cheap computer Tips & Guide

Cologne (Colocation Server).

2011-08-13T00:28:00.000-07:00

Typically, a home using the Internet in general, you can connect at speeds that are much higher. ADSL is also a significant level, which will be released as a server. The demand for people to connect to the Internet. I need more speed. This stable. It may take a couple of leased lines or leased lines is expensive, the thousand or a hundred thousand, depending on the desired speed.

For balance sheet at cost. Instead of expensive leased lines, high speed came to our house. This is a review of our computer or server to another. The High Representative, or buildings such as TOT, CAT (CAT), that there is a high-speed Internet and is already very stable.

Co-location, if translated literally means. The use of common areas. That hosts in order to make a Web Server, Mail Server, Database Server, etc. The company offers a variety of factors that need to be connected to the redundant power supply system. Internet. As well as the support of others such as IP address, program or software application, tool, Web-mail, file servers, etc., already. The speed of Internet connection speeds from 100 Mbps to 1000 Mbps, and is more stable than the Internet in general.

HTML5 standard view on the site.

2011-08-13T00:26:00.000-07:00

HTML, or Hypertext Markup Language is a language used for display on the site. This is a statement or a tag (Tag) and which controls the display. Contents of the site and comes across as the creators intended. Visit our website today. Simple HTML with a total structure.
HTML language that has developed continuously various versions. Each version will be developed in several parts, such as adding a new item to the order or cancel the order the tags. By changing the rules on the display. The standard used in the present, is HTML 4.01 and XHTML 1.1 (XHTML is a combination of HTML and XML together), and the latest standard is under development and will be available soon. The HTML5.
HTML5 is a standard display of the latest developments. It seems a previous standard. Will have new features in version 5. Added a lot ', in which many features are not necessary to install additional software, like the previous HTML version of the other features include the use of video. The geographical position. Storing files online. Display and graphics. Viewing Flash, Silverlight and so on.
In HTML5 is the addition of a tag or an item of new visitors to a statement in response to the display of the new models will have the item, some of which were added to replace the use of blogs, online , the element is inline , including used for menu navigation, to bottom. There is also an element of interest, including a multimedia screen for video playback and for playing audio files, etc., some element that had been used in previous versions. Version 5 will be canceled in this medium for used to control the display font. Will be changed to control the display with CSS instead.

The block is caused by anything.

2011-08-13T00:22:00.000-07:00

I was born to hang for several reasons. It 'hard to predict what happens. The analysis of the causes of persistent symptoms. We must recognize that hang-up or hang boot. After upgrading your equipment. Or is it after overclocking etc. These symptoms are the leading cause of crashes there, so I can not answer at once that, when the cause of crashes. How to solve. When there are 108 reasons why the solution is the same 108, so at first you should analyze the problem before the machine has a problem, because what

That will allow us to analyze the symptoms and quickly correct is the observation of the user. Because the symptoms caused by each of them. Can be expressed differently as a black screen or a window is still open. Or makes a strange start when symptoms appear, these are very useful for analytical purposes.

Causes the machine hangs, as it is to be concluded.

1. Flash BIOS with a BIOS that is not perfect, the BIOS so bad.

2. The system has problems, such as file system corruption, virus, run it, and so on.

3. Devices such as memory loss losing memory loss of loose papers, Bad Sector Hard drive, power supply's fault.

4. The problem of redundant equipment, such as Modem Use IRQ 5 IRQ number and the sound card.

5. The problem of Overclock causing some devices not to work at high speed.

6. Boot Sector Virus destroy.

7. The device is not compatible for all brands of equipment or device is not a complete driver.

5 This program will help. And make use of Windows even more. You must first see better.

2011-08-13T00:11:00.000-07:00

5 This program will help. And make use of Windows even more. You must first see better.

1. Xkill windows.

Have you had an active program that is holding me? Usually, when you come across this type of problem you have to press Ctrl + Alt + Delete to open the Task Manager to end them.

End the program while Windows xkill may be more sensitive than a lot of activities Manger.

Xkill windows is taken from a small xkill running on Linux, the program is only 18KB, and do not need to install anything that can be used to load instantly.

When you turn on the taskbar, just press Ctrl + Alt + Backspace xkill just call a player, then you can just close the program down. O do not want it now.

2. DropCommand.

Most people probably do not use the command prompt on Windows, but if you need DropCommand will allow you to use the command prompt in Windows easily.

DromCommand allow you to "drag and drop", so there is no need to manually type the command at the command prompt.

3. Fences.

If you have a cluttered desktop and display a different icon on the screen a lot more out of fences can help.

Fences is a free software program developed by Stardock ObjectDock Fences program like this will make you face any icon on the screen effectively.

The main functions of Fences will help you organize your desktop icon, creating what is called a container to which you can put the icon were separately placed in its box, causing a mess of the icon, and as a group. Classification of the icon as well.

4. Just close some activities.

If you are used to open the program to run multiple applications simultaneously. I often forget to close at the end. JustCloseSomeTasks is software that works for you.

This is what the program is tied to a different task at the end of its use. When the time expires or expired, then this software will be disabled once the program is that when you use it. JustCloseSomeTasks for laundry, it will learn your behavior and adjust the date or the expiration date based on your behavior.

5. Lacuna Launcher.

Usually, we tend to use the application program or a group like this Lacuna Launcher lets you launch applications that are used often more convenient to Lacuna Launcher will guide you can open a different set. Clicking on the link one.

Lacuna Launcher, you can use the file group. Or programs can not set the delay time and dwell time with the computer to charge too much. Instead of loading up at the same time delay and dwell time to load. Or open the program as a step by step set.

You can customize the program to open an unlimited number of Lacuna Launcher. You can specify the program to start when you surf the web. Or other documents that you print a report.

At the beginning of use, you may need to set up slightly different, but the fact of the matter. You can easily use. And the program was established.

Clear virus integrated with Combofix.

2010-03-21T23:31:00.000-07:00

COMBOFIX best editor and computer viruses.

For friends. A slow computer problems. Or are not sure whether your computer is infected or not. Today I am presenting a program called ComboFix together this program will reset windows to return to normal conditions after the virus has been destroyed. Whether it's creating a folder or edit Windows Registry.

Symptoms of a computer that can run ComboFix.
Lock the computer is part of the Run Command does not show.
Internet Explorer will have the lock command Scripts make some pages display incorrect access. (Have tried using FireFox can be used normally).
Programs used today. Can not work.
Computer slow down significantly.
Source download ComboFix.
BleepingComputer.com.
ForoSpyware.com. GeeksTogo.com.
Stone for the work of ComboFix.
Should make a close everything before use. Including antivirus programs installed on the (Disable Antivirus should be issued before), then wait until the program runs successfully completed. Program will report results to management by creating a file name ComboFix.txt.

Viruses during the site visit.

2010-03-21T23:28:00.000-07:00

Did you know that. Time to some sites. Your computer may be infected.

Access site. The only site that is unlawful, whether the music files, mp3 (illegal) video files and search free, serial number, crack files, etc., which these sites. Often hidden by viruses, Trojans, spyware many? (Ever having to do with myself then).

Then we will know how that. Website is virus program to update Antivirus with up to date. Time to these sites, most antivirus programs can be verified by the automatic notification that the web is trying to install files into the PC's we were).
Install plugin allows virus detection. During the site visit as "TrendProect" etc..
Trend Protect plugin allows virus detection. During the site visit.

This program is a free program from within the program maker Trend Micro PC-Cillin Antivirus names available for download to install for free. The http://www.trendsecure.com/portal/en-US/tools/security_tools/trendprotect/download. The program is a plugin to use with Internet Explorer.

Search Google for secure access to sites but other eye. Safely and TrendProtect also supports search through Google.com with the means to access the Google.com web search command will display the symbol of TrendProtec that this web site. Viruses or not? The use of color in the display as follows.

Green - safety.
Red - danger.
Yellow - may be a problem.
* TrendProtect understand this program can not remove viruses. But the program is only used to check basic only

There's free Anti-virus programs have to ClamWin.

2010-03-21T23:23:00.000-07:00

Due to a software program ClamWin Antivirus Online Casino Open Source programs, which means. We can use the full performance of the program. And use for free without Limit. Register do not need any total just download and install to use only.

Interest free download ClamWin file size approximately 26.5 MB.
The core of the program ClamWin.
Anti-virus and spyware in the same.
Set time to scan.
Update program and an automatic virus database protest.
Support monitoring virus conjunction with Windows Explorer (right-click to select the scan to).
Can connect with Microsoft Outlook to scan was ordered.
This program is free program remove spyware and viruses that use a good level. But the program may not update the program soon equal pay another ครับ your step.

