Expected features and enhancements of Rails 5

"Rails right from its inception, has received overnight popularity and love from the industry and the developers as well. With the in-built integration with Ruby, the framework is simply awesome; in fact, we can say it’s a duo i.e. language-framework concept and first in its kind on the earth. Ruby on Rails, as a web application framework, is widely appreciated for the components that it highlights. The model view controller structure not just persuades the use of web standards, but also focuses on the use of other popular software engineering patterns and paradigms – be it the Active Record Pattern or Convention over Configuration. And now, Rails Core Team has taken a further step in fortifying the cross-platform web application framework by giving a preview into the Rails 5. Here, we’re listing out some expected features and enhancements of Rails 5 (although, the new version will entail Ruby 2.2.). Industry is anxiously waiting for the next version of Rails i.e. Rails 5 because there are lots of hopes and expectations associated with the rails 5. Let's see few of our assumptions and expectations from Rail”.

Integration of Rails API: The new version is expected to amalgamate rails API into its core configuration, hence enabling the use of Rails as an easy-to-use JSON API. This will also simplify the process of creating an API for any JavaScript application. This will simply eliminate the use of Heavy JS APIs for their application instead railAPI will serve the purpose in an optimized manner. Web projects that take help from emberJS, BackboneJS etc for RESTFUL design can get a relief by the introduction of rail API and it will take all the necessary processes into consideration for a successful API call. However, users would be required to have Ruby 2.2.1 or above before they move to Rails 5.


Turbolinks 3: In the world of smart web browsers; it is really difficult to deal with multiple constraints that arise due to excessive use and production of wide variety of devices that are having no proper hardware specification or potential. Along with that, these devices used to take the help of mobile networks for the browsing purpose i.e. 2G, 3G or even GPRS. So, it is really a challenge to make each and every web app page load faster by reducing its size and making it dynamic and asynchronous. For this purpose, the framework rolls in Turbolinks 3 to resolve the trepidation of sluggish web applications. The addition is anticipated to help users hold onto most of their web pages and selectively update certain sections through partials. While this shares similarity with SPA in a way, the feature aims at eliminating the hassle of slow web page reloads. In return it will not only improve the overall user experience but also the look and feel of the web app will move to a next level.


Action Cable: The highly anticipated Action Cable should be making its way to Rails 5 – hence, developers who felt a dearth of WebSocket support can definitely look forward to this one! Action Cable is a part of Rails 5 (as publicly announced by Rails), hence now there is no more worry for multiple instance applications especially while dealing with live web communication. Suppose you are going to add a live chat application to your Rails app; then this can be well handled by Action Cable which is simply can be integrated to client side JS and back-end Ruby program. Ruby on Rails development, for certain, provides all the tools that a developer would require in order to design a great application. However, this new feature will bring forth an incredible performance boost among the community. It will make the application much more effective without any need to integrate websocket!


Rake Tasks: Several things are likely to go simpler, including the Rake Tasks. The upgrade will enable users to perform all Rake tasks using just Rails. Although the new facility is analogous to the previous versions of Rails, it is expected to ease the process of task optimization for many developers out there. It is highly effective when we need a cron to run in a periodic manner for our web application. In this process, your application will be loaded with up-to-date database data to se5rve the users in a more effective way. rake db:reset and rake db:seed are the core of this concept. These two components makes the cron proces much hasslefree than before. With reset; the db will reset and with seed the db will be modified with the latest data.In previous versions of Rake, terming was restricted to only alphanumeric characters – beginning with an underscore and so on. The new version, however, aims at roping in the prospect of entitling partials using any character. Rails 5 will let users use any character post the underscore. The Rails team has also taken off its helper methods like div_for & content_tag_for and has transferred them to a separate part ‘record_tag_helper.’


Action Pack: Just like MVC architecture, Rails has some inbuilt similar concept through its Action Pack. Action Pack consists of two major parts i.e. Action View and Action Controller. It is quite similar to that of View and Controller of MVC. Now, every request of Rails will be handled by Action pack. The Action Pack then divides it into part segments i.e. Action Controller and Action View. Action Controller instructs the Action View which data to display and which to hide. By this process, the core logic or analysis is performed by the Action Pack and the entire event is handled smoothly with Action Controller and Action View. Developers may look forward to the new Action Pack, which will basically focus on generating accurate routing information. And, this will come straight from the Rails backend. It includes the working concept of Action View and Action Controller.


