Category: Web Development
Is TotalJS (the NodeJS Framework) worth Checking Out?
TotalJS is an amazing web application framework for NodeJS that enables web developers to efficiently build awesome applications. It embeds various useful functions, and helps users enhance the performance standards for their web and mobile applications. Though we are aware of its several amazing benefits, the module NodeJS framework that lends support to MVC software architecture has got some of the most striking features to have a glance at. Listed below are the top features of TotalJS that look forward to transforming the state of web app development technology in near future.
Integrated web server: This is the most amazing and unique feature of TotalJS. It helps in building rich, smooth web applications, and serves static and dynamic content using its integrated web server. It is a modern framework (all-in framework) that is fast, scalable and hassle-free. However, it is the “embedded functionality of allowing users” to choose their favourite database that sets it apart.
Extensibility: Extensibility is the capability of TotalJS in enabling NodeJS developers extending the in-built features and modules for the application. The web developer can take the help of external resources to perform this task or simply they can modify the source code of the framework. The Extensibility feature provided by TotalJS is simply incredible. The framework enables web developers to seamlessly build their own framework modules or packages. As per their specific needs, developers can easily extend or rewrite existing functionality.
Ability to get integrated with other JS frameworks: TotalJS is designed specifically to help businesses build a stable, feature-rich applications; TotalJS is completely compatible with a horde of client-side frameworks – including Bootstrap, AngularJS, BackboneJS, Polymer, and others. The web app tool also lends support to web sockets, RESTful routing mechanism, and for media streaming (providing an enriched user experience) can change the entire look of your application. With support from other JS frameworks like Bootstrap, Angular or Backbone etc, web developers can take the advantage of industry standard features of these platforms and they can easily build highly scalable and interactive web solutions. With Bootstrap, the web developer or javascript developer can create stunning and highly user friendly cross platform responsive web apps.
It comes integrated with ‘modificators’ which can basically alter or modify the content embedded in JavaScript, CSS or view before minification and compilation. As a result, users can seamlessly tweak some content (should they want) just-in-time prior to compilation process making the process faster. Web developers would know that a modificator plays a vital role or is extremely helpful for third modules.
The modern framework incorporates a unique ‘isomorphic’ code – which basically implies that any given line of code can perform on the client as well as on the server. This an awesome feature of TotalJS that enables reusability of code irrespective of their category i.e. a single piece of code can contribute both client side execution and server side. This is possible because TotalJS is a JavaScript framework and enables developers taking the benefit of JavaScript code that runs on either side. In short, both the front-end and the back-end share the similar code.
TotalJS for NodeJS also lends support to JSONP functionality, and provides enhanced importing dependencies into the view engine. This all simplifies the process of web app development (without an error) for NodeJS users. With JSONP/JSON, many interactive events can be handled in a smooth manner like event driven data transfer to or from view state or making the page asynchronous to achieve better performance. JSONP is extremely popular in the industry for its unmatched quality of data transfer between server and view. Gone are the days, when XML was used for such operation; now with JSON(P) more amount of data can be transferred securely over the internet.
Web developers can largely take advantage of the framework’s fully asynchronous, clean directory structure. It supports cache mechanism, assertion testing, custom mapping files, IP restrictions, NoSQL embedded database, generators, and additional utilities (letting users create an URL request) etc. With all these features a web developer can create an enterprise standard high performance web solution on the fly. In fact, top issues like sensitive data transfer, security loopholes and SQLInjection etc are well cared in TotalJS. So, technically, everything that is required to create stable, secure web applications for businesses is there inside TotalJS.
Another remarkable function of TotalJS comes in the form of its versioning of static files. With versioning, web developers can track each and every modification in codebase even after a long day. This enables JavaScript developer in controlling their codes efficiently and effectively without any glitch. Moreover, this also enables web developers in rolling back their code to a previous version making the whole process more effective. Since web developers often find it hard to reload JavaScript or CSS files due to HTTP cache, this NodeJS framework helps eliminate that problem. It goes a long way in thwarting the issues with HTTP cache. With this feature, the performance of TotalJS increases significantly and tremendously with efficient implementation of cache memory that really makes sense while building large scale enterprise standard web apps.
Its support for simple plain text mail is highly useful too. The web application software now comes integrated with a new method ‘F.logmail ()’ which helps sum up the content with <pre> tag. Using this, one can easily send a simple plain text mail. This is helpful in creating simple text emails that takes very less bandwidth and hence extremely helpful especially in mobile devices.
The optimized TotalJS further allows developers to localize static files for SPA. And important enough, it also lets users create a snapshot of JavaScript or CSS (following once the web framework has been commenced), and store that snapshot into NGINX public directory. With this, the developer gets adequate room in building highly optimized and efficient web apps for different purpose specially building mobile apps that runs under memory constraints.
Now, from above features we can conclude that, TotalJS is simply outstanding in terms of performance and quality of support that it provides to its developers. So, it is really a worthy successor of NodeJS in building highly stable web applications. Finally, we must like to add some added benefits of this framework, like improved importing dependencies, current instance snapshots, mobile device routing and loading framework without HTTP server etc. that makes the framework even more useful than before.