Developing Client-side Content Using Adobe Dreamweaver

2010-01-20T19:24:00.000-08:00

Adobe Dreamweaver is a widely-used web development tool aimed at inexperienced and experienced users alike. It allows developers to work visually and behind the scenes, it uses standard web technologies such as HTML CSS and JavaScript. Web pages can be introduced into a Dreamweaver site at any time without the danger of the program modifying your code. In the same way, pages that you create in Dreamweaver can be taken out of the Dreamweaver environment and used elsewhere.

Dreamweaver Training For Web Developers

The program does not rely on its own unque solutions which will only work in the Dreamweaver environment. Although Dreamweaver is not necessarily the best environment for creating all types of website, it is not an environment which one easily outgrows. It can be used both for creating basic, static content consisting of client side pages as well as more sophisticated dynamic content including server side pages. In other words, it is suitable for developing the content found on the vast majority of websites. So, let’s examine this content in more detail.

Most web sites are hosted on web servers run by specialist hosting companies. A large website may have a dedicated server or even servers, whereas most typical websites will be sharing space on a server with other sites. Visitors to a website are sometimes called clients.

Clients gain access to the content on web servers using a variety of different operating systems and different browsers. They normally find this content either by clicking on links from search engines and other locations or by simply typing a URL into the address bar of their browser.

The content that clients access on websites can be divided into two main categories: client-side and server-side. The term client-side refers to web content which is compatible with the user’s browser, material which the browser software can actually open, display or execute (in the case of scripts).

The main element in client-side content is HTML, or as it’s known in its current incarnation, XHTML; a stricter and more consistent version of the original HTML specification. HTML is a fairly simple markup language which is used to describe the content of web pages for the benefit of the client’s browser. CSS and JavaScript are used in close conjunction with HTML.

CSS stands for Cascading Style Sheets and is used for describing the layout and presentation of web content. JavaScript is an easy-to-learn scripting language which can be used to add interactivity to web pages. For example, when someone is filling out a form on a website and information entered into a field is inappropriate, JavaScript can be used to notify them that the content must be changed.

All modern web browsers are fully capable of understanding XHTML, CSS and JavaScript content. With the addition of extra software known as plug-ins, other technologies can be added to web pages. Two of the most popular are Flash and Adobe Acrobat PDF files. All of this content then is fully compatible with the client’s browser; hence the term client-side content.

Software & Development Tips

(via Software Developer tips -)

5 Tips for creating good code every day; or how to become a good software developer

2010-01-20T19:17:00.000-08:00

Being a good developer is like being any other good professional, it’s all it’s about doing as much quality work as possible. There is a popular sentence that summarises it: “Do it. Do it right. Do it right now”.

1.- Have your own to do list for the day.

The best approach to complete complex activities is to break them down into simple activities. Do this every morning by breaking down the different activities you would like to complete for the day and assign them a schedule. This will help you to:

Have a better understanding of the activity.

Have a focused goal for the day

Improve your estimating skills. After a few days you will find that you can predict how much work you can do in a day.

2.- Do one thing at a time.

It’s been proven by different studies and published in different media (ie CNN) that it is more productive to be focus only on one task than to do multitasking.

Work in short batches of intense work of about 25 minutes with a 5-10 minutes rest. There are popular techniques like the pomodoro technique to help you manage the time. There are also tools to help you measure the time you spent on the different tasks, my favorite one is CoolTimer.

3.- Do it right.

There are two keys to know if something is done right

To be proud of the solution; it is not just any solution, it is a good solution. It follows the principles of the “Pyramid of the software quality“.
The solution passes at least one review. Ask one of your colleagues that you respect as a good developer to review your solution and for his sincere opinion.

4.- Don’t finish something until it’s completely done.

We all know that if there’s still a glass to wash, we cannot say that we have done the dishes, the same applies for painting a wall or driving to a destination but in software development we don’t do that, we say that we are done even when we haven’t completed all the unit tests or when we haven’t checked if the implementation is correct with the customer, that’s a typical behavior from Hope Driven Development and that’s evil.

Something is only done when you are 100% sure that it won’t be necessary to work at all on that solution unless the requirements change.

5.- Better late than sorry BUT better sorry than never.

If it’s going to take you an extra day to complete the testing of some code, or to refactor a class which is unreadable, do it, that’s an investment in time for the future, but if you are stuck with something and you are delaying the project too much, just find an easier solution. It may not be as elegant as the one you are implementing, but at least you will have a solution. Make sure to document it as future risk for the project and something that will probably need to be revisited.

5 Tips for creating good code every day; or how to become a good software developer | Making Good Software

(via Software Developer tips )

15 tips to getting the promotion you want, and the salary increase you will deserve!

2010-01-20T19:11:00.002-08:00

How do you rate a software developer? That’s a fantastic question! There are so many theories out there, and there are so many forms that HR teams try and come up with to help you conduct performance review. However, what really makes a great developer? And if you are a Software Developer, how can you improve your career today! Below is my bible for rating the developers on my team. By following these tips and rules, you will improve your status from “good developer”, to “great developer”!

Time spent writing great code
It’s not about the quantity it’s the quality! However a twist to this is: It is about the quantity, and the quality. Far too many times you will get one of two scenarios.

In scenario A, you have a developer that pumps out code like mad, things seem to be working… then bugs start happening, you don’t know why, seems to take forever to fix! Or they fix 10 and cause 5 more! But you get a lot of code…

In scenario B, you have a developer that seems so smart! You interview him and he knows everything about everything, can speak the theory up and down! Yet for some reason, you have assigned him three features, and three weeks later, he is still working on something that should have been done in 3 days! You are so confused! He is so smart! He knows everything about generics, multi-threading, and can explain pointers to your grandmother and make her excited to want to code! Why is nothing getting done?!

In your dream scenario, you get great code! Great code is done by a great developer that is super smart, knows what quality code is, and writes code like Tony Hawk rides his skateboard. It looks so natural! He or she is almost entertaining to watch! They also get it done at blinding speeds! They know how long each problem should take, and do not get caught up in finding the world’s best solution, that has multiple threads and layers, to write a game of pong. Bugs are nonexistent because they write unit tests for themselves, and just plain can code in their sleep! These guys are worth their weight in GOLD!
Interpretation of the problem
So there is a problem out there, with millions of ways to solve it. Some people are just natural quick thinkers and can come up with multiple solutions instantly. However, what a great developer would do is totally define the problem before doing anything! A great developer will create a document or whiteboard the problem out. They will email their managers and say things like “Can we meet so I can explain to you how I understand the problem?” Next they will start giving you various solutions, etc.

See, a great developer knows that the way they see the problem and interpret the problem, is probably not the way that the problem creator intended it to be understood. This is a key point, commit this to memory! A great developer will want to understand it fully, before attempting to approach a solution. Do you understand the problem 100%, no? 99%? Go ask more questions and be sure you are 100% clear!
How the problem is approached
So once you have clearly defined the problem, you start coding right? Wrong! A great developer will look at the layout, and start thinking of various options, and based on the problem, will start thinking about the best approach to solve the problem. I view this like a game of chess. You can know how all the pieces move, know all the rules of the game, but do you just start moving? No! You analyze the board, come up with a game plan, look at your opponent, and look at what he or she usually do. It’s the same case when you approach a problem.

Look at the problem, figure out what the outcome needs to be, what kind of time you have, the quality being expected, the tools you have to work with, etc. Then, start solving the problem.
Confidence in code
As a manager, how confident can you be in their code. Some developers you can say “I need this completed by Friday” come Friday, you get an email saying “I have checked the code into the branch, it is ready for testing” and you just know that there will be very little, if any, bugs found by the quality assurance team. On the flip side, there are some developers that will email you instead and say “I am still not done, and it will be done on Monday morning first thing.” And you are nearly 95% sure that it will be there, however it will be ridden with bugs, and basically unusable for days, if not weeks, until bugs are completely ironed out of the code.

Bottom line: The higher the confidence you can have in a developer, the closer they get to being great developers! Imagine being your manager, and the weight you lift off their shoulders if he doesn’t have to worry about your code!
Confidence in the solution
It’s one thing to be confident in the code. If you have a great developer on your hands, you are confident in the solution. These great developers will be great architects. They are able to dissect the whole problem, and figure out how the problem needs to be solved. See it’s not just about coding with great code, it’s also largely about how you architect the solution! This is a key point, and really what separates the good, from the great in the software world.
Meets user requirements
At the end of the day, you can have the best code, and the best solution possible, with all the best architecture, but does it meet the user’s requirement? It’s possible not! And you have completely failed. Now there are various degrees of missing the mark, but a great developer will hit the bull’s-eye consistently! They find out exactly what the user wants, come up with a great approach, show the user what they will get every step of the way with weekly builds that have no bugs, and continue to build upon the last version. Requirements are bang on, and the users do the jig!
Staying up to date
Great developers are constantly updating their skills independently and proactively! They thirst for new knowledge and perfection like a cat with milk. They don’t wait for their managers to come to them and set goals, ask them to take courses, or are given books to get up to speed on. They go and get these things on their own!