Render from Anywhere: The route of render_anywhere also gets a tweak. Earlier, users would have to use render_anywhere in order to deliver any views outside of controller. The new Rails 5 takes that away and lets users render their views from anywhere. Moreover, users will be able to benefit from the newly added ‘assigns’ function as well. That will allow users to pass instance variables to templates.

Mindfire Solutions has one of the largest certified ROR developers team while have successfully executed more than 100 projects for its clients across the globe. Take a look at our RoR development projects and decide for yourself whether you want to hire Mindfire Solutions as your trusted software development partner.

How safe it is to hire an App developer from an Offshore Software Development Company

Technology experts have highlighted the pros and cons of outsourcing development work and have also debated on its downside. There have been many eye opening instances which are worth mentioning. The topic has been of prime importance to folks in working worldwide.

Cost plays an important role in taking the decision. Labour expenditure is controlled when work is outsourced to markets not having a higher wage rate thus, taking advantage of affordable cost. Why should one pay in-house developer $150 per hour when you could get the same work done for a half of original cost. Ultimately, you could use the cost savings to make bigger, more advanced apps.

On the whole, comparing per hour costs isn’t as telling as one might assume. Firms also take into account while outsourcing software development and encouraging other businesses to follow the practice to deem the time related to evaluating an overseas venture. Highlighting extra costs points to missing forgone costs and often gives the contradicting standards. Research indicates that 62% of overseas IT ventures costs much more than what businesses predicts.

As far as Short Term projects are concerned, the most sought after benefit of outsourcing is to bring an expert from the foreign market without having to pay for long term thus making use of professional expertise in a big way with slight affiliation costs. Sometimes you really need someone with expert skill to be around the project as value of qualification supersedes the cost benefit. Another benefit of hiring off shore consultant is that you avoid any short term cost that would have been incurred, had there been the need to formally set the office. This may look imprudent but many developers don’t like to be around people while working. This hampers their ability to concentrate and have negative effect on their overall performance. They deem office environment to be major cause of distraction. With lunch, chatter, and continued distractions, there is little time left for developers to get actual work done at the office.

Consequently, this usually means developers must work way more hours than necessary, which hurts conscience and company’s values.Consultants who work for full time have also proved to be cost beneficial as they are missing opportunity costs for working with you and would have worked for someone else part time earning more money. Employer seems to be getting more benefit this way as compared to developer thus proving loyalty. They are giving time and energy into your business and would have a shared interest in the outcome and that’s huge. They are less likely to bail for a number of reasons and, if the fit is good, will be long term players.Consultantssitting around you know what’s happening and could be helpful in many ways than a part timer. More brainstorming sessions could happen instead of waiting for an allotted meeting time. This would encourage casual conversation which could help extract new ideas. They also professionals and know what difficulties other functional areas are facing and could offer potential solutions boosting confidence.

Outsiders inherently elaborate success in terms of securing clients, succeeding in projects and handling multiple tasks at the same time. While owners view the success differently and define it by building businesses that generate revenue and capturing markets. A freelancer (especially one who is outsourced) will be of help for not very long and would be more inclined to take care of personal interest.

Mindfire Solutions, 16 year old IT software solutions provider from India has been addressing the three points of worry in Offshore software development and satisfying clients across the globe. If you want to hire the services of this software services provider, send in your requirements to sales at Mindfire Solutions dot com.

What is near-shore software development?

Organizations today are trying their best to reduce average cost of production and increase their profit margin or in some case give price relief to their customers. With the increase in competition levels around the world firms are looking left and right to increase their productivity levels and generate more revenues. However this may sound easy but in truth it takes a lot of thinking and managerial input. One method adopted by organizations to reduce their budding cost levels is the concept of outsourcing software development. Outsourcing software development has three different layers; Onshore, Offshore and Near-shore.

The term near-shore was first introduced back in 1998 when an American software development company decided to set up business in the Caribbean island of Barbados. Near-shore software outsourcing is an easier alternative to offshoring since it enables the organization to take advantage of lower costs (but potentially not as low as offshore) but with a close physical location, easy communication and the same time zone. The use of near-shore software development method can help negate certain drawbacks of outsourcing. One of the potential drawbacks of outsourcing was the lack of communication between the firm and the hired client. To eradicate or minimize this risk, the methodology of near-shoring was adopted. This would allow the firm to employee a contractor that is in a relatively close proximity to the parent firm and operates in similar time zones. Therefore, by adopting the method of near-shoring the firm can build a better communication network and incorporate relevant and appropriate feedbacks.

