This system is established using Python and gspread, a library that allows for the use of Google Sheets as a database. The use of Google Sheets solves the problem of user interface very simply as users interact with their personal Google Sheet to make their selections. When a user signs up using the Google Form they are sent an email and given access to a spreadsheet filled with every menu item that has ever been offered. The user then indicates whether they want to be notified about specific menu items. At the beginning of each day, the script (running on a Raspberry Pi 4) scrapes the university dining menu page and begins emailing users that selected items appearing on that day’s menu. The email tells the user where, when, and what is available that day from their list. And lastly, the system looks to see if any new items (items that are not currently in the database) are listed and adds them to all user’s spreadsheets so they may be selected in the future. This system currently supports around 30 users.

This project has been mothballed as of March 2020 due to COVID-19 dining restrictions.