Intellectsoft flew to the picturesque lands of the island as well: Anna Iurchenko, the experience designer of Intellectsoft Augmented Reality Lab, gave two presentations (a rare case for the conference) alongside designers from tech giants like Google and other professionals in the field. The attendees, speakers, and other guests not only delivered many interesting, educational, and thought-provoking talks, but also helped UXPA carry its spirit and friendly mood into yet another successful event.

The Most Popular UX Conference in the World

The attendees of UXPA 2018 network on the hotel’s grounds.

The annual event is hosted by the namesake organization UXPA (User Experience Professionals Association), whose community enlists 2400 members in 59 chapters located around the globe. Since its inception in 1991, the organization had established itself as a major force in the field of UX. The main mission of UXPA has always remained unchanged: support people who design, evaluate, and research user experience of design of products and services. To add to that, UXPA publishes their findings in their two magazines — Usability Studies and User Experience Magazine. Still, UXPA International Conference has become the main means of fulfilling the association’s mission, becoming increasingly bigger and more popular year after year.

UXPA Conference 2018 Goes to New Highs

Gathering designers and design researches from tech giants and big-name companies, this year’s UXPA conference was here to prove and elevate its popularity one more time.

Among the companies stressing the importance of user experience methodology, management, strategy, and principles across industries were Google, Microsoft, Alibaba, Capital One, Uber, IBM, and Facebook. The speakers delivered an abundance of interesting talks connected to design in several categories: career development, design psychology, design innovation, interaction design, user experience tools, techniques, and best practices in the field; user experience strategy; and more. There were both advanced and entry level talks and panels, ranging from deep listening in user experience design research to web VR design to discussing the importance of academia-industry connection in the UX field. The workshops of UXPA had a similarly rich range.

Anna Iurchenko, the experience designer at our Augmented Reality Lab.

Intellectsoft’s presence was substantial, and came mainly in the success of Anna Iurchenko: her talk and poster presentation were picked from three hundred submissions, passing peer review and UXPA conference committee discussion stages.

How User Experience Saves Lives — Anna Iurchneko’s Talk

Before transitioning to Experience Designer at Intellectsoft AR Lab, Anna was the Lead UX designer at Stanfy, an innovative San Francisco startup known for their highly effective, elaborately designed products (Intellectsoft has acquired Stanfy in 2016). Anna has spent four years designing healthcare products whose user base exceeds four million people.

Anna’s talk — “Changing Users Health Behavior Through Design” — concerned user experience research, flow, and design process as much as behavioral psychology. First, Anna briefly charted through the history of health behaviour theories. Having it mapped out, Anna concluded that the Fogg Behavior Model is the the most fitting means to form a habit in a healthcare product.

Anna explains and illustrates the Fogg Model.

Proposed by Dr. BJ Fogg, the founder of the Behavior Design Lab at Stanford University, the model shows that three elements must converge at the same moment of time for a behavior to occur: motivation, ability, and trigger.

After explaining the model, Anna quickly transitioned to showing an example where it was used. It was the product she worked on several years ago, Transplant Hero — an app that ensures that people who have a transplant organ stick to the rigorous meditation intake schedule. With the need for patients to take fifteen different medication four times a day — day and night — the project was incredibly challenging. It was the test for all the aspect of the field of UX, from user experience research and strategy to metrics and principles. More so, the user experience metrics the team she worked with gathered were not exactly re-affirming: among the 4 billion prescription given to patients worldwide, only half are taken correctly. To add to that, 15% of transplant patients have lost their lives because they forgot to take the medication on time.

How did Anna and the designer team face the towering challenge? First and foremost, the performed a rigorous research. The team used the following user experience research methods in the process of creating Transplant Hero:

• User experience surveys carried out face to face with patients
• Observations
• Design workshops

After the research and creation of a user experience strategy, the team decided that app should perform three key functions:

1. Remind about taking medication at the right time — the app should provide smart guidance
2. Be a game — the app should be a friend, not a doctor
3. Leverage positive aspects of social media, in a user experience design that excludes drama.

After a series of discussions, the team outlined how this will work in detail, widening the scope of each function. Eventually the app’s functions were expanded to the following:

1. Educate and become a friendly companion
2. Set achievable goals to build confidence and skills in users
3. Celebrate progress and success
4. Show value early on
5. Leverage social media influence for positivity

On top of that, Anna and the team weaved a common thread between all the functions — friendly, cartoon-like characters, each of whom represented a human organ or a medication. The characters were key to user experience, the design in general, and helped Transplant Hero achieve its goals.

Anna gives the main talk. On the screen to the right is the heart character from Transplant Hero, a mobile aid for transplant patients that she helped create.

“Positive” and “light-hearted” were common words in the team’s discussions. In the end, the app served one more key purpose besides from ensuring transplant patients take their medication: take as much stress as possible from taking medication and post-transplantation process.

The app proved impactful. According to studies that were carried out in Montefiore Medical Center (where the app was used), Transplant hero doubled the medication adherence rate among patients who used it.

Along the way, Anna also shared examples of other works, including an app that helps to quit smoking.

All in all, Anna’s talk described how a relatively simple behavioral model, a comprehensive user experience research, and spot-on creative choices born in the process of team collaboration, among other things, can help designers face challenges in arguably the most demanding industries, which also has the highest stakes.

Anna’s second appearance at UXPA was in form of a poster talk, which was dedicated solely to the Transplant Hero project. It was a shorter version of the mobile solution’s case study for those who missed the talk or hadn’t had a lot of time on their hands.

Anna answers the questions about Transplant Hero in the process of the poster talk.

In both cases, the reception was warm. The attendees thanked Anna for bringing up important questions, asked an abundance of questions after the main and poster talk, wanted to know more details, and voiced their excitement about the project.

Final Thoughts — Looking Back at UXPA 2018

Despite the scale and the apparent seriousness, the User Experience Association has managed to preserve the togetherness and friendliness commonly associated with small conferences, while also managing to grow and scale. Recalling her days at UXPA 2018, Anna said she was amazed to learn that some people attended it for ten years straight or more. The fact that hundreds of designers and design researchers anticipate it like the next comic movie was equally inspiring. Over the years, UXPA has managed to preserve its reputation — an event that gathers open-minded and friendly people who would eagerly share their experience with each other, who believe that design is highly important, and highly impactful when approached comprehensively. All for making better products for a better world, while becoming better themselves. What’s more amusing is that this locomotive of a UX conference doesn’t show any signs of stopping.

Learn more about our UI and UX design services.

See how our software solutions helped Eurostar, EY, and other well-known companies. 

The post Global Scale, Startup Spirit: Intellectsoft at UXPA Conference 2018 appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.

From benefits to salaries to IT hubs across the country, our guide details everything connected to finding and hiring talented Ukrainian software developers that will help you create a solid software product while integrating with your company culture and values.

Why Is Ukraine Good In Software Development?

Ukraine is a major IT outsourcing destination thanks to its highly skilled developers with outstanding ingenuity and problem-solving skills, cost-effectiveness, and a favorable geographical position. The main cities of Ukraine boast well-established tech centers, seasoned developers, and a constant influx of new talent, all thanks to its excellent level of technical education.

Why Ukrainian Developers Are Top Choice?

In this section, let’s explore the many reasons why Ukraine has become an attractive country for IT outsourcing and why world-famous companies recruit Ukrainian developers for their important projects:

Reasons to choose Ukraine for IT outsourcing

1 — Extensive talent pool

A vast talent pool is a major reason why software development outsourcing is booming in Ukraine. After the U.S., India, and Russia, Ukraine has the highest number of IT employees. In 2018, there were approximately 160,000 tech employees in the Ukrainian IT market. What’s more, the software developers pool in Ukraine is expected to cross the 200,000 mark in the coming years. According to SkillValue, Ukraine holds the eight spot on the list of the world’s top countries with highly skilled programmers, with an average score index of 91.26%.

Average score index of top countries with best IT developers (Source: DAXX)

2 — Attractive rates

Ukraine is one of the most cost-effective IT outsourcing countries in the world across different software development categories. Compared to the neighboring countries like Poland, Belarus, and the Czech Republic, Ukraine offers more affordable outsourcing rates and a more diverse tech talent pool. If you want to hire a highly skilled software developer while saving a significant amount in development costs, Ukraine is a great choice. Ukrainian developers charge between $25-$50 whereas developers with the same skill sets in North America or Western Europe with will cost a project at least $100 per hour.

The average hourly rate of Ukraine compared with other countries (Source: Clutch.co)

3 — Convenient time zone

Ukraine’s time zone is one to two hours ahead of most European countries. This makes Ukraine a convenient destination for nearshoring as well as offshoring. European clients can work and communicate comfortably with Ukrainian developers due to insignificant time differences. If the client company is located in the U.S., Canada, or Australia, they can still get in touch with the developers without any impact on their own working schedule. Simply put, Ukraine’s location allows for better monitoring and easy project communication and control as compared to other outsourcing destinations like India, the Philippines, or Vietnam.

4 — English proficiency

English is not widely used in Ukraine, but many people are fluent in it, and the number only keeps increasing. Approximately 80 percent of software developers in Ukraine have an Intermediate or higher level of English. Also, it is worth mentioning that the vast majority of software development companies in Ukraine offer free in-house English lessons that help their employees improve their English skills and vocabulary on a regular basis. So, the level of English of Ukrainian developers lifts the language barrier and enables them to work on any international project.

Source: DAXX

5 — Education

Every year, over 36,000 students graduate from local universities in Ukraine with IT related degrees. They are obsessed with technical innovations and technologies including Ruby, Python, C++, C#, PHP, and JavaScript. Additionally, the World Economic Forum has listed Ukraine among the top 10 countries worldwide for producing around 130,000 graduates annually in engineering and tech related fields. In Ukraine, the students are offered various educational opportunities to join the tech community. In collaboration with local IT companies, regional IT markets frequently launch educational programs at universities and colleges.

Main Software Development Cities of Ukraine

Source: QubitLabs

Leading IT companies in Ukraine are located in big cities. The biggest IT hubs are Kyiv, Kharkiv, Lviv, Dnipro, and Odessa. They home not only big, medium and small outsourcing companies but also startups, R&D centers, and other IT related organizations.

Source: QubitLabs

Let’s take a closer look at every city that contributes to the progress of the IT industry in Ukraine:

• Kyiv. The capital and most populous city of Ukraine, Kyiv has the biggest number of IT experts (40 percent) in the country. Kyiv, together with Lviv, is home to almost half of Ukrainian developers. It is said that 43 out of 50 biggest Ukrainian IT companies have their development centers in Kyiv. Kyiv is one of Ukraine’s fastest growing cities and has the highest level of business activity among Ukrainian cities. Major global companies have their offices and R&D centers situated in Kyiv.

Source: N-iX

• Kharkiv. Kharkiv is the second largest city in Ukraine and has a long-established engineering tradition, which includes building software system. The countries important business hub, it has a well-developed IT outsourcing industry with over 25,000 IT professionals and almost 450 active tech enterprises.

Source: N-iX

• Lviv. A big and beautiful city located near the borders of Europe’s developed countries, Lviv is one of the most popular cities among Ukrainian software developers and IT outsourcing companies. Of 800,000 people living in this city, over 20,000 work in the IT industry. There are around three hundred and seventeen IT companies in Lviv that offer software development services to clients located in Western Europe, the U.S., UK, and many other countries. Also, a lot of conferences focused on the IT field take place in this city.

Source: N-iX

• Dnipro. Another big IT hub in Ukraine is Dnipro. It is home to nearly 12,000 IT experts and over one hundred and seventy software development companies. The city boasts a highly educated and experienced IT talent pool.

Source: N-iX

• Odesa. Odesa is another big city of Ukraine offering great opportunities to tech-savvy people who also want to work in close proximity to the sea. What is surprising is that Odesa offers higher salaries to the software developers than other Ukrainian cities, making it a quite popular destination for IT talent. It is estimated that the number of IT professionals in Odesa has grown from 6,000 to 10,000 in recent years.

Source: N-iX

10 Steps to Hire Top Software Developers in Ukraine

Following are the 10 steps that should be performed to hire top Ukrainian software developers. If you have a big project or plan to scale, it is better to delegate the hiring duties entirely to a trustworthy outsourcing partner.

Step 1 – Select a company

Make a primary analysis, and then narrow down your list to 2-3 options. Select a company based on client reviews and what your partners/associates have to say. Top managers usually have many connections and can easily acquire an informative overview on a range of potential IT partners. 