However the issue with using the method of offshore outsourcing is that the firm can face language barrier problems, and due to the long distance the quality of communication gets hampered. With the increase in geographical distance, the time zone varies further handicapping the quality of communication between the firm and their outsourcing partner. In this regard, most of the companies adopting near-shore outsourcing methods try and work around the possible communication barrier by making changes to their organizational culture are adopting a more flexible organizational hierarchy where the outsourcing partner is incorporated. Hence, they try and look for new market segments or development source that is in closer proximity and allows for ease of access.

Near-shoring allows an organization to operate in an environment which they are completely familiar with. It is essential that an organization is aware of the macro and micro environment workings of the country where the organization is planning to near-shore. With similar time zones, language, work ethics and labor laws, the organization can ensure a smooth working environment.

Countries and companies that view themselves as near-shore position themselves as offering some of the benefits of offshoring (namely cost reduction), while mitigating other difficulties—especially those imposed by distance. Most firms today are using the concept of near-shoring to promote cultural integrity and to position themselves as a global firm operating in more than one country.

With the threat of intellectual theft becoming ever present as technology advances, organizations are trying to bring operational activities closer and making a more compact organizational culture. Therefore, near-shore software development and activities have gained wide, spread acclaim. Not only are organizations trying to reduce the threat of cybercrime, but by adopting near-shore outsourcing practices the parent organization is in close proximity to the clients and their customers. Therefore this increases the applicability of the customer responsiveness and decreasing the turnaround time. Thus this allows the firm to make necessary changes to the product based on the relevant feedback given by the consumer.

Mindfire Solutions has been providing expert offshore software development services since the last 16 years. Our clients have praised our software development services and customer centric behavior through their testimonials that can be found at Mindfire Solutions dot com. If that convinces you enough to test our strengths in software development please drop in your requirements to sales at Mindfire Solutions dot com.

Should developers be encouraged to participate in Seminars and conferences?

"Everything comes with some advantages and few disadvantages! Nothing is perfect in the world neither our concern about Seminars and Conferences. Should a developer attend them? It is really a complicated debate. There are lots of benefits and few demerits of Seminars or Conference. The thing is what is our priority? Is the seminar relevant for the developer or not? So, it all depends upon the situation and the topic and if it is really related to a developer then, the 2-3 days period will change the life of developer else the same will happen but in a negative manner!”

Let’s come straight to the point, we often need expertly guidance or suggestions for steady progress no matter what industry our business is in. And likewise, developers who constantly search for improvements in their products or intend to incorporate creative blends into their projects would feel a dearth of an industry conference or seminar (at times, if not every day). Here, we are listing out some of the main reasons why developers should actually take some time off their schedule and attend seminars and conferences –

Learn Something New: It’s of paramount significance for any developer to expand their horizon of knowledge. Seminars and conferences play a huge role in helping people learn something new about their specific area of interest. They are empowered with an opportunity to learn a whole lot more from interacting and grasping the ideas of professionals. Seminars where experts are sharing their experiences and growth modules will help developers hone their skills. The new knowledge on their domain will definitely keep them ahead of others. In fact, it builds a confidence within them and this is really vital for any professional especially if he belongs to technical field. In the competitive and ever changing environment it becomes essential to remain up to date and confident enough so that you can advocate with your client for their benefit which in turn give prosperity to you and your company.

Get Inspired: A break-point from the one above! Yet, conferences go a long way in instilling new ideologies and concepts into the minds of creative developers. They not just help add something valuable to one’s business, but also help change the way one works. The concepts when get executed by the developer, he gets awesome output that will definitely bring reputation of your company in the industry. In fact, up to date concepts and futuristic methodologies are way better than that of traditional system. So it is always welcomed by the industry and attending seminars and conferences can inspire developers to get better and design more creative concepts, helping them achieve greater success in their respective fields.

Stay Connected With Industry Trends: One of the most important reasons why any developer should attend a conference is to know the latest news and trends that hit the market. A field that is highly competitive demands constant knows– hence, seminars help developers stay updated with trends in their industry and stay cutthroat. Industry throws out those outdated stuffs in no time; you can guess it by considering how fast a technology gets depreciated. Every passing day, the industry is gifted with numerous outstanding and brilliant ideas that makes the older concepts outdated. So in order to sustain in the ever changing industry it is necessary to remain updated with new and latest trends and technologies.

