Are you up for the CMX topcoder Challenge?

Cisco CMX Mobility Developer Challenge is under way at topcoder. CMX Mobile Application SDK can be leveraged in a mobile application to provide indoor location and navigation for users. The SDK will connect with the CMX Mobile App Server to determine a user’s location, downloading maps, venues, point of interests, and determine routes for a selected point of interest. The CMX Mobile Application SDK can also receive a mobile push notification when application is not running. When notified, the application can be launched and include message how to join the customer network when first initiated. The core feature is the indoor location which displays current location of device on the map. The location updated as a user moves through a venue and can help navigate the user to some defined location.

The topcoder challenge is to use the CMX Mobile Server SDK to create a new app using a simulated environment for a meeting host to automatically launch a WebEx conference, based on the location of the conference room where the meeting is scheduled.

The SDK is composed of several modules to allow for varying types of application integration. The CMXClient is the core module for getting client and venue information. The module has no UI and can be embedded into an application to determine current location information for the application to take action upon. The CMX Map module allows for a map view to be integrated into an application. The map view will render a map with points of interest. A user’s current location will be displayed on the map and the user has the ability to select a point of interest to navigate to. For the purposes of the challenge on the CMXClient core module could be used to determine location.

A CMX Mobile App Server simulator is provided with the SDK to simulate indoor client location movement. The simulator removes the requirement of needing Cisco WiFi infrastructure for doing development. In addition a developer can remain stationary in a development environment while the device location movement is simulated. The simulator can simulate a user walking a predefined route as shown.

The simulator also allows the developer to move the device as desired by selecting the current location on the map. The SDK and simulator can be downloaded from Cisco DevNet site https://developer.cisco.com/site/networking/mobility/cmx-mobility-services/

For the challenge the functions required are.

• The host for a webex meeting enters the scheduled meeting room. The room is defined as zone.
• When the user approaches the conference room, your mobile app will launch a push notification to the user prompting “Do you want to initiate and join the meeting?” with action buttons of both “Dismiss” and “Join”
• The join action should launch the native “WebEx” application

More information can be obtained from topcoder site http://www.topcoder.com/cisco/

Register now for a Cisco Mobility + WebEx developer challenge; $3K in rewards. Check it out on topcoder here.

This is the first challenge for the CMX Mobile App SDK with many more to come. The challenge will allow a developer to build skills which can be leveraged for the further upcoming challenges. Stay tuned!