They find the conferences they want to go to, and send emails like “I would really love to go to Tech-Ed This Year! I will learn <insert reasons here>, and I will be able to contribute to <insert projects here>. I foresee this saving us <money/metric reasons here>. If it’s at all possible, can the company help me pay for this trip?” If someone sent me this, I would not only help pay, I would pay the entire trip!

Great developers are always attending all the user groups, like a .net user group for example, or a Java user group. They go to the “free local” meetings, and do whatever it takes to feed their brains! Do you read all the latest blogs and magazines? List your top 5 favorite development blogs right now! Can you do it? You should be able to drop them like you can do the actions to the YMCA! Stay up to date, it will stretch your mind! You will have the next big idea! You will be rewarded!
Contributes to team
You can be one of the best, if not the best coder, architect, most brilliant guy on the team, but as far as I am concerned, if you are not able to share and contribute to your team, you are losing about half your value, if not more! A great developer makes others great around them! See, a good developer keeps getting better and better, but doesn’t share the knowledge they obtain, or how they obtain it.

They learn new things, find out about new technologies, but don’t let anyone know about them! A good developer finishes their projects on time, but when push comes to shove, is not there for the rest of the team. A great developer is in touch with all the projects that are going on within the team, and is ready to lend a helping hand when needed! They will say things like “I noticed team A is working on <issue>, and I think I can help out, do you mind?”
Makes great meeting minutes
This is incredibly important! There is nothing worse than calling a meeting, taking the time to explain new concepts, new ideas, brainstorm, come up with great designs, and not have anyone taking meeting minutes! Even if you have a designated meeting taker, I want to see everyone showing up with a pen, and paper (developer notebook is preferred). A great developer takes great notes! They write out all meeting minutes, and at the end of the meetings can be heard saying “So just to confirm, my action items are: <action items here>. Did I get everything?”

Next, a great developer will send their meeting minutes to the manger, listing the date of the meeting, the topic, and attendees. Following this, you will have the action items at the top, with who is the champion of the item. Below that, you have the detailed meeting minutes. A good developer, takes no meeting minutes, says yes every time you add something to his list… and hopes that his memory will serve him well. He then later emails you to check out his changes, and you cringe as you see he forgot a few things, but got 90% if it correct. This is a HUGE WASTE of time! For no reason at all! Take Great Meeting Minutes!
Teachable and takes criticism well
If you have read this far, then hopefully you are taking all this in and will be trying to implement some of my suggestions in your day to day development efforts. See, another key area is the developers’ ability to learn from others, and take criticism well! By making yourself a teachable person, you turn into a sponge, and absorb enormous amounts of knowledge faster! Your seniors are there for a reason! Sure, they might be rusty at day to day coding, but they have gone through the trenches, and been through hundreds of battles, and have the wounds and scares! They have the “Blink” instinct to make great decisions, and make you great! They are in the position they are in because they LOVE to see you succeed, and want to make you grow!

Of course, this is the ideal work environment, but that’s where you want to be anyway if you are a great developer! I absolutely guarantee you, and promise you, that the better you can improve this skill, make yourself extremely teachable, make notes on suggestions and criticism, and make a point of improving them, the better chance you have at becoming greater than you have ever imagined possible! If you on the other hand, choose to think of yourself as “elite”, and have nothing more to learn, you will always be stuck where you are. If you are not growing, you are not even staying at status quo, you are dying! Grow!
Always available when needed
This is a give and take. If you are working for a great company, they will be flexible with you. They should never question doctor’s appointments that you couldn’t schedule after work, start times, end times, or lunch breaks. They should encourage you to go to the gym at lunch, pay for lunches when you go out with the team, etc. They should give you a few days off after some crunch time work. This list goes on and on.

However, with all those perks, comes responsibility, no question! If it’s crunch time, a great developer will suggest to you that he will come in on the weekend if needed. They will stay as late as possible and as late as is needed to ensure the job gets done! See, great developers take responsibility for their creations! Now, this is not a necessity of course, but it is the mark of a great developer. Some people just want the 8-4:30, and will be good developers, but they will never be great. Great developers are team players to the end, and view their work like art, and view their team, like a family.
Dress’s professionally every day
You never know when a client will come by on a tour. You never know when you will be called into a meeting, not everything is planned. And when that time comes, you have to be ready to dance! A good developer wears normal clothes Monday to Friday, even stretches it with black jeans, and runners that look like dress shoes. On casual Fridays, they wear shorts, runners, and a T-shirt. When the tour comes by on Friday with a new huge account, you can’t call on him to join you for lunch because he is not dressed appropriately.

A great developer dresses in great business clothes Monday to Friday. They dress for success! See, by looking the part, you become the part! Of course, if you have no skills, you will not be promoted to a manager or team leader just because you dress sharp. But if you have great skills, and dress in a suit and tie, you have just catapulted yourself up in rank, no question. The 400 dollars you will spend on a decent suit and tie will pay you back within the year. I promise you!
Communication Ability
This is another critical category! There are so many good developers out there, but there are not a lot of great developers. Why? Because a lot of the good developers, are terrible communicators. There are many levels of communication, ranging from email, to small SCRUM meetings, all the way up to large executive meetings and your ability to contribute at the executive level. Then you get to “The Show” where you are presenting for hundreds of people, showing off software. While you don’t need to get to the final stages, you need to be able to at least communicate your ideas clearly and effectively in meetings. The better your communication, the farther you will go.

Bottom line: If you want to be an executive, you have to be a 9 or 10 at communication. Even when you take meeting minutes, or send out status reports, you need to communicate extremely well! Don’t just say “I fixed bug 1371&Prime on your daily report! Show off; explain how hard it was to solve the problem, how long, or how quick you solved it! Explain the technology you used! And explain how you will ensure the problem doesn’t happen again. Your status reports should not be a bad thing you don’t like to do! They should be an exciting part of your week where you get to show off to your manager!
Goal Setting Skill
Good developers can get things done, and go throughout their day to day by doing what you tell them to do. They don’t really think far ahead and think of what they want to be doing in a year, five years, or even 10 years. Some good developers know what they want… but have no real plan to get there! A great developer has the goals for the year, the next five years, and knows roughly where he will be in 10 years.

Great developers also take it to the next level by not only thinking about their goals, but also visualize it! They can see exactly what they will be doing in five years, to the level of where they will be doing it. Even more, a great developer will create a detailed plan for his next year, complete with courses he will take, projects he will complete, and relationships he will build.
Organizational Skill
The final key component that really brings everything together is organization. You may be the best developer in the world, but if you are not organized, you will fall apart and become bogged down! Eventually you will be overwhelmed and start losing your edge. Great developers keep an extremely clean desk, they keep all their notebooks, and write very clearly. They print out their daily outlook calendar of meetings and tasks. They have an inbox process to deal with emails, meetings, and new assignments. They keep file folders and can instantly pull up projects, meeting minutes, and other details when asked to produce them.

Bonus Tip: Passion!
One of my team members read my post and reminded me of something that every single person on my team has in buckets! Passion! Without passion in what you do day to day, you will not be a great developer, or great at anything for that matter. Lack of passion is the number one reason so many developers never become great! It is also the number one reason people do not succeed! A passionate developer will outperform even the best technical developers if they are not passionate about their job, their role, and their project. Think about it, if you have read this far, are you going to make an effort to make all the changes I listed? They seem simple, but without the passion to do these things, are you really going to commit today and be successful?

So there you have it! These are some of the key principles I am using in rating my development team during the review process. Mind you, I provide my team members with the best environment I possibly can, and in return I want great developers! And they want to all be great developers! You can use these rules to rate your developers, or if you are a developer yourself, please use this list to make changes if needed, and catapult your career past your peers!

Software Development Tips – Part 1

2010-01-20T19:11:00.001-08:00

Improving the quality of your software with a few simple steps

I’ve been reviewing software for many years now, and I have seen many good products as well as many bad ones. But what amazes me are the simple things that an author will forget about – things that really can make the difference in their application. I’m not talking about new fancy features, just simple, every-day items that can greatly improve the product.

The first and easiest issue is to have an installer/uninstaller. Yes, this will add a megabyte to your download, but it provides a way for your users to actually find your application at a later time. Applications that are packaged inside a .ZIP file, and that provide no installer, will tend to confuse many users. Also, you are requiring that the user have a zip/unzip utility available, and that they understand how to properly use it. So to make it easy for the user, try using a self-installing executable .EXE package instead. And speaking of installers… at the end of the install process, ask the user if they would like to put an icon on their desktop and/or their icon tray. The goal is to make it as easy as possible for the user to find your application. Always ask yourself, “Will my mother be able to install and launch my product?”