Hiring Freelancers vs. Outsourcing to a Company
Many readers think freelancing is similar to outsourcing. Yet both the words are very different in usage. When a person is freelancing, he is not part of any company. They might be a single person or a group of individuals; whereas outsourcing requires multiple employees working in a company hired by a third party.
In a way it can be said that freelancing is a part of outsourcing. The major difference between the two is based on the type of work they do. Freelancers usually perform tasks that are simple and can be done by one person. However, outsourcing is of more than one type, and all of the different types involve doing complex task. Freelancers usually work for a short time but outsourcing firms are under contract for a longer time. While freelancing, individuals are usually asked to do work which can be done without further research whereas outsourcing requires additional learning and research.
Outsourcing can be done in two ways. An organization can either use near shore outsourcing method or offshore outsourcing. Near shore outsourcing is when the organization uses the services of firm which is located close in terms of geographical location whereas, offshore outsourcing is using the services of firm situated overseas.
While freelancing provides easier communication methods, outsourcing can be used to significantly reduce the overall costs. However, it is based on the skilful use of outsourcing. Both the methods, if not used in the right way, can cause serious problem to the respective firm. The damages associated with outsourcing are far more than those which could arise due to poor freelancing usage. Therefore, it is important to differentiate both the methods on the basis of when and where to use them. Freelancing is a good choice when the work is tedious and can be completed by a single individual. Such a work is usually home based and does not require primary research. But in situations where entire operational units need to be built or a lot of primary research is required, outsourcing is the appropriate way.
Another differentiating point is the cost associated with the both the methods. Freelancing is a relatively cheaper option, as compared to outsourcing and can be used when the organization feel like reducing cost in the short run. However, if the organization wants to reduce their overhead costs in the long run, outsourcing, either by near shore and off shore, is the best solution. The key however, is to find the ideal software development partner.
Today as globalization increases, organizations are fast adopting outsourcing to achieve economies of scale. Through the use of economies of scale, the firm can then allow its customers low prices. Therefore, all of this adds to up to increased customer satisfaction and brand loyalty. However, this does not mean that freelancing is not a good option. For organizations looking for creativity and innovative thinking, freelancing is a good choice. Since freelancers are able to give their entire attention to the work they are doing as it allows them to produce quality content.
It would not be wrong to say that both the methods are useful, but it depends on the way they are used. For a firm looking to reduce operational costs, freelancing is not an appropriate solution. Yet for a firm who is looking for fresh and creative content, outsourcing would be an inappropriate choice. They would get the job done, but at very high price as compared to freelancing. So for any firm deciding between whether to use freelancing or outsourcing, they must look at the work at hand and make a judgement call as to which method to be adopted.
Mindfire Solutions has been providing unparalleled offshore software development services for the past 16 years and has been constantly delighting its clients ever since. If you are looking for an expert and reliable offshore software development company look no further than Mindfire Solutions dot com.
Should Software Developers Learn the Basics of Testing?
When it comes to software development, it can be said without any doubt that software testing is one of the most important parts of the whole Software Development Life Cycle or SDLC. Testing procedure commences from before the development process, by checking the feasibility of the project and ends after development has been completed, with the beta test. No good software can be prepared without a good testing procedure and thus, the base of the software development lies in the software testing procedure itself. This being said, organizations are now looking for developers who have the basic understanding of the software testing procedure.
Extra Knowledge always comes handy: When it comes to gaining knowledge, the saying “the more the merrier” is just apt. Having extra knowledge can never be any harm. It is always an added advantage which helps us increase our positions and chances of jobs in the industry. When you are choosing to become a software developer in any IT industry, it always helps to have some extra knowledge which is related to the developmental job. Communication skills with the client and basic testing knowledge are always a blessing in the said job. Cases may be such that the tester is not available at a critical point of the developmental phase. Having basic testing knowledge in such situations will act as a saviour and will be beneficial to both your company and your organization.
Testers however, have no replacement: When we say that a software developer should have the basic testing knowledge, we do not disown the importance of the software testers, nor are we saying that the developers can replace the software testers. But we are just trying to uphold the importance or added advantage of the extra knowledge that the developers will be gaining by getting the basic knowledge of testing. Since we are so clear about the importance of the software testing in the software development life cycle, hence, the person who is involved in the process of development will obviously be aided by a basic knowledge of the said procedure. This knowledge will obviously end up saving a lot of money and time. It also acts as a saviour in times of crisis when the testers are unavailable but in dire need off.
Helps increase Productivity and Profit: Developers having the basic knowledge about the software testing process also help in boosting the productivity of the organization and in turn increase the profit of the organization. When you are in the IT industry, you get projects of varying costs. A low budget project often gets compromised on the quality of the result as budget needs to be allotted to the various sections. In such cases, a developer having the basic software testing knowledge appears to be a boon. Such an individual can do the testing and save upon the cost of hiring a tester. In this way you can invest more on the developmental procedure, ultimately delivering a quality product to your customer at a reduced price too.
