About Pick Me!
Pick Me! is a simple demonstration app that uses a few of the basic features of the Google+ Hangouts API. It is meant to demonstrate one way that a simple "raise your hand" application could work, and serve as a code sample to build on top of. You can use this for a simple game show, or to help identify people in your hangout who wish to speak on a topic without having to use the chat system or expose that on the camera.
This is not a perfect app for all purposes, but I hope it gives you some ideas about how to modify or write your own.
Using Pick Me!
Once you have the app running in a hangout, it will occupy the left sidebar of your screen. You can then use it to ask others, who are also running the app in the hangout, to "volunteer" for something, and they can "reply" that they'll volunteer. Others have to run the same app to participate.
To ask for volunteers, click the Ask button. The button will vanish and be replaced by a Clear button.
Other members running the app will get a "butter bar" notification at the top of the screen and a message will appear on the sidebar, indicating that you are looking for volunteers. If they wish to volunteer, they can click on the Reply button for that request and they will appear on the list under that request, in the order they have replied. A blue dot will also appear in their thumbnail picture that only you can see.
If you have gotten all the volunteers you want, you can clear the list (and all the blue dots) by pressing the Clear button. The Ask button will return and this can repeat.
Everyone can ask for volunteers of their own, and replies for each one will go back to the person asking for volunteers.
Configuration
The Configuration tab can be used to adjust how you are notified of new volunteer opportunities and how replies are displayed. As long as you are using the same browser, configuration settings will be saved in between hangouts.
If checked, the Show Alerts checkbox will show the "butter bar" if a new volunteer opportunity is available. If unchecked, this alert won't pop up and the only way you'll hear about new requests is in the left sidebar
If checked, the Show Response Marker will place a blue dot in your filmstrip when someone else volunteers for a reuqest you have made. If you don't want to see this blue dot, you can uncheck this box.
To Do
- Place code in a shared repository
- Improved race condition handling
- Better layout, presentation, etc