Autonomous Driving

Tuan Nguyen

CS100W

de la Calle

November 11, 2016

Autonomous Driving

Cars have changes drastically throughout the years. The very first car invented was considered a “horseless carriage," because it has its own gasoline engine and fuel tank utilizing its four bicycle wheels instead of horses’ legs. Auto technology has increased significantly, leading to the idea of a self-driven car. At first, this was just an idea of a car being able to navigate on its own. The company “Google,” believed that creating this automobile will allow anyone regardless of their ability to drive, to get around safely. Whether it came from a research phase or just a general idea, now they are turning this lifesaving technology into reality (“Markoff, 2016”).

                                 

                                   (“Google Self-Driving Car Project, 2016)

Google is an immense tech company that has different departments focusing on ways to make life a little simpler. One of these departments is the “Google Self-Driving Car Project,” which focuses on creating the automobile that navigates itself. Many countries are looking forward to these cars because it is more economical and is a safer way of commuting (Barr, 2016). The concern people have on this subject is that the technical functionality of the vehicle. Hence, why the project team is continuously testing the car in the city streets, making sure it is maneuvering through the streets safely and within the city regulations (“Markoff, 2016”).

Customers that are looking forward to this self-driven vehicle want to be ensured that they will be safe. The idea of a car driving on its own is just considered “cool,” until someone gets injured (“Thrun, 2011”). Since the launch of this project, Google has kept backlogs of the vehicle performance, whether it had any error or involved in any incidents. This documentation will be proof to the public that this vehicle has undergone years of testing and has shown minimal accidents. For example, I purchased a 2016 Honda Accord Touring, which had a feature to break itself when coming close to an object. I’ve tested its ability to brake when coming too close to another car or obstacle, preventing myself from an accident. Honda had documents containing these tests, which made me feel safe.

Customers can work with the company easier when they know that they are safe and if any problem arises they will be able to help resolve the problem. Google has not only created a vehicle that is great for business, but it’s also what our future will be like.  Safer driving environment and time spent commuting will be critical to our next generation and this project will continue to grow.

References

Barr, A. (n.d.). Google's Self-Driving Car Project Is Losing Out to Rivals. Retrieved November 11, 2016, from https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-09-12/google-car-project-loses-leaders-and-advantage-as-rivals-gain

Markoff, J. (n.d.). Google's Self-Driving Car Involved In Another Crash. Retrieved November 11, 2016, from http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/06/technology/alphabet-google-autonomous-car-chris-urmson.html?_r=0

Google Self-Driving Car Project. (n.d.). Retrieved November 11, 2016, from https://www.google.com/selfdrivingcar/

Google's driverless car. (n.d.). Retrieved November 11, 2016, from https://www.ted.com/talks/sebastian_thrun_google_s_driverless_car?language=en

AirBnB

Tuan Nguyen

CS100W

de la Calle

October 28, 2016

The Start Up

In this video, Charlie Rose spoke with AirBnb co-founder and CEO, Brian Chesky, about the success of his company. Being a co-founder of one of the largest rental websites, the founders would have to start from the bottom up. They wanted to travel and feel like they were a part of that community. By doing so, they thought about how “cool” it would be to live in one of the homes there, which in turn, started their business. Every business has to start from somewhere. Whether it was a general idea from what a potential entrepreneur may joke about or a business idea that they may have planned since they were young.

            AirBnb started off as a simple idea which is now a multibillion company. They are featured worldwide and has businesses in hundreds of countries. Their business model is to handle all forms of bookings, payments, and damage protection for a cheap commission of 14% per transaction (“Chesky,” 2016). With a commission that low, some people may question how AirBnb could profit. But because of their excellent business values and exceptional customer satisfaction, the company was able to grow through word of mouth.

                                                     (“AirBnB,” 2016)

            Most businesses struggle with their company because of poor customer satisfaction. When customers dealing with any businesses, all they want is to leave satisfied. Businesses who struggle with customer satisfaction will never get business because of word of mouth; word of mouth from customers who left dissatisfied with the company. Businesses will only grow if customers love their products and services.

            AirBnb was able to grow into a multibillion company because their customers loved their products and services. When the company ran into trouble with property damage with an owner’s property during one of their rentals, AirBnb stepped in and created a program called the “AirBnb Guarantee”. This guarantee protects the owners by giving them a property damage protection of up to $50k (“Chesky,” 2016). This protection gives the owners a comfort level of working with AirBnb because they know the company will refund them if any property damages occur.

            Customers will work with companies they know that will help resolve any issues if they should occur. AirBnb has not only created a business model that allows their hosts to earn a high share of commission, but it is also focused on driving customer satisfaction with their products and services. AirBnb’s success is evidenced by its continued growth and use of vacation rentals, serving as a convenience to make traveling memorable.

References

Brian Chesky - Charlie Rose. (n.d.). Retrieved October 28, 2016, from https://charlierose.com/videos/25522

Our Co-Founders. (n.d.). Retrieved October 28, 2016, from https://www.airbnb.com/about/founders

Usability Matters

Tuan Nguyen

CS100W

de la Calle

October 14, 2016

Usability Matters

Having a great experience using a service requires a team and excellent decision-making on the implementation of the service. These decisions are based on the observation made from the user interaction with the service. Usability testing is a research based method that allow us to identify problems through analyzation of user experience. If properly planned, this method will be very economical and effective when it comes to creating a design or a development of some sort. This is an important technique, because it requires only three components: a user to test your project, a design to test, and a place where both the user and the design can meet for recording data (“Chisnell”, 2009).

(“Vides”, 2015)

Furthermore, these testing procedures gives us information about any existing problem or finding a solution to this problem. Sometimes, we may not be satisfied due to the website or application not performing to expectations. It is then up to the project team to figure out whether or not they want to implement these recommendations (“Ross”, 2015). For example, working on a web design, being able to navigate through the web at ease is important. Also, satisfying the user and test how fast a person can accomplish a task on the web.

In addition, any person is able to use these skills to enhance their representation. Being patient and having the ability to be open to any suggestion or welcoming ideas is an important skillset. The most important would be having good observation skills to address the issue and fix the problem. There are two results when it comes to usability testing.  One result may lead to a great user interface, giving an opportunity that the user will come back again. The other results in a negative interface, leaving the user frustrated and angry (“Harvey”, 2013). In our project of creating a virtual tour map, we will be integrating these tools to allow the user to access the tour at ease.

To conclude, products and designs become great when they have been tested and trialed. This requires actual users to test the product and have an analyst to report data from it. The gain we receive from using these techniques will benefit us from its in-person testing (“Harvey”, 2013). Giving us a cost-effective way to produce the best possible design or implementation. Using these resources in further projects will allow the developer and participant to produce an excellent model of any project of their wish.

           

References

Chisnell, B. D. (2012). Usability Testing Demystified. Retrieved October 14, 2016, from http://alistapart.com/article/usability-testing-demystified

Harvey, A. (2013). User Experience: What Is It And Why Should I Care? - Usability Geek. Retrieved October 14, 2016, from http://usabilitygeek.com/user-experience/

Ross, J. (n.d.). 17 Usability Testing Myths and Misconceptions. Retrieved October 14, 2016, from http://www.uxmatters.com/mt/archives/2015/01/17-usability-testing-myths-and-misconceptions.php

Vides, T. (2015). 4 Tools For A Successful Usability Test - Usability Geek. Retrieved October 14, 2016, from http://usabilitygeek.com/4-tools-for-a-successful-usability-test/