The second item is to create a program group and place as much information in there as you can. Users have been trained since the early days of Windows to go to that area and find all their applications. In your program group, be sure to include links to your help file, release notes, your product website, a “Buy Now” link, and of course your application. You would be amazed at the number of authors who overlook this item.

The ultimate goal in all of this is to entice the user to buy your product. So here’s a third item — every time your application is closed, put up a back splash screen with information about purchasing the full version. Make that entire window clickable to your order form page. Any place you can put in a “Buy Now” link, or inform the user how to buy, or why to buy, don’t hesitate to do it.

Now let’s look over some features that will really make your application stand out. When a user loads your application, be sure to up sell, via splash screen information, and explain why they should upgrade to the full version. This lets them know right away what usage or feature limitations they have with the version they are currently using, and all the wonderful things they will gain from having the full version.

Once the application is running, here are some key tips that your software should do:

F1 should always launch the help file. Two out of ten applications I look at forget to include this simple function.

Have a help “menu” with links to your Help File, your Buy Now order form, your “About Us” information, and your “Contact Us” information in the program group.

If you have quite a few features in your program, make it easier for the end user by offering keyboard shortcuts for the most commonly-used features and functions. Having Ctrl-A or Ctrl-B perform certain functions can save quite a bit of mouse time.

Your application is not the only place a potential customer will find your product. So lets talk about a few things we can do to improve your Website. Yes, many people think that the website has nothing to do with your application, but it does. This is typically the first place that a user sees your application, so you definitely need to put your best foot forward. When I am reviewing an application, there are 6 items that I look for that help me rate your program:

Money back guarantee. If I am unhappy with the product, will you refund my money?

Upgrade policy. When you have a new version of the application, how do you handle the updates?

Tech support. Do you provide it via phone, forums, e-mail or live chat?

Can I easily find the information on the specific product on your website?

How easy is it to Order your software? Many people bury the Buy Now links, when they should be one of the easiest things to find.

An “About Us” or company “Mission Statement”. I want to know who you are and what you do. Describe how long you have been in the business, awards you have received, and more.

None of the suggestions here will ever harm your application — they can only improve it. Your goal is to make your application invaluable to the end user, and of course get them to purchase and these simple steps are a great start.

Ten tips on agile software development

2010-01-20T19:09:00.000-08:00

Think you're organization is ready to transition to an agile software development process? Wondering how to make the move without breaking anything? Not sure how to make the transition stick? Joshua Kerievsky is the man to see.

Kerievsky has spent the past decade helping development organizations to "become" agile. He's the founder of Industrial Logic, specializing in "industrial Extreme Programming," and author of Refactoring to Patterns . Speaking at the recent QCon conference in San Francisco, California, Kerievsky shared his top ten tips for successful agile transitions with attendees. His advice?

1. Begin all transitions with a readiness assessment. "Really look at your organization. Talk to your people. Look for roadblocks. Ask yourself, what is this agile stuff and how does it compare to our old way".

2. Evolve by learning a little of everything. "Don't start with fragile agile, where you have a few pieces of the process, but nothing that is really going to make a difference in your organization".

3. Educate the "organizational antibodies". "After a successful project, they come out of the woodwork to declare that it was a fluke, to squelch the transition. Start with a pilot project, but be sure to take the time to dispel the myths about agile throughout the organization. Work with people who aren't part of that project. These are your future agile communities".

4. Sell the risks of not going agile. "You can't sell, say, pair programming. It's a mistake to try. But you can sell the risks of solo programming. Focusing the risks tends to be a good thing".

5. Business trumps process. "Once I say that to executives, they breathe a sigh of relief. At the end of the day, you've got to be in business. Understand that business concerns sometimes - not all the time - are more important than process concerns".

6. Engage the entire organization. "Talk to the executives and management. Talk to customers, subject matter experts, technical writers. Get everyone involved. Dispel their fears that there's no place for them in this new process".

7. Pick a big important project. "If you start with some big hairy project, there's a good chance you'll automatically cover several of the previous tips".

8. Handle the scaling problems. "This is an issue with agile. E-learning and a kind of serialized knowledge transfer can help".

9. Gather metrics. "This one trips people up. If you don't gather metrics for a living, work with an expert. With documented evidence that agile is making you more productive you'll have a better chance of keeping it in place when there's a management reshuffle".

10. Fail fast. "In this day and age, if you want to be successful in software, you've got to have the ability to fail fast. You want to see problems very quickly. But it's not just about testing. This is an attitude shift. Failure is not a bad thing; it's a way to learn".®

5 Tips for Enjoying the Software Development Profession

2010-01-20T19:07:00.000-08:00

Introduction

This article describes the wonder and curiosity that many developers start out with, whether it’s when they entered their first Compute! type-in program on their Atari 400, picked up their first JavaScript in 1 Hour book, when they started toying with the gcc compiler for the first time, or when they began towards their first Computer Science degree in university.

It also describes how that natural enthusiasm can be crushed, and how it can hopefully be regained or maintained.

This is written for the developer, whether a new recruit or a veteran, motivated or unmotivated, spirited or crushed, yet it’s also written for software development managers (who might identify how to make the workplace more enjoyable and more rewarding).

Like most entries of this genre (see also Optimal Software Development Processes and Practices) I selected a small list of widely applicable, but often overlooked, factors. This most certainly isn’t exhaustive, but hopefully it leads to a bit of reflection.

The Enjoyable Profession of Software Development

Software development can be a tremendously rewarding, enjoyable career.

Few careers offer comparable opportunities to weave intricate, complex structures that, while virtual, have such a positive impact on the world around them. Few offer the freedom and creativity that software development does, or the very real potential for entrepreneurial riches.

Whether it’s building a new peer-to-peer application, control software for a massive power generator, or improving the workflow of the corporate scorecard system, done right this can be a very fulfilling, enjoyable, challenging pursuit.

A Passion for Software Development

Does your mind race at all hours, abuzz with potential solutions for vexing software development challenges? Do you lie awake at night -- anxious like a preschooler on Christmas Eve -- eager for morning to arrive so you can implement the crafty coding structures you just thought up? Do you frequently find yourself powering up your system in the twilight hours to implement the fruits of an epiphany?

Or do you put in just enough face time and superficial effort that sacrifice makes up for undelivered results? Do you purge your mind of software development the moment the virtual end-of-day whistle goes off, sliding off your Aeron dinosaur satisfied that it’s one day closer to the weekend? Do you dread Mondays, motivating yourself to keep going with the dream of a far off vacation?

Do you eagerly embrace new technologies, seeing it as a challenging opportunity to learn something new when a solution calls for a new skill? Would you voluntarily dive into the innards of the Firefox web browser if a solution demanded it and you’d never touched it before? Do you swim through documentation, thirstily absorbing new APIs, tools, and languages to expand your skill-set, eagerly embracing industry advances?

Or do you dread anything different, praying that you’re tasked with challenges that require only the skills you’ve long held, allowing you to apply them in a mechanical, repetitious fashion? Do you hope every project is an echo of a prior project? Do you put off any task requiring research, and show disdain towards new languages, techniques and practices, hoping that they don’t gain traction?

Are you really passionate about software development? Be honest with yourself.

A desire to outshine a teammate isn’t passion. Nor is a motivation to impress the boss. Neither is a combination of the two worn as a magic defensive cloak against downsizing spells. These are second-rate, artificial passion substitutes: Mixed into the recipe, they yield sub par results, often leaving a nasty aftertaste of burnout and dissatisfaction.

Instead I’m talking about a bona fide interest and enjoyment of the craft and challenge of software development, even outside of career or job security issues (though it benefits the same). This isn’t a job ad demanding that you’re "passionate about business reports!", but rather is just a moment for sober reflection on whether you’re over-clocking life, or running idle instructions in a tight loop.

If you’re like many software developers in the industry today, a feeling of enthusiasm and enjoyment for the pursuit is just a distant memory (often during the happy days of university and your first job). Instead it has become a career, and is just something you do from 9-5 (or more when passion is replaced by sacrifice). Skills have likely stagnated, moving just enough to compete with coworkers, or to avoid obsolescence.

Of course there are those who’ve never enjoyed this career, and they probably will never enjoy it -- it just isn’t their thing. The only advice I can offer to those people is a suggestion that life is too fleeting to spend so much time doing something you don’t enjoy.

Many others, however, remember the passion, and sporadically get a fleeting taste of it again. For those people I propose some personal habits that, coupled with workplace practices (for managers, as well as people who rightfully manage up), will help recapture and maintain that passion.

Software developers who truly love what they are doing are the ones creating the most innovative code. They’re the ones with productivity rates multiples of their peers. They’re the ones that feel a little guilty getting paid to do something they enjoy so much.

The Top 5 Habits of Productive, Happy Software Developers

1. Be Marketable - Keep Up To Date Skills and Network Contacts

Most of us will work for over a dozen different firms over our careers.

