Week 4 – Careers Week plus Meeting the Client

The project is now really starting to get exciting with meeting the client for the first time, knowing a lot more detail about the system that needs to be built and the challenges we will face when building the system. Also been a scary week with having to think about applying for Graduate jobs for next year. Lastly, I am now getting a few offers for some more work, relating to things I enjoy and challenge me problem solve and learn.

A problem that has been occurring in the group is the problem of version control and having a central place to hold all documents for the team. We now have finally setup a student web that uses ftp to upload and download all files needed. Luke Wieselmann conducted some research into a program to manage all files on the web space. He found "Media Wiki" which pretty much is Wikipedia but custom built in PhP. It allows you to log in, upload files, update files, keeps records of all events and is an easy to use user interface. Also, we are going to customize a check in/check out system so versioning is not going to be a problem. It will be obvious to each team member that a file is being changed and is not accessible until they have finished. Believe this will work well but time will tell.

Using Base Camp, I have updated all deliverables to the calendar to enable us to keep track of what is coming up. The next deliverable is Business Case with Risk report. So we have decided to get ahead now, delegate each section to each team member and then edit when collaborating next time. It's not due for another 3-4 weeks so the quicker we get it done, the more time we have later if needed when we are sure to fall behind.

Our group is using PASE to record all times that is spent for the project and now that I have collated the amount of time spent is quite amazing. We have clocked up 104 hours in total and believe that not all times have been recorded. Times are fairly even between each team member but I believe that other team members have forgotten to be mindful of recording times.

During the week I had received an email about the online Careers Fair and thought I would have a bit of a browse, not realising the applications for graduate jobs are not far off. I am really scared. Only have just started uni for the year and already need to make decisions for next year is just slapping me in the face to face up to reality. And just to finish, Careers Advisor coming into the seminar has scared me some more. Definitely in a good way though because now I am starting to think about some of things she said.

You need to find something about yourself the is unique from anyone else.

I need to do some thinking about this but some of the suggestions she made I am really trying to organise such as Blogging, getting involved with social clubs and do things that are not university requirements. I was amazed that some of the work I did over the holidays was one of those ideas which was developing a website with all your qualifications. To visit my site, go to

http://lukejpocock.googlepages.com/

It has also made me eager to update a few things during the mid semester break such as a flash profile page I developed which is out of date and updating a few pages to do with my qualifications. Unfortunately I had to leave the seminar early to set up for the client meeting so I will need to listen to the audio of the seminar.

I couldn't believe at how many people were nervous about the meeting but I was really confident, really couldn't wait. Well, the first thing he said was "Gee, I need to dress up a bit more for next time." Well Jake your right. There was suppose to be another representative for the client but was stuck in Tasmania due to a deal being unveiled by the Government. Our client is a charity organisation and was pledged I believe an additional 8 million Dollars a year funding which is amazing news for them. Well he started on with wanting a user friendly system so he cracked a joke about the "ANY KEY". I couldn't believe it, so funny. He also explained is very computer illiterate so I believe that this will be a benefit to the group. The experience we will receive will be unforgettable and precious for our career.

So to give an overview of what I have understood from what he has said they are requiring for the system. We will be developing a payroll system for the internet so that employees can log in from all locations throughout Victoria and Tasmania. The system will require each employee to record their details, then someone would verify it and then all sheets will be printed off to be entered in payment system. The problems that we will need to face is there are different laws in place for different states but should only be a challenge in designing a system that will allow these rules to be changed when needed. More details will be spoken about at a later date and even discussion about interfacing with their payment system maybe another discussion point.

Well I had pledge to record each meeting and had a bit of a hiccup for the recordings for the client meeting. I thought everything was working and then when came back to listening to it, no sound was recorded. The problem I have found is that my laptop defaults to the line in port and not the microphone so each time I start-up, I need to ensure that I change this each time. Felt really bad and felt like I kind of let down the team but not a lot of important information was discussed which is a bit of a relief. I will definitely strive to improve and I believe it has been a success so far with the meetings just in the studios.

Excellent to see an IE social club starting up next week and to start with a poker tournament, brilliance on Jake's behalf. I am excited to see where it is going to lead to with some guest speakers. Bit rusty on the poker but will bring the poker face and win myself some money.

And to finish with for another week, Peter O'Donnell had posted a message on Facebook about a person he knows that is looking for someone who is able to fix a few problems on his servers. I have no experience with servers but I am sure I will learn heaps. Sounds like he is going to be a great reference for the future and for some extra cash, yes that's me.