So now that we have discussed about the advantages of knowing the basics of the software testing by a software developer, it is safe to say that it is (although not an absolute must) an added something to the skills of the developers to know the basics of software testing and such individuals are more favoured when it comes to job.
Mindfire Solutions has been providing quality software development and testing services over the past 16 years. If you want to engage the services of an organization that aims to maintain a right balance of testing knowledge in their software developers, feel free to send in a mail to sales at Mindfire Solutions dot com and enquire about the astute skills of our development team.
Why Should You Outsource Your Software Development Work?
Outsourcing is a global phenomenon that is reshaping the way organizations are doing business. With the development of technology and IT infrastructure and the boom of globalization companies are now finding it better and more efficient ways of outsourcing. Another reason that has urged companies to outsource is that it allows them the advantage to reduce their costs and enabling them to better compete in the diverse and changing dynamics of the competitive market.
Contractual Outsourcing: Today majority of the organizations is benefiting from the concept of outsourcing and using it to get important operational software’s developed externally. This is usually done on a contractual bases and the contracted firm becomes the part of the organization for a limited time. However the firm must not treat their outsourcing partners as one off and must integrate them in their corporate organizational culture.
Cost Effective and Technically Skilled employees: Most of the outsourcing is done in the IT industry where companies are looking for cost effective software developers and technically skilled workers who can perform at the expected quality levels. With the disparity in exchange rates, organizations situated in countries whose currency is valued worldwide, have the opportunity to lower their operational costs, and get more work done.
Near-shore vs. Offshore: There are two prominent aspects of outsourcing, Near-shore and Offshore, both where the organization finds external clients and collaborates with them on getting the work done. The major difference between offshore and near-shore outsourcing is that, in near-shore organizations look for opportunities that are geographically closer, within the same time zone, speaking the same language and with more or less similar work ethic and business culture. Companies usually find it easier to manage near-shore operations as it requires a lesser distance to be travelled and communication is quicker making it easier to act on any necessary feedback. However one reason why certain companies opt for hiring the services of an offshore software development company is the allure of increased profitability. Usually offshore sourcing results in extremely low operational costs and due to the vast difference in currency the subsequent conversion is beneficial for the outsourcing firm.
Focus on Core Competencies: Another major reason behind companies outsourcing their operations is that organization is aiming to focus on their core strategic competencies while outsourcing smaller more tedious task to external outsourcing partners. This allows the organization to focus on their competitive advantages and build on it rather than worrying about minor operational details. Business also usually require important software to help run things at work in an efficient manner, however, organizations usually do not have the required skill set to develop those software applications and hence it is feasible to get the software developed via outsourcing rather than hiring new employees for the work.
Furthermore, with the use of outsourcing, the parent organization can free up resources and use them on the more important tasks at hand and outsource the trivial work. This allows for a more efficient work procedure and an increase in productivity. This increase in productivity will be eventually reflected in the final product the organization delivers.
While outsourcing, organizations can also highlight gaps within their internal management processes and maybe if they cater to the internal needs of the organization, in the long run it might be cheaper and more cost effective to get the work done onshore rather than outsource. However this does not mean that outsourcing is not an effective method of getting work done.
Marked with its own set of advantages and disadvantages, outsourcing (be it near-shoring or offshoring) has helped a number of organizations focus on their core competencies leaving their software development part to an able services provider. The key here is to gauge the ability of the software development partner. Mindfire Solutions has been providing extraordinary offshore software development services for the past 16 years and the client testimonials would definitely beckon you to try out their services next time you have an idea.
How to hire a great programmer?
“Hiring a great programmer does not require any rocket science methodology rather it can be done with little tricks and of course experience. If you don’t have any prior experience, you may take help from your friends or you can simply follow some thumb rules. Let’s find out those thumb rules that may help you in hiring a great programmer.”
Understand the understanding of the programmer: The most important asset of a programmer is his programming skills. He must be confident enough about his programming knowledge because, it will help him lot while handling any critical situation during the development process. So, it is the task of the interviewer to test the programming proficiency of the programmer; it can be done by asking few important pieces of codes to write and execute in the system. You can also ask some tricky modules to code and execute. The programmer may also be asked about few fundamental concepts of the language on which he is supposed to work on.
The programmer must possess some prior experience for your need: While hiring a good programmer, you must shortlist only those candidates who are quite close to your requirements i.e. they must have prior experience on the technology or domain in which you are going to work on. Suppose, you want to develop a web application in Java for a job portal; then you must consider those Java programmers having experience in any JSP web portal may or may not be in job portal but by some means related to that. This will help you in getting a better programmer who is not only resourceful but also productive for your requirements. Moreover, his past experience will help you in predicting all possible critical situations and accordingly you can prepare your assessment thoroughly to handle those situations in a smoother manner.
