NMU students do well in Intel App Contest

MARQUETTE, Mich.— Three Northern Michigan University student teams completed an Intel app-design competition, which ended in a three-way tie for first place.

Josh Fridstrom and Cal Hockaday, both of Midland, were solo competitors. The third team was composed of Nolan Wickenheiser of Austin, Texas, Andrew Shirtz of Marquette and Joseph Morrow of Manistee.

Students were charged with creating a new smartphone app for Google Android and Apple iOS phone users to use together by being able to discover each other if on the same medium, such as WiFi or Bluetooth.

“While it was possible to do before, the framework makes it much easier to connect different devices together,” Fridstrom said. “The point of the Intel app competition was to troubleshoot and test the new Intel framework. It was a win-win for students because it gave us valuable development experience and a lot of the students who completed the contests got Intel internships out of the deal.”

The competition provided career-relevant experience for students while provided Intel in with feedback on their system relating to potential bugs, issues with app development and additional requirements from the system framework.