Weekend Update

I just finished meeting with Val again to continue finalizing my design doc and make a list of what I need to be focusing on next. What's left for the design doc is the background reading I still need to do about the Tree of Life project itself, both for the prior work section and the abstract. 

Next Steps: 

- download PhyloWidget standalone application, install it, and get used to how it works

- download Eclipse

- look back at old Java code I've written to re-familiarize myself with the language

- download PhyloWidget source code, open it as a new project in Eclipse, compile, and run it

- look for any code documentation on the PhyloWidget site

- meet with Val, Thursday the 5th

- experiment with small changes to the existing code to see how easily it can be manipulated

- decide then whether to build upon the PhyloWidget code or start my application from scratch

In addition, I'll also start brainstorming about the functionality I'd like to include in the program, so that we can start working towards a UI design as well as a software design. And, of course, I'll have a finished background section to add to my design document. 

Logistical note: I'm working on figuring out how viewers can RSS feed my blog, so your browser can automatically inform you when I've made a new post. I'll let you know once I get that working.

For now, here's the Gantt chart I've created to organize my workflow up through the Alpha presentation during the last week of February. From there on the chart is vague, since I know I'll arrive at a more detailed list of tasks as I proceed.