The programmers having keen interest to learn are better: Continuous learning is the beautiful nature of human being and it holds good for a great programmer as well. As a great programmer, he must be flexible enough to adopt with any change in environment, we are not talking about physical environment; it’s about industrial or technological environment. Many times, we need to work on a different or latest technology or domain as per the requirement of the client. In that situation, our programmer must learn the new domain knowledge so as to provide continuous quality service to our client. So, you must hire a programmer who is having a keen interest to learn new technologies and relate them in the application for better productivity. In present scenario, mobile app development and responsive web design are few such things to consider.
Communication skills must be tested: Communication is the process of exchanging our feelings with each other. In IT industry, there is a tremendous importance of communication skill to understand the feelings and requirements of a foreign body that looks for a quality business with us. So, a good programmer must possess better communication skill to understand the need, requirement and feelings of our client. He must be able to deal with the client by understanding and resolving his doubts with a smile on his face. He must not irritate upon the client at any point of time; because that may lead to hamper our business.
His adoptability to different circumstances should be considered: During the development process of a software application, there may be many uncertain and unexpected circumstances arise and we cannot forecast them all. But it is the duty of the programmer to handle them in a well-organized manner with an intention that our client will not feel disappointed. For the same, you must consider his prior experience in handling these types of critical situations. During the hiring process, you must ask him for some of his real time experience from his previous assignments and his role in those situations. Though we cannot guarantee that he can handle all upcoming challenges; but, at least you can trust him for similar situations.
Loyalty matters a lot in long run: A programmer can’t be great until unless we find him loyal enough. We are not talking about his loyalty for the organization; but for his job. He must be loyal for his responsibility and assignments. He must have understanding over the non-disclosure agreement of the client. He must not share any client information with others even the intellectual property of the client. You must check his background and track record from previous employer before you offer him the joining letter and entitle him as a great programmer.
Mindfire Solutions, a 16 year old IT company from India has been providing expert software development services thanks to the bunch of talented programmers who work tirelessly to meet client goals and ensure customer happiness. If you would also want to hire software developers from Mindfire Solutions, just send in a mail to sales at Mindfire Solutions dot com and we will make sure to revert to your query in 72 hours.
Should You Outsource Web Development?
“Outsourcing means Cost cutting, Quality Service and Quality post production support!! Web development process is the most tropical part of IT industry and it requires special attention and treatment from the developers to sustain in the competitive market flooded with similar applications. It is already proven that, Outsourcing makes the process of web development not only hassle free but also effective enough. Let’s find out how?”
Cost benefit: Business without profit is nothing but a trial. The only aim from any business is to generate Profit; profit at the cost of lowering the cost of production. In IT industry, cost cutting matters a lot for fruitful business operations. With Out Sourcing, you can cut your cost down to a large extend. Due to the currency difference, low cost of living etc you can hire low wage IT professionals from developing countries like India. India is the most trusted and tested Outsourcing destination of the world. There are hundreds of millions of IT professionals working round the clock to provide better service to the industry. At low cost, you will get better quality of service; because they are highly experienced and expert in their domain. In turn, you will get more profit from your web application development process.
No more investment on infrastructure creation: For any web development project, the biggest headache is the infrastructure. You need 24×7 hours of internet connectivity, special zone for your development environment, Hardware set-ups and all. All these will cost a lot if you are going to develop a single or two web projects; because once the project is over, the infrastructure will no more of any work except for maintenance. So it is unwise to invest such a huge amount in your premises if that is already available by some third party reliable software firms based out of a remote place. Moreover, you might have less or no experience in the same; then it will again stretch the cost.
Time and money to focus more on your business: With Outsourcing your web development project to a third party software firm preferably to India, you can gain a lot both financially and mentally. As discussed above, you will get a good margin in the savings i.e. around 40-60% cost savings which is very huge for any wise business person. At the same time, you will get sufficient support service from the firm that will definitely relieve your stress a lot. So, you are having good amount of bucks in your account along with quality time to focus more on your business i.e. Physical business.
Efficient use of resource can benefit you a lot: If someone tries to make the development process within his premises. He has to undergo many crucial stages like hiring quality resource, making the resources to work efficiently, manage them effectively etc. It is the truth that, in most cases, your resource will remain idle; because a web project has many dependencies with different category of resources; like the developer depends upon the tester, the tester depends upon when the developer complete the module, the designer will depend upon the feedback from the client and so on. Hence, it is near to impossible to get your hundred percent resources to work for you for the entire project duration.
Reliable firms are like boon for your business: To avoid all these issues, you can simply hire a reliable software firm from India like Mindfire Solutions that is having tremendous track record over a decade in web domain. Moreover, they have a good success rate as compared to most of your local firms who demands more but delivers less. So, depending upon a reliable firm will definitely help you a lot in crafting your ambitious web project. They will help you in every possible manner not just to provide you better service but to keep their prestige and position safe in the industry. By the process you will be benefited a lot.
Outsource to the best place of the universe i.e. India and you will feel awesome!! India is the most admired software outsourcing destination of the world. Every developed country outsources their web projects to India with a common intention to gain as much quality at the cost of affordable price. Every time they outsource their web application development project to India; they will feel awesome. So chose wisely and chose India if you don’t want to regret for your decision in future.