Step 2 – Inquire about the chosen vendor

Before the commencement of communication, it is important to find out as much as possible about your vendor. This includes inquiring about the vendor’s how many years the vendor has been operating in the industry, pricing, procedure for candidate selection, skills, etc. If several vendors fit your initial requirements, find out the information regarding their services and prices and compare them.

Step 3 – Provide enough project/job details

Try to provide as many details as possible regarding your project or position you need to fill. The more details, the better the outcome. 

Step 4 – Set up a dedicated team structure

If you have an approximate team structure for your project, discuss it with your partner. In reality, you may need more or less developers for your project.

Step 5 – Familiarize with your recruiter

Once the negotiation stage ends and you sign a contract with the chosen company, you get a recruiter for your project. To know that you and your recruiter are on the same page and can develop a long-term work relationship, you need to communicate your requirements/preferences to them to get an effective result.

Step 6 – Check your email frequently

Knowing that the Ukrainian IT market is growing fast, most of the candidates have numerous job offers to choose from. So, once you have contacted the recruiter, you need to check your emails regularly. The candidates’ resumes or any questions asked by the recruiter may need to be reviewed/answered as quickly as possible so that the candidate is not hired by any other organization before you make a decision.

Step 7 – Interview candidates

Enlisting an IT recruiting company has its own benefits. If you work with an IT outsourcing provider, you will have a recruiter assigned to your project. In any case, a recruiter arranges a fitting schedule for you and your candidates to conduct an interview. You can then determine the duration of the interviewing process, completion criteria, etc. 

Step 8 – Provide feedback

Needless to say, both the recruiter and candidate expect to receive feedback from you. If anything goes wrong, the recruiter should know what needs to be adjusted.

Step 9 – Recruit developers

Before you make a decision, double-check whether a candidate fits the position but don’t take too long as the candidate may accept the offer from another employer. 

Step 10 – Get started

Once you hire the right candidate for your project, it is time to introduce him to the rest of the team. Like the in-house staff, do the briefing, share the responsibilities, and introduce the working toolkit.

Average Salaries for Software Developers in Ukraine

The average salaries of software developers in Ukraine range from two thousand dollars for junior positions to more than five thousand dollars for senior level positions. The salary depends on the level of expertise, technologies, demand, and location. Let’s take a look at average monthly/yearly salaries for 2019.

Salaries of Ukrainian Java developers

According to fresh reports, Java is the most widely used programming language in Ukraine (20% of Ukrainian IT industry’s experts use Java). Here are the salaries of Ukrainian Java developers:

• Entry-level experts make around $1000 per month
• Mid-level engineers earn around $2500 per month
• A senior level programmer makes between $4000 and $5000 monthly

Salaries of Ukrainian JavaScript developers

JavaScript skills are in high demand in Ukraine as well, so the salary of a JS developer can exceed the income of fellow experts in other coding languages. A junior JS developer can earn around $6000 annually whereas a seasoned programmer with JS skills can make up to $54000.

Salaries of Ukrainian C# / .NET developers

At this time, the demand for C# programmers is extremely high in Ukraine. It is estimated that around 400 vacancies for .Net developers are opened every month all over Ukraine. The salary of a .Net developer in Ukraine falls between $8000 and $50000 annually depending on place of residence, seniority, and other factors.

Salaries of Ukrainian PHP developers 

Though PHP has seen a decrease in popularity in the past few years, it is still regarded as the fourth most commonly used programming language in Ukraine. A huge number of skilled programmers studied PHP as their primary programming language in Ukraine alongside other languages. If you plan to hire a mid-level Ukrainian developer, the annual cost ranges between $3000 and $6000 while senior level PHP programmers earn $24K000-$50000 per year.

Salaries of Ukrainian Python developers

Python has become more popular in the Ukrainian IT market in recent years and it undoubtedly dominates the Data Science field. This language is the most wanted skill to learn in the country, so senior Python programmers have very high salaries in Ukraine. Normally, a Python developer can make between $7000 and $50000 annually, depending on the candidate’s expertise, experience, and other factors, whereas the salary of a senior programmer can reach $60000.

Salaries of Ukrainian Ruby on Rails developers

Ruby on Rails (RoR) developers charge more than PHP programmers. The average salary of an entry-level RoR developer is around $800 per month while the mid-level and senior developers make $2500 and $4500 on average respectively.

Top 5 Ukraine IT Outsourcing Companies

There is an extensive range of IT service providers in Ukraine, from large international corporations having thousands of employees to smaller IT outsourcing vendors. Here is the list of Ukraine’s top 5 IT outsourcing companies for you:

Top Software Development Companies and Teams from Ukraine

Intellectsoft

Providing end-to-end software and technology solutions for over 12 years, Intellectsoft is one of the leading software development companies in Ukraine and Eastern Europe. Intellectsoft employs many experts with niche skills and delivers comprehensive solutions for companies across all major industries. The company’s clients include SMBs, Fortune 500 companies, and well-funded technology startups. They include the likes of Harley Davidson, Eurostar, Ernst & Young, and many more. Intellectsoft has unique expertise in the latest technologies, including Internet of Things (IoT), Augmented Reality (AR), and Artificial Intelligence (AI).

Ciklum

One of the best outsourcing companies in Ukraine, Ciklum is a major IT consulting and outsourcing services provider that greatly emphasizes continuous training of new software developers. It is an international company with offices across the world. The range of its services spans fields like software development, R&D, Quality Assurance (QA), UI/UX consulting, and other.

Infopulse

Infopulse is another long-established IT service provider with great expertise in software, telecommunication, automotive, banking, and financial industries. Currently, it is serving clients from 22 different countries worldwide and employs over three thousand IT professionals. The company’s core competencies include SAP solutions, data security services, app virtualization, customer service, and much more.

Eleks

Eleks is a software development provider that focuses on software engineering services for large companies. Since its first days, Eleks has been striving hard to deliver products that improve the quality of life. That being said, the key areas of expertise include blockchain, data science, mobility, Augmented and Virtual Reality, IoT, and cloud management. Moreover, it has five Research & Development centers across Eastern Europe employing over a thousand IT professionals.

EPAM

EPAM is one of the oldest and largest IT services providers in Eastern Europe and worldwide. Its operates across four continents and in twenty-five countries and has twenty three thousand IT experts on board. The company’s core competencies involve SAP solutions, IT consulting, web development, and data science. 

IT Svit

IT Svit is one of the top IT outsourcing companies and has been providing DevOps-as-a-Service for more than 13 years. The company has worked on over six hundred projects with top European firms in industries like telecommunication, finance, and marketing. The range of its services covers web development, QA, Data Science, AI, and other.

How to Hire Dedicated Developers From Ukraine?

If you are looking for a developer or dedicated developers to hire or create a software development outsourcing team in Ukraine, it is an easy task that still involves many important things.

This task becomes simple with the extensive talent pool, IT staffing companies, connections in the outsourcing sphere, and establishing a great corporate culture.

What Are The Possible Risks Of Ukraine It Outsourcing?

Needless to say, everything that has great advantages carries some risks as well. Ukraine is one of the biggest destinations for IT outsourcing, but there are still some overarching risks that should be considered when hiring Ukrainian developers:

• Some bodies of government are permeated by corruption
• Intellectual Property laws are rather weak
• There are no tax breaks for most software organizations

The Takeaways from Our IT Outsourcing Ukraine Guide

There is a very high chance that hiring Ukrainian from a reliable outsourcing partner may be the most effective and impactful move your business has made in years. The country has an extensive talent pool that includes engineers with unique niche skills, and regardless of project size and scope you can stay cost-efficient. On top of that, there are many long-established vendors to choose from, and Ukraine has long established itself as a go-to IT outsourcing country. We hope that this post helps you make an informed decision and choose the best Ukrainian programmers for your upcoming project.

The post Steps, Tips, Salaries: How to Hire Software Developers in Ukraine?  appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.

Now, the concern is: can a new language replace the good old Java? In this article, we will make a comprehensive Kotlin vs Java comparison, discussing their advantages, differences, performance, and future to help you better grasp who is winning in this big battle.

What is Kotlin?

Kotlin is an modern, open-source programming language developed by JetBrains, a software development company behind software development tools like IntelliJ IDEA, PhpStorm, and other. At its core, Kotlin is a statically-typed language that combines the features of functional and object-oriented programming. Kotlin is fully compatible with Java Virtual Machine, and it was declared by Google as the official IDE for Android development. It is employed in the development of server-side and client-side web and Android apps.

What is Java?

Java is a powerful high-level programming language which is concurrent, object-oriented, and class-based. Released by Sun Microsystems in 1995, Java is a fast, reliable, and safe computing language, with which you can develop powerful applications for a single or distributed environment on the internet.

It is a platform-independent language, based on philosophy of WORA (Write Once, Run Anywhere), which allows for running the compiled Java code on any platform that supports Java. Used by approximately nine million developers, Java is one of the most famous programming languages in history, especially when it comes to server, web, and Android application development.

Kotlin vs Java: Features

Below are the features of Kotlin and Java that have played a vital role in making them popular:

Kotlin

• Open-source – Kotlin is an open-source programming language designed by JetBrains to work across platforms.
• Full Java Interoperability – Kotlin is fully interoperable with Java. It can run on Java Virtual Machine and supports all Java tools and libraries.
• Easy Maintenance – Not only Kotlin is easy to learn, but it also supports a lot of development tools that make the maintenance of code easy.
• Conciseness – Kotlin is more concise than Java as it solves the same problem with fewer lines of code. This enhances the code readability and makes the code more effective and efficient.
• Supportive Community – Although Kotlin is a fresh language, it has quite a supportive community where developers help each other in solving issues.
• Fail-fast System – Kotlin has a built-in fail-fast system that aids in avoiding errors and minimizing bugs in the code using its three standard library functions.

Java

• Object-Oriented – Java is an object-oriented programming language. It contains every OOP feature, including inheritance, polymorphism, abstraction, and encapsulation.
• Platform-Independent – Java code is compiled into a platform-independent bytecode that can be executed on any platform to which JVM is ported.
• Robust – Java is a strong language that uses memory management, an automatic garbage collector, and exception-handling to eliminate error-prone codes.
• High Performance – Java enables high performance due to its bytecode that is highly optimized by the Just-In-Time compiler.
• Secure – Java has built-in security features which include run-time and compile-time static type-checking.
• Multi-threading – Java supports multi-threading that allows for handling multiple threads simultaneously.

Advantages of Kotlin vs Java

Here are some major advantages of Kotlin and Java:

Kotlin

• Seamless Integration with Android Studio – Kotlin offers Integration with Android Studio that makes it easy for developers to create new projects with Kotlin files.
• Mature Language – Before the final release, Kotlin has gone through multiple stages. So, it has no problems in functioning and works smoothly with the IDE plugin.
• Safety – Kotlin’s simple and easy-to-understand code prevents a wide variety of common mistakes.
• Easy Android Development – When talking about Kotlin vs Java Android development, Kotlin makes it easier, as it has concise code and enhanced productivity.

Java

• Rich APIs – Java provides powerful APIs for different operations, including DB connection, I/O, networking, utilities, and other.
• Allocation – Java has a Stack Allocation System that makes data storage and retrieval easy.
• Distributed – Java makes distributed computing easy with its integrated networking feature.
• Power Development Tools – Java provides powerful development tools such as NetBeans and Eclipse SDK, which comes with debugging capabilities.

Kotlin vs Java: Differences

In general, Kotlin is similar to Java in many scenarios. However, if we make head-to-head comparison of Kotlin vs. Java, the differences become more noticeable:

Kotlin vs Java: Comparison

Below is the table with Kotlin vs. Java comparison:

Kotlin vs Java: Usage

Kotlin

A modern programming language, Kotlin was only used by professionals on its initial stage. Still, since Google made the announcement, Kotlin usage exploded, especially in students. Apart from being used for Android development, Kotlin is also used in web development, front-end and back-end.

Java

Java is the most extensively used programming language that is currently running on three billion devices. It is used to build commercial websites, mobile, desktop, enterprise, and scientific applications, games, application servers, big data solutions, and software tools.

Kotlin vs Java: Which One Is Easy to Learn?

There are different factors that attribute to the learning curve of a programming language. When it comes to syntax, Kotlin is more demonstrative than Java. Kotlin provides several methods to generate a cleaner code, which makes it more readable and understandable.

