## inspiration

sometimes life can really get you down, and you don't know where to go from there. what to do to make yourself feel better. what you can do to help yourself without hurting yourself even more.

## what it does

currently, "a soft space" provides several links to websites and pages that can help with emotional distress.

## how we built it

HTML, lots of research, and Visual Studio Code. our GitHub website is courtesy of GitPages, and our domain website is courtesy of Major League Hacking and Domain.com

## challenges we ran into

this initially started out as a mobile app, but the services we were using to develop our mobile app kept crashing or not working, so we ended up switching to a website design.

## accomplishments that we're proud of

this was our first hackathon: none of us have ever done something like this before. we had quite a few false beginnings, and it was a pretty rough journey overall, but the fact that we made something that could make a wonderfully positive impact on the world makes us really happy. we also managed to make two different, equally efficient versions of our website despite many mistakes.

## what we learned

we learned a lot about mobile app development (even if we didn't end up including it in our final project) as well as HTML. also that coding is really hard.

## what's next?

we hope to next develop a mobile app version of "a soft space" that sends periodic and customizable push notifications gently reminding users to check in on themselves. we also hope to add more graphics both on our mobile app and to our websites, as well as significantly more resources to the web version, alongside features such as follow-along breathing exercises, a compliment generator, and journal entry areas to write out negative emotions, have the option to save it for oneself, and then watch the words vanish (bursting into flames, disappearing into the screen, having the virtual paper shred itself, etc). of course, these features require much more research particularly on CSS and Javascript. however, we're excited for this challenge because we hope to make "a soft space" as kind and encouraging as possible.
## Inspiration

Some of the topics that we first explored were meditation, mindfulness, and gratefulness. We wanted to create a way for people to help themselves. This approach would allow for a completely personal guide based on the user’s past experience. Overall, our project inspiration comes from the hope to make use of our past negative experiences and channel that into positive guidance for the future.

## What it does

Home Zone is an app created to help users cope with emotions by allowing them to track emotional experiences in the past and offer guidance to their future selves.

## How we built it

We used xcode and coded in swift. Since we had little to no experience with coding in swift, we had to rely heavily on online tutorials for guidance. We brainstormed the idea of Home Zone after thinking about ways to help people with their health. Once we had a basic idea in mind, we needed to create a framework for the user interface/experience. We split our team into two: one that focused on the overall design and conceptual aspects, and one that focused on implementing the functionalities into code.

We started with the idea of creating an app where a user can write down their mindfulness and emotions, continually improving on the concept throughout the day, adding new features and changing the design of the app.

## Challenges we ran into

The hardest challenge was learning how to use swift because of all of the intricacies of the language that couldn't be captured in the workshops we went to. A new language comes with the challenges of learning which internal libraries we can use for the app. The hardest part of the application was debugging, since we weren’t used to debugging non-GUI project code, with pre-written encapsulating test cases.

## Accomplishments that we're proud of

After ideating, designing, coding, and rounds and rounds of debugging, the first time we exported the app onto our phone and interacted with it was pure magic!! We also are proud that we implemented our design into code to the best of our ability and accomplished the goal we set for our product.

## What we learned

Since this was our first Hackathon and our first experience of working under tight time constraints on a project, we had to learn how to manage our expectations. We were very ambitious at the start and ideated very complex and elaborate solutions. However, as we started to implement it, we realized that it was unrealistic given the limited time we had. Thus, we chose to condense our solution but still made sure that it addresses the pain points we defined and achieve the goal we set for ourselves.

## What's next for Home Zone

We want to implement more features into our app that will allow our users to add more positivity to their home zone. One planned feature is an embedded music player for Spotify that will allow users to link a specific song and/or playlist into the page which can be played to comfort the user when they’re experiencing a specific event.
## Inspiration

The idea for VenTalk originated from an everyday stressor that everyone on our team could relate to; commuting alone to and from class during the school year. After a stressful work or school day, we want to let out all our feelings and thoughts, but do not want to alarm or disturb our loved ones. Releasing built-up emotional tension is a highly effective form of self-care, but many people stay quiet as not to become a burden on those around them. Over time, this takes a toll on one’s well being, so we decided to tackle this issue in a creative yet simple way.

## What it does

VenTalk allows users to either chat with another user or request urgent mental health assistance. Based on their choice, they input how they are feeling on a mental health scale, or some topics they want to discuss with their paired user. The app searches for keywords and similarities to match 2 users who are looking to have a similar conversation. VenTalk is completely anonymous and thus guilt-free, and chats are permanently deleted once both users have left the conversation. This allows users to get any stressors from their day off their chest and rejuvenate their bodies and minds, while still connecting with others.

## How we built it

We began with building a framework in React Native and using Figma to design a clean, user-friendly app layout. After this, we wrote an algorithm that could detect common words from the user inputs, and finally pair up two users in the queue to start messaging. Then we integrated, tested, and refined how the app worked.

## Challenges we ran into

One of the biggest challenges we faced was learning how to interact with APIs and cloud programs. We had a lot of issues getting a reliable response from the web API we wanted to use, and a lot of requests just returned CORS errors. After some determination and a lot of hard work we finally got the API working with Axios.

## Accomplishments that we're proud of

In addition to the original plan for just messaging, we added a Helpful Hotline page with emergency mental health resources, in case a user is seeking professional help. We believe that since this app will be used when people are not in their best state of minds, it's a good idea to have some resources available to them.

## What we learned

Something we got to learn more about was the impact of user interface on the mood of the user, and how different shades and colours are connotated with emotions. We also discovered that having team members from different schools and programs creates a unique, dynamic atmosphere and a great final result!

## What's next for VenTalk

There are many potential next steps for VenTalk. We are going to continue developing the app, making it compatible with iOS, and maybe even a webapp version. We also want to add more personal features, such as a personal locker of stuff that makes you happy (such as a playlist, a subreddit or a netflix series).