Get supplementary help from experts: Indian IT firms are having extraordinarily talented resources to help you out from any situation. In fact, they are very polite and co-operative by nature otherwise they would not have gained such a trade mark in the industry that too in such less time period. Their expert team will work for you with more effort and efficiency and they will strive to provide you quality service along with many supplementary services that will definitely help you in boosting your business needs and requirements. They will give you ideal suggestions that will help you in enhancing your quality of service like how to handle customer, how to make your web application more popular than others and etc.
Get quick fixes and related issues fixed by expert hands of the industry: The expert team of Indian IT firms are having a tremendous potential to handle any type of situation without much worries and in a smoother manner. While developing any web application it is common to find such unforeseen circumstances that may arise during the development process and it needs a strong strike by the hammer to handle the situation. The expert team are efficient enough to handle these types of complex situations in a professional manner within time frames so that your customer base will not be affected for their negligence.
Have a good vacation and sleep without any fear for your business application: It is often said that when you are outsourcing your web application development project to a reliable software development company based out of India, you are also outsourcing all your headaches to them. The reliable professionals are very friendly to their clients and they share their personal and professional stuffs to make the work environment much better. They will definitely help you in avoiding any difficulty situations during the web project development period with a smile on their leaps and an genuine intention to serve you better and better. This will definitely mesmerize you to have such a friendly professionals working with you; that too from a remote place having a different culture and many social barriers. Anyhow you will always get much better service than your expectation from those reliable IT companies of India.
Outsourcing your software development needs could be a tricky part but if you take precaution while choosing your ideal software development partner, you can rest assured that your software development is in good hands. And you could concentrate completely on your core business. Mindfire Solutions is the premier software development partner with almost every client it has partnered with. With over 15 years of provide great workable software to its clients, you could find your ideal software development outsourcing partner in Mindfire Solutions. Connect with us to know more about us!
Should You go for Development of Your Mobile Website Using HTML5?
“The world hates change; yet it is the only thing that has brought progress!”- General Eric. Was a time then, when we perform our computer operation with a palm sized Calculator having very limited access to our thoughts and of course needs. Last phase of the 20th century was then gifted with a bigger better hardware i.e. “Computer System” by IBM; and Microsoft made it sensible enough with its flagship product i.e. Windows Operating system; an absolutely game changer for the industry. With inception of 21st century, industry conceived with a new generation smart brain based computer system i.e. Smart Phones and was flooded with smart apps and mobile apps to make the user connected to rest of the world. Mobile apps or Mobile websites are nothing but the smarter version of desktop websites and they can be treated as smartsites!! For a smarter device or software we must use even smarter technology for better throughput and user experience- hence the evolution of HTML5. And it is a must for any mobile website design, let’s find out why?”
Mobile website, form factor and HTML5: The population of smart phones is increasing at a rapid pace; almost every day there is a new Smartphone getting launched in the industry. These devices are of different form factors like 3 inches to 10 inches diagonally. But the developer needs to develop a common mobile website that can fit to every screen size and resolution and it is really a nuisance for them. With HTML5, web developer can build responsive websites that can impart similar user experience irrespective of screen size and resolution. Things will not break when there is a change in the screen size rather it will accommodate with the resolution. In fact, with HTML5 we can design a page that will render the web content differently in different scenarios and this is the charm of developing mobile websites with HTML5. Features like media-query for viewport are simply awesome. Now, with HTML5, we can use <picture> and it can be directly associated with viewport size, resolution and orientation for efficient delivery of images. HTML5 web developers need not to worry about the size of the image; in fact, he can simply use different images for different resolutions and orientation. This makes a lot sense when we consider Smartphone with many sensible parts like gravity sensor etc.
Truly efficient HTML5 attributes and elements: HTML5 has amazed the whole IT world with its beauty, yes the beauty of efficiency. The things started with its DOCTYPE! Its DOCTYPE is extremely short and simple; you need not to write any URL or any extra stuff to add the HTML5 to your web page. Excluding that, there are many modern and powerful attributes HTML5 posses for its lovers. May it be <audio>, <video>, <container>, <picture>, <form> and others. The front page design becomes much easier with HTML5 with full concentration over the responsiveness of the application. All its features and attributes and elements are truly responsive and hence a web developer needs not to worry about its user experience at the end of day. It has inbuilt form validation feature that used to be a part of JavaScript developers; but now it can be well organized by the HTML5 developer alone. You just need to enter the type of the field and the rest is taken care by HTML5. Imagine for a phone number, you need not to write any JS code for validating if it is filled by numbers only rather it can be done automatically from HTML5 core. Similar fashion is there for email fields, text field, date picker etc. It simply improves the productivity due to its unmatched efficiency.
Memory constraints and HTML5: Mobile websites or smart sites run on smart devices like android or iOS smart phones or tablets. Due to their portable form factor, they have a limitation from the memory point of view. They have few GB (Of course around16 GB or at max 32GB) of inbuilt memory along with 1 or 2GB RAM. Again the speed of the device is often par below than that of a bigger desktop machine. It used to run with less frequency to save the power- which is again another limitation. So, our mobile website should be optimized enough since it needs to run on a limited memory. HTML5 makes it possible with its highly optimized elements. These elements will make your page light and load faster. HTML5 has an improved feature i.e. Local Storage that enables the browser to store some essential data of the user so that he can access the webpage in a smarter way. User is given control to kill the local storage data at any point of time if he wants to release memory.
