Saturday, March 31, 2012

Freelance Programming - Pros & Cons


During the last decade, we can clearly see a trend of outsourcing parts of software projects to contract (freelance) programmers. The main reasons for that are:






1. Price - in some software fields (mainly web) there's a possibility of getting a project in a much cheaper cost,using the services of freelancers in developing regions, such as India or Eastern Europe.

2. Availability - many software firms are located in isolated places and not in large cities. This limits the availability of skilled personnel for hiring, and forces those firms hire remote personnel.

3. Cost on demand - many firms (especially small ones) prefer to be cautious and not hire personnel that they may not need for a long period of time. The use of freelance services lets them avoid commitment of hiring permanent personnel.

The main reasons for employers to refrain from hiring freelancers:


1. Location - many employers are skeptical about the efficiency of working vis-a-vis professionals located in other countries or even in other continents. They can't believe thay would have enough control over the project in such a mode of work.

2. Skill level - many employers are skeptical about the professional level of developers in developing countries and refrain from giving them a chance.

3. Local-patriotic sentiments - many employer feel obliged to hiring personnel in their region/country and feel a sense of guilt outsourcing work.

I've mentioned 3 pros and 3 cons concerning hire freelance developers or not. Now it's your turn to react: pro or con?

Saturday, March 24, 2012

News about the Web Browsers Market

The web browsers world has introduced us with some new key players during recent years: till about 2005, we were used almost completely to Internet Explorer, without being even aware to other options. But then, the Mozilla association woke up to offer us Firefox and then Sergei Brin's crew also did the same. In parallel, an emerging smart phone browsers market introduced us to new players like: Opera & Android browser.

Let's have a look at the share each main browser holds in the browser market:




1. Internet Explorer - 45%. This means that this portion of users uses primarily (even if not solely) one of IE versions.



2. Mozilla Firefox - 30%. This figure surely reflects a vast expansion of what used to be a marginal browser some 5 year ago. It happened much because of the vast add-on gallery the browser offers, which makes the browsing experience much more entertaining.



3. Google Chrome - 20%. Frankly speaking, it's not very surprising that a brand new browser (issued in 2009) has already gained a respectable proportion of the market, taking into account that its producer is the world's main searching tool, making it visible to almost every web user.

The figures mentioned above depict a simple picture: we have a tough competition between 3 main browser that probably will fascinate us in the coming years.

In the mobile phone browser market, the figures are such:

1. Opera - 22%. This browser is primarily structured for mobile phones, and its development platform (the environment where developers code the applications for the browser) simulates the functioning on mobile phones.

2. Android browser - 17%. as Android is Google's merchandise, it has a significant "push forward" from its owner. so no wonder why it has gain territory recently.

Saturday, March 17, 2012

The Future of Desktop Application vs Web Applications

Ladies & gentlemen, geeks & nerds, my dear readers - I am, as an independent software developer, in an annoying crossroad: should I keep developing web applications or should I move to development of desktop applications.



The reason for keeping developing web applications are various:

1. The trend during recent years has been to use online applications for basic needs: email, file sharing, social networks or games. Also there's has been a trend to use combined desktop & web application (installed software that functions by connecting to the web), such as: Skype or chat applications. Because most of the users are basic users (as opposed to technical users, like programmers or bloggers), this is a major argument.

2. Web applications can be accessible from everywhere, giving users the flexibility of accessing their email,documents or images without being near their personal computers.

3. No need of installation - most people are lazy and like everything done for them. So bypassing the phase of installation or updating is definitely an argument.

The reasons for developing desktop applications:

1. It's very hard to believe that web applications, running on a browser, can be equal or better than desktop applications. It's important to take into account, that browsers (by their nature) are quite restricted in using the computer's hardware. This issue is crucial in complex applications (like: image processing or sound processing applications).

2. Confidentiality - When using an online application, the user's data is generally vulnerable to misuse by the hosting site. Who would want their financial data to be open to stranger's eyes?..

3. Speed - using a web application means communicating with a distant server, which makes it usually slower (depends on the user's bandwidth).


Conclusion - it seems that sole desktop applications will be losing power in the next years, partially for desktop-web applications (like:Skype) and partially for web applications (like: Gmail or GoogleDocs).

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Want a Smartphone, Ah?..

So you've decided to get a smartphone.. Yes - you've seen this cool gadget in your friends' hands and got jealous, so what?.. Now it's time to consider what's important to you in a smartphone and how to avoid a lame purchase:



1. Ask yourself if you want to purchase a smartphone for the show-off or for a real need. Smartphones (as new technology devices) aren't so cheap those days and in addition, they require some time of learning. Many people buy these gadgets mainly for the kicks of it and find themselves doing the same things they could do with standard cell phones.

2. Consider switching your supplier, meaning: if you ask your supplier (the company selling you the cell phone service) for an upgrade to a smartphone, you'll probably get a relatively narrow choice because your supplier doesn't feel the necessity of attracting you to its service. Moreover, if you have a contract with that supplier, your case may be even more difficult..

3. Prepare yourself for the shopping - write down what you really need in a smartphone and what's expandable for you. If you start considering your needs under the pressure of an exuberant salesperson, you'll find yourself buying the salesperson's choice..

4. Consider the deal offered to you as a combination of basic cost (the phone) + the contract cost (monthly payment for maintenance + insurance). Most people overlook the monthly payment issue and find themselves with a super expensive package after all.

5. Check carefully if the smartphone offered to you actually supports basic programs such as: Microsoft Word or Microsoft Outlook. Some of the smartphones just don't support Microsoft software, and salespersons Don't tend to tell you that..

6. Battery - don't rely on what the salesperson tells you. Just Google it or ask someone! If you rely on the salesperson, you'll find yourself charging your smartphone every day and whining to all the world..