User Experience

May 13, 2012

What is User Experience? How is it tied/associated with User Interface?

User Interface is just a sub set of User Experience. User Experience does not stop at providing the interface for the user. It needs to be iterative and has to integrate with everything in an application.

User experience should present an overall experience that can meet as many goals and needs as possible for the business and the users. Designers are to find and provide that sweet spot between the users’ needs and the business goals and ensure that the design is on brand.

To be precise, User Experience is a combination of functionality, content, usability and branding for any application, be it a web site, a mobile application, an enterprise application or a utility. Continue reading »

Tags: Mobile

REST Vs SOAP RPC

May 10, 2012

I had been familiar with the RPC (remote procedure call) interfaces for quite sometime just like many others: be it the proprietary COM and .NET remoting or a more standard and interoperable SOAP interface developed using any technology. I never dared to see what is the so called ‘RESTful Services’ until one of our current projects forced me to take a look at it and find out what it is. The journey became quite fascinating when I started understanding what’s REST and comparing it with SOAP and other RPCs, particularly the total shift in the mindset that a normal developer would need to undergo to create a RESTful service. Continue reading »

Tags: Technology

Are you ready for the cloud?

May 2, 2012

Cloud computing has been one of the most highly talked subjects within the IT environment during the past four years. Organizations, ranging from small to large enterprises are showing their interest to move their business to benefit through cloud. Moving the application to cloud offers benefits like less CAPEX, immediate ROI, reduced business risk, quick implementation etc.

While cloud computing will dramatically change the way an organization operates, one needs to exercise caution while deciding what, when and how to move to cloud. An extensive analysis of your application portfolio will ensure that the organization doesn’t make big mistakes that will potentially push the organization years behind in reaping the benefits of cloud. Continue reading »

Tags: Uncategorized

Who is a real cloud service provider?

April 21, 2012

Being an IT guy, it’s very difficult to control our temptations to talk about cloud and we do that everyday. But if you ask the question whether there is consistency in the understanding of ‘what is cloud’ and ‘who is the real cloud service provider’, the answer is a big ‘NO’. There is nothing wrong with that inconsistency, because it brings new perspectives. Cloud means different things to different people – for some it’s a technology, for some it’s a new business model, for some it’s a new IT services delivery model. The irony is that all these definitions are true and that doesn’t help clear our confusions.

Let’s try to identify who is a real cloud service provider amidst a battery of ‘pseudo’ providers. Check for yourself whether your provider meets the following criteria Continue reading »

Tags: Cloud

Needed: Split Personality Software Developers

April 16, 2012

Not sure how many people would agree with the statement ‘Every one of us is a born tester’. Any idea how? We all consume products and use services and while doing so we consistently evaluate, test, validate and review the product or service. There is a tester in all of us who will come to the fore when our money is at stake, when we buy or when we consume something. Developers are no different in that they have the tester in them as well. But often the tester doesn’t come and take the center stage while developing for the customer.

Typically, we see many small software development projects that require just one or two developers. So, what’s the need for a separate, full time tester when the project doesn’t involve the integration of many modules/components or the integration of the efforts of a big number of developers? Assume you are hiring the services of an electrician on an hourly basis. If he brings a tester with him to test the work he did and asks you to pay for the hours of the tester, would you be willing to pay for that? Then why do we do the same to the hapless customer? Continue reading »