We’ll leave for better salaries and working conditions. We’ll relocate to accommodate a spouse’s career. We’ll be laid off during corporate mergers and spin-offs, or even when the company goes bankrupt. We’ll get turfed out because we’re over-skilled, and thus overpaid, relative to the needs of the position. We’ll be downsized because we aren’t compatible with the new boss’ empire building schemes. Maybe we’ll get bored of a position and seek out something new.

This is the employment reality of most careers in the 21st century.

To some professionals this represents an exciting journey, and each transition is met with anticipation and enthusiasm. These people feel confident in their abilities, have a network of peers in the industry communicating interesting opportunities, and their skillset is up-to-date and marketable (they have the appropriate laundry list of abilities, credentials and certifications, and upgrade as needed), and while the possibility of their current employer closing shop tomorrow is something they’d prefer not happen, and they probably love the great group of people that they work with, it isn’t something that they fear.

To less prepared professionals, however, the idea of losing their cushy job hangs over them like a black cloud. Their lack of apparent opportunities, and the feeling that they couldn’t find an equivalent job, is enormously destructive of both motivation and job satisfaction. Paradoxically, job protectionism (such as making one "indispensable" through obscurity, by denigrating coworkers, and so on) often becomes a more likely activity of people in such positions than legitimate contributions.

This is incredibly destructive to morale, not just for the individual in question, but for everyone on their team: Often the malcontent, contagiously demotivated member of the team is the least employable, and it can be debated which condition led to the other.

SUMMARY: No matter how much you love your current job, you should keep your CV current, and you should always keep up-to-date on industry opportunities. Know what skills are in demand, and try to gain experience in them (even if it means pursuing formal or self-training during your own time), and attain a level of comfort that you could transition to a different opportunity with minimal discomfort.

MANAGER SUMMARY: You should do everything in your power to make your group feel confident in their abilities -- ensure that everyone gets a chance with marketable technologies; encourage the pursuit of desirable certifications; and build skills through internal resources, workshops, and seminars. Unless you’re running a sweatshop, this is unlikely to lead to a feared exodus of employees, but instead will empower and motivate your group to more openly contribute, and to demand more of each other.

2. Be The Master of Your Domain

The control we have over our environment can have a tremendous impact on our happiness.

Something as simple as a sporadically malfunctioning key on our keyboard can ruin an entire day, for instance. Similarly, when you’re nearing a deadline and your network connection starts flaking out, it can make an enjoyable jog to the finish line a frustrating exercise of physical restraint (in this case restraining yourself from tearing the wiring out of the wall). At least we have optical mice now, eliminating one of the primary causes of environmental control frustration.

Many times our work habits inevitably bring a feeling of "lack of control" into our work lives: By failing to fully read the documentation for our tools, investigating their behaviour, APIs, and nuances, we often create a situation where much of our development is basically crap-shoot trial and error, reacting as things don’t work as planned.

I’ve witnessed development groups, not to mention that I’ve demonstrated this unsavoury trait myself, unhappily fighting with perceived technology deficiencies (usually as a deadline rapidly approaches), moaning and complaining about what seems to be faults in the language, technology, or platform, forever building workarounds under a fog of uncertainty, when in reality it was actually a fault in the understanding of the same.

More often than not it’s simply that they haven’t spent the upfront time to understand the language (I remain amazed at the number of C# developers who have no idea what the using keyword is for, or why seemingly out-of-scope file objects are still locking files until some magical, indeterminate time in the future. Or the Delphi developers who needlessly nulled variables at the end of scope in a futile misguided attempt to fight mystery bugs), the technology, or the platform. Their frustration is created out of ignorance, and a small up-front investment would have sped up development, increasing the sense of control that the developers have over their domain.

SUMMARY: The next time something seems mysterious or unknown, take the time to properly investigate it. Classic lack-of-control approaches such as hacked workarounds or "reset the server daily" lead to a feeling of losing control, reducing job satisfaction and adding to the natural daily frustrations. And get your keyboard replaced if it starts malfunctioning.

MANAGER SUMMARY: Identify and investigate "easy-outs" proposed by your development team. While most software has faults, and products and technologies often work differently than we might imagine, many times such excuses are due to a lack of investigation and analysis. Even when things don’t work as advertised, which is frequently the case, formally investigating and empirically determining behaviours is vastly superior to each developer endlessly fighting with and then hashing out strategies on a need basis. And make sure your developers have functioning keyboards.

3. Accommodate Your Financial Needs

I’ve worked in some great positions at the wrong times in my life, sapping my motivation until eventually I moved on. These positions were for great firms, with great working conditions and great coworkers and management, but it couldn’t realistically adapt to accommodate my evolving financial needs. I invented dissatisfactions with the situation, turning an ideal situation into a daily torture.

After getting married and planning for our first child, for instance, the financial risk/reward that worked when I was living alone in a $600 apartment eating Ramen noodles was no longer satisfactory. Demands of owning a home, a car with infant carseats, education funds, daycare (for two children costing more than it would cost to lease two (2) BMW 750i’s), and boxes and boxes of diapers, required more financial returns than I needed years before.

I moved on.

While the resulting role superficially wasn’t as satisfactory, from a life perspective my mood brightened dramatically, and my day was much more enjoyable.

Of course this seems like cheap advice: Make more money! And Fast! Yet the reality is that developers often do make choices to the detriment of their financial condition, and if they go too far they will hate their job no matter how perfect it otherwise is. Working for equity of a start-up is great when you’re just out of university, but it is destined for failure when you’re more established.

SUMMARY: If your financials are out of balance, it will unavoidably sour your mood during the workday, making you resent your employer and your workplace. When life goals exceed the income of your position, immediately begin investigating alternatives (be it asking for a raise, looking for a more senior role in your organization, or seeking employment elsewhere). No motivational boost or cool company games room will overcome this basic life need.

MANAGEMENT SUMMARY: Be aware of the goals and needs of your group. Sometimes someone’s needs grow beyond the possible return of a position, and it is important to appropriately communicate this (rather than giving vague hints of unseen raises and super-bonuses at some future point).

4. Have A Life Outside of Work

This is a rule that works for all professions -- having accomplishments providing satisfaction outside of work will smooth the inevitable downs of our professional lives, often providing one with a much better perspective. Without this, often minor workplace failures can explode into seemingly momentous events.

These accomplishments can even be in the same domain: A professional coder by day, and an open-source coder by night, for instance.

SUMMARY: There will be periods when everything seems to go wrong in the workplace. Having the cushion of achievements outside of work can avoid it spiraling into a workplace disaster, keeping spirits up through the tough times. Often non-work experiences benefit the workplace as well, whether it’s techniques learned from nighttime projects, or delicious coffee courtesy of the nighttime barista classes.

MANAGER SUMMARY: There is a world outside of work.

5. Properly Manage Expectations

Developers, as a general rule, are terrible at managing expectations: Many of us are prone to overpromising deliverables, assuring stakeholders that we’ll deliver these amazing results sooner than is reasonable. I’ve fallen victim to this syndrome myself, and I’ve seen it occur rampantly across the industry.

When D-day comes we convince ourselves into believing that the users built their own unrealistic expectations, and managers forced us into untenable timelines. While often that is the case, just as frequently the developers were the origin of misinformation.

While there is a temporary sense of satisfaction wowing users and management with an exaggerated declaration of our abilities (we’ve likely even convinced ourselves), as time wears on this misinformation can be enormously destructive and debilitating. With every day closer to the deadline we get a little more desperate for a silver bullet, hoping that some magic technology or component will deliver us from damnation.

It seldom works out that way.

Users are unhappy. Management is dissatisfied. Employees are demoralized and devastated.

The best option is always to manage expectations, to ensure that we can reasonably deliver promised results without heroic effort.

SUMMARY: Plan for the long term, realizing that promises that aren’t delivered on will cause you great workplace unhappiness later. Manage expectations to ensure that you can satisfy your "customers" with reasonable effort, and with a reasonably high probability of success.

MANAGER SUMMARY: Never demand unrealistic deadlines, and question employees when provided with the same. Encourage your troops to be more reasonable with their promises, especially to stakeholders outside of the group, and they’ll have a much greater probability of meeting external expectations, leading to increased motivation for everyone.

Conclusion

This is an amazing, expansive career full of incredible innovation and endless opportunity. Ensure that you don’t diminish your enjoyment through simple mistakes, such as pigeon-holing into a position, or endlessly setting up yourself for failure.

5 Tips for Enjoying the Software Development Profession

(via Software Developer tips)

HP unveils updated HP-UX

2010-01-03T19:58:00.000-08:00

HP Thailand has launched its latest HP-UX 11i Update 5 enterprise-class Unix operating system into what is now a two-horse market, promising substantial performance improvements and pre-certified security with enterprise software packages.

