Kaleidoscope Collaborative aims to address the challenge faced by individuals with disabilities, as well as their caregivers and advocates, in finding and sharing information about nearby locations with appropriate disability accommodations, ultimately enhancing accessibility and inclusivity within their communities.

• Patrinia Baksmaty (Founder & CEO of Kaleidoscope Collaborative)

Fall 2023

• Anargh Sidhardhan (Boston University)
• Revathi Vipinachandran (Boston University)
• JingHong Huang (Boston University)

Spring 2024

• Timmy Lu (Boston University)
• Priscilla Nguyen (Boston University)
• Jiasong Huang (Boston University)

Our tech stack:

• Flutter + dart
• Firebase backend (Firebase Auth for User Authentication), Firebase for function invokations
• Firestore: data storage
  • link: https://console.firebase.google.com/u/0/project/se-kaleidoscope-collaborative
• Express.js for Google API routing
  • API: https://developers.google.com/maps/documentation/places/web-service/overview
• Deployment: GCP deployment as most of our tech stack revolves around Google Infrastructure
• State: Provider, which has not been integrated
• Development Emulator: IOS emulator (preferred as the backend code is written for IOS emulator, for android emulator, please change the localhost to 10.0.2.2:8000 in backend/address.ts)

For windows:

• Install the Flutter SDK - https://docs.flutter.dev/get-started/install/windows
• Install Android Studio - https://developer.android.com/studio/install
• Install the Android Emulator - Choose your android emulator when creating your flutter project on android studio code

For MAC:

• Install the Flutter SDK - https://docs.flutter.dev/get-started/install/macos
• Install Android Studio - https://developer.android.com/studio/install
• Install Android Emulator - Create virtual device on android studio code and add an ios emulator
• Install Xcode and command-line tools - https://docs.flutter.dev/get-started/install/macos/mobile-ios#configure-xcode
• Test the iOS Simulator

• Please follow through with the installations for Flutter as well as the remote devices needed for displaying the Flutter environment
• MAKE SURE TO USE FLUTTER VERSION 3.13.3 so that the Buttons will function properly.
• Make sure to run the backend express.js with your OWN Google API key, specific instructions are in the backend document, in address.ts. Make sure to run the requirements.txt installation beforehand.
• To install flutter dependency, navigate inside kaleidoscope_collaborative folder

dart pub get

• To run the flutter development, make sure to start the remote device, and use the command: **flutter run lib/screens/main.dart **

1. NODES MODULES ERROR:

   • please run npm i to install the necessary node packages, as well as the ones in requirements.txt

2. NO SUCH METHOD ERROR for page loading: this comes when there are too many flutter runs

   • flutter clean
   • flutter pub get
   • flutter run

3. Running backend giving "Error: ClientException with SocketException: Connection refused (OS error 111)" with android emulator

   • This is caused by android emulator not being able to connect to localhost. To fix this, you need to run the backend on a different port: 10.0.2.2:8000 (instead of localhost:3000, which works for iOS emulator)

4. Running the code on apple device giving the following error: Expected ios/Runner.xcodeproj but this file is missing. No application found for TargetPlatform.ios. Is your project missing an ios/Runner/Info.plist? Consider running "flutter create ." to create one.

   • flutter create .

5. Failed to build iOS app error: Unable to find a destination matching the provided destination specifier Error is due to a specific version of iOS not installed in xcode. This could be fixed by running the following command in the terminal:

xcodebuild -downloadAllPlatforms

For more information, click here.

• User Registration
• User Verification
• User Login
• Landing Page
• Explore Page
• Rating Card
• Add a Review
• Accommodations Based Reviews
• Search and Filter
• Profile Customization
• Geolocator support

Certain page-specific features that require further development or enhancement are listed as TODOs in the project files.

• Inclusion of Organizations as Users

One of the primary directions for expanding our application's capabilities involves integrating organizations as active users. This enhancement will empower various establishments to directly contribute to our database by adding their own information, particularly in terms of the disability accommodations they offer. By doing so, organizations can significantly enhance their visibility within the community, demonstrating their commitment to inclusivity and accessibility.

