayed by Gas buddy. This means that Gas buddy is constantly changing and always up-to-date. On the flip side, Gas buddy is similar to Wikipedia in that it uses open-source data and that data is not 100% reliable. It could, in theory, be 100% unreliable at times. It is completely dependent upon the integrity of it’s users. That said, Gas buddy is successful because it’s pool of users share a common and very important goal: saving money. Gas buddy users have a sort-of blind trust and that enables them to successfully use the Gas buddy APP. Some possible future uses of the app could be the possibility of the Gas stations getting involved and signing up as consumers to help them become more competitive