Go with the Flow

   My goal for the last 2 weeks was to build the application that will be used in conjunction with the Under Pressure cuff. My goal was to have the application accept the data from the wireless cuff and display it on the mobile phone screen. I was able to make significant progress on my application, however I did not finish my goal #3 completely. I built the application's user interface, pictured below, and began development of the code that will process the blood pressure cuff's data. As for the physical electrical device, I haven't converted the blood pressure cuff to wireless yet.

  Yet again, the largest issue over the last few weeks was time; although winter break was an optimal time to work on my project, I was out of the country on vacation and unable to work. However, this semester I expect more free time and plan to dedicate this extra time to working even harder on my project. Another issue I've encountered is the programming language for the wireless blood pressure cuff. I've mentioned in previous posts the difficulty of building a complex device and application program with so little coding experience, however I am beginning to realize the sheer magnitude of its difficulty as I code more complex programs. The hardest programming setback has been errors in my code, as I do not understand the vocabulary of the software as it tries to tell me the problems with my program. Since I cannot understand the computer's feedback, I am left struggling to understand my own mistakes. However, the Internet has been a vast and fulfilling trove of information, as many other programmers have encountered my same problems and explain, in laymen's terms, how to solve such issues.
   My next step is catching up on a previous goal and building the circuitry for the blood pressure cuff in order to convert it to a wireless cuff. After doing so, I hope to develop my application further so that it can collect the data from the cuff, as well as store the data in the application so that the user can refer to their past blood pressure records.
   I have learned that learning a new programing language is both incredibly simple and difficult. In the small amount of time after my vacation, I developed the layout and the design of my application as perfectly as I envisioned, only after using the software for the second time. However, I learned that as I try to build more complex methods and functions, the software becomes increasingly difficult to use. The successes I experienced with my application fuel my motivation to continue my pursuit of this project, albeit this very, very difficult project. Although the setbacks I faced seem intimidating, I see a challenge and a potential to grow and expand my knowledge of this subject. I hope by the end of this project, I will learn that I am more resilient and determined than I initially thought, and that resilience and determination can only be evoked by the challenge this project poses. I hope in the future, I possess the same confidence to challenge myself with new classes, new experiences, and new opportunities in all aspects of my life that I may have been too timid to pursue in the past.