• Administrative Roles for In-App Management

Administrators, designated from within the user community or partner organizations, will be empowered to manage the exhaustive list of accommodations. They will have the capability to update, add, or remove entries as needed, ensuring the database remains current and relevant. This approach not only streamlines the process of keeping the database updated but also opens up opportunities for the database to grow organically, driven by community input and real-time needs.

Thank you for your interest in contributing to the Kaleidoscope Collaborative Project! To contribute, please follow the steps below:

1. Fork the Repository: Click on the "Fork" button in the top-right corner of this page to create a copy of the repository under your GitHub account.

2. Clone the Repository: Open your terminal or Git Bash and run the following command to clone the repository to your local machine:

3. Create a Branch: Change into the project directory using the cd se-kaleidoscope-collaborative command. Create a new branch with a descriptive name for your feature:

4. Make Changes and Commit: Open the project in your preferred code editor. Make the necessary changes to the codebase. Save your changes and go back to the terminal. Stage the modified files using git add ., and then commit the changes with a descriptive message using git commit -m "Add a concise commit message here".

5. Push Changes: Push the changes to your forked repository:

6. Create a Pull Request: Go to the Pull requests tab of the original repository. Click on the "New pull request" button. Select the base repository and branch (usually the main branch of the original repository). Select your forked repository and the branch with your changes. Add a descriptive title and comment explaining your changes. Click on the "Create pull request" button to submit your pull request.

7. Collaborate and Iterate: Wait for the repository owners or maintainers to review your pull request. Make any necessary changes or address any feedback requested. Once approved, the changes will be merged into the main repository.

We appreciate your contributions to the Kaleidoscope Collaborative Project. Thank you for helping us make a difference!

This is the first integration of the project implementation, so we have created a few test cases for testing the flutter front end. However we have not yet implemented any security measurements. The future teams should take action wherever necessary to implement additional test cases that are suitable for the frontend and backend architecture.

The front end test cases can be found by navigating to the test folder within the root directory. The test cases can be run by using the command flutter test from the root directory.

Flutter Front-end testing:

• Widget Testing: We have written widget tests for the home page and the first screen to verify the behavior of individual widgets. We have used the testWidgets function provided by the Flutter Test package.
• Mocking Dependencies: For widgets that depend on models or services such as Firebase Auth, we have used mocking libraries like mockito to create mock instances.
• Testing User Interactions: We have simulated user interactions with widgets using the flutter_test package's tap, drag, and enterText functions.

Firebase Backend testing:

• Service Testing: Write tests for your services that interact with Firebase. Use mockito to mock Firebase services.
• Firebase Emulator: Consider using the Firebase Local Emulator Suite to run integration tests without affecting your production database.

Firestore Database:

• Model Testing: Write tests for data models to ensure proper serialization and deserialization.
• Repository Testing: Test the data layer with mock responses to simulate database operations.

Google IAM & User Authentication:

• Auth Testing: Test authentication logic by mocking the FirebaseAuth instance and verifying the behavior of your authentication services.

TypeScript for Backend Logic:

• TS Unit Testing: Use a JavaScript testing framework like Jest or Mocha to write and run tests for your TypeScript code.

Our project is still in its development phase, so we haven't made an Android or iOS deployment for the front-end of our application. The backend code that uses typescript needs to be deployed into firebase functions and the future teams will have to deploy the project once it is ready.

Steps for deployment:

Flutter Front-end Deployment:

• iOS Deployment: Use Xcode to archive the application and upload it to the App Store Connect. Follow the certification and provisioning process required by Apple.

• Android Deployment: Generate a signed APK or App Bundle using the flutter build apk or flutter build appbundle command. Upload the build to the Google Play Console. Follow the certification process required by Google.

Firebase Backend Deployment:

• Firebase Functions: Use the Firebase CLI to deploy cloud functions written in TypeScript. Command: firebase deploy --only functions

• Firestore Security Rules and Indexes: Deploy security rules and indexes for Firestore through the Firebase CLI. Commands: 1. firebase deploy --only firestore:rules 2. firebase deploy --only firestore:indexes

Google Cloud Platform (GCP) Infrastructure:

• Use Google Cloud Console or CLI tools to manage and deploy resources that your backend might depend on, like Compute Engine, App Engine, or Kubernetes Engine.