Extra Credit Blog Post: Cloudy

          Everyone these days seems to want advice on where to go and what to do. We are constantly looking up reviews for products and places. Often though, these reviews can be mixed and therefore confusing. The one seeking information from the reviews doe not know whose opinion they can trust. With the application Cloudy though, you can get rid of the confusion and ask your trusted friends their opinions. You simply input what you are looking for (for example you might type in Mexican food) and then where you would like to search for that item, either near your current location (which is found using their GPS) or near another location. Once you hit search all of the Mexican food places near the location you specified will appear on a map that also shows all of your friends' comments about that place. If someone you know has not reviewed a place but you would still like their opinion, you can ask them to submit a review even if they do not have Cloudy themselves. Once you click on a location, along with your friends' thoughts, you are also shown the exact address, the hours of operation, the price ranges, and the phone number. If you want to know something specific about a place you can submit a question to be answered by your friends. For example you could ask "How are the chicken burritos here?"

          This app is meant is a means for two way communication. You can ask a question about a place and then receive feedback from your friends. Because you know who is giving the review, you know you can trust the review. No reviews are posted anonymously. You can also ask for more specific information of your friends if their review was not clear enough. The message transmission among users is asynchronous, they may reply at any convenient time, not just when others users are using the app. The persistence of the transcript is forever, as users' reviews are left on the application's map. The norms of the messages are informal, informative, and opinionated. Without the second two of these characteristics the application loses its purpose. In order to create a popular review, one must also look at their audience. You must use the same skills discussed in the article on "How To Go Viral on YouTube". You must identify your audience and create a message geared towards their needs. If you want to tell your friends who are college age about a restaurant, you would most likely not discuss the early bird specials in your review.

          Cloudy is helping people make decisions in an easier fashion. Knowing what those who you trust think about a location can greatly influence your decision.