YEARBOOK

Reinventing the Yearbook: A Digital Time Capsule at Flatiron School

In an era where digital innovation meets nostalgia, I took on a unique project during a 7-day solo sprint at the Flatiron School's Software Engineering Bootcamp. As a photographer and a software engineering student, I found a way to merge the two joys by creating the Flatiron Yearbook—a digital, interactive yearbook that not only preserves memories but redefines how we remember our educational journeys.

Photography for the Yearbook

One of the most exciting aspects of this project was setting up a portrait studio right on campus. I personally took high-quality, professional portraits of my cohort mates. I wanted to not only provid them with updated portraits but to add a personal touch to our digital yearbook. It also made the project's presentation a lot more fun.

UX

Student sign in using their associated school email address to have access to the library - Yearbooks are organized by cohort name. Students have access to download the class portrait and "sign" the individul student pages.

• Interactive Browsing: Users can easily navigate through profiles of students and instructors, enriched with personal quotes and professional photos.
• Digital Signatures: This feature brings an interactive layer to the yearbook, enabling students to leave personalized notes on each other’s profiles, preserving sentiments and well-wishes.
• Exclusive Access: To ensure privacy and a safe space for interactions, access to the yearbook is restricted to cohort members through authentication mechanisms.

Technical Highlights and Achievements

• Frontend Development: Built using React JS and React Router v6, the user interface is sleek and intuitive, facilitating seamless navigation between different sections of the yearbook.
• Backend and Database: Python, Flask, coupled with SQLite3 for storing detailed user profiles and interactions. Flask Migrate was utilized for efficient database migrations.
• CRUD Operations: The application supports full CRUD (Create, Read, Update, Delete) capabilities for enhanced interactivity and data management.

Conclusion

The Flatiron Yearbook is more than just a project; it's a modern take on capturing the spirit of a cohort, a testament to the power of combining technology with traditional elements to create something innovative. This digital yearbook stands as a meaningful contribution to preserving the memories of our educational journey in a format that is both timeless and timely.

Check out a demo of the site here and see how we're bringing yearbook signatures into the 21st century.

This project was not only a challenge technically but also a deeply personal contribution to my cohort's experience, providing not just a product but a keepsake that will be interesting to look back on as my first full stack solo devlopment.