AndroidGuys

We noticed that one of the developers working on the Loco project had visited our site and left a comment on the MIT post we did over the weekend. In his comment, he left a link to a video showing how Loco works and where it could be used in real life scenarios. Although a lot of the programs that we’re seeing for Android will depend on a large user base of people using the platform, we’re not worried. Once the word gets out as to what these apps can do, it will be a matter of time before girlfriends and wives will be asking for Android phones. “I want mine to do that.”

Loco looks to be one of the programs that will only get better as time goes. With more people picking up the devices and the program itself, the social networking aspect will continue to blossom. Check out the video below and you’ll see just how it easy it might be to find events and gatherings from not only friends and acquaintances, but also actual establishments such as night clubs.

We could see this taking off for concerts, radio stations, and other giveaways. Sending out a broadcast to people in the area, or inviting your favorite guests to an event will be a snap for users of Loco. One of our favorite features is the ability to take or view photos of parties and other gatherings. It’s just what The Sharks need to make sure they don’t run into The Jets. (See that? It’s a West Side Story reference.)

We contacted the Loco developer from the MIT team working on the program and his team was kind enough to answer a couple questions.

Thanks for stopping by guys! We just had a couple of questions for you that we think our readers would like to ask. First, how did you determine what program you guys were going to work on? What kind of thought process or brainstorming was there?

We actually spent a long time, meeting as a group over many hours and days, to figure out an idea and vision for our app. We really wanted to build something that we knew users would want to use - something they would come to rely on. So, we thought about what kind of problems we encounter everyday, and one of those was finding nearby friends and checking out events when we’re on the go.

Who do you see wanting to use this program? Just people looking for local parties or is it much more than that?

We see teenagers and college students as our core users, but the app is built for anyone who’s social.

As for events, the example we used in the video was someone who’s looking for a party in the area. But, we see there being several different use cases. Concerts, dinners, get-togethers, sports games, recruiting sessions, volunteering activities, and picnics are all possible with Loco.

What do you see being the biggest challenge facing Loco initially?

I think one of our biggest challenges will be to effectively get the word out and grow our user base. To do this, not only will we have to convince users that the app is useful and easy to use, but we’ll need to allay any privacy concerns they have. We took extra care in making sure our back-end doesn’t store any personally identifiable information with people’s locations and the app has a setting that lets users turn off GPS updates at any time. So we’ll need to make sure there is no confusion or misunderstandings around that aspect of the app.

Have you thought about how you’ll get Loco into the hands of users - the initial hurdle of “just a couple people in each area” type thing?

We’ve thought about different ways we can get the word out. This includes common Internet marketing strategies such as blogs, Digg, Reddit, and YouTube videos. We’re also talking with other companies on potential partnerships that may help with our distribution.

We should also mention that the app allows people to send event invitations via SMS to phones without Loco, this is a great way to spread knowledge of the app amongst friends. If I don’t have Loco installed, I’ll be reminded every time one of my Loco-enabled friends invites me to an event.

Is this program ready to go as is or do you see further enhancements before the handsets arrive?
Loco is currently in beta right now. There are a few more compelling features we plan to add over the next couple months, in addition to continual UI improvements.

We’ve been careful not to go overboard and succumb to “featuritis”. But, there are just a few improvements in store we think will make the app even better.

The overall vision of the app remains the same though - it’s a simple way to find nearby friends and events while on the go.

Thanks again for taking the time to talk with us and share some insight into Loco. The program looks amazing to us so you can be sure that we’ll be pushing it whenever we can. We can’t wait to see the features you have up your sleeves too! Be sure to stop back and let us know once it’s ready for release.