Add Value to the Product: Seminars are more like an investment – where a developer could go, learn the tricks, expand his possibilities as a developer, hatch onto some new ideas, and build a better product. Conferences render the skills and knowledge one would need to make his product or venture valuable. Knowledge never get exhausted rather gets transferred to different versions and in different forms. So, from the knowledge that you gained from Seminars and Conferences you can build more productive products for the industry. In fact, the process of development becomes more efficient and the quality of the end products stands out from others. Hence it really helps in adding values to the products or services directly or indirectly.

Networking Opportunities: Usually developers are encouraged to be connected with likeminded professionals through social media networks like LinkedIn. There they discuss with others, shares their thoughts, points and gains knowledge. There are many web platforms like forums that also help in networking with others and gaining knowledge from each other. But, they all are virtual and can never be compared to that of practical like Seminars and Conferences. Nothing better than being introduced to industry professionals in practical! Seminars provide developers with an ideal opportunity to connect and interact with like-minded people. Networking with right people could turn resourceful for developers – where they could meet another professional with the same or better vision, have someone interview their product, or get insights into their developmental plan.

Change the Strategies: A lot of times, seminars or conferences are a way to review the progress or retreat in life. If there is anything that looks off-the-track, seminars could help provide an insight into it and help change the strategies to get back on the right track. They also enable one to be reflective, tweak the turns (if needed), and evaluate their progress. Many times, some mediocre minds came to seminar with their outrageous products or concepts and ask the participants for their opinion. In the process, the participant will not only gains knowledge on a new concept but also gets an opportunity to interact with a concept that may be way ahead of their scope. But, it will definitely bring some excellent knowledge on the new concept; even they can give better opinion to the person to make the concept more effective and efficient.

Have Fun: Last but not the least; developers should attend seminars because they are seriously fun. Being in business should never be a dull chore and hence, industry seminars can bring excitement and enjoyment to dealing with a career choice. It’s more like an ideal amalgamation of educational learning, professional creativity, and fun! So it will rejuvenate the developer and makes him enthusiast enough to focus on his work with more energy and confidence after the seminar is over.

Mindfire Solutions takes all the initiatives that are necessary to include a knowledge based culture at the work place. Employees across the three centers hold seminars on various software development topics. It also encourages employees to attend seminars outside the organization that help a great deal in enhancing the overall knowledge of its employees apart from giving them the required exposure. Are you then sufficiently interested in the culture of knowledge at Mindfire Solutions?

The Importance of Non-Disclosure Agreements in Outsourcing Software Development

A Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) is a term which describes a pact between two or more parties. It is used to limit the original members from telling the information to someone else or to someone who is not part of the initial agreement. Such an agreement is usually done to make sure that important information is not leaked or is made public. Such an agreement is necessary to use when trade secrets are discussed and is used when a new and previously not known technology is used. Usually, this type of agreement is signed when organizations are in practice of using the concept of outsourcing.

Outsourcing is somewhat of a new procedure where organizations are looking for cheaper way to get their work done. Outsourcing can be either Near-shore or Off-shore. The major difference between the two methods is based on geography. In near-shore outsourcing practices, an organisation looks for closer partners to work with. Partners with which the outsourcing firm shares the same time zone, language and work standards are preferable. In contrast, when offshore outsourcing is used, firms work with partners who are in a completely new region which follows a different time zone and has different working standards. Firms when using the concept of outsourcing for software development need to share important information with their partners and trust them that the information will not be leaked or made available to a third person. In such case, outsourcing firms usually ask their outsourced partners to sign an NDA. The importance of following such a practice is high because companies, while outsourcing, allow outside employees to go through private details of the firm like information about the company’s shareholders and the type of technology and working methods they use. If such information is made public, competitors and rival firms can significantly benefit from it.

Companies using outsourcing partners to develop software for any purpose are more careful and usually ask their offshore software development partners to sign a NDA form. Obviously there are threats in offshore software development and these firms must be careful of virus attacks or being a victim of counterfeiting. In some cases, firms ask their outsourcing partners to develop certain software to operate machinery or equipment which is new and not many people are aware of it. This technology may be part of the firm’s strategy and the organization does not want that information be disclosed. In this case, having a NDA with the outsourced partners is critical as they are aware of what information they cannot disclose to an external source. Furthermore, the benefit of using a NDA is that it makes sure that there are no communication gaps between the two partners. Everyone is aware of their roles and they know what is right and what is wrong. This allows the entire work procedure to run smoothly without any unnecessary stoppages.

