AN ATENEAN-DEVELOPED software program that will help consumers make environmentally-friendly decisions is the Philippines’ entry to the Microsoft Imagine Cup worldwide finals in Paris, France.
The software program is Ad Hoc, a product recommender developed by Wilhansen Joseph Li (III BS CS), Salvador Reyes Jr. (IV BS CS), and Rodrick Simon Tan (III BS ME), for the national leg of the Microsoft Imagine Cup. The program led the team to win the national competition last April 15. They are set to compete in the global competition from July 3 to 8.
“Our goal is to inform consumers,” said Li. “By the power of information…they can make better, more sound decisions.”
Ad Hoc checks and compares different products and tells consumers which is more
environmentally-friendly. “For example, an uninformed buyer wishes to buy a bulb, and can’t choose between an incandescent or a fluorescent bulb…he or she can check it on the system,” Reyes said.
The system shows information about the products’ power consumption and longevity, among others, and then recommends the more environmentally-friendly product.
Now on its sixth year, the Microsoft Imagine Cup is a global competition that encourages the youth “to apply their imagination, their passion and their creativity to technology innovations that can make a difference in the world—today,” according to its website.
Technology for sustainability
Li, Tan, and Reyes based their software program on Microsoft’s theme for this year, which is “technology for a sustainable environment.”
The team developed the Ad Hoc program through an approach of engaging and informing the consumers, said Information Systems and Computer Sciences Department Chair Ma. Mercedes Rodrigo, Ph.D., the team’s coach.
The proliferation of user-generated content, such as blogs and social networking sites, can produce information and “generate ideas about how we can change our patterns to be more eco-friendly,” Rodrigo said.
‘Fierce’
Tan said they kept the consumers in mind while developing the software. “We only had to know our target,” he said, quoting a judge who commented on their software program when they won the national competition.
When asked how they think they would fare in the worldwide competition, Tan said, “The chances are pretty good, not really [on] winning, but [as] one of the finalists talaga.”
“The competition at the world level is fierce. We’re going up against some of the best universities in the world. Some of the contestants are master’s and doctoral students,” said team coach Rodrigo.
She added, “I think the safest thing to say right now is that we will do our best.”
