WoofJS Customer Interviews

Interview 1 (Student) - 6/4/19

What's your favorite place to code?

"Scratch. Because I've had more experience and easier to know what to do, but I have to get better at Woof. I need to spend more time focusing on specific things so I know how to do specific things to put in a bigger project. [I want] to remember how to make clones before I just start making some big fat game with all this random stuff in it."

• Put small pieces together gradually. Separate from making games, include crash course that helps you learn how to make clones or do specific things.
• More instructive. What do I do, what do I do next?
• Flexbox froggy helped me a lot. If you could make something like that to put into Woof that would be helpful. Learn the basics before jumping into a big game.

What do you think of Woof?

Good

• Did a pretty good job. Good because you give reference to Scratch, good that you have the blocks in JavaScript, makes it easier to understand.
• Already provide games we can make which is great and provide sprites and explain what blocks in Scratch would mean in JavaScript

Not so good

• When you have errors, sometimes computer says a million words you can't understand
• Looks at line error a lot more than run time error message
• Error messages should be kid-friendly

What frustrates you about Woof?

• I frustrate myself when I don't know stuff, when I bump into new things that I don't know, hard to figure out. Level 4 game, so what do we need to do here? Hard for me to figure out when I don't have the context.
• Could be cool to add something you could go into before starting to code game or if you're having trouble with that, if computer senses that you're having trouble or coding teacher senses you're having trouble, would be cool if something popped up at the bottom, like "need more help?" Having trouble on this topic?" Here's a crash course. My math program, iExcel, has at the bottom, having trouble with this topic? If so, it shows you 3 sections to go to something easier. Multiplying 5 fractions - need more help? Example of multiplying 2 fractions or 3 fractions.

What do you think of a Woof social network?

• Cool, should definitely have guidelines, shouldn't share anything inappropriate that would hurt someone's feelings.
• Could do the CodePen thing. Featured projects, but instead of just doing ones that are the most popular, put random projects each week. Scratch only puts up the one with the most likes.
• Ok to like projects, maybe remove comments feature because people post mean things, try to point out every little thing about the game. You could have comments but if you could catch those mean ones - could write something on each comment that says, be nice.

If you could change one thing on Woof, what would it be?

If it could sense that you're having trouble. Notice how far you're going in each page, like 8 minutes left in chapter. Sense that if someone takes a really long time to do something, need more help could pop up.