Lastly, for those businesses that are using outsourcing to develop their company software must be aware about the use of NDA. Through an NDA, they can limit the use of their outsourcing partner and restrict them only towards the actual job they are hired to do. The outsourcing organization can always be in control when using NDA. If something goes wrong through the use of NDA, the firm can control the damages. Also the outsourced partner is aware of the legal cost if they break the pact. Therefore, it is good that firms who use outsourcing partners make a NDA and get it approved by their partners. Businesses that are in the information and technology industry are now adopting the use of NDA as outsourcing has become a common practice.

Mindfire Solutions has already carved a niche for itself as one of the premier vendors offering offshore software development services to its SMB clientele and help them excel in their core business. If you are interested to hire the expert software services of this 16 year old organization then do send in a mail with your requirements to sales at Mindfire Solutions dot com and we will get back to you in 72 hours.

ASP.Net and JavaScript can make great engaging web applications

"ASP .Net the flagship and most ambitious product from Microsoft to serve the web industry in an amazing way have been ruling the industry since its inception. The only technology that can directly compete with the all-time industry leader Java is none other than ASP .Net. Being a web domain specific technology, it has all the features and components that a web developer may need during the development process. As a framework it really helps ASP .Net developer lot in terms of lessening the development effort and time. Altogether, ASP .Net is an awesome package i.e. fully loaded with features and functionalities along with in-built libraries enabling web developers creating highly efficient web solution. When it combines with JavaScript, the web developer will undoubtedly get the best result out there. Let's see how? "

ASP .Net controls are simply boon for web developers: Controls of ASP .Net is treated as the success key for the product; because they really give life to the platform with their unmatched quality of service and power to empower any web application with utmost care. Different controls of ASP .Net perform different tasks for the application with perfection that is the most important part. Controls like Menu control, grid view, graphs and charts etc will definitely improve the quality of web application without much hassle. Along with that AJAX and Editor control will help web developers in creating asynchronous web applications on the fly that make the application not only light but engaging enough to stick the audience with the browser.

ASP .Net with JavaScript for interactive and dynamic web development: Dynamic web page is at its peak and so should be. Considering the fact, that web applications are getting mass traffic from smart devices like smart phones and tablets; it is supposed to the developer to design smart apps that can well behave in different smart devices without compromising on the quality of the application. With Dynamic web content, it makes a lot sense in improving the overall user experience to a next level. Again, when ASP .Net comes together with JavaScript the things get much refined than before. JavaScript can be used in a much refined manner in creating interactive and attractive web application on the fly. Flood your web application with events to make it interactive and user friendly- JavaScript will takes care everything seamlessly.

ASP .Net with BootstrapJS can add fragrances to the application: JavaScript is super-fast faster than any other programming language on the earth and hence the terrific demand of the same. ASP .Net does not make any mistake by integrating twitter bootstrap with the framework in the latest edition. Now, the ASP .Net developer can directly get benefit of the library from the platform in designing responsive and event driven application. Moreover, with bootstrap the content rendering over the web page on various screen resolution will be seamless. Again, with media query, web developer will end up with amazing web app development on ASP .Net framework.

Are you worried about web app development- It's possible with ASP & JS combo: Counting the number of smart devices! It’s growing man at a much faster pace than our imagination. So, you must accommodate with the situation by creating amazingly exceptional web apps for those smart phone and tablets. From ASP .Net framework develop smart apps for any platform like android or iOS or windows with the power from JavaScript making the entire process funnier. You app will render perfectly fine in all devices and platforms now. Again since JavaScript-AJAX development is super-fast; it will make the app powered with lots of speed in-built in the application.

Engaging and attractive web app with HTML5 and CSS3 along with ASP .Net: Thinking of modern web app development; and we are missing out HTML5 and CSS3 there. It's not fair. Now, make your web application powered by ASP and JavaScript along with HTML5 and CSS3 in creating overwhelming and attractive web pages on the fly. HTML5 canvas and SVG are there to make the multimedia file render and run smoothly on the web page whereas CSS3 transition and other effects are simply awesome. HTML5 local storage i.e. improved and bigger cookie will definitely help your application to run while offline; it’s a virtual concept though. Engage your visitors with engaging HTML5 games and visual graphics in a hassle free manner and all within very less memory or light weight. Again, make your multimedia video files render over the page without any flash but with same user experience or even better with HTML5 video!! With these technologies as a part of your web application development, the application will touch the heart of your user and definitely be a grand success.