However, learning a programming language is not just about the syntax. Finding a helping hand when issues arise, that is having an established community, is important. As Java has been around for decades, it has a larger community of developers, online code libraries, and references that are particularly helpful in case any support is needed. Still, it is worth remembering that Kotlin is relatively new, so it is evident that Kotlin will stay behind Java.

On top of that, although Java is quite similar to Kotlin, programmers should learn Java to start grasping Kotlin, as the latter comes from the first. Kotlin is easy to learn only if a programmer is already familiar with Java.

Kotlin vs Java: Which One Uses Less Energy?

Only Android developers can explain how tiring it becomes when they have to write lengthy code using Java. Java is an old programming, language and requires developers to spend hours writing the code, thereby increasing the chances of errors and bugs in it. Meanwhile, Kotlin is built to be more effective and less time and energy consuming for developers. As compared to Java, Kotlin uses 20% less code as it has various built-in features which remove the need to write boilerplate code on a regular basis. It enables developers to get more functionality with concise and compact code.

Kotlin vs Java: Example of Code

Below is the code example that shows the Java vs Kotlin difference in terms of number of lines required to perform the same task:

It is evident that Kotlin cuts the quantity of code lines by almost 40% compared to Java. After performing thorough research on Android Java vs Kotlin development, Java developers definitely move to Kotlin to enjoy this feature.

Kotlin vs Java: Performance

The performance of an application is highly dependent on various factors, like the nature of OS it is being built for, developer expertise, actual code, and so on. When comparing Kotlin performance vs Java, both of them are pretty much the same. Since they share similar bytecode structure, there is no measurable difference.

Still, when it comes to clean builds, Java compiles 10-15% faster than Kotlin. On the other hand, Kotlin offers some amazing built-in structures, like data classes that result in efficient and cleaner code. For consecutive incremental builds with single or no file, Kotlin can be even slightly faster than Java. However, we conclude that in this battle of Android Kotlin vs Java development, the efficiency depends on the performance of the specific JVM implementation.

Kotlin vs Java: Statistics

Since 2017, when Google declared Kotlin as an official language for Android development, many major companies switched their Java-based apps to Kotlin. As of March 2019, around 35000 applications are using Kotlin, with the overall market share of 4.8% across Google Play.

If we notice all the demerits of Java, Kotlin seems to be better in the Kotlin vs Java development battle. However, Java language enjoys success in other areas.

Kotlin vs Java: Future

Regardless of the unquestionable position of Java in the programming world, Android needed a modern language to support applications. Kotlin filled that place perfectly, being branded as a first-class language for Android apps by Google. Kotlin was developed to offer solutions to the problems Java did not come to resolve over the years. As Google itself has become Kotlin-oriented, this fact is causing developers to move towards adopting Kotlin. Be it as it may, Java will continue to be a famous programming language, while Kotlin is now the official language for Android that will be widely adopted by forward-thinking developers and businesses in the future.

Conclusion: Java vs Kotlin. Who is the winner?

Wrapping it up, anyone who wants to work with Android must have good knowledge of Java, especially if mastering Kotlin is a priority. Java is the basis of Android development efforts, so if you are a newcomer who wants to gain some experience in the programming world, get started with Java. If you are already a Java developer, learning and starting development with Kotlin, the language of the future, would be a great idea. Finally, it is all about choosing the language you are comfortable with, and the one that will fit your project work!

Kotlin vs Java — Further Reading

If you want to know what developers think and you want to dive deep on Java vs Kotlin, visit the websites of official developer communities of both programming languages.

Here is Kotlin, and here is Java.

Good luck with your development efforts!

The post Kotlin vs Java: Selecting a Language for Android Projects appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.

JavaScript is a robust scripting language used to build web, desktop, and mobile apps with rich features and functionality. With it, one can make a website that is more user-friendly and highly interactive. Things like updating web pages, UI improvements including animations, interactive maps, graphics, and much more can be created easily using JavaScript.

What is a JavaScript Framework

In the development sphere, the term JavaScript Framework means a library that provides developers with pre-built website templates and pre-written JavaScript code for standard programming tasks. Millions of developers use JavaScript Frameworks to speed up the development workflow and enforce the best practices.

A huge number of web development frameworks have joined the JavaScript world in the past few years. Their use depends on the main goals, general platform functionality, project requirements, and how it can be implemented within each specific scenario.

By using the best JavaScript development frameworks, a huge amount of time and effort can be saved on developing JavaScript-based websites and applications. It simplifies the entire procedure and allows developers to make large-scale web applications efficiently.

Most Popular and Top JavaScript Frameworks List

Tons of JavaScript frameworks and libraries are available for use, and at least two new frameworks emerge each month. Even the process of choosing from top JavaScript frameworks for your next project can be an intimidating job. To make the task easier for you, we have gathered a list of the best JavaScript frameworks, so you could get more quality work done in less time. In this article, we will be taking a closer look at the top-ranked JavaScript frameworks, and we think that these frameworks will gain traction in the future.

So, let’s start going through the list of best JavaScript frameworks.

1) JavaScript Frameworks: Angular.js

Developed and maintained by Google, Angular.js is one of the most efficient and popular JavaScript frameworks that give developers the best solutions to combine JavaScript with HTML and CSS. It is an open-source front-end web framework that allows software engineers to build interactive single-page web applications (SPA) like no other.

2) JavaScript Frameworks: React.js

Developed by Facebook, ReactJS is a highly efficient open-source JavaScript library used for creating interactive UIs. This fast-growing JS framework is used by webmasters to handle the view layer of complex apps and websites. React.js is faster than Angular.js and is a perfect choice for those who want a simple, scalable, and fast framework.

3) Best JavaScript Frameworks: Vue.js

Vue.js is one of the most famous JavaScript frameworks and was created by Evan You in 2014. It is an open-source lightweight library that is used to build creative UIs. Presently, more than thirty six thousand websites are using this platform, including the websites of many major companies. Vue is designed to be adaptable and make the UI development process more organized.  

4) JavaScript Frameworks: Ember.js

Ember.js is an open-source front-end JavaScript framework that allows programmers to build scalable single-page, desktop, and mobile applications. It works on the principle of MVVM (Model-View-ViewModel) pattern and is packed with several amazing features to help developers along.

5) JavaScript Frameworks: Meteor.js

Meteor.js is a full-stack JavaScript framework developed by Meteor Development Group. It is written using Node.js and allows rapid prototyping and production of cross-platform projects. Meteor is an ideal platform to create concisely written mobile apps regardless of platform.

6) List of Top JavaScript Frameworks — Mithril.js

Mithril.js is a modern client-side JavaScript framework commonly used to develop Single Page Applications (SPA). It has built-in modules for routing, XHR, and customizable data binding. Moreover, it offers faster library load time and update performance than other frameworks.

7) JavaScript Frameworks: Node.js

Node.js is a server-side JavaScript framework that runs on Google Chrome’s V8 JavaScript Engine. This open-source platform is used in creating networking and back-end applications in cross-platform run-time environments. NodeJS is capable of managing a huge number of simultaneous connections with maximum throughput, which gives applications high scalability.

8) JavaScript Frameworks: Polymer.js

Polymer.js is an open-source JavaScript library used in building cross-browser compatible web applications with reusable web components. It is the first JS library to allow for building interactive applications using web components. With the help of the polyfills (web component specifications), customized and reusable elements can be created.

9) JavaScript Frameworks: Aurelia.js

A more modern take on app development frameworks, AureliaJS is an open-source JavaScript framework designed for mobile, desktop, and web development. It is called a next-generation UI framework and is built from a collection of JS modules, allowing developers to build amazing apps with ease. Aurelia.js promotes pure JavaScript and features ES 2016, which enables developers to write better code using object-oriented techniques.

10) Most Popular JavaScript Frameworks: Backbone.js

Backbone.js is one of the most popular JavaScript frameworks that enables developers to build and structure client-side applications that run in a browser. It provides an MVP network to present the data as Models, Document Object Model (DOM) into Views, and binds both using Events. This lightweight JS library allows developers to pick the right tool for the given project. It may be the last on our list of top-ranked JavaScript frameworks, but definitely not the least.

Top 10 JavaScript Frameworks Comparison

There are different JavaScript frameworks, and assessing their advantages and drawbacks can be a challenging task. This section aims to provide a detailed comparison of JavaScript frameworks. Now, we will walk you through the pros and cons of all top JavaScript frameworks covered above.

AngularJS

Pros

• Two-way data-binding – data synchronization between the Model and View. Any changes made in the Model are instantly displayed in the View, and vice versa.
• Directives. With directives, Angular.js gives developers the freedom to repeatedly use specific functions, create custom directives, and it keeps the HTML pages organized.
• Dependency injection – an AngularJS built-in mechanism that defines the way software components are dependent on each other. Dependency injection makes components easier to manage as well as more usable.
• MVVM architecture – Model-View-View Model and Model-View-Controller can be implemented using AngularJS to separate the data from the View, as well as make complex applications easy to manage.

Cons

• JavaScript support required. There are many devices that do not support JS. So, your website or app may be at risk of losing a chunk of audience.
• MVC Knowledge. If a developer is unfamiliar with MVC architecture, using Angular.js can become extremely difficult and time-consuming.
• Performance issues. As the AngularJS framework is used to develop dynamic apps, they often end up big in size and start exhibiting glitches as a result.

ReactJS

Pros

• Virtual DOM. React.js uses the abstract copy of the real DOM – Virtual DOM. With it, developers can work faster, use hot reloading, and make UI smoother.
• Unidirectional data flow. One-way data flow in ReactJS ensures that any changes made to child elements will not affect the parent elements.
• JSX. React utilizes JSX (basic JS that uses HTML-like syntax) to make components code readable and display how components get put together.
• Reusing code components. With this feature, developers can create isolated ReactJS components that can be modified later and make the development process speedier and more precise.

Cons

• Poor documentation. With technologies advancing and updating so fast, it becomes difficult for developers to write proper documentation, and they end up following the information that lacks clarity and completeness.
• High development speed. With the constantly changing development environment, it gets hard for developers to adapt to every change and  roll-out continuous updates.
• Steep learning curve. If you want to integrate a UI library into the MVC framework, learning to do it with React.js requires extensive knowledge and putting in a lot of effort.

VueJS

Pros

• Templates. VueJS uses HTML-based templates that combine its instance data with DOM.
• Two-way communication. Similar to some other famous JavaScript frameworks, Vue facilitates two-way communication and speeds up the HTML blocks handling.
• Reactivity. Vue has a highly reactive system in which changes in models instantly update the View.
• Easy integration – Vue.js couples nicely with other applications and server-side frameworks.

Cons

• Unnecessarily high flexibility. It is nice to have a flexible framework, but a framework that is too flexible can over-complicate a project and may lead to errors in the code.
• Poor support. It is a relatively new library, with a small team behind it. Do not expect timely updates and plan accordingly if you decided to use Vue.js.

EmberJS

Pros

• Ember-CLI — a command-line utility that comes with Ember stack. Ember-CLI provides support for tools including HandleBars, LeSS, SaSS, CoffeeScript, and other.
• Ember templates. Built into Ember’s UI, templates are coded using the HandleBars templating language. They help developers create stunning UIs using less code.
• Ember Inspector. This tool allows developers to inspect Ember objects in the development and debugging processes easier.
• Convention over Configuration. Ember.js is based on Convention over Configuration (CoC) software development paradigm, which helps developers focus more on their app’s features and functionality.

Cons

• Steep learning curve. Ember.js’s learning curve is very steep. The framework is not beginner-friendly, and small young companies with a lot of junior developers need to invest time and money, if they want their engineers use Ember.js.
• Outdated resources. Ember has a small community loaded with outdated tutorials.
• Not suitable for big projects. It is extremely challenging to use this framework in large-scale projects, as it will consume too much time and affect overall team productivity.

MeteorJS

Pros

• Full stack solution.Meteor.js provides a full-stack solution to build and use web applications.
• Extensive packages and libraries. The framework offers a vast collection of libraries and smart packages that are up-to-date and highly reliable, if you aim at boosting the speed of the development process.
• Real-time web applications. MeteorJS is a perfect solution for creating real-time applications, as all the layers between the database and the template update automatically. It also has a built-in testing tool that integrates with the most popular JavaScript frameworks for testing.
• Single language development. With Meteor, developers can use the same code for front-end and back-end, making in one of the top javascript front-end frameworks. Thus, teams using Meteor can save time, and they do not need to switch context between JavaScript and server language.

