Now that we have started developing the product, the sheer number of factors that we must take into consideration has us wishing for an extra day in every week and a spare set of hands. Thankfully dividing tasks within the group has reduced the workload and provided a structure to the product development. I oversee the development of the website and its maintenance. Having a computer science degree has been helpful.
I have started working on the framework and how the layout can be made for easy accessibility and be aesthetically pleasing. This has involved in going through many well-established magazines and newspapers as they have similar content. One of the challenges that I have come across is making the layout agile and scalability. Also, a key factor is having pages respond quickly. This also includes loading of the page and its associated links. As the development of the website progresses, we will also have to consider a major aspect; security.
As the process is in the initial phase, security and scalability is of lesser importance as compared to working on the layout and connecting databases. As and when more content is available, changes will have to be made accordingly.
Simultaneously the rest of the team members are working on creating and sourcing the actual content for the magazine. It is exciting to see how the development progresses. The business development can be compared to putting together a jigsaw puzzle; one has to make many tries until you find the correct corresponding piece.
Violet Hill 