Button just got back from BostonHacks, Boston University's official college hackathon. Hackers arrived early Saturday morning to check out sponsor technology, brainstorm ideas, and eat some breakfast before the competition started. At 12pm , coding began and didn't stop until the same time next day.

As usual, Button held a competition for best use of Button's SDK in a hack. There were a lot of amazing projects that went out for it! Here are a few that stood out:


Butwhy

This team won our competition for best use of Button's SDK! They decided on a more whimsical approach when choosing their hackathon idea, using the event as a way to learn more about building apps utilizing SDKs. You can see their hack here— butwhy.herokuapp.com— but remember to open the link on a mobile device, otherwise, no Buttons will display!

Team Butwhy demoing

Users type in an inspirational word or phrase and click "Go". This then is sent to their backend, which intelligently selects the appropriate Buttons to display based on what is submitted. For example, if you were to submit "hello", an iTunes Button with songs and artists that are related to "hello" will show up, in addition to other Buttons from Jet, Hotels.com, Uber, Delivery.com, DeliveryHero, Drizly, eBay, Groupon Resy, and Ticketmaster.

Why would you need this? I'm not sure. But it did make for a really cool project!

Team Butwhy winning Button's best use of SDK challenge

Health Centers

Inspired by SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration), this team sought to help people with substance abuse and mental health issues easily find rides to clinics and hospitals.

Health Center's app

The app shows a map with hospitals and clinics in close proximity. The user can then select which one they want to go to, which then updates an Uber Button on screen for them to easily book a ride. In addition, the app displays important information and contact details for SAMHSA.

You can check out their app here!

StepsAfter

This website and iOS app offers answers for those who need help if they are witnessing someone overdosing.


The website displays key educational information about addiction and overdose, while the mobile app allows the user to book an Uber to the closest hospital.

It was great to be back on campus (I'm a BU alum), see all the new buildings, and help mentor at the event. Very much looking forward to the next BostonHacks!