Cons

• Complex integration. Meteor is difficult to integrate with other frameworks; hence, it is unsuitable for beginners.
• MongoDB Support. From the long list of popular SQL databases, Meteor only syncs with MongoDB.
• Internet connection flexibility. Meteor.js requires a good internet connection. If the internet connection is weak, the chances to lose synchronization between front-end and back-end are high.

MithrilJS

Pros

• Main feature – Mithril.js facilitates hierarchical MVC components, safe-by-default templates, customizable data binding, and URL routing.
• Flat learning curve. Mithril offers beginner tutorials and a huge API references section that can help developers with everything on the road to building applications.
• Components. Components can be created with the help of an optional controller and the View property.
• Speed – Mithril loads in less than 5 milliseconds, compared to other most popular JS frameworks.

Cons

• Unsuitable for complex projects. Due to its simple structure and small API, it might not be a good idea to use this framework for any complex project.
• JavaScript knowledge needed. Mithril requires developers to know JS and DOM well. On top of that, it doesn’t normalize the events or DOM.

NodeJS

Pros

• High performance. With V8 JS Engine, Node.js allows for quick JavaScript execution, as well as allowing for scalable and faster creation of web applications using multiple connections simultaneously.
• Suitable for large web applications. Node can use JS to perform functions on both the client-side and server-side of the application. It makes Node suitable for server-heavy application programming.
• Easy integration. With Node.js, no extra effort is required to integrate client data with server data. The same language can be used in working with persistent layers for both client and server sides.
• Corporate Support. Unlike other top JS frameworks, NodeJS is blessed with a large community that keeps on contributing to its further development and improvement.

Cons

• Unstable API. Node.js API constantly changes at frequent intervals and remains unstable. When this happens, developers have to make changes to their code to stay compatible with latest Node API.
• Poor third-party software management tools. Node’s numerous tools that are used in installing and managing third-party software are of poor quality. It seems that they have not been supervised properly and fail to meet common coding standards.

PolymerJS

Pros

• Web components. Built on the idea of reusable web components, Polymer employs them to break apps into portions of fitting size and create usable widgets in web documentation.
• Data binding. Polymer supports both one-way and two-way data binding, which makes the application area extensive.
• Polyfills. Polymer uses modern APIs for web interfaces and offers polyfills for browsers.
• Speed. Polymer works three times faster on Chrome and four times faster on Safari than other top JavaScript front-end frameworks,
• Custom elements. Polymer.js allows developers to create their own custom HTML elements.

Cons

• Lack of server-side rendering. While developers can work with PolymerJS on the client side, it cannot be rendered on the server side. As a result, page load speed is affected.
• Limited resources. Polymer.js has a small support community and limited resources available on the web, which makes it less popular in the industry.

AureliaJS

Pros

• Web Standards. AureliaJS is one of the cleanest modern JavaScript frameworks, and the one which focuses on the web standards without any concern for needless abstractions.
• Extensible HTML. With this feature of Aurelia.js, developers can create custom HTML elements for data binding and dynamic loading.
• Multi-language support. Aurelia’s APIs are designed to be compatible with every today’s and tomorrow’s popular programming language.
• Modular framework. Aurelia is made up of small modules, with each serving a particular purpose. They can be used together as a full-featured framework, or employed in building a custom solution.

Cons

• Low traction. Unlike other top JS frameworks, AureliaJS does not enjoy much popularity.
• Limited resources. Aurelia.js has a little community and limited resources. As a result, the framework has a steep learning curve.

BackboneJS

Pros

• Backend synchronization. Backbone.js provides great support for RESTful APIs, so Models can be easily tied to the back-end.
• Event-driven communication. The framework provides an event-driven communication between Models and Views to prevent the code from being difficult to read.
• RESTful JSON Interface. Backbone has a RESTful JSON interface based on the MVP application model. This format is used to perform data serialization and provide better support for browser clients.

Cons

• Difficult to learn. Backbone.js has a steep learning curve.
• Unsuitable for large data sets. The framework does not provide any data binding process, which makes it unsuitable for pages with that usually exhibit high data loads.
• Underscore templates. Backbone.js uses Underscore templates that are not as comprehensive as those provided by other top JS frameworks.

Future of JavaScript Frameworks

Many top JavaScript frameworks continue gaining traction among developers, so their future looks bright. Still, if we talk about top javascript front-end frameworks, Angular.js is an absolute champion with rocketing demand, with ReactJS and VueJS catching up in popularity. When it comes to back-end JavaScript frameworks, Node.js definitely continues to grow in terms of performance and features more rapidly than other back-end frameworks.

Final Thoughts

We hope our round-up provided you with a really comprehensive and actionable overview of JavaScript top frameworks to choose from for your upcoming project. The JavaScript (JS) frameworks list that we have discussed above shows the benefits and shortcomings of each framework, so you can clearly see where each framework works best. Still, do not forget that prior to picking the right one for your project, you need to have the feature list, the architecture, and required performance level.

Good luck with your project!

The post Top 10 JavaScript Frameworks in 2020 appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.

As learning always takes time, the deadlines are pressing, and consumer demand changes fast,

the question of how to find an app developer or an entire team to complete a project could arise at any moment. Still, projects differ in size, and budgets are not limitless. How do you find the right app developers then?

In this article, we show and explain how to find an app developer or development team for any project and business size, as well as different scenarios — so you can find the solution for your case as soon as possible.

First, we address four common situations when you might need hiring app developers, and provide possible solutions, explaining how you can hire the right experts. Second, we list six ways you can find app developers for any project.

Let’s start.

4 Ways You Can Hire App Developers

1 — How To Hire App Developers & Teams For Big Projects

Outsourcing mobile app development has long emerged as the top choice for businesses across industries. When you outsource, you hand over your project to a team of external experts, provided by an outsourcing company.

Companies turn to this service for a number of reasons:

1. Lack of the necessary expertise. Some companies might have an in-house software development team, but it could lack the expertise in a certain technology or be involved in another project. For example, a business needs to create an AR app, but they only have a busy web development team. As a result, finding and hiring app developers with AR expertise from an outsourcing company emerges as a good option.
2. Pressing time frame. Today, customer demand changes extremely fast, and the quicker you deliver the product, the better. If you do not have the right experts, training the existing team or hiring new developers may take up a substantial amount of time. Outsourcing companies are built to solve that issue and help you find and hire app developers that would suit your project demands and company culture.
3. Cost-efficiency. Maintaining an in-house team brings many benefits, but it is also highly expensive. Count in monthly salary, office and equipment expenses, as well as other costs, and you will get big numbers, especially if you need niche expertise. With outsourcing, you have immense budget flexibility in hiring app developers: you can scale your team up and down — or add an expert only for a period of time needed to finish a certain part of the product. On top of that, you do not have to pay for equipment or office space, as the outsourcing company covers that costs.
4. High Flexibility. There is more to outsourcing’s appeal when it comes to flexibility. As outsourcing services have been growing in toe with customer demand, modern providers offer a multitude of benefits for companies that want to hire app developers on specific terms. With outsourcing, a team can work onshore (a provider’s office are located in the same country of origin as your business or business branch), nearshore (a nearby country), or offshore (faraway countries). Whether you want close collaboration, satisfied with video meetings, or need a combination of both, there is an option for every business case.

When It Is Better To Outsource?

Outsourcing is the best option for well-funded startups, medium-sized companies, and enterprises. All of them might lack either resources or expertise for certain projects. If you are in charge of a relatively small company, you may only need to hire an app developer that will single-handedly cover all your needs. Otherwise, it is not cost-efficient (find out more on how to find an app developer for small projects and companies below)

2 — How To Hire a Mobile App Developer With Niche Skills, Without Hiring an Entire Team

Let’s say you have a large project rolling forward at full speed. It is innovative, and involves multiple technologies. Everything is going according to plan, and there seems to be nothing ahead to prevent your team from meeting the deadline. Suddenly, one of IoT experts on your team (for example, a very experienced embedded software engineer), receives a job offer they cannot refuse. No matter what you say and how satisfying everything is, the engineer says they cannot simply ignore the offer. Unfortunately, you are left without an important expert.

A service called outstaffing will help you fill in the gap as quickly as possible. With this model, you can hire a mobile app developer with the right skills who can quickly fit in with your team and help you get your project back on track and further to the fast lane.

If you need to add a certain technology to an existing product, but do not have the right experts, you can use outstaffing services to find and hire app developers with the right skills. For example, you want to add AR to your mobile product, which has Android and iOS versions. In this case, you will need to hire mobile app developers for both platforms who also have AR expertise (and, maybe, an AR solution architect).

Another big benefit of outstaffing is shared knowledge. Any developer prefers to share their knowledge and expand it beyond the field they started from. For instance, you have mobile app developers, but they lack AR expertise for one of the projects. When you hire app developers with the skills that your team lacks, they will share that knowledge in the process of cooperating on a project. That is, when you outstaff you also invest into education of your employees and, consequently, into your business. More so, your developers will be learning not from a lecture, workshop, or else, but a real-life project with an expert in the field.

Outstaffing is also cost-efficient and flexible. If you need to add a DevOps engineer for a limited time to the experts you already hired for a project, you can do so. Outstaffing providers offer scalability as required.

3 — How to Hire Mobile App Developer for a Small Project/Company

Turning to outsourcing, outstaffing, or similar ways of hiring mobile app developers (you would also come across team extension, for example) is rarely the option for small projects or companies. These services are aimed at bigger companies, projects, and teams, and do not make sense for smallers ones from the business perspective. Instead, small companies or projects can win from more suitable options to hire a developer to make an app.

Upwork

• Freelance websites are a great option for short to mid-term projects. Existing freelance platforms like Upwork and Fiverr have many app developers for hire across a wide array of technology areas and programming languages. With simple and streamlined user experiences and rating systems, you can use these platforms for hiring app developers you can rely on. However, if you consider hiring freelancers for the long-term due to tempting cost-efficiency possibilities, we do not recommend doing so. Freelance app developers usually like to have a number of different projects, and often they take on several at a time. Therefore, with this option, you cannot count on long-term consistency and commitment.
• Job search websites. Although freelancing is a popular mode of work/lifestyle choice, it does not fit everyone. Hence, you can rely on a tried-and-true option and hire mobile application developer with a job search website. This option can work both for long and short term, it all depends on what a developer expects and what you both can agree on. You can also expect a large number of CVs to choose from.

4 — How To Hire Mobile App Developers For an In-House Team

So, you need to build a reliable in-house team. This is the most expensive way to go, but it has some major advantages over other options. First, high dependability and consistency. An in-house team is always there, ready to get to work and solve an issue. Second, an in-house team would be familiar with your IT infrastructure, software projects, and how your business works in general. As a result, they would be able to provide better solutions to issues and challenges, and do it faster.

On the other hand, building a solid in-house team for the long-term takes a lot of time and effort. You will need several in-house HR experts or help from a recruitment agency to secure the developers you need. Here, finding an experienced project manager could be a great start.

In any case, an in-house team will be a costly option in every aspect. Your company would need to allocate costs to monthly salaries, equipment, office space, training, as well as other costs. The good news? Big urban centers offer flexible workspaces that provide office essentials and a comfortable environment in general. Some of them are built solely for software and mobile development companies, so your experts will also gain benefits from sharing knowledge with colleagues from other companies. If your business is small and growing, or you are a startup, you can find options to stay flexible.

6 Ways You Can Find App Developers

When you finish selecting the most fitting mode of operation for your business, it is time to compile a list of potential partners/developers. There are many different places and platforms online where you can find mobile app developers.

1 — Find mobile app developers with B2B research firms & ratings

If you need to find an outsourcing or outstaffing partner to hire app developers from, this is a solid option. B2B firms like Clutch offer comprehensive rating systems, which allow for finding the right partner quickly by putting the spotlight on reviews and concise company profiling.

Clutch

2 — Hire a team or developer based on recommendations

Whether you need a team or only looking for mobile app developer, getting in touch with partners and friends who currently have or had the same challenges may solve your problem. They would recommend an outsourcing service provider or a developer, providing you with front-row feedback that is often missing from reviews and elsewhere online. That is, you will know the real advantages and disadvantages of your potential partner. When you are investing a lot of money in a project, this is the best way to go.

3 — Find & hire a mobile app developer on freelance platforms

As we detailed above, you can always find an app developer on freelance websites like Upwork. If you only need to solve a small issue or have a small project, you can hire an app developer shortly after finding them at the website. Rating and profiling systems like Upwork’s are clear and feedback-driven, providing a foundation to make a reliable decision.