Speaking to journalists in Bangkok, Rungroj Mateedulsatit, Product Manager, Business Critical Systems at Hewlett Packard Thailand, explained the latest bi-annual update of HP-UX, now at 11i V3 Update 5 which adds features for zero downtime, improvements in clustering and power management and a much faster journalling file system.

Another new feature is the Locality Optimised Resource Alignment utility that will automatically tune system parameters based on known usage patterns, such as particular SAP or Oracle applications or end of month batch runs and will set different system parameters to speed up processing in each case.

The increases in stability and performance mean that IT can worry less about infrastructure and focus on innovation, he said.

Asked how the Unix market was holding up in light of new technologies and the recession, Rungroj said that the last quarter IDC figures still put Unix servers at 31.5 percent at $3.1 billion and while not growing, is still level and not in decline.

Mission critical systems are still very much based on Unix as Linux and Microsoft operating systems still lack many features the market wants.

Providing some insight into the market dynamics, Rungroj said that the uncertain future of a certain major Unix vendor (understood to be Sun Microsystems and its merger with Oracle) has meant that many corporations across the region have decided to delay upgrades and extend their current systems lifecycle pending clarity. This has meant that HP is still selling a lot of HP-UX PA-RISC systems even though the systems have reached their end of life. Going forward, however, he sees the market as a two horse race with HP-UX is very much tied to the Intel EPIC Itanium architecture. He added that an up to 35 percent speed boost was possible with just a recompile as the EPIC architecture is very compiler dependent.

In fact, HP has launched a program, HP Completion Care that allows people affected by the uncertainty to trade in their servers to move to HP systems.

Asked about the Thai market, he said that HP Thailand sells everything from the blade servers to the Superdomes. All of the telecommunication companies have 100-way Superdomes, some have more than one, as do some of the large manufacturing operations.

Asked about file system encryption, Rungroj said that the situation still had not changed over the past few years and while it is available and easier to implement than ever, only the multinationals, especially in the financial sector, choose to implement it with the vast majority of the opinion that the risks of key management mishaps are not worth the extra security.

Writer: Don Sambandaraksa 43 Things Tags: Writer: Don Sambandaraksa

HEAD IN THE CLOUDS

2010-01-03T19:51:00.000-08:00

Back in the dim and distant past of the emergent global computing paradigm there was something called the Network Computer’. This was the trade name for a computer created by an alliance of Oracle, Sun Microsystems and IBM. The idea was to manufacture disk less computers that would hook into local and wide area networks. The vision was to do away with fat client desktops with expensive components in favour of ’thin client’ machines that were inexpensive and easy to manufacture. This new dawn of computing would allow access to software from the network. That was way back in the distant late 1990’s! The network computer didn’t take off for a number of reasons - rapidly falling hardware costs at that time effectively making traditional desktops more and more economical, the very slow speeds of Internet access (a proposed location of the applications the Network Computer would run) as well as immaturity of other available software.

Fast forward 10 years. The Internet is ubiquitous. We’ve seen boom-times and bad times in the fast moving dotcom world. Social networking, globalised e-commerce and Web 2.0 have been born and spread rapidly as methods of communication or technology platforms in the advancing so-called information society. Businesses, organisations, government and citizens all working in and through the Internet. Always on devices, low cost computing, smart phones and other emerging wired technologies have become commonplace at home, work and play. The moment of the network computer may have come again, this time the paradigm has been named ’Cloud Computing’... Ready for take off?

Evolution

The arrival of new web development technologies and services have evolved at a time of great change in the economics of storage space, processing power and network speeds. The costs of storage space reduce at a faster pace than Moore’s Law expands for computer processing power (Moore’s Law states the doubling of processing power every 14 months). The expansion of the Internet and the computers that run it have effectively created a global networked machine or distributed computer, and the speed of this emerging colossus can be measured in terms of petabytes and petaflops. Google server farms, or ’Information Factories’ are strategically located next to power stations due to the need for huge amounts of cheap electricity. These distributed computer systems have given birth to a wide range of web services and applications. At first it was email and the ability to communicate remotely, then e-commerce and the ability to search and buy products online, next electronic banking and other types of finance and online business methods. Rapidly, as bandwidth and broadband has spread and alongside the explosion of computing power and storage space we have seen the emergence of a new paradigm in the way we access, use and store our personal and business information. The newly minted way of describing this reality is to talk of ’The Cloud’ or ’Cloud Computing’, a neat and cute way of symbolising the spread of our data from localised storage and processing capabilities outwards into the expanding network and distributed data centres that now circle the globe within the framework of the Internet, with information in perpetual flow via satelittle and high speed optical cable at near-light speeds in and through our world.

Google

Of course our friends at Google would be inevitably be at the epicentre of our new cloud-based lifestyle. Google Mail or ’Gmail’ was the first to spread, then Google Docs, then the Google Account. Each of these interrelated and indispensable services allow us to communicate and do business at any time of the day or night, as long as there is Internet access, allowing us to tap into our docs, spreadsheets, presentations, photos, emails, videos, databases and more. There’s no more losing files, crashed computers and disappearing photos. It’s all in The Cloud. Turn on, log in, use data.. The key capability of sharing documents and resources and new collaborative working practices are the killer features of these new services. The Google data centres have now expanded to include mapping and satellite data (Google Earth), books (Google Books), mobile computing (Android) and soon to arrive Google Chrome operating system. Via Android on mobile phones and Chrome OS on netbooks Google seems likely to be first past the post in offering a network computer for the broadband age. Chrome OS netbooks will have no disk drives or hard drives, no software installations. Just connectivity to the network via LAN or WiFi and we’re off and running, everything accessed via the browser. In the words of Eric Schmidt one time chief technical officer at Sun Microsystems and now CEO of Google Inc., "When the network becomes as fast as the processor, the computer hollows out and spreads across the network."

Emerging Industry

It’s not just Google who now operate in this new dimension. Amazon now offer their own web services that incorporate storage capabilities, re-sizable computing capacity, online data centres, merchant services, and distributed relational databases. Super sci-fi product terminology pulls us towards this fascinating world: the Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2), Virtual Private cloud, On-Demand Workforce, Amazon CloudFront. Just as we may have been entranced by new terminology in the days of steel mills, ship building and railway expansion we see the arrival of bright new terms and shining product names which emblazon our new cloud-based infrastructure and product line. Amazon have leveraged their vast data centres - originally built to house the ever expanding online collections of products that they sell - into a new breed of online services. Resources we can all tap into and utilise for our business and personal needs. Have a good idea for a new web-based service, product or organisation? Want to migrate your entire technology infrastructure into the cloud? Talk to Amazon.

What Do You Want to Build Today?

The new Cloud model of computing has split into several distinct sectors each allowing a variety of tailored services. Infrastructure-as-a-service, Software-as-a-Service, and Platform-as-a-Service. The services field is now a fast-growing industry with the many established and newly arrived players busy developing a vast array of new products and capabilities. Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Salesforce, Yahoo, Rackspace and Zoho among the current industry leaders. The most popular area is of course software-as-a-service. Users, organisations and businesses can now access all of the conventional office applications online as well as providing the safe and secure online storage of documents and other files. We can create documents, databases and spreadsheets, archive and share photos and files as well as use a range of productivity tools to streamline our workloads. Add the ability to share and collaborate on documents and files in real time within professional user interfaces then we have the beginning of a truly new model of online working, sharing and playing. Online collaboration offers the chance to simultaneously work on single documents, editing in real-time with multiple users and owners - capabilities which allow individuals and organisations a powerful new way of working and dealing with their business.

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Google Apps - www.google.com/apps

The big brother of popular mainstream cloud applications. Word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, forms, email and more.

ZOHO - www.zoho.com

A comprehensive suite of online web applications from word processing to spreadsheets, wikis to presentations, databases to customer management.

Dabble - www.dabbledb.com

Online databases and information analysis. Create your own relational databases and frontends online, analyse and chart data. Create reports collaborate and share.

Writer: Adrian Hodges 43 Things Tags: Writer: Adrian Hodges

Retaining Talent is the biggest challenge in Software Development

2009-03-18T05:24:00.000-07:00

Probably it's been issue in all the multinationals and international Outsourcing markets. Retaining Talent is the biggest challenge in Software Development Company. Most of the metropolitan cities of India, have to face this kind of difficulties. These HR Managers of IT Companies are perplexed when the employee thinks leaves the job.

If we keep ourselves into these managers' shoes, we find empathy to their exhausting pain in retaining their existing employees. This is not the issue with only one organization perhaps, but you go to any organization, industry or any software field of business or any private or public sector, it is the same issue. No matter what variety of perks given to the employees, the employee turnover is increasing by months and months.

Retaining of employees is worrying to HR in Software Development

This retaining of employees is worrying to HR in Software Development Companies. They sing the famous song-"Where do you go?" to all these ex-employees of the company. These managers do understand and have built-in strategies when they have records of the employees' as to why do they join their company, but don't have any answers as to why a software developer naturally moves away from Software Development Company.

