The application is fully integrated with Facebook
Ask a question and let your friends reply!
What is the ‘best hang out’ in Kampala? Now you can find out with AnswerBird, a new question and answer service destined to be a hit on Facebook.
The application was built in a month and half by Felix, a 20 yr. old programmer living and working in Kampala, Uganda. He smiles as he tells me the application went live this past weekend. He is still testing and working to get the system stable but its online so check it out.
Every time someone uses the service they have the option to notify their friends on Facebook. This will spread the service virally and is also the applications major strength. Felix says that in the past he used Microsoft Q&A and Yahoo Answers but would never get a response he was looking for. He explains, ‘I would ask what the best hang out was in Kampala but would never got an answer. People don’t even know where Uganda or Kampala is? With this application you actually ask your own network of friends. People you know and can help you.’
By tapping into his local network he is sure to get answers more relevant to his needs. This localization is key for people who need information that is actually relevant to their day-to-day lives. Asked if there were any troubles synching the app with Facebook he explains there are indeed some restrictions. He explains, ‘You have to give them the dialogue before they give you permission. This makes it a little more complicated to develop as an application.’
He also points out the lag time here in Kampala. As I enter my first question into AnswerBird, ‘Where do I get the best chicken in Kampala?’ he shows me that Facebook doesn’t actually tell you your question is in the process of being ‘published.’ It’s clear Felix has thought a lot about these things and has worked hard to integrate this thinking into the building process.
Asked why he decided on a Twitter like interface, he explains that he was inspired by the service. He also recognizes Facebook profile updates and Friend Feed as platforms working to keep things simple. He wanted to design the AnswerBird service using this ‘simple is better’ approach.
He is now looking to integrate the service with mobile!
