Development of a Barcode Scanner Application using Cordova and MongoDB

This assignment details the development of a cross-platform barcode scanner application using Apache Cordova and MongoDB. The app is designed to be compatible with iOS and Android platforms, utilizing HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript for both the client and server sides. It employs a barcode scanner plugin for capturing barcode data through the device's camera, displaying the scanned information to the user. The project includes a description of the app's functionality, target audience (students), and a business plan, which involves free distribution with in-app purchases and advertisements. The marketing strategy focuses on online platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Google's AdSense. The report also identifies potential issues related to the app's performance on older operating system versions due to its web-based nature and discusses the limitations compared to native applications.

Running head: BARCODE SCANNER APP IN APACHE CORDOVA, MONGODB
Barcode scanner app in Apache Cordova, MongoDB
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Authors Note

1BARCODE SCANNER APP IN APACHE CORDOVA, MONGODB
Introduction
In order to develop apps for the smart phones the developers have to code the same
applications multiple times in order to make the app compatible for various operating
platforms such as android, iOS, Blackberry etc. For this assignment we have developed a
barcode scanner that is compatible with all the above mentioned platforms used for
smartphones and tablets.
Description of the App
For this applications we have decided that the app is supported by iOS8, iOS9, and
Android – 5.0 Lollipop version. In addition to that, in developing the app we have used some
third-party plugins as well as Cordova Supported plugins. The app is developed using and
browser-friendly HTML5, CSS3 and JavaScript for both client and server end.
The used APIs for the camera, capture, notification and a third party plugin from git
hub. The API is available at,
https://github.com/phonegap/phonegap-plugin-barcodescanner.
The applications works in the following way,

2BARCODE SCANNER APP IN APACHE CORDOVA, MONGODB
When the user presses the button for the capturing a barcode, this will lead to the
call of the barcode scanner plugin through cordova.plugins.barcodeScanner.scan API. When
the API is called through the scan section, the device will initialize a default camera capture
task. The capture task will appear on screen and will wait for a certain time so that the user
can place a barcode that is to be scanned through the camera. If the app successfully detects
any barcode within the provided frame of the device camera capture region, then the result
for the input to the scan functions will become true. After the barcode value is interpreted by
the application the value of it and relevant information will be presented for the user through
a popup on the screen.
The standard structure for the plugins used in the project is as described below,
var captureSuccess = function(mediaFiles) { // Do something with the captured
video/image, audio files };
"Scanner" app in
HTML, CSS3 and
Javascript
Browser
Overview
Plugin
interfaces in
java script.
Android
plugin iOS plug in Windows
phone plugin

3BARCODE SCANNER APP IN APACHE CORDOVA, MONGODB
var captureError = function(error) { navigator.notification.alert('Error code: ' +
error.code, null, 'Unable to Error'); };
navigator.device.capture.captureAudio(captureSuccess, captureError, {limit:5});
Similarly for the camera plugin the functionalities are carried out through the
following code segment.
navigator.camera.getPicture(onSuccess, onFail,
{ quality: 50,
destinationType: Camera.DestinationType.DATA_URL
});
function onSuccess(imageData)
{ var image = document.getElementById('ImageID'); image.src =
"data:image/png;base64," + imageData; }
function onFail(message) { alert('Imagecapture Failed !!!: ' + message); }
The following code segment will present a pop up when any barcode is not available
after the capture task is presented on the screen for a certain time limit.
function (error) {
alert("Scanning failed: " + error);
}
After the task captures a valid barcode image then the information related to the
captured barcode will be presented which will be processed by,
function (result) {

4BARCODE SCANNER APP IN APACHE CORDOVA, MONGODB
alert("Discovered a barcode\t\t\t" +
"Result for the barcode: " + result.text + "\n" +
"Format: " + result.format + "\n" )
},
Target audience for the app
The main target audience for the app are the students who may use the app to retrieve
the data for the different books and products on the internet. In addition to that, people can
use the application to scan barcodes on different Data Matrix, products, QR Codes that
contains URLs and contact info.
Business plan for the app
As the app is a web app using the HTML, CSS and JS using Cordova, thus it would
not be available in any app store such as google app store or apple app store. As similar kind
of application are not available for free, thus as for now the app will be provided for free with
in app purchase options so that in order to get the app with its full features the users can first
experience the initial features and functionalities of the app.
The app is intended to be a crowd funded project that is after the initial release of the
app it will be developed to make it more feature rich as per the requirement of the users. In
addition to that, the in –app advertisements will be also included with the app to generate
more revenue, advertisements with the applications are for the most part are automated.
There are various systems that gives such services. Most of them are compatible with various
operating platforms like of iAd of Apple, which is accessible for iOS devices. Two of the
most popular models for generating revenue from the freely distributed apps are web
promoting are CPM, CPC, and CPA. In case of Cost per Click (CPC), the advertisers pay

5BARCODE SCANNER APP IN APACHE CORDOVA, MONGODB
once the users of the applications tap on the popped Ad. Cost Per Mille (CPM) is about cost
per thousand impressions for simpler estimation of the revenue.
Marketing
The main marketing plan for the app is to use the online platform to make aware the
potential users on the online platform. The effectiveness of the marketing campaign will be
measured through the analysis of Acquisition metrics, Behavioural metrics, Retention
Metrics, and Engagement metrics for the app.
As the majority of the smart phone users mainly students and teenagers are available
on sites lie Facebook and twitters, and both of these sites have advertising programs, which
will function admirably on low budget plans. In addition to that, we anticipate promoting the
Scanner app utilizing Google's AdSense program, since this likewise functions well on a low
budget.
Identified Issues
As the app is not developed in native language for a different platforms, thus on the
older versions of OS platforms it may take some time to respond against the request of a user.
The native apps for the respective platforms can interact with the native features of the
operating system and device. Such as hardware and information features like camera,
accelerometer. Where as in case of web apps, they can have access to a limited amount of
these features like orientation, geo-location, media.