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Where are you and your team from?
I am in Virginia Beach, VA. I run my own company, Techark Consultancy, and also work as Director of IT for reQuire, LLC.
How many people are on your team?
I do the primary development of all my apps. My wife, an architect by profession, works with the Graphics Designer to create the attractive and clean UI for all the apps.
Describe your Windows Phone applications for anyone who hasn't tried them yet. Which apps utilize Windows Phone 7.1 features, and what are the features?
Dress Pal is a quick and easy way to remember past outfits. Track the attire you wore by taking a photo so you don't repeat it. Dress Pal also lets you plan your outfits for your work/school week and catalog your wardrobe.
- Claim to Fame: Dress Pal has been featured in the Microsoft campaign, You Are What You App page on Facebook. It also made the list of Top 10 apps in the Lifestyle category on Marketplace.
Mood Swing enables you to track your emotions and share them simultaneously across Facebook and Twitter with beautiful and expressive images. You can also analyze your mood swings using an enhanced charting experience and in turn improve your life.
- Claim to Fame: Mood Swing became a top-selling app in the Social category.
- 7.1 features: Fast Application Switching, background agents and live tiles to update the latest mood on the start screen.
Smart Goals lets you prioritize and monitor your goals along with sharing your progress journal on Facebook and Twitter to get helpful feedback from your friends. Keep your list of goals handy with this app and enjoy in the glory as you meet your goals.
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- Claim to Fame: Orange (France Telecom) in the UK has selected Smart Goals to be included in the Orange Selects section of its Windows Phones since Sep 2011
- 7.1 Features: Fast Application Switching, reminders, background agents and live tiles to update the goal status and priority on the Start Screen.
Gift Cards Free is the only application in the Windows Phone Marketplace that allows you to store your entire gift card collection for convenient retrieval and tracking! Track the balances and transactions on your gift cards and don't let them expire.
What influenced or inspired these applications?
Mood Swing was the very first app I built for Windows Phone. During my wife's pregnancy, people would always ask us about any mood swings, and then we realized that there should be a fun way for people to track and share their emotions.
Dress Pal was entirely my wife's idea. She doesn't like to repeat her clothes for similar events. So, she would always search through our camera photos to remember the dress she wore. She came up with the concept for this phone app and suggested that I develop the app to help fix the problem.
With our busy lives, Smart Goals is a very simple and efficient way to keep up with our tasks. Share your goals and your progress on Facebook and Twitter so your friends can keep you accountable and on track.
I lost several gift cards earlier this year and that prompted the idea of Gift Cards Free. If I had this app, I could have gotten my cards re-issued using the card numbers.
What made you want to create Windows Phone applications (why Windows Phone)?
My passion has always been to solve intriguing problems in an efficient manner. I have a Bachelor's and a Master's degree in Computer Science and I love to program in .NET since the early days. When I learned about the Windows Phone platform in late 2010, I felt right at home due to my experience in various .NET tools and technologies. I strongly believe that Microsoft's ecosystem will really catapult this platform, and that is exactly where I decided I needed to be. Also, joining early has offered several advantages. One of my apps – Mood Swing – was a top selling app in the Social category earlier this year and has earned great reviews with its beautiful graphics. Another app – Dress Pal – has been among the Top 10 apps under Lifestyle category and is being featured by Microsoft on the You Are What You App page on Facebook.
What other tools/programs do you use to help you make your apps?
I spend most of my time in Visual Studio 2010 along with Microsoft Expression Blend, Photoshop and Illustrator. I also use Telerik Controls for Windows Phone within my apps.
How long did it take you to make your app(s)?
Mood Swing and Dress Pal each took me around 3 weeks to develop, as I was learning the platform as well. Smart Goals – 1 week. Gift Cards Free – 1 week.
What were the top three Windows Phone development resources you would recommend to others working on their first app?
- App Hub – a wealth of information for a newbie or a seasoned programmer.
- WP7 Training Kit – Sample code and detailed tutorials to get started.
- Programming Windows Phone 7 – Free ebook by Charles Petzold
What's next for you?
I have several new ideas brewing for Windows Phone apps and the feedback, ratings and recognitions I have received for my apps are very encouraging. As a developer, it makes my day to see a 5-star review getting posted for any of my apps and to hear how people use or love the features.
What makes either you or your apps stand out from others?
All my apps are very practical and based out of necessities in one's daily life. The app graphics and layouts are very compelling and vibrant and help make the app easy and fun to use.
Check out all of Pratik's apps by heading over to the Windows Phone Marketplace today!
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