Create cross platform apps from within ASP .Net: The latest ASP .Net platform supports cross platform web app or native app development. Those who used say Microsoft does only monopoly; are now silent because, with latest version Microsoft enables web developers in creating awesome apps for Android, iOS and Windows etc. In fact, ASP .Net has in-built simulator kind of stuff that will enable the web developer in visualizing how their stuff will render in practical device from within the platform itself. This will definitely change the app development work and improve their quality to a large extend. On the other hand, it will eliminate unnecessary works for the tester since many are done by the developer by visualizing the exact look and feel of the web app through the in-built simulator and hence creating marvellous piece of smart apps with ASP .Net.

Forget about engaging web application; think ahead for smart site and smart app with ASP .Net powered by JS: No more websites! Now it’s time for smart sites; the sites that are highly intelligent and powered by artificial intelligence. Apps can now render themselves in a beautiful and smarter manner knowing where they are i.e. their platform! If they are within iOS they will behave in certain way other than that of Android and same case happens with the device screen size as well. And, everything is possible with ASP .Net powered by JavaScript!! So, the future lies here only.

Mindfire Solutions has been a leading software services provider since the last 16 years. Apart from dedicated ASP.NET developers it has extensive experience in handling JavaScript programming as well. Check out our plethora of services and send in your query to sales at Mindfire Solutions dot com and we will help you with your web application development needs.

Checklist for outsourcing software development

As globalization increases with every step of the way, companies and major organizations are moving towards the concept of outsourcing and using external contractors to get relevant software and production processes developed. However, outsourcing brings with it an increased amount of security and trust issues. Companies usually have very important trade secrets that they would not wish to be disclosed. Therefore, sharing company sensitive information with a client who is not physically present can be taxing. Over the past years many outsourced projects have taken a turn for the worst, where either due to mismanagement the project failed delivers on the desired results, or due to certain negligence trade secrets or sensitive company information was leaked.

In order to avoid such a scenario, companies must undertake a proper background check of their client whom they intend to work with. Following is a checklist that companies can follow when choosing their outsourcing partner.

Make a criteria list: A list of criteria must be established that the outsourcing partner should follow. By outlining the essentials both the firms doing business together are aware of their rights and limitations. All ambiguities are sorted out, and work can commence in a proper way. By doing so a proper framework is established through which the business venture can move ahead in a professional way. This would reduce the chance of any unforeseen risk and deadline breaches. Furthermore the firm would not have to spend additional amount of capital on contingency plans.

Compile an alternate client list: It is always prudent to have backup or alternate options in case the primary client, either back out or due to some reason is deemed as unqualified for the job. By having a list of alternate outsourcing software developers, the respective organization can reduce the cost of finding clients every time. The alternate list can also be used for future outsourcing plans and would save the firm valuable time on researching upon prospective outsourcing clients.

Background check is a definite to-do: Undertake a credibility check of the outsourced partners. To make sure that the outsourcing company’s software developers are credible and reliable; a proper background check regarding the work efficiency of the partner should be undertaken. It is essential that the following outsourced partners are using legitimate production techniques and have a reputation of delivering on time and are not regarded as a company that is known for slacking. It will be ill advised if the firm neglects doing the appropriate credibility check because there might be a chance that the outsourcing partner usually breaches deadlines or has a reputation of committing some sort of felony.

Narrow down the list of alternates: After the complete due diligence process, the list of potential alternates can be reduced and only those that the company sees as a future partner can be left. This allows the organization to focus their energy on the important alternates and take an informed decision.

Select the best of the lot: The last aspect on the checklist is the selection of an appropriate client/partner. After all the necessary information is collected and the outsourcing software development partner is chosen the respective company can visit their offices and have interactive meetings so that a proper understanding is established between the two partners. Even though the process is only for a temporary time period, yet the cost associated with the project and the sensitivity of it, compels the organization to undertake the entire checklist procedure.

Trust form the basis of any long term relationship but that does not mean one would choose its software development partner based on all that. A due diligence and meaningful interactions could save a lot of time, effort and money in the future. So when you choose your software development partner choose wisely. You may also like to check out a 16 year old offshore software development company who has a reputation for having constantly delighted its clients over the years. If you need a software development partner to help you achieve your business goals, reach out to us at sales at Mindfire Solutions dot com and we will get in touch with you at the earliest.

Front end Vs. back-end development

What is Frontend development? Front end web development is something that the end user can view, feel and experience! Though it’s an intangible thing still the user can well feel it through his eyes and mind. Whatever a user sees on the browser is none other than the front end part. The design, the interaction, the attraction and the visual effects are the parts of Front end development. In tech world, we can say front end is the combination of HTML and CSS being tightly coupled with JavaScript for generating enterprise standard user interface for any web solution. In fact, today’s industry is highly influenced by the look and feel of any application besides the core functionalities. Hence industry is inclining more towards Front end development considering its future potential.