Fiverr

4 — Looking for an app developer with niche skills? Check out their blog

As we pointed up earlier in this article, developers enjoy sharing the knowledge, and a great many have their own blogs where they share insights and expertise. This is how developer communities work and the software world spins. So, if you need an IoT engineer, you can browse IoT publications on, for example, Medium, and try and find the right expert there.

5 — Find a programmer for an app by doing online research

If you know how to choose reliable outsourcing partners and where to look on their websites, this option may prove to be a good starting point. If not, look at these three things first and foremost: clients and case studies, years on the market (ten years of experience is great), and a clear and established development process. Also, couple this option with other ones on the list, like checking potential partners you found on B2B firms’ ratings and getting in touch with your partners.

6 — Find a programmer for an app on GitHub

While not the most evident way to find an app developer, the world’s largest code hosting has millions of experts from across technology areas who contribute source code to millions of repositories. There, you or an expert on your team can find the right experts and check their code quality as it is.

The post How to Find & Hire App Developers for Different Projects appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.

Presently, the App Store has over 1.5 million applications. Why users like iOS so much? First, it’s simple. Second, the App Store submission process is rigorous, which ensures users get high quality mobile products. Finally, Apple has made it clear that user privacy is a top concern for the company.

As a result, app developers have to work hard during the iOS app development process and deliver a product that is a cut above in one way or another.

How does the process unfold is a rather curious matter.

General App Development Process Flow

Developing an app isn’t about merely creating a mobile application and releasing it to a digital store. The process requires proper planning, research, skills, and above all, a clear focus. To ensure the success of the final product, the mobile app development company has to follow a number of steps in app development.

Usually, there are five main phases in an app development cycle.

• Planning Phase – Before launching an app, it is important to have a clear focus: what challenges does the mobile app solve, who is the target audience, what features to include, and so on. Besides, it is important to carry out a comprehensive market research to ensure the app would be competitive in its market or market niche. The planning phase also includes arranging all the requirements needed in the subsequent phases of the app development process.
• Design Phase – On this phase, the design team comes up with the user interface and user experience, that is, the looks, feel, and navigation. The design is then carried over to mobile app developers.
• Development Phase – This phase of the app development process flow involves creating a functional app from the existing design.
• Testing Phase – When the development is finished, it is obligatory to test the application. QA engineers review the app to make sure it functions seamlessly and has no bugs.
• App Launch & Maintenance – Once the app is tested and reviewed by the client, it can be launched release to market. However, this does not end the app development process steps, since every application requires continued maintenance and needs to be updated often to address the quickly changing customer demands. So, this phase simply marks the beginning of another development cycle.

App Development Process Workflow

iOS Application Development Process

The iOS app development workflow also follows the usual pattern explained above. It all starts with planning for the application, followed by design and development of the app, testing of the product before releasing it, and then the subsequent continuous maintenance of the app until it exists.

But, in practice, the iOS development process is not so easy. The developers have to take care of various developer rules set up by Apple to ensure a user-friendly, private, and secure user experience. Therefore, app developers need to implement the required elements and best practices to create a successful final product.

The following sections provide a detailed explanation of all the iOS app development steps.

1. Initial Steps To Creating An App For iOS

• Research & Analysis

There’s more than a million apps on the App Store. So, the market is extremely competitive. To make ensure your app gains traction and gets downloaded many times, you must conduct thorough market research to see what apps are already out there. Then, see how those apps work and compare them to yours.

• Compliance with App Store Guidelines

In addition, the process of creating an app for iOS also requires you to comply with Apple’s strict guidelines. Apple only publishes only those applications that meet their requirements for design, security, user privacy, and other aspects. And there is no other way. That’s why all apps on iOS has a similar look and feel without losing in uniqueness, and that’s why most of them are well-made.

2. Designing Before The Process Of Developing An App

• Concept & Wireframing

When the concept behind your app is clear, you need to document the requirements for the design team. According to them, the team would then develop wireframes — blueprints/digital sketches showing how the app would look like. This design stage lays the foundation for the subsequent app design process and the other steps to creating an app.

• UI & UX Design

A key process of creating an app, this step determines the user experience and how the app will look like. The goal at this stage is to create a design that is both visually appealing and easy to navigate/intuitive. UI and UX of the app should also comply with Apple’s guidelines.

• Software Architecture

The other major step that goes on alongside UI and UX design is the planning of software architecture. It is one of the key stages in the iOS app development process and accounts for three components of the model view controller (MVC) paradigm – the data, the user, and the software. It involves all those measures taken to ensure the scalability and stability of the app.

3. Applying Required Steps In iOS App Development

Although the initial phases of the iOS application development process help in getting all the requirements ready and having the design of the app completed, the most critical phase of the entire effort begins in the development phase.

The development phase is all about bringing the app concept to life. At this stage, the development team has to work with three different yet integral parts of the project – the back end, the API, and the front end of the mobile app.

• Back-end Development

When it comes to app functionality, the back-end development is the core. It includes the entire server-side development including the maintenance and functioning, user account authentication, account management, push notification services, third-party integration for social media sites, and user experience customization.

• APIs

The Application Programming Interface (API) serves as a link between the front-end and the back-end of the mobile application. APIs form one of the core components in the apps development process.

• Front-end Development

The front-end of an app is the side that directly interacts with the user. It involves coding various design elements, like wireframes and mock-ups, caching, and database synchronization. A well-developed front end will enable a smooth user-experience across various screen sizes and orientations.

• Things to Consider During iOS App Development

Before moving to the actual development process, it is important to select the fitting technology stack for your mobile app. Besides, choosing a suitable programming language is also essential.

Here are a few things you should decide on prior to beginning with the application development process.

• XCode. Creating a native iOS app requires using XCode – Apple’s IDE (integrated development environment), which imports app designs. This tool provides various useful features, like editing source code, UI, debugging, and exporting the application to the App Store.
• iOS Programming Languages. Accounting for the requirements, the developer can choose any of the two languages – Objective-C and Swift – to develop the iOS app. While Objective-C is a superset of the C language, it is being gradually replaced by Swift, Apple’s newest programming language. Launched in 2014, Swift runs two point six times faster than Objective-C, according to Apple. It is more concise, sustainable, safer and supports the majority modern hardware units.
• Agile Development. Owing to the rapid changes in mobile platforms, it’s always a good idea to finish the iOS application development process as fast as possible. To achieve this goal, the developers may choose an agile development approach, whose system of milestones ensures timely delivery of quality software.

4. Testing And Finishing The Process Of Creating An App

After finishing all technical app development phases, the next step is the QA testing of the developed product. Testing or reviewing the app for iOS is a crucial step, considering the difficulties in the submission process and Apple’s approval of the app. The developer must review the app for optimized performance, seamless user experience, debugging, optimal memory usage, security, and thorough compliance with all guidelines set by Apple.

After reviewing the app and ensuring it won’t get rejected, your application can be submitted to the App Store for subsequent review and approval. It may take from a few days to a couple of weeks for Apple to respond and approve your mobile product.

An App Development Process Never Ends

Apparently, the process of developing an app for iOS gets completed with the successful deployment of an app to the App Store. However, in reality, this process never ends

The launch of an app begins a continuous process of app maintenance. It comprises of monitoring app usage through app analytics platforms, measuring its success through KPIs, patching any functional and security bugs that may arise at any time, and updating app features and/or interface in the light of customer feedback as well as the iOS requirements.

The post iOS App Development Process: Steps & Tips appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.

Installed on the vast majority of existing smartphones, Android is often considered to be the best OS when it comes to building custom mobile apps. Many developers prefer Android as it is highly customisable and has a large community ready to help and provide useful information. Android also has many integrated tools that help enhance the efficiency of an app while reducing the number of actions that need to be taken to perform a task.

Still, choosing the right Android framework for app development is not easy due to a large number of different options available. To lend you a helping hand, we have created a comprehensive list of 14 best Android frameworks that can make the app development process fast and easy. These frameworks help in reducing the effort that developers put in by boosting productivity and offering technology solutions to handle complex tasks.

Top Frameworks for Android App Development

Before we start, it is important to note that we categorize 14 top Android frameworks by their capabilities. Let’s have a closer look at the best frameworks for Android application development and what features they offer.

Best Android App Development Framework: Games Development

Unity

Unity is known as the best Android development framework for development of multi-platform 2D, 3D, augmented reality, and virtual reality games as well as other simulations. Developed by Unity Technologies, this game engine comes in free and professional editions. You can work with Unity in C# and UnityScript, the language of Unity that is similar to JavaScript. Unity is a cross-platform framework that and enables game developers to export their games to multiple platforms, like iOS, Web, PlayStation, Windows, Xbox, and more.

Being a physics engine, it can control the behavior of different game objects, lighting rendering, momentum, and graphic elements. Similar to many software development tools, Unity has a built-in editor that enables you to edit images and manage animations from the “Animator” window. As of 2018, half of new mobile games and 60% of the augmented reality and virtual reality experiences are created with the Unity engine. All in all, It is an easy-to-use platform that allows game developers to create amazing content and a strong connection with the audience. In other words, the platform is a great choice for interactive experiences.

Best Frameworks for Android Development: High Performance

Kotlin

Originated in the minds of JetBrains, Kotlin is a statically-typed, modern programming language solution for Android that combines the features functional and object-oriented programming. In 2017, Google declared Kotlin as an official IDE (Integrated Development Environment) for Android development. It runs on Java Virtual Machine (JVM) and is 100% interoperable with the Java language. In many scenarios, it is considered as a replacement for Java as it significantly streamlines the development process. Many programmers have adopted Kotlin as their primary language for Android.

Application developed with Kotlin also run as fast as the ones created with Java as they share a similar bytecode structure. In the recent Stack Overflow developer survey, Kotlin was ranked as the fourth most loved programming language. In 2019, many of the large enterprises are planning to move or are in the process of moving to Kotlin. Trello, Pinterest, Basecamp, Uber, Twitter, Airbnb, and Netflix are all migrating to Kotlin for Android application development. Since its launch, Kotlin has proved itself as a highly intuitive platform for Android app development.

Corona SDK

Developed in 2009, Corona SDK is a perfect software development kit for building speedy apps and games. This general-purpose, cross-platform framework enables 10x faster development than other Android app frameworks. Corona achieves this by integrating Lua, a lightweight and multi-paradigm programming language, which is itself layered on top of C++/OpenGL, and allows to achieve high speed, usability, and flexibility. 

Highly popular among game developers, Corona is free and available both Mac OS X and Windows, with real-time testing support. In addition, the framework has native UI support, over 500 APIs, and a dynamic advertising platform built for developers. Its API suite features is feature-rich, with graphics, networking, widgets, particle effects, and more. Simple to understand and integrate into Android, Corona SDK has gained notable popularity among Android app developers.

Sencha Touch

Perceived as one of the best Android development frameworks by Android’s development community, Sencha Touch is an enterprise-first framework built for native mobile application development. It is based on JavaScript and HTML5, which allows for creating universal applications for Android. 

Sencha Touch comes with nearly 50 built-in UI components and native themes, enabling developers create engrossing and eye-catching apps. The framework utilizes hardware acceleration techniques, so the apps created with its help exhibit high performance. Big companies choose Sencha Touch due its high-level compatibility and flexibility, responsive touch features, and fast execution. Apps built using Sencha Touch are rich in fluid animations, smooth scrolling, and are highly adaptive. Its huge collection of themes, enriched UI, integrated MVC system, and a vast data package makes Sencha Touch the leading Android application development framework.

TheAppBuilder

Powered by HTML5, TheAppBuilder is an app building framework that supports a codeless user interface, which means users do not need to know how to code in any language to create a solid app. Plus, with its drag-and-drop interface, developers can build applications really quickly. The framework comes with pre-built blocks which include features like feedback, content updates, polls, push notifications, and much more.

Android app development framework also got traction from users because it allows them to submit their apps directly to Google Play and boasts social network integration. Plus, it generates analytics reports, so users could identify the issues that slow down their apps. In most cases, businesses use TheAppBuilder to cut costs. 

SproutCore

SproutCore is an open-source JavaScript framework used for developing blazing fast applications with advanced features. Developed by Apple, this HTML5-driven framework offers users a clear MVC design that enables performance optimization and scalability for applications. Unlike other JavaScript libraries, SproutCore comes with a complete set of tools required to build a desktop-like application in a browser, including routing, UI components, testing and deployment tools.

With more than 50,000 items in the toolset, maintainable application code, and well thought out business logic behind it, SproutCore has become a top framework for Android app development. These features, when combined, provide a rock-solid foundation for building feature-packed, high-performance applications.