HTML5 can help you for low Bandwidth operations: If we are considering mobile website then we are targeting mobile devices like smart phones and tablets. These devices usually run on mobile networks like 3G, 2G or 4G LTE. But the penetration of high speed internet can’t be expected from every location due to lack of proper and advanced infrastructure in many developing countries; but the major population of mobile website user are from those geographic regions. So, we must consider their bandwidth issue and we must design a mobile website that can give better user experience even at low bandwidth and this is really challenging! HTML5 is there to help us out!! It can create amazing web pages that are extremely lightweight and hence takes less bandwidth to download. HTML5 developer can implement canvas instead of any larger multimedia files. The best part is that, you need not bother about any third party media player to run a media on the browser like Flash or something else. HTML5 does not require any plug-in for playing media instead it does the things itself and hence decreasing the load on the browser. Similarly, with picture element, one can extract an image slowly from the server without impacting the user experience. HTML5 can also help in creating interactive web pages with Games that are light weight using canvas and some help from the lightening fast JavaScript.
Offline access with HTML5 for better user experience: HTML5 has an outstanding cache management system that helps in improving the browsing experience on a mobile browser. The Local Storage can help you in storing a web page data on the client browser and it enables the user browsing those pages while in offline state due to availability of HTML content on the browser itself.
At Mindfire Solutions, we have been developing engaging sites for both mobile and web using HTML5. Our 20+ team of HTML5 developers have been serving our esteemed clients and have developed over 50 HTML5 projects. Please feel free to write to us for all kinds of HTML5 development requirements, we will be glad to assist you. Also, as a limited period offer, you can avail our Risk-Free Trial Offer.
Hiring a Virtual Employee Do’s and Don’t’s
“Money comes from the money invested; but it is not absolutely true. In fact, money comes from a good idea when get executed in a systematic manner!! In 21st century, the buzz for Intellectual property has reached at its best. In fact, the biggest corporate industry of the universe i.e. IT industry is dominated by the intellectual property and there are billions of IT professionals working around the globe to serve the industry in a methodical manner. With telecommuting, the industry has crossed all the geographic barriers and the virtual employees are playing the most important role in the business. Though it is highly productive way of doing futuristic business but at the same time, comes with many risks and shortcomings. It’s not that much simple to onboard a virtual employee for your business for a superior yield”.
Do’s of hiring virtual employee:
Understanding the responsibility level of the Employee: While hiring a virtual employee for your business you must understand all the shortcomings and risks associated with the process. The most important thing is that, you can’t trace your employee’s behaviour all the time when he was on duty. If the employee tries to deceive you, then it may lead to serious hamper to your business. So you must keep your eyes open and always try to know the status of your work done by the virtual employee. You must try to hire a responsible employee for your purpose so that you needn’t to bother much about his progress and you can focus more on your business. While screening the resume of a virtual employee you should try to find out his previous record and how he had performed during that period. Again you can also do some questionnaires with the virtual employee to know his responsibility persona. You must understand that a responsible employee can give you a marvellous end product.
Intention of the Virtual Employee must be considered: Though it is quite difficult to understand the exact intention of anyone but still you have to give your maximum effort to know the intention of the virtual employee; because it can be the deciding factor for the success of your transaction. No matter how efficient or hardworking professional you are going to hire, you must consider his intention because a professional with bad intention is extremely hazardous for your business. Imagine you are going to hire someone with whom you have never interacted before and you are going to discuss all your business policies and ideas with the person that means you are taking an immense risk indeed. Hence you must try to know the intention of the virtual employee and should share the business ideas with him gradually in a professional and responsible manner.
His track record should be considered: The track record of any virtual employee must be well thought-out; because from that, you can at least get some practical information about the employee. His track record will definitely make easier for you to take the decision. From his track record you can extract various personality trends of the employee like responsibility level, honesty, hardworking and result oriented nature etc. For the same, you can contact his previous employer for different information about him.
Don’t’s of hiring virtual employee:
Don’t test unnecessarily: Remember, virtual employees can definitely help you in saving a good portion of your investment but at the cost of risk i.e. cost cutting comes at the cost of risk. Hence you must determine whether you should give priority to risk than investment or vice-versa. If you don’t want to take any type of risk with your business then it is better not to hire a virtual employee. In fact domains like banking and insurance sectors never take unnecessary risks for cost cutting purpose. Understanding this fact, you should be serious enough while deciding for hiring any virtual employee for your business. It is always suggested not to become over aggressive and take unnecessary risks for a healthy business. So stop unnecessary tests if they are not required.