What is backend development? If front end is our skin or complexion or beauty then Back end is our Heart and Mind!! Though it is absolutely hidden from the rest of the world but, we can never express our feelings without our mind and heart. The back end part keeps the secret of the application i.e. the core logic. Whatever the user sees on the browser is the result of the instruction from the back end part. All types of interactions that make the user feel delight is in fact controlled by the back end codes. Though, JavaScript plays an important role in rendering user focused data on the browser; but, at the end of day it’s the backend that enables the hidden data to come in front of the user. The whole database and the core logic are well written in the back end section with lots of codes in a programming language like JSP, ASP, PHP or Python etc.

Components that make a lot different: If the two major ends of a web application have different contribution; then obviously their components must be different enough from each other. Let’s see what the major components of front end development are!

1. HTML & CSS: As we discussed above HTML and CSS are the most important part of front end development. It’s like the skin of the web application. HTML is the content that we see on the browser while CSS is the style or look and feel that is being imposed to the HTML contents. In other words, HTML contents are designed with the help of CSS for better look and feel of the application. HTML is written in the form of tags whereas CSS gives styles to the contents inside the tags. They are well coupled with each other in creating a splendid web application.
2. JavaScript is a must: Though the look and feel is crafted by HTML or CSS but what about the user interaction? JavaScript is there for the purpose. JavaScript enables the web solution to work in parallel with the HTML and CSS contents in a magical manner. The user is given more power to customize the web page through different triggers i.e. events. Events are like a triggering function that enables any web page to behave in a systematic manner as per the demand of the user. The user on the other hand, feels more privileged with those powers given by the JavaScript events.
3. Frontend web frameworks: Frameworks are nothing but powerful tools to make the life of any web developer easy. For front end design, there are lots of tremendous frameworks available in the industry with which the developer can design highly scalable yet efficient enough web applications without more effort and time. Mostly, frameworks are developed in JavaScript or CSS; because they play the important role in crafting interactive and attractive web applications. JS tools like Google’s AngularJS, KnockOutJS, BackboneJS and NodeJS etc are in high demand in the industry due to their unmatched quality and reliability in different scenarios.

Back end components in web application development: Just like Front End development, Backend is also supported by many components that enable the application to run smoothly behind the screen. It is essential to know those components from the developer’s point of view especially when we are considering Web application development process.

1. Programming Skill: This is the most important part of back end programming; just like HTML and CSS here the Programming language plays an important role in back end application development. There are many back end programming languages in the industry like C#, Java, PHP or Python etc. These programming languages are use in creating the logic section of the application i.e. how the application will behave under different circumstances. It deals with different types of data type, methods, classes and many object oriented approach to make the web application a successful one.
2. Logical analysis: Without proper logic or analysis a web application is like a scrap!! If all the functionalities of the application are not well defined by the back end programmer then the application will never be a reliable one. For the same, back end web developers analyses a lot before starting coding. They take the requirements from the client and analyses what should be the functionalities of different modules followed by how the code should be written for better performance. Why better performance? Functionalities can be written in different manner and it varies from developer to developer; but the code that is highly stable and optimized is given priority; because this affects the overall user experience of the application. An un-optimized code will load slowly and it will even stretch the loading time under bandwidth constraints like mobile networks; resulting with a bad user experience.
3. Server communication: This is yet another important component of back end application development. The data is stored in the database and being retrieved by the user as per requirement but by an intermediate stage i.e. the server communication. Usually in data driven web solutions, servers like Apache Tomcat is used for efficient server side communication., They implements threading concept into the application but with time, it is now performed by JavaScript (nodeJS); but will discuss it in a different chapter.

At the End of day, it’s all about user Experience (UX): For the success of any web application, the user experience remains at the top priority. Because if the user rejects an application then, no one can save it!! Isn’t it?

Mindfire Solutions has been developing practical, user-friendly software solutions for its clients ever since it started operations 16 years back. If you need any form of assistance be it in the form of an interactive front end or you need help in building a robust back end or both, just let us know at sales at MindfireSolutions dot com and we will be getting in touch with you in one business day.

Why it is Safe to sign a Non-Disclosure agreement with an Offshore Software Development Company?