Best Android Frameworks: Native Apps Development

React Native

Backed by Facebook, React Native is a powerful open-source framework that offers ample support to other development tools and their IDEs. It is based on React, a JS library for web solutions. Companies like Instagram, Walmart, Airbnb, Tesla, as well as many other Fortune 500 companies, use the framework to develop native mobile apps. As most of the React Native APIs are cross-platform, developers can write code once and then run it anywhere, which improves development speed and helps cut costs.

React Native uses building blocks similar to the ones employed in most Android development frameworks. With the hot-reload option in React Native, developers can link updated files while retaining the current state of the app. The developer community of React Native has been growing much faster than Facebook’s expectations. 

Google Trends indicate that the framework has been gaining more and more traction in the past few years. As of today, around 1600 developers have used this framework. 

Xamarin

Owned by Microsoft, and one of the top Android development frameworks, Xamarin offers an advanced toolset that enables developers to build native apps for multiple mobile platforms on a shared C# codebase. With Microsoft’s cloud testing service, the apps built using Xamarin can be tested on numerous devices. Moreover, its code-sharing feature makes it developers’ favorite as it reduces coding time and number of bugs in the software development process.

Compared to other Android frameworks, Xamarin is one of the oldest cross-platform frameworks and is already used by 1.4 million developers across 120 countries. 

Xamarin became a part of Visual Studio IDE,  which made large companies in industries like healthcare, and energy shift to using this framework. Xamarin has been around for a while, but the number of developers using it has increased a lot over the years as compared to other frameworks for Android.

Appcelerator Titanium

The best Android framework according to some developers, Appcelerator Titanium is an open-source platform for building native apps with a single JavaScript code base.  Titanium became popular as it allows for creating multi-platform mobile apps using around 60%-90% of the existing code. The framework employs the JavaScript programming language to ensure high performance of applications.

Titanium can be used to develop solid games, while mobile apps built with Appcelerator Titanium can utilize hardware-specific features like Android menu buttons, OS-centric controls, and platform-appropriate notifications. Currently, over 345,577,760 apps run through this Android application framework. Also, it provides many other useful features like automated testing on mobile devices, application monitoring, and performance regulation.

Best Android Frameworks: Hybrid Apps Development

Ionic

Ionic is a free and open-source framework certified by MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) and allows developers to build progressive hybrid apps with the help of HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript.  Ionic has become one of the most famous frameworks for Android development due to its cross-platform functionalities and the ability to integrate AngularJS.

It hosts a simple CLI (Command-line Interface ) that facilitates features like emulators, live reload, and logging. As it is Cordova and Angular based, Ionic has a large community. Around 4 million Ionic based apps were built, with more than 5 million developers in around 200 countries worldwide using the framework. Moreover, it integrates with many services, including Google Play, Instagram, and many more.

Flutter

Designed and maintained by Google, Flutter is a multi-platform mobile app SDK which can be used to build applications, but in a way that is different from other Android app frameworks. It simplifies cross-platform development process and is written in the Dart language. When it comes to selecting a framework, Flutter is the best choice for hybrid app development.

Google’s Flutter framework uses a 2D rendering engine called Skia for visuals that are similar to material design and the Cupertino style. Flutter also serves as a solid testing framework, enabling developers to perform UI, unit, and functionality tests. Moreover, Flutter has best-in-class hot-reload functionality, which allows for seamless testing without the need to restart the application.

Cordova

Cordova is a free open source Android framework that allows developers to build multi-platform apps using a single code base like Appcelerator Titanium. It is a hybrid framework that enables app development based on standard web technologies, including JavaScript, HTML5, and CSS3. Cordova serves as a bridge between a mobile application and a web application.

Also, it can access native device APIs, making it hard to identify whether the app has been developed using a native language or not. Primarily designed to develop online apps, Cordova also provides support for offline scenarios, making it a perfect platform for developing desktop apps as well.

PhoneGap

Supported by Adobe and Apache, PhoneGap is an open-source Android app framework that allows software engineers to build apps using web development technologies (HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript). With PhoneGap, developers can instantly see changes during the development of the apps. Commonly used for developing hybrid mobile applications, PhoneGap provides best-in-class performance as well as the freedom to work without hardware-specific limitations.

In addition to Android, the platform helps developing apps for several other operating systems. The latest version of this cross-platform framework comes with built-in Cordova WebView for integrating PhoneGap code into larger native apps. Its extended plugin library, third-party software tools, and growing community make it stand out among other Android app development frameworks

NativeScript

Listed as a top framework for hybrid apps development, NativeScript is a free open-source framework that enables developers to create applications using Vue, TypeScript, and Angular. This Android framework is backed by a Bulgarian software company Telerik. From Gradle to CocoaPods, developers can easily reuse a wide array of plugins from directly in the projects with NativeScript. 

The framework enables web developers who are well-versed in JavaScript, HTML, and CSS, as well as Native UI markup, can build outstanding progressive apps with NativeScript. One of the biggest reasons to choose NativeScript for Android app development is that it offers UIs with the native platform’s offering engine, which is results in native-like UIs and performance. With JS running on the UI thread, NativeScriptenables high-performance on all native platform APIs.

Wrapping Up

Selecting the right Android framework for app development is a complicated process. If you are looking for a one-shot solution for the app development, you should know that, since every business and project has different requirements, what works best for one company might not work for another. First, you should consider the capabilities of each of these frameworks, then focus on your project objectives, and after, pick out the platform from the ones mentioned above — based on your business needs. That is the way you can guarantee your choice will have a positive impact. 

The post 14 Best Android Frameworks for App Development in 2019 appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.

To make things easier, we gathered a list of top mobile app development frameworks in 2019 that will help you choose a fitting framework for your mobile project. 

Best Mobile App Development Frameworks – 2019

Our list of the best frameworks for mobile app development includes the ones that will come in handy in 2019 and beyond. The tools you’ll get to learn in this post will fall under the following categories:

• Most popular frameworks
• Best frameworks for hybrid app development
• Top framework for games development

Mobile App Development Frameworks Comparison

When one chooses a frameworks, a lot of questions arise. Which of the many available frameworks will ensure the best end result possible? What are the pros and cons of that framework? Does the framework have a community that supports it? The list of questions doesn’t end there. Our article will provide you with answers to these and other questions about the best mobile app development frameworks, so you can make a solid choice.

Most Popular Mobile App Development Frameworks

React Native

Created by Facebook, React Native is one of the most popular mobile app development frameworks. It is an open-source platform which allows developers to build high-performance apps using native components while also cutting development cycles deployment time. Since its inception, it has often been regarded as the most popular cross-platform mobile app development framework.

Pros:

• Modular architecture
• Optimal performance
• Third-party plugin support
• Reusability
• Code can be shared to different platforms
• Developers can use their JavaScript knowledge to create native apps

Cons:

• Memory management issues due to  its JavaScript background
• Steep learning curve
• Performance issues in apps with advanced functionality

Xamarin 

A Microsoft-owned tool, Xamarin is one of the best frameworks for cross-platform mobile app development and uses C# code and native libraries wrapped in the .Net layer. Xamarin allows developers to build apps swiftly and saves them time by reusing the tools and code on multiple platforms. Today, more than 1.5 million developers use this platform around the world to build highly-interactive applications. Also having a single code base for creating apps for every OS, it is one of the most preferred frameworks for hybrid mobile app development.

Pros:

• User-friendly UI
• Enables a frictionless mobile app development process
• Comprehensive development environment
• Code can be shared to different platforms
• Cost-effective
• Simplified maintenance

Cons:

• Short learning curve
• Does not suit apps with cutting-edge graphics
• Compatibility issues with third-party tools

Flutter

Launched by Google, Flutter is a stand out amongst the best cross-platform mobile app development frameworks for a number of reasons. It is a software development kit designed for building high-quality native-looking apps for both Android and iOS with Google’s very own programming language, Dart. With the help of Skia (the engine that renders 2D) Flutter aids in developing the visual components for applications.

Pros:

• Lightning-fast speed
• Lightweight components
• Supports cross-platform mobile app development
• Needs less testing effort

Cons:

• Requires continuous support
• Limited libraries

Appcelerator Titanium

Appcelerator Titanium is an open-source mobile app development framework that enables developers to create native applications using web technologies like JavaScript, HTML, and CSS. The framework uses JavaScript, which allows for reusability of large amounts of code and building high-performance applications.

Pros:

• Powerful cross-platform mobile app development tool
• Robust and efficient
• Rapid prototyping
• Continuous support from the community

Cons:

• Costs rises if every new complex feature
• Not too flexible
• SDK complications

jQuery Mobile

jQuery Mobile is a touch-optimized UI framework built upon the jQuery core. It allows for developing responsive applications accessible on mobile and desktop devices. jQuery Mobile integrates HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript, and AJAX into a single platform to help developers build mobile web apps with fewer lines of code.

Pros:

• Short learning curve
• Simplifies app store approvals
• Good cross-browser and cross-platform compatibility
• Great documentation and tutorials

Cons:

• App do not feel or look like native applications
• Limited capabilities as compared to native applications

Mobile Angular UI

Mobile Angular UI is a structural mobile app development framework that combines the best of Angular and Bootstrap 3 frameworks to allow for building HTML5 applications as well as simplifies the development process. To enable a great mobile experience, the framework relies on rich libraries like fastclick.js and overthrow.js.

Pros:

• Offers mobile components not available in Bootstrap
• Solid server-side support
• Lightweight
• Stable
• Allows for desktop-to-mobile app conversion

Cons:

• Poor documentation
• Difficult to customize

Best Frameworks for Hybrid Mobile App Development

PhoneGap

If you plan to develop a hybrid application, Adobe PhoneGap should rank high on your list of best frameworks for mobile app development. PhoneGap enables developers to create robust and feature-rich applications in JavaScript, HTML5, and CSS3. Developers can also integrate various libraries and add more features to their applications.

Multple PhoneGap Build users may want to work simultaneously on the same application. This feature can be found in your app settings, under the Collaboration tab.

Pros:

• Plugin-based architecture
• No hardware-specific limitations
• Multiple build users can work on the same app at once
• Rapid testing and deployment

Cons:

• Limited pre-built UI components
• Not suitable for architectures with complex elements
• Insufficient documentation
• Limited memory management capabilities

NativeScript

NativeScript is an open-source framework regarded as one of the top hybrid mobile app development frameworks. It enables app developers to build and deploy native mobile apps for Android and iOS with a single code base.

Pros:

• Angular 2.0 and TypeScript support
• Native UI components and performance
• JavaScript/XML can be used to build UI
• Growing community
• Faster access to Native libraries
• Excellent performance

Cons:

• Lacks some UI components
• Cross-platform UI abstractions
• The third-party community did not fully develop

Ionic

One of the top mobile app development frameworks, Ionic is an open-source SDK which offers tools and services to build hybrid mobile applications utilizing web technologies like HTML5, CSS3, and SaaS. It is based on Angular JS and Apache Cordova, enabling developers to build top-quality hybrid applications and access different features of an OS, including camera, location, battery, etc.

Pros:

• Great design and UI
• Scalability
• Cordova plugins 
• Vast UI components base
• Single code base
• A large community of developers

Cons:

• Steep learning curve
• Lacking documentation
• Does not suit apps with cutting-edge graphics

Top Mobile App Development Framework in 2019 — Game Development

Corona SDK

Corona SDK is the best framework for mobile app development when it comes to mobile gaming. It allows developers to build 2D applications and games ten times faster than other tools. It is supported by Lua, a light-weight programming language that offers speed, flexibility, and a seamless environment to develop fast-performance apps.

Pros:

• Free of charge
• Single code base
• Over 500 APIs
• Native UI support
• Excellent documentation

Cons:

• Not easy device testing
• Developers need to learn Lua

Final Thoughts – What Is the Best Framework For Mobile App Development?

Of all the mobile app development frameworks available, these ten tools seems to rule the mobile app development industry in 2019. To choose the right framework for your app project, you should carefully consider its requirements and account for existing and possible challenges. The best-case scenario is a framework that helps you address all the project requirements, has a strong support community, and uses a language you and your developers are familiar with.  

The post Choosing the Best Framework for Mobile App Development – 2019 appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.

For all those who are excited to launch apps but aren’t sure how to proceed, in this article, we list some of the best app ideas worth considering. Besides, we also share some quick tips to come up with exciting ideas for your very own app.

Ideas To Make An App

Creating and launching an app is quite an exciting experience. Nonetheless, with the growing number of mobile apps flooding the markets on a daily basis, you must make sure that your product succeeds in gaining traction.