Hence the life in the Software Outsourcing Industry is probably merry-go-round becomes the very practice of the firm. Hiring and training these employees take larger piece of time for these Software Development Firm. The company spends their time and money unto these employees, but the employees continue to show lethargy and disinterest in the work. And we cannot stop until here, even the professional and experience employee show this nomadic trend either the attraction of perks given by the Top Software Companies in India.

Now let us understand the present scenario, as wherein these Outsourcing and Software Development sectors fall. The Software markets seem to be in boom with IPOs having large queue of performance. It is impressive and robust growth experience through consumer confidence and Offshore Outsourcing clients' approval. India and China both have become detonations for Global giants of Software Outsourcing World.The big-shots of the Software Markets are looking for India Software Development due to talented workforce available in India. So it is the biggest challenge to the HR Managers to retain the employees and gear up and produce some performing results. The manpower is valuable and the whole global scenario of Software Development Market is looking for skilled labor in both retail industry and animation industry (which is sister of concern of India Software Companies).

NASSCOM has its own digital statement for the IT Industry that the growth has reached the scale of nearly 1000 million, employing more than 1 lakh people in the pool of Industry. The revenue per employee is also high when compared to the offshore employees which is nearly six thousand and may show a raise up to 7000 US Dollars. So the supply and demand of the skilled labor is going on and on and major issue of concern to the Software Development Company.

Software Development Services

2009-03-14T05:23:00.000-07:00

Software development services have emerged as one of the strongest areas to hobnob with the latest technologies and get the full advantage of growing virtual market. In this cut throat competitive world, reaching to millions and giving the best only matters and software development services are the best way to match your step with the changing demands. Let us know in brief about the usability and actual meaning of software development services that will do wonders for you.

Normally, software development services include many different kinds of services to help you make a strong web presence and get the best knack of growing demands. These services may include different software solutions, application services, network outsourcing services for large number of companies including finance, real estate, insurance, retail and many others. The main purpose of software development services is to increase the value delivered to the ultimate customers through an expanded, adaptable and constant growing business and service methodology. It is more concern with providing many customized services to connect you to the world.

Software development India is one of the important markets that provide the best of the software development services. India has becoming a hub of quality software development activities. Indians enjoy many advantages including good command over English language, cost effectiveness and great quality to allure its global clients. With the short span of time, Indian software development companies have earned a great deal of respect and fame its positive offerings. If you want your work to be done on a restrictive time frame, you can trust Indian software development companies for their sharp work ethnics.

There are many software development companies in India offering quality services to the global world. Following are the different kinds of services to be provided by Indian software development companies to global honchos around the world:

Some of the Software development services for outsourcing are -
•Web and Client Server Technology
•Simple to Complex Database Management
•Systems Integration
•Software Consultancy
•Data porting, Data mining and Migration
•Application Maintenance
•Software Testing
•Inventory Management Tools
•Programming in .NET, JAVA and J2EE

Indian software development companies are providing quality work in reality short time. If you are going to pass on your work to Indian professionals, you must be assured of great quality within short time. So, check through the internet to judge the worthiness of Indian software development service and coordinate with them for availing those great services.

Outsourcing Software Development – a Way to Custom Software Solutions

2009-03-13T05:22:00.000-07:00

Outsourcing Software Development involves repositioning of software development activities by a company to third party service vendors or software firms that may be located in offshore destinations. It can save you time and money if you know what you need. Development is a specialized task that involves huge investments and a specialized workforce. Outsourcing the same could give the companies a chance to develop software at a lower rate, employ specialized labor at a cheaper cost, promote software research and save time. This is the reason why most companies decide to outsource their software development activities to offshore destinations, like India

Whether you need a dynamic, database-driven website or a fully functioning e-commerce website, Outsourcing Software Development services in India have the creative talent and technical expertise to accommodate your company's web development needs. Any company can save about 40% of its expenses by outsourcing project overseas. There is no doubt that it is a most effective way to stretch your budget. Many organizations use Outsourcing their Software Development projects to India to reduce their costs.

The traditional approach to outsourcing development projects typically follows a single strategy. You begin by negotiating a contract, which may be based on previously defined requirements or may include the effort of gathering, documenting and validating fresh requirements. The Outsourcing service then works to your requirements to develop the system. Regular communication helps resolve potential misunderstandings.

Advantages of Outsourcing Software Development:

• Getting access to specialized labor at low rates
• Cutting human resource costs
• Cutting operational costs
• Reducing software project expenditure
• Ensuring proper project management
• Software research at lower rates
• Reducing training costs

The success of any outsourced project depends on many factors; Companies specially in US and Canada are looking to outsource their software development projects to India and Indian Companies are becoming a profitable choice for them. This is because they, being a mid sized and growing custom software development companies, understand their client's business process very well and can then convert it into IT solutions, thereby fulfilling the client's needs and requirements.

So for the software development companies, irrespective of whether they are in US, Canada or EU, willing to outsource their projects should try out Indian companies to know the quality and expertise they cherish. Because it is always better to try out before trusting.

Tips While Choosing Offshore Software Development Company

2009-03-12T05:21:00.000-07:00

Technology is a wide arena, like our outer space in the galaxy. IT outsourcing isn’t much different than any other kind of outsourcing. However, if there is danger that you will bite off more than you can chew, it’s about time to take into consideration. Anyone who has experience in outsourcing knows that there are advantages as well as disadvantages in offshore software development. some tips to cut down risks.

It’s not only about saving the bucks:

The most obvious benefit that tends to strengthen the demand of custom software development to an extensive extent is the cost cutting factor. Selecting the least expensive Offshore Software Development Company often backfires and ends up costing the client much more than initially thought. Offshore vendors are all facing cost pressures from wage inflation. Choosing the least expensive vendor just means you have chosen a company with very little leeway in its profit margins. This will affect everything adversely: hiring the right people, retaining the people who are working on your projects and providing the right resources for people to do the work on your development effort. Successful vendors may be better bets even if they're bit more expensive, given the realities in outsourcing and offshoring.

Hear their Story:

The Story of the provider speaks volumes about their professionalism, their business goals, their achievements, and their credibility. This will help you analyze how much you need to rely on them. How active and involved will they be and how much ownership they will take it helping you achieve your goals. If possible try hearing their story from other businesses who have worked with them. It will help you decide and understand how they practically function. Try to choose a provider you can have a long term relationship with. You will save time starting from scratch again.

Put Communication on high priority:

The basic reason is very simple: you know your business requirements best. Software services companies working in another part of the world can only develop a solution based on the input provided by you. But there will be loopholes unless the Communication is crystal clear. Fairly large projects demands for a dedicated project manager who is a single point of contact of the offshore team and acts as a virtual bridge between the business and the software developers. Agile methodologies are more realistic when it comes to making sure communication is facilitated properly and often with real code sent back for verification, reflection and fine-tuning.

Adhere to high standards:

Lookout for standards the provider adheres to, You need to understand that successful custom software development depends upon standards the provider follows in the process, documentation, coding in short the entire development cycle For example, The most dependable companies use the highest industry standards in testing each aspect of the products they create so that you receive a product that is ready to implement.

Check out their past experience:

The work done in past speaks a lot about the experience and expertise the provider has. It also talks about the domain they have been exposed to and the learnings they have picked up along the way which may help your goal. In theory, offshore software development companies should be able to perform custom software development for any type of business. There will be less of a learning curve, though, and greater chances for success, if the company has knowledge of your industry or a related industry.

Technology Expertise:

The most agile software development companies have an extensive network of specialists but they may be not adequate in terms of the technology expertise your project demands. So you will need to compare not only the domain expertise but also the technology expertise of a provider. Essentially, the provider needs to be competent and flexible, and see their role as an information technology partner who solves your software problems, supports your team, and manages your projects from beginning to end.

Study the Methodology the provider adapts:

We should remember that software development methodologies are all milestones in the continuing evolution of software engineering. This evolution is still continuing and there will be more variants in the future. And, depending upon the nature of the software development project, the choice needs to be different. A compatible Process Methodology accelerates the delivery of high quality custom software. An Agile Process Methodology follows a controlled, iterative development and prototyping process.

Software Development: Life Cycle

2009-03-11T05:21:00.000-07:00

We often feel that it has become so easy for us to access complicated things in just a couple of seconds. With the upcoming of online business we can process so many transactions in just a few minutes through a click of simple mouse. Sit back easily and you will find all things done without any waiting. Well! This is all because of the great master minds working day in and out to come up with the latest software technologies. Team of professionals work together as a Software development team to form different kinds of software and make things simpler for us.

Software development can be defined as a process through which a particular software product is developed. The entire process followed to come up with the desired software can also be termed as the software life cycle. There are certain basic steps that are followed for any software development and after summarizing these steps we have come up with the given below steps to make you aware about the software development process.

