Natalie had the original idea for an app called Wander that combined location data and recommendations. She partnered with a computer science student to create a basic prototype, then revamped the app for a university competition. She recruited developer Nate Martin to help within a tight deadline. They simplified the user experience and added features like preferences wheels. Further revisions added cloud storage and help from friends Mark and Bobby to handle the server side. Over a year of nights and weekends, they worked through challenges to launch Wander in multiple cities.

1. Hi. I’m Natalie. I Wander. Here I am with a monkey.
Thursday, June 13, 13

2. Once upon a long time ago, I had an idea.
In September 2010, I sent an email
looking for computer science students to
partner with for an honors project.
AR Glasses!
+
Maps!
= AWESOME!!!
Thursday, June 13, 13

3. It was basically Google Glass
(Needless to say, I was a little in over my head)
Thursday, June 13, 13

4. I must have said something compelling, because I found a partner
We managed to narrow the scope down.
Foursquare!
+
Randomness!
= AWESOME!!!
We were the first cross-discipline students
to collaborate on an honors thesis.
Thursday, June 13, 13

5. We called it Wander and it looked like this
PRICE: $5-10
TYPE: restaurant, bar
DISTANCE: <4miles
PRICE: $5-10
TYPE: restaurant, bar
DISTANCE: <4miles
CASPIAN BISTRO
Website
TYPE
ATMOSPHERE
ALCOHOL
PRICE
LAST VISITED
Mediterranian
Casual
Some
$9–15
Never
X
Thursday, June 13, 13

6. It was basically Foursquare’s explore feature
Which would come out the following summer.
Thursday, June 13, 13

7. I gave up.
Thursday, June 13, 13

8. But then..
I saw a sign. Literally.
It was my final semester and The University of
Minnesota was hosting a mobile application
challenge. I decided to revamp Wander.
Thursday, June 13, 13

9. Wander Revamp #1
Itinerary + Objectives
So began Wander’s first overhaul that would
create the features that to this day, distinguish
Wander from the competition.
Thursday, June 13, 13

10. I made wireframes
Thursday, June 13, 13

11. Drop a pin
GPS
Hidden Gems
3PM
Dollars to spend$
Art History
Nature Science
Breakfast Lunch Dinner
Location
Duration
Budget
Interests
Dining
Popularity
Highlights
9AM
User inputs this
Thursday, June 13, 13

12. Take a nice ride bike to dinkytown9AM
9:30AM Stand in line at Al’s breakfast
9:50AM Order the Omelet of the Day
Upload a photo
11AM Bike to the Weisman Art Museum
12PM Ask a security guard his/her
name
and favorite word
1PM Bike to Wilde Roast Cafe via
the Stone Arch Bridge
2PM Have dinner and order the
third dessert on the menu
Upload a photo
SHARE
Wander outputs this
Thursday, June 13, 13

13. Great! You have a week to find a developer.
The judges liked my idea but they were fairly
certain that I would never find a partner in time.
I did what I could:
3 Reddit posts 2 tweets 1 facebook status
Countless emails to:
Professors, Advisors, Friends, Counselors, Boards, etc...
Thursday, June 13, 13

14. Enter: Nate Martin
Thursday, June 13, 13

15. BEGIN YOUR ADVENTURE
how long can you
wander?
4:30PM9:00AM
how much can you
spend today?
$50$10
What do you need?
breakfast
lunch
dinner
drinks
coffee
Are you interested more in
hidden gems? or highlights?
How do you want to travel?
DRIVE BIKE
BUS
TAXI SURPRISE
WALK
What do you like?
ART SCIENCE
HISTORY
ENTERTAINMENT SHOPPING
NATURE
Wander infuses spontaneity
and adventure into moments
of stagnant time.
One moment while
we process your
itinerary...
Take a nice ride bike to
dinkytown
9:50 Order the Omelet of the day
Upload a photo
Bike to the Weisman Art
Museum
Bike to Wilde Roast Cafe via
the Stone Arch Bridge
9:00
12:00
3:00
9:30
11:00
2:00
Stand in line at
Al’s breakfast
name
and favorite word
Have dinner and order the
third dessert on the menu
Upload a photo
Ask a security guard his/her
Here’s what we did in 4 months
Thursday, June 13, 13

16. They sent us to WWDC
Nate couldn’t make it.
Thursday, June 13, 13

17. But I met a lot of people.
And a lot of people met Wander.
Thursday, June 13, 13

18. They were like: “OMG so many screens.”
Thursday, June 13, 13

19. BEGIN YOUR ADVENTURE
how long can you
wander?
4:30PM9:00AM
how much can you
spend today?
$50$10
What do you need?
breakfast
lunch
dinner
drinks
coffee
Are you interested more in
hidden gems? or highlights?
How do you want to travel?
DRIVE BIKE
BUS
TAXI SURPRISE
WALK
What do you like?
ART SCIENCE
HISTORY
ENTERTAINMENT SHOPPING
NATURE
Wander infuses spontaneity
and adventure into moments
of stagnant time.
One moment while
we process your
itinerary...
Take a nice ride bike to
dinkytown
9:50 Order the Omelet of the day
Upload a photo
Bike to the Weisman Art
Museum
Bike to Wilde Roast Cafe via
the Stone Arch Bridge
9:00
12:00
3:00
9:30
11:00
2:00
Stand in line at
Al’s breakfast
name
and favorite word
Have dinner and order the
third dessert on the menu
Upload a photo
Ask a security guard his/her
So I Simplified.
I turned this:
Thursday, June 13, 13

20. Wander Revamp #2
Into this:
(11-3=7 fewer screens!)
Thursday, June 13, 13

21. Wander Wheel
By moving six pages worth of questions into a
preferences wheel, we were able to give the user a
route the first moment that they opened the app.
Thursday, June 13, 13

22. We wanna wander all over!
But the data’s being stored locally!
Thursday, June 13, 13

23. Wander Revamp #3
The Cloud
Thursday, June 13, 13

24. Enter: Mark and Bobby
Nate asked his friends Mark Zingler and Bobby
Homan if they would help with the server side.
Thursday, June 13, 13

25. We worked for a year
Over the course of a year, the four of us worked nights
and weekends to bring Wander to every city and to
make the wheel a reality.
In that time, we encountered many challenges:
• Forming an LLC
• Finding server space
• Opening a bank account
• Working within Foursquare’s limits
• New competition
• School, work, life
• Bugs
• Project Management
• No Budget
• New iOS
Thursday, June 13, 13

26. In the end, Wander prevailed.
Thursday, June 13, 13

27. WanderWoman will continue...
Thursday, June 13, 13