If you are perplexed by choosing the niche for your future app, here we list some interesting mobile app ideas. You can either develop a unique app for any of these markets, or you may come up with an application for a specific niche.

1. Education App Ideas

While we see educational establishments adapting innovative technology during classroom sessions, the online aspect of this niche hasn’t grown much besides separate online education platforms which are not connected to educational establishments.

For app developers, this sector harbors plenty of useful app ideas to implement. For instance, you may create an app that collectively works as an editor and proofreader as it highlights grammatical mistakes and suggest stylistic choices in the process of analyzing the content the user submits. (Imagine an app combining the strengths of Grammarly and Endnote.) Likewise, a mobile app providing the students with the access to old books which are otherwise not available online is also a worthy idea. This may be a tougher task to do, but with the right approach in business strategy and marketing, everything should work.

Similarly, you can consider developing an app that allows potential employers find young talents resumes among the recently graduated students. An app where senior students could share their notes on subjects and educational tips with junior students is also a great concept.

2. Travel App Ideas

The travel industry is one of the most innovative and fastest-growing markets in the world. Despite being around for years, this app niche has tremendous potential when it comes to adapting new tech. In other words, this sector gives you the freedom to come up with innovative app ideas.

How? Take a look at raid-hailing, on-demand services apps like Uber and Careem, but cater to a specific user group. For example, your app can help wealthy users looking for specific travel-related services, or those who often need a specific type of vehicle. This can be an app that provides trailer trucks rent or even private jets.

Besides, if you have ambitious plans and want to reach a wider audience, think what Trip Advisor and Booking.com would do if they were launching today. These platforms deliver on their promise in full and are comfortable to use, but they are not exactly current-day — there is ample space for innovation.

3. Augmented Reality App Ideas

The rise of augmented reality and the growing interest of enthusiasts in this technology makes it a solid option to consider investing into. If you are a tech enthusiast and want to amuse the users with technology, you can certainly launch a simple app revolving with AR — or add a user-friendly feature to an existing application.

Leveraging the concept of overlaying digital objects on real-life places, you can certainly come up with exciting app ideas.

Some of the existing AR apps include Sephora Virtual Artist – a virtual make-up app; ‘Dulux Visualiser, which deals with wall paint; and IKEA Place, an app that facilitates the process of placing objects (like IKEA furniture) in a virtual environment. You can also create apps using AR to visualize gardens and landscapes, choose the colors of your next car paint, or even use this technology in apparel design.

4. College App Ideas

Although technological innovations have helped colleges and universities improve different facets of the college experience, there’s still enough space left for creative ideas. This is particularly true of revolutionizing the procedures colleges use interact with their students and staff, and the way they manage their academic chores.

Some of the best app ideas for colleges include apps dealing with college curriculum, managing student assignments, or sharing course outlines. Similarly, you can create a general app that guides students through the process of college admissions, provides schedule, and hold basic important information.

5. App Ideas For College Students

While one may see numerous education and teaching apps in the market, finding apps that address specific educational needs of college students is rather difficult. Therefore, pondering a bit over the dynamic lifestyle of these students will enable you to come up with the best mobile app ideas for them.

For instance, you can create a time-management app specifically aimed at helping college students, which can include a feature that allows for attaching homework to class reminders. Or, you can launch an app offering financial assistance and advice to students. Likewise, your app can help college students in finding part-time jobs by connecting them with potential employers.

6. Medical App Ideas

Technology has greatly helped medical science in the diagnosis and treatment of different diseases. However, despite such developments, this area still lags behind when it comes to adopting impactful mobile apps. The status quo gives you the freedom to choose anything from the plethora of interesting app ideas for this app niche.

Some innovative developers have already created apps that facilitate medical procedure, or at least bring in more comfort (for example, a medical that allows doctors to store test results and other information in one place in the app, as well as chat with them). Some apps also use the power of AR to visualize human organs, thus providing an all-around and visually rich way to explore them in greater detail.

You can also create apps addressing different medical needs, like connecting the hospitals to the services providing surgery tools, helping doctors in managing online appointments, or helping doctors across the world communicate quickly and comfortable in one place.

7. Fitness App Ideas

Today, people take fitness and sports very seriously, pushing their own physical limits daily. This is one of the key reasons why app stores look flooded with various fitness apps. While the niche is highly competitive, you can still find room to apply your creativity here.

Some of the amazing app ideas for fitness can be taken from the already existing apps like MyFitnessPal, Strava, and PumpUp. Just review these apps and see what they lack: what would you improve, add, or transform? You can incorporate those features into your own fitness app. You can even create an app related to fitness tracking, exercises, or diet plans common to a specific set of fitness exercises, region, or population/country.

8. Music App Ideas

Music is one of those niches that continues to harbor top app ideas. The incessant love of music, the diversity of genres, the thousands and thousands of performers drive the application in this market. The success of apps like Soundcloud, Saavn, Shazam, Spotify, and YouTube prove how different and unique music-related apps can be.

If you want an app to cater to a huge user base, try coming up with a new, unique way to creating playlists, or an app that uses top charts across the world as the starting point.

9. Social Networking App Ideas

Social networking is another interesting area invites many cool app ideas. Despite the presence and enduring popularity of top social networks, the netizens like their online time to be diverse on communicate on other platforms, including Reddit, Pinterest, Flickr, and other.

Certainly, the human instinct for building social connections greatly benefits app developers. The success of apps like Instagram and Snapchat, which are simple at their core, shows that one can profit from a simple premise, simply building upon in while also continuously listening to user feedback.

10. Sports App Ideas

Sports enthusiasts are always on the hunt for sources that keep them updated about the latest events. Hence, you can consider this niche to launch your own app by experimenting with some common app ideas for sports.

While there already are various gaming apps aimed at different sports, you can come up with something that is both informative and engaging at the same time. For example, an app focusing on soccer may include the sport’s brief history, important events happening soon, a constantly updating list of top players, biographies of star players, and so on. Then, wrap it into an alluring design, keep your users engaged, and monetize certain features. Although you should put more time into thinking over features (and maybe add a few unique ones), but this is a good starting point nonetheless.

More Educational App Ideas — More Ideas

Although there exist numerous applications on Android and iOS that aim to provide education about different subjects, the market is not saturated. It is entirely likely that your particular application turns out to be more useful for the students than the existing ones. So, why not enter into this market?

From language dictionaries to encyclopedias and applications focused on a single subject, your app ideas can lead to many interesting apps — simple, gamified, or complex.

More Healthcare App Ideas

While there are many fitness-tracking applications for both Android and iOS users, there are not that many solid full-fledged healthcare apps. So, if you are planning a mobile app venture, perhaps you may opt for healthcare as your niche.

The healthcare industry has more than enough space for good app ideas that are worth tapping into. For instance, you can design your an app pairs with a gadget to monitor blood pressure, blood sugar level, and pulse rate — which will certainly benefit people with cardiac problems or diabetes. You can also develop informative apps providing guidance about diseases, and how to prevent them. Or, you may launch an app suggesting natural remedies for common disorders in your country.

More Social App Ideas

“Social media” is a huge category ripe with possibilities, so your best mobile app ideas might sprout if you consider thinking over what can be done in it.

When it comes to social media apps, you can either consider simple networking apps such as those resembling Facebook, LinkedIn, or Twitter. Or, you can consider experimenting with other social aspects, like dating, charity events, neighborhood networking. You can also come up with different witty and fun app ideas that gamify social networking or make the process of getting to know each other in a setting simple and exciting.

A Few Good App Ideas For Startups

A mobile app can turn out to be a full-time profitable business for you if you approach it dutifully. While many applications generate revenue from gaining new users, the ones aimed at resolving a particular need may also serve as a small business for you.

Wondering how? Well, here we list some awesome app ideas we think you should consider:

• Food donation app
• GIF maker app
• Live training app
• Food delivery app
• Travel booking app
• Brand identifier app
• Payment transfer app
• Doctor appointment app
• Document management app
• Event planning tips and arrangement app

More Cool App Ideas That Aren’t Tapped Into Often

Apart from the usual apps that solve particular issues for a particular group of people, you can cut your creativity loose and experiment. A little brainstorming will let you come up with lots of exciting new app ideas. Here, be bold but not overly serious. Also, leave the one you like alone for some time, and then come back to it in a few days; chances are high new ways to improve it will come up to. More so, new ideas might emerge, and they can be even better.  

Here are some cool and funny app ideas. If you love adventures, you will surely like these ideas.

• Adventure guide app about locations unknown to the majority of travelers.
• An app for plant lovers which suggests different ways to cross and generate new plant species.
• The app showing panoramic views of top scientific research setups in the world.
• A dedicated app guiding users on how to cut down expenses
• An app offering various online quizzes and competitions with real prizes for winners.

How To Find Ideas For An App

App developers just can’t create an app, release it, and just wait for it to gain traction. Instead, what’s critical here is to launch an app that not only attracts users but also generates profit. That is why many skilled and creative app developers face troubles findings ideas for creating engaging apps.  While a quick Google search may provide them with numerous interesting app ideas, it is not necessary that those ideas meet their initial requirements.

If you have decided to develop an app of your own, you can come up with a worthy idea by following these simple tips.

• Look around and identify the problems that need a quick solution
• Review the existing apps of your interest, pinpoint their weaknesses, and create a prototype
• Come up with a free version of a popular paid app, and find a new way to monetize it
• Review the recent mobile app trends
• Do a comprehensive research to pinpoint how a mobile app can transform a popular service or chore
• Write down your ideas for apps

Start Bringing Your Idea to Life

The mobile app industry continues growing at a fast pace and the market has become really competitive. Yet, it is never too late to leverage your creativity and launch your own app.

If you desire to establish yourself as a mobile app developer or an entrepreneur, the time is right. All you need is to proceed carefully with the development of your app. Considering the competition, your app must bear everything to surpass the existing apps.

The post Kick-Start Your Mobile Efforts: Best App Ideas for Different Markets appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.

1. How to Hire App Developers With Research & Consulting Firms

Ratings of B2B research films and consulting companies is a good way to hire app developers for any type of project. 

If you are a startup or small-to-medium business, established research firms like Washington-based Clutch offer comprehensive app ratings of companies that provide app developers. In most cases, such ratings encompass virtually every software development service, from UI & UX design for mobile products and IT consulting to Internet of Things (IoT) solutions. When you are on one of these websites, you can narrow your search down to the needed category and then browse concise, feedback driven profiles of potential companies providing app developers across the world. Whether you’re in the U.S., Europe, or Asia, you won’t have a problem compiling a list of potential partners. After, you can continue by researching their websites and sending your projects details, so your potential outsourcing partner has the initial information on their hands to continue the conversation about your project. 

Enterprises can use these ratings to hire app developers for projects with advanced technologies like artificial intelligence, IoT, and Augmented Reality (AR). Or, they can extend their existing teams quickly by hiring app developers with services like dedicated teams or staff augmentation. 

2. Hiring the Best App Developers Based on Word-of-Mouth Recommendations

There are times when companies need app developers that can ensure 100% reliability for their upcoming project. For instance, this could be a Digital Transformation project with an emerging technology (AI, AR, etc.) that a company’s long-term strategy relies on. Such technologies are not commonplace yet (and often entail high costs), so a company will want to ensure they hire the best app developers they can find at the moment. 

Word-of-mouth recommendations are the best option in such cases. You can ask around your partners or business acquaintances: they might have companies with successful app developers to recommend. If they do, they will provide you with unmediated, first-hand feedback; you will know all the advantages and disadvantages of a potential partner and, thus, be able to reach that 100%.

If you have a long list of contacts, finding app developers with word-of-mouth recommendations can be the best option for any project you need top app developers for. 

3. Hiring App Developers for Small Projects on Freelance Websites

Today, freelance platforms like Upwork and Fiverr are thriving. Thousands of companies and business owners use them to fill in the gaps in their projects, operations, and teams, both in the short and long term. 

This includes software development efforts. If you operate a small business, or need help with your software project at short notice, freelance websites like Upwork and Fiverr are the best option. Freelance platforms have numerous app developers who can help you with virtually any technology or framework. What’s also good is that these platforms offer concise but comprehensive profiles with portfolios, as well as quick and easy navigation, so you may find the right experts quicker than you think. 