ANALYSIS: Analyze the software, what kind of technology is it? Is the software similar to the one before or a new application has been added to it. Look for the requirements and try to understand the concept. The scope of the software from futuristic point should also be stated and this is referred as scope document.

DESIGNING: This step looks into the architectural representation of the software. The layout of the software is well defined and this architectural representation makes sure that the software is successful in meeting requirements of product and further ensuring the futuristic requirements.

IMPLEMENTATION: This is the doing phase where talented software engineers come into the limelight. These professionals start programming the code.

TESTING: The most important phase where quality check of the software development takes place in order to ensure that the bugs are catched at the earliest and debug them.

DEPLOYMENT: Once the code is tested it is brought into use or released.

MAINTANENCE: Looking after the software is very important as sometimes unwanted issues may arise. Make sure in this phase that the software is functioning well or otherwise fix the issues or requirements.

So going through the basic model of software development one can make out the amount of hardwork it requires. With the growth of IT industry the niche of software development will surely touch the sky soon!

Offshore Custom Software Development

2009-03-10T05:20:00.000-07:00

Custom software development can also be called as custom software engineering which means rejection of pre-developed / template solutions and methods of development process. This new technology in IT field has redefined the IT industry and number of specific functions within an organization.

As the business world is transforming and getting dependent on new tools of technology, custom software development services have become an inclination.

It is very important to understand that any custom software development can only be effective if and only if you approach a right company or right software developer.

Every software development company initially begins with the studying of the business requirements, preparation of records, execution of plans and following standard development life cycle processes at each stage of the project.

Presently many business firms prefer to have a Custom Software Development as this not only helps in saving money but time also.

There are many companies which deal into software development. They develop systems and software that allow our business to be dynamic and flexible in a way that allows us to compete in this highly competitive and high performance businesses world.

Software development for a business implements performance and future scalability which will implement a wide degree of competitiveness into his organization and company future growth.

It is important to choose a software developer or a company who has better ability to comprehend the kind of business you perform and understand what you want the software to do for your business. The relationship between the developers and the client should be taken care and the provision of maintenance should be there by the company as customer might need it in future.

Life Cycle of Software for Custom Software Development

2009-03-09T05:19:00.000-07:00

Lifecycle of software basically depicts the various important phases or activities, which happens in the ‘life’ of the software starting from its conception and ending with its retirement. The development of software is a fairly long process which includes various stages like (a) requirement (b) design (c) integration (d) testing (e) operations and (f) maintenance.

Development of software cycle describes the various inter-relationships which now have become a norm followed in the custom software programming circles. This life cycle includes:

The waterfall method: This is by far the most rigid of all the custom software programming life cycles. However, it’s well suited for projects that follow a well defined structural design have a strong performance requirements hierarchy. It is also the chosen method for custom software development services in which developers already well aware of requirements expected of the software, which are unlikely to drastically change during the course of its development.

The Extreme Programming Method: It’s the latest manifestation of the Waterfall model, thereby making it the current fad of developers working on custom software programming. Given the fact that it retains quite a few eccentricities of the waterfall model it too doesn’t work all that well on development of software projects which have shifting or complex requirements. The XP (extreme programming) model basically believes in starting the coding as soon as possible without creating an actual prototype of the software, which can be shown to the client for his/her approval.

Throwaway prototyping: Advocated by Brooks, the Throwaway prototyping model for development of software is useful in situations the client has been unable to clearly define his requirements. Custom software development services follows this approach by constructing partial but workable prototype of the system thereby giving the client the liberty to work on this incomplete software, identify the grey areas which can then filled in by the programmers.

Most professional programmers prefer to use the software life-cycle because it’s helps them avoid the problems of a ‘wild hacker’ or a ‘government bureaucrat’, thus helping developers follow a flexible middle path.

Outsource Software Development to Offshore Companies

2009-03-08T05:18:00.000-07:00

The process of outsourcing certain functions of a company has been around for a long time. In fact, contracting another person, team or company to do a particular function of a company goes back to the existence of work specialization. Companies generally outsource functions that are considered non-core. Why are companies employing the outsourcing model? The answer is simple. Instead of training personnel, developing facilities or acquiring specialized tools, companies choose to outsource certain processes to specialized companies, which already have all of these and which have the ability to complete these processes more cost-effectively and efficiently.

Outsourcing processes to professionals is already common practice, and software development is no exception. However, before deciding on an outsource software development provider, extensive research of the market is highly recommended.

The word that best describes the software development market is competitiveness. This continuous competition can only be beneficial for those who choose to outsource their software development processes to professionals, as the latter are continuously striving to deliver the highest quality services, whilst maintaining competitive prices and completing processes within the shortest time frame possible. Many companies have enjoyed all the benefits that derive from the decision to outsource software development.

What are the advantages of outsourcing software development? In short, as has been said before, the most notable advantage is probably cost-effectiveness. Hiring professionals or training staff to complete these processes is a lot more expensive and time-consuming than outsourcing your software development projects. Furthermore, time is of essence in any business, because time is money, and every wasted hour can lead to significant losses. What’s more, training your own staff to do the same work that a software development specialist does may not have the expected results.

What should you expect from a software development firm that you choose to outsource your projects to? First of all, you should make sure that they have skilled and organized personnel, who have successfully handled projects of different scope and complexity. Secondly, it is essential that your projects be delivered on time and within the specified budget. High responsiveness and mature processes is what you should also look for before deciding on a company to outsource software development. Cost-effectiveness also bears great importance, especially for emerging firms and companies. Therefore, you should make sure that cost-competitiveness is among the pluses of the company that you choose.

When it comes to making your outsource software development project as cost-effective as possible, offshore software development is the answer. What are the advantages of offshore software development? First of all, there are highly trained and skilled professionals all over the world, including countries where labor cost is quite low. A considerably higher return on investment is the number one reason why so many companies in countries like the United States or in Europe choose offshore software development. Above everything else, offshore software development can be described as inexpensiveness for the same quality of service. Offshore software development is based on the successful strategy of providing their customers with premium quality services and the most competitive prices.

For more resources about outsource software development or even about offshore software development please review http://outsource.supergloo.com

Why Customised Software Development Works Better

2009-03-07T04:17:00.000-08:00

Software development is the most essential feature in website development these days. Websites that wish to have something special and different in them, opt for customized softwares. Customizing the softwares for a website means to develop the software as per the requirements of the clients. This enables addition of features as per the requirement of the users so that their motive behind getting the software developed is met completely. Here are some facts about developing customized softwares which will explain the whole thing better to you.

As you all know, softwares are developed to give the website a better look and ease of visitor movements. The softwares make the websites more efficient and more user friendly too. Websites that are into e-business require more of the software interaction than other websites. When a website decides to introduce softwares into their website, they also fix upon certain criterion which help them explain their requirements to the developers.

From the developer's end, the first thing in the stage of software development is to understand the client's requirement. It is only when they can understand what clients want and how they should proceed towards it. The next stage of developing softwares is to ensure usability. Usability indeed plays a very important role in this. The softwares are developed for use by the visitors of the site, and if they are not being able to utilize the softwares that you have created, there is no point in having them in the site. Hence the usability of your article plays a very vital role in customised software development.

Customized software are usually available to all users of a particular application that is used for a common feature. If we take the case of software designed for a shopping cart, the software would be 'customized' for all shopping cart websites, and can be available in thousands of different forms to all individual users. There are a number of software development companies that are ready to provide software development for your websites, but before taking any of their services it is important that you check their credibility and confirm the validity of their claim.

Software Development Company

2009-03-06T04:16:00.000-08:00

software development company is a specialist in the field of software and computer application development that combines the business objectives with the software solution to offer the best solution for the smooth running of an organization and its process. The dependence of people and process on computer science has created a much favorable business for the software development companies worldwide.

A software development company is actively involved in different aspects of computer programming and software development, such as Agile Software Development, Application Development, Custom Software Development, E-commerce web site design, Software Maintenance, Software Outsourcing, Web Application Development, Web Marketing, and Website Design. These are the various aspects, a software development company delivers, which remarkably adds to the growth and development of the company.

With a team of highly qualified and experienced talent pool, a software development company ensures to bring in transparency, quality, and efficiency in the process and zero downs the associated risks of project failure. While developing a world-class software solution, a Software Development Company tries to offer something that meets the requirements and demands of the present and the future time as well.

Latest progress in the field of computer science and technical advancement enable the software development companies to offer even more robust and effective software products that gives a one-spot solution to numerous functionalities of the organization. Various companies, institutes, and government agencies contact software development companies in different parts of the world to get the best software solution for their processes and functionalities.

Software development companies are trusted by their clients as they put the best effort to simplify the working of people and processes in the organization. As the dependence on technology is increasing by organizations day by day, software development companies around the globe are experiencing the best phase of their organizational growth and development.