Don’t be hurry in offering the appointment letter: The virtual employee can sometimes turned out as a real threat for your business if not handled with responsibility. A bad intentioned virtual employee can make a serious hamper to your business. So, you must chew over various criterions before appointing a virtual employee for your beloved business. You should make a strict and thorough back ground check of the employee before you onboard him for your business. You can do the same by some reliable third party organization that has very good reputation in the industry. Many private detective agencies can help you in this regard.
Don’t depend upon the Virtual employee without considering his previous dependencies: While hiring a virtual employee for your client you must conscious enough because a small mistake from your end can cause a severe financial loss for your client. Before you put a virtual employee for a project you should thoroughly consider his potential and expertise so that he can serve your client with utmost care. A wrong employee will lead to an imperfect output and hence the dependency of the virtual employee should be considered before projecting him for any project. For the same you can go through his previous work experience and his performance.
Don’t let your client fed up for your wrong decision: Remember client is the most important asset of your business just like your employee. If there is no client, there is no employee and there is no business. Providing better service to client should be your top priority from the very beginning of your business. The profit that you make from your business comes from your client’s pocket. Hence it is your responsibility to provide utmost quality of service or product for your client. For the same you must hire quality resources from the industry for your business partner. The employee who will work for your client should be efficient and effective enough in fulfilling all demands of your client and provide him quality service during the transaction. Hence you should hire a good employee who is not only efficient but should possess effective communication skill to interact with your client. Never let your clients suffer for your mistake and hence you should hire a quality resource for your client so that you can do a smooth business and that will definitely bring good reputation for you in the industry.
At Mindfire Solutions, we have been doing offshore small team software development for our clients since 15 years now. We have dedicated teams for all web technologies like ColdFusion, PHP, PHP Frameworks, Python, ASP.Net and Java and mobile app development teams like iPhone, Android and Windows Phone. We also have senior developers in various popular CMS like WordPress, Joomla and Drupal. If you need any assistance in creating engaging web and mobile applications for your target customers, please feel free to write to us. As a limited period offer, you can also avail our Risk-Free Trial offer.
10 Myths about Nearshore Software Development
“Offshore and Nearshore are two contradicting concepts being highly used in 21st century and become one of the most gossiped terms in the cyber world. There are lots of theories, blogs and articles describing their advantages and disadvantages. You can find them from World Wide Web effortlessly. Today, we will discuss 10 myths about Nearshore software development process”.
Nearshore software development is better for small projects: Often offshore software development processes are treated as a cost cutting procedure. Due to currency difference, it is possible to hire low wage software developers from developing countries like India, Indonesia etc and this result in a good buck of savings. But we find many software firms hesitate to outsource small projects; because they believe that, the processing cost will be more to establish a successful business with a foreign party with a small project. Hence they like to do the business with a Nearshore software firm to avoid this issue; but this is nothing but, a wrong notion. You can also hire an offshore software firm from India and save a good amount of investment both in terms of development cost as well as processing cost.
Nearshore software firms can provide better service than offshore software firms: Many believe that, Nearshore software firms can understand your requirement in a more precise manner and hence they can provide you better and to-the-point solution for your requirement. But, when you choose an offshore software firm having a good track record and experience, you can get even better service that too at lower cost and their expert team can help you in every possible manner starting from development process to even marketing!!
Nearshore software firms are more reliable: Reliability matters a lot in software industry and often we find many conflicting statements for the same with respect to Nearshore and offshore software firms. Some say, Nearshore software firms are more reliable than offshore; but, we would like to say that, there is nothing to do with geographic location with the reliability. In fact, the firm having reliable developers and management is more reliable than others; as simple as it is.
Your intellectual property is highly secure with Nearshore software firms: Software is a form of Intellectual property and we must protect it from others through safeguards. Since it is an intangible asset, it can remain confidential through some intangible shields like loyalty, work-ethics and principles; and it can’t be developed by any physical building material. Hence its value and importance is determined by the work ethics of the software firm and it does not depend on any geographic location. So it is unwise to say that your intellectual property is safe with your local software firms and not with a reliable offshore software firm.
You can get better communication from Nearshore software firms: At the age of globalization, communication skill has extremely important impacts on the success of any business. Now, a successful businessman not only needs to learn how to communicate with his local customers but also he should learn how to develop successful cross-cultural relations through vocal languages, speaking manner and body languages etc. Fortunately, Indian offshore software firms are extremely serious for this and hence they are highly successful in their business with European, North American and other developed countries.
Productivity is more with Nearshore software development process: Geographic location has no direct or indirect effect on the productivity of any software firm. We must accept that the productivity of a software company depends on the quality of professionals and the work ethics of that organization. If you want better productivity, you can choose a reliable offshore software firm from India that will not only give you better quality of end product but also a good savings on your next invoice.
Your issues can be handled quickly due to same time zone: This is often misinterpreted by some people in the IT industry that, if your partner has its development centre in your locality, you will get better service due to same time zone; but, at the period of globalization, every offshore software firm strives to get the faith and popularity in the industry with quality service. Some of them are having multiple shifts of developers working round the clock to provide quality service as if an onsite service provider.