4. Hire App Developers with Niche Skills By Checking Out Their Blogs

Any programming language, software tool, or digital technology cannot thrive without a coordinated community, where developers connect and have discussions aimed at solving issues or making improvements. Even without that, most developers are passionate about their work and like sharing their knowledge and experience in great detail. So, blogs of app developers can give you and your team a good perspective on their skills and technical expertise. As a result, if you need, for example, an embedded software developer for a mobile-driven project, you can find dedicated IoT publications on Medium and try to find a fitting expert for your project there.  

Counting the App Developers Cost

Ultimately, your budget for app developers depends on the nature of your project. Hiring freelance experts will let you stay cost-efficient in most cases (long-term projects is an exception — most freelancers like to juggle multiple projects). With IT outsourcing companies, you can find experts for projects with larger volumes of work as well as app developers with unique skills while staying cost-efficient. Here, Eastern Europe remains a top option: you can expect to hire solid experts from the region without overspending. Finally, if you need app developers with expertise in complex and emerging technologies or top app developers in general, be prepared to invest a lot of money.  

App Developers for Hire — Final Thoughts

Whether it’s a startup building a disrupting product or an established enterprise in need of external help in a complex software project, the modern economy offers hiring options for any business scenario. While hiring solid app developers is never cheap, outsourcing companies and freelance websites offer options that allow for staying cost-efficient without sacrificing quality. At the same time, companies that need the best app developers for hire and are willing to pay top dollar now have the means to find and hire them faster and on more flexible terms. Those looking for niche experts can hire them based not only on their track record but the knowledge they share with other developers and the world. More so, you companies and business owners can leave the standard “app developers near me” Google query behind: research firms and freelance platforms can help you find potential app developers even in close proximity to your business location. 

The post 4 Ways to Find App Developers Quickly appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.

Get a good understanding of web application architecture with our comprehensive guide. 

Let’s start.

What is Web Application Architecture

Web application architecture is a framework connecting different elements to enable a web experience. It is the backbone of our daily internet browsing: typing in a URL and viewing and interacting with the website while the browser communicates with the server is one of the ways to describe what is web application architecture.

Attributes of a well-built web application architecture:

• Solves business problems
• Supports visual aesthetic
• Enables A/B testing and analytics
• Ensures fast user experience
• Provides security
• Sustainable and self-regulating
• Scales out and logs errors in an easy way
• Guarantees a high level of automation

Components of Web Application Architecture

Web application architectures consist of application components, middleware systems, and databases. They can be divided into two groups:

• UI/UX components
• Structural components

UI/UX components include dashboards, statistical data, notification elements, layouts, activity tracking, and other elements. These components create the visuals of a web page and lay the foundation for user experience.

Meanwhile, structural components include the web application server and the database server.The knowledge of HTML, JavaScript, and CSS, as well as  Python, PHP, Java, Ruby, .NET and Node.js are required to create them.

When it comes to building the components, there are several models to choose from:

• 1 web server and 1 database
• 2 web servers and 2 databases
• More than 2 web servers and databases

One web server with one database is the simplest model. With this web server architecture, the successful operation of an application depends on server stability. In other words, if there is a problem with the server, the app will not work. Still, the model is sufficient for testing and private sessions.

Using one database for two web servers is a more reliable model, as there is a backup server. On the other hand, ensuring the database is secure and always running is important.

Having more than two databases and web servers is the most dependable option. Due to its ability to manage and process large amounts of data, this model is a solide the basis for an enterprise web application architecture.

Types of Web Application Architecture  

There are three web application architecture types. Each has its upsides and downsides and serves different purposes:

• Legacy HTML web app
• Widget web app
• Single-page web app architecture  

Legacy HTML web app is established on the very basic logic: a user receives the whole HTML on request. In terms of web server architecture, it means that all the elements (namely, web page logic and overarching business logic) react to the full reload of the web page. This type of web application architecture is suitable for static pages, but not for dynamic web apps.

As a more sophisticated type, a widget web app allows for loading data without requesting the page reload. In this web application architecture type, widgets send AJAX queries and receive chunks of data in HTML and JSON. The widget web app type is more suitable for mobile apps. The downsides of widget app is cybersecurity issues and long development time.    

With a single-page web app architecture, a user simply needs to request the page. This web application architecture type relies on server requests in JavaScript or HTML instead of exchanging data in JSON.

Web Server Architecture

As web servers play a key part in successful operation of web apps, the concept of web server architecture deserves special attention within the web application architecture topic. The servers are chosen by performance indicators like processing power, storage, speed, and app tiers (the number and quality of connections established with various applications, operating systems, and networks).  

Now, let’s look at the types of web server architecture.

Types Of Web Application Server Architecture

Java Web Application Architecture

Within Java based web application architecture, it is possible to achieve the highest level of versatility, meaning its it can be used to create simple and sophisticated pages alike. More so, Java web application architecture allows for building a reliable app for a long-term perspective, which is important for web application architecture of any scale.

The versatility is enabled by a wide array of Java-based tools for web application architecture, so Java web application architecture developers and businesses also get flexibility in how to reach their goal.

Cloud based Web Application Architecture

The trend of moving operations to cloud inevitably led to the development of cloud based web application architecture. A big benefit of this type is data decoupling: a cloud based app runs and is stored on both on a local server and in the cloud. As for security, cloud based web application architecture enables access and identity management to protect app data.

Node.js Web Application Architecture

Node.js web application architecture relies on model-view patterns, including MVC (model-view-controller), MVVM (model-view-viewmodel), and MVP (model-view-presenter). The patterns allow for identifying code elements and a proper way to route and configure them. Node.js enables the creation of proper directory and design patterns.

Node.js web application architecture uses an entity-relationship diagram for data systematization, dividing the code, breaking logic into modules, and processing valuable insights from logs to ensure the application runs smoothly. In addition, Node.js web application architecture allows for building scalable web apps.

.NET Web Application Architecture  

In essence, .NET web application architecture deals with cross-platform support, microservices, Docker containers, and side-by-side versioning. The framework’s Data Access Layer allows using stored data without applying specific database code. Today, this type of web application architecture includes ASP.NET Core and .NET Core, which significantly enhances the functionality of this language when it comes to optimization and support.   

PHP Web Application Architecture

Being one of the most popular web development languages, PHP is also one of the simplest and the most functional ones. Thus, an architecture of PHP web application guarantees rapid development, better security, clear maintenance, dedicated teamwork, and support from a big community.

Azure Web Application Architecture

Microsoft Azure web application architecture allows for designing a solution that would serve as a bridge between traditional tools and the cloud. The Azure cloud platform also adopts the best web application architecture practices.

AngularJS Web Application Architecture

Finally, AngularJS web application architecture serves both as a platform and a framework for HTML and TypeScript. This type of web architecture relies on building blocks called NgModules. Among its key benefits is lazy loading, which improves user experience and reduces code size.

Laravel Web Application Architecture

The Laravel web app architecture is a PHP-based framework with an elegant and expressive syntax. It implements the Model-View-Controller (MVC) architecture and offers software engineers a simple web development experience.

The Laravel web architecture gives engineers various helpful features for seamless development. They include modular packaging, better routing, authentication, and caching and sessions, among others, allowing developers to optimize performance and increase traffic. Laravel also allows for creating numerous routes with route names accessed via unique URLs. On top of that, the architecture also helps software engineers finish their web projects faster.

Python Web Application Architecture

Python is a popular web development language that can be used to create a reliable architecture for a web product. It has a succinct and easy-to-understand code for server-side scripting, making it accessible for developers who only begin coding in Python or work on their first web app project.

In addition to accelerating the development process, Python also supports fairly good tools for maintaining your web application architecture. Since it is dynamic and has shortcodes, this programming language is the best fit for prototyping. Developers can use multiple Python frameworks to create a custom web app, as well as use other programming languages in a single web app project.

Web Application Architecture Diagram

Here is a descriptive example of how a web application architecture looks like.

Source: Easyrec

In brief, here is how a web application works on the user side and under the hood:

• A user generates a request by typing in the web link (URL) in a browser’s address bar.
• The browser obtains the user request, determines the site’s location, and requests access.
• The server sends the request data to the browser.
• The browser translates the information it received and displays it to the user as a website. 

Trends And Best Practices in Web Application Architecture

An ideal web application architecture should ensure efficient and straightforward web application development and maintenance. Therefore, the best practices for designing web app architecture involve the following important aspects like:

• Scalability
• Efficiency
• Seamless problem-solving
• Flexibility
• Reusability
• Swift testability
• Decipherable code

Technological advancements have made it easy for developers to create a solid web app architecture any digital solution. Here are some web app architecture trends in the design and development of a web application architecture.

Service-Oriented Architecture

Developing a service-oriented web app architecture means creating software that can be sold and used as a service to other companies. A service-oriented architecture has its own HTTP API and may run on multiple servers at once as they work together by sending requests to each other. Creating software-as-a-service (SaaS) products is a long established trend that stayed essential throughout the years.

Single-Page Applications

Single-page applications are becoming increasingly popular as they exhibit fewer page load interruptions, and are more cost-effective and quick to developer. Such a web app strictly has a single-page design whose objects are stored in tables linked with an SQL database. Each user action loads an object on the site dynamically, without the need for reloading the entire web page. As for the back end, the requests are performed via AJAX web development techniques or the WebSocket computer communications protocol. 

Progressive Web Apps

These apps also support most modern web browsers and provide enhanced offline support with better cache management.

Increased smartphone usage has triggered the need for developing progressive web apps. These applications are designed as regular websites but support seamless mobile viewability. In other words, a progressive web app is a website that resembles a mobile app, available in a browser, not an app store. This app type supports most modern web browsers and provides solid offline support with better cache management. Most importantly, progressive web apps can reach a very wide audience (for example, users in developing countries who do not have smartphones that support the latest apps).

These apps also support most modern web browsers and provide enhanced offline support with better cache management.

Prioritizing Search Engine Optimization

The latest updates in the Google algorithm also count the web app architecture as a key factor for SEO ranking. The Google crawler supports sites with easy-to-understand hierarchy.

Moreover, the developers creating progressive web apps should also consider mobile search rankings while developing the architecture.

Blockchain Network

Making blockchain technology part of your web application architecture makes it fail-safe and highly secure due to its inherent capabilities. Blockchain also brings decentralized load balancing, as any blockchain system is distributed across a network of computers.

How To Design Architecture For Web Application

Before starting to design a web application architecture, make sure you decided on the following key aspects:

• The goal of the web project
• How your web solution will scale and possible future features
• Target audience
• Timeframe for creating the web application architecture
• Web solution’s features
• Platforms the solution will work across
• Budget

If you carefully considered all the aforementioned aspects, you can now proceed to design and realize the web app architecture for your solution. Here are the things you need to consider at this step.

Backend Development:

• Language: Choose a language (either static or dynamic) that is relevant to your domain.
• Framework/Server: Choose a server that supports the selected language.
• Serverless/Microservices: You can also choose a serverless web app architecture by using the cloud storage of one of the cloud services providers for your CPU and memory needs. Some organizations use microservices, making their web solution operate on multiple small servers that communicate with each other via Queue or HTTP. This model also supports the use of multiple languages. 

Database:

• SQL/NoSQL: SQL and NoSQL databases offer different features. SQL databases have tables and a predefined plan. NoSQL, on the other hand, have objects, key-value structures, etc., and offer more flexibility and scalability which makes them suitable for large scale projects. 
• Replicability: Replicable databases have better load management as the data is copied to clusters. 
• Backup: Make sure to have an appropriate backup for your database.

API:

• API Design: A commonly used API design styles methods include REST, POST, and GET, all of which help to manage requests over HTTP. However, Facebook has introduced another innovative method for API design called GraphQL. It allows making lean calls by fetching different parts of various objects from a server in a single call. This is particularly useful for mobile applications with limited internet bandwidth.
• WebSocket: WebSocket is a computer communications protocol that sends messages from servers to update the client about new data. While useful, WebSocket is optional, particularly if the app does not need to keep the client updated regularly.

Front-End Development:

• Type of Architecture: Choose between Model View Controller (MVC), Single Page Application (SPA), or Server-Side Rendering (SSR) for your application.
• Platform: Angular, Vue, React and Web Components technology suire are some of the most commonly used platforms for front-end development. 

Apart from these key aspects, other things to consider in the process of designing your web application architecture are cloud storage, security, app processing power, etc.

Brief summary

Web application architecture is the backbone of any web-based solution, so its success largely depends on how well it is thought-out. Put the pieces together according to according to the technical requirements and aim of your web solution, and your product will work properly, appeal to the right audience, and reap the benefits.

The post Web Application Architecture: Components, Types, Tips appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.