You can get better legal protection from Nearshore software firms: We can’t ignore the importance of difference in laws and regulations with geographic location. But if we are preparing a strong and detailed agreement with our business partner and that too with the consultation of lawyers of both locations, then can’t it be avoided? There are millions of examples of successful business operations in IT industry that runs between two different locations and without any threat of IP loss. In fact, those reliable offshore firms are highly serious in understanding the importance of the Non-disclosure agreement for an honest business operation over time. They will provide you enough protection for your intellectual property not only during the development period but also after the production phase.
Though you are supposed to spend little more; but you will gain a lot in terms of quality of end product: As we discussed, quality of service does not depend on the geographic location rather it depends on the quality and skills of the developer and most importantly the work ethics of the software firm. So, you can get better quality of end product from an Indian software company having expertise in the domain or technology on which your project will be developed that too at lower cost of development.
Nearshore software firms provide better post production support: For post production support, there is a trademark of Indian IT companies in the world. They are extremely reliable and faithful in the industry when it comes about the post production support. They will treat all your dynamic requirements and bugs as superior as when it was during the development process. So you can trust over them for quality support service.
Last but not the least, we must admit that, No software company can produce quality end product without quality assets i.e. the developers of the organization. Companies don’t produce quality output; it’s the developers who make it possible. So it is always advisable to hire a firm which has better track record, having senior and certified developers with good experience in their technology and domain.
At Mindfire Solutions, we are experts in offshore small team software development and we have been serving our 300+ esteemed clients more than 15 years now and have executed over 1000 projects in various technologies and domains. If you have any custom application ideas in mind and need our expertise, please feel free to write to us at sales at mindfiresolutions dot com and we will revert back within a business day. You can also avail our limited period risk-free trial offer now.
Javascript Tools That Developers Should Be Aware of
A client-side scripting language, JavaScript is a powerful tool when it comes to developing websites or web applications. When used by a skilled developer, it can work impressively to enhance the user experience. It also provides rich features and components. Syntactically JavaScript is an easy language to master but it is often predicted as a difficult language to work with owing to its environment – the Web browser. The popularity of JavaScript can be estimated from the way the latest technologies utilize it as a supported language for developing desktop apps. There are several tools within this language that help in speeding up the coding process, optimize codes and test the scripts in various situations. Besides these, they are also applied for unit testing, check security vulnerabilities and as debugging tools.
Here’s a list of JavaScript tools that the developers should be aware of:
JS Nice: This helps in reading the JavaScript codes even if it is obfuscated. In this sort of a program the JS Nice suggests new identifier types as well as names automatically. By using advanced techniques for program analysis as well as machine learning it can learn the name and type regularities from vast amount of open source projects.
Converse. Js: It is an open source chat app that can be used to connect to any Jabber or XMPP server. You will also find it in the footer of the webpages, such as, Facebook chat and acts as a support to one to one or multi-user conversations. This tool is used to decline or accept contact requests, set statuses, etc.
Hitch: This provides an extension model for both HTML as well as CSS. Hitch is defined as a prollyfill engine for JavaScript. By using this tool the developers easily import and utilize features from CSS selectors that have been merely proposed or HTML widgetry that is based on the previous web components proposal.
Responsive Nav: This is another JavaScript plugin that makes the creation of responsive menus a simple task for the developers. CSS3 transitions and touch events are used by this tool to ensure impressive performance. This also works well on screen readers even when the JavaScript is disabled. There are standalones in this plugin too. The developers can also make use of the callbacks for init, close and open events.
amMap: To include an interactive map functionality to the webpages the developers make use of the amMap. It is sued to display the locations of an office or the route through which one daily travels, etc. A distributor map can also be created by applying this tool. In addition to these, the developers can also include images or illustrations as backgrounds or layers in the maps. This would make a huge difference in the presentation or the e-learning tools.
Sequel.Js: For building the SQL query Squel.js is used as it strings conveniently through an object related to the API. It supports all kinds of SQL queries. It can work also on the browser. But the latter is not advisable as the queries in this case will be visible to all.
Candy: Another open source chat app that has been created with the help of this language. It uses Jabber in developing real time based communication. The added advantage for this open source tool is that it receives support from various rooms. Therefore the users can be active in multiple numbers of rooms. They can also chat both privately as well as publicly. These can be performed in impressive tabbed interfaces.
Radi: It is a visual design app that targets the web with both standard as well as human readable HTML, JavaScript code. There are built in tools for editing and creating graphics. The animations can be generated in the canvas output that works fine in all the modern browsers and even in handheld devices as well. For a more customized effect the filters (ready to use) as well as effects can be used by adding them in the developer’s codes.
Roole: If you are looking for an alternative that is SASS or LESS (+stylus) inspired then check out Roole. It supports variables as well as conditional logic. The reason why developers should use it is because it enables to define the format used in the CSS. It is a well documented tool that works on both the server side and client side.
As a developer if you are planning to use JavaScript as a programming language, these are some of the tools that you must be aware of. This would help you leverage the benefits of JavaScript development.
We provide JavaScript web development services. If you would like to talk one of our certified JavaScript developers, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.
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