“The most valuable business commodity is Trust! For any successful business, there must be a higher level of trust between the two parties. But it is next to impossible to trust over someone when the business will run over a unique idea or intellectual property instead of any tangible property. Isn’t? There are many burning examples where the business man has reached to a great level with the help of other’s idea being stolen. Even one of the top IT giants in the industry had made its presence in the industry with the virtue of someone else’s idea. In IT industry there is a terrific threat of loss of business idea or we can say Intellectual property during the transaction, so it is always recommended to take all possible measures to avoid any such unpleasant experience”.

What is Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA)? The best way to keep something under your control is through a legal agreement. Similarly, to keep your idea secret from others, you can make an agreement with your business partner for the future of your hard earned money. When you choose to outsource your application development work to an offshore software development company, you must process an agreement with them about the secrecy of your intellectual property otherwise your idea may be executed by them in their name and they will get all benefits of yours and you will end up with a huge financial loss. To avoid this issue, you can take the help of NDA i.e. Non Disclosure Agreement. NDA is a legal entity or legally enforceable contract that prohibits the leak of your information in the industry from the offshore software firm. It keeps every aspect into consideration like no leak of intellectual property during and after the development process by anybody who are associated with your project development. There are many other things to consider as well for a good business. We will consider them latter.

Safety and NDA: IT industry is driven by an intangible idea or we can say intellectual property. A good concept can make you billionaire if get executed properly. Facebook, Twitter or Orkut all are nothing but a concept or simply idea; but their execution was so beautiful that they become a one website industry. This hints the importance of new concept or idea for a successful business. If their idea would have stolen before the launch of these products, then what would happen? They could never turn out as a successful business model. So, while developing any application or product, we must make sure that our idea is safe with the offshore company otherwise we cannot achieve what we are dreaming for. Non-Disclosure Agreement can definitely help you as a strong safety measure.

Should you sign a NDA with an Offshore Software Development Company? This is the biggest question regarding NDA. Yes, there is definitely need of NDA for the success of your business; but the NDA should be comprehensive enough. If you have not focused on every aspect of security threats for your application or product then, NDA is simply worthless. Make sure that the Non Disclosure Agreement that you are going to sign with your offshore software firm is really beneficial for you. Because sometimes, some unreliable software companies hide some terms and conditions in the NDA and that might create a big problem for you in future. Imagine they have prepared a Non Disclosure Agreement for you regarding keeping secrecy of your idea during the development process. But if you disconnect your relation with them for some reason during the process then what would happen? Will they still continue to keep your idea secret or not? If they will start a new product with your idea and launch it in the market before yours then what will happen? It can create heavy loss for you. So you should read each and every terms and conditions of the agreement before you sign it with your partner. You should check every detail of the NDA and if something is missing you should ask for modification before you sign up.

Make sure you have taken all possible steps before preparing a NDA: Signing a Non Disclosure Agreement with your partner is a good idea; but again it should be compressive enough to keep your intellectual property safe for longer. It is always recommended to prepare your NDA with the consultation of legal advisors from both parties. Sometimes, some rules are followed strictly in a country while it has no significance in a different country. So, it will create problem in future. For a secure business, you should consult legal advocates from both locations i.e. from yours and from the land of developing country so that you can prepare a strong NDA for your concept. There should not be any loophole in your NDA. For the same; you can take help of any other businessman who have experience in outsourcing project to a remote location. His experiences will definitely help you lot while preparing the NDA. He can inform you all possible threats associated and accordingly you can access and prepare a better and stronger NDA.

It can avoid all possible threats in your business: With NDA, you can avoid all possible threats of loss of information about your concept only if it is really detailed enough. Once you able to prepare it properly with all possible consideration it will help you a lot till the end of your project. Few important considerations are: must include all members of the development team of the offshore software firm in your NDA; because they may disclose it to someone else or even on the social networking sites. So, you must enforce them in prohibiting from these types of behaviour. 2ndly, what would be the time period? Usually, people keep it up to the end of the project, but that is not at all wise!! You should keep some extra time beyond the project duration for your safety; something like extra 2 years or so on sounds better. Now, you should also ask for extremely tight security of your project codes, designs and discussions with the developers or project manager; because they are the core element of your project. The offshore software firm should be asked to sign NDA from all its associated employees to avoid any leakage of information in the process. If all these things are considered and made available in the NDA, then you need not to bother about your intellectual property and have a peaceful sleep at night.

At Mindfire Solutions, we are experts in offshore small team software development and we have been serving our 300+ esteemed clients more than 15 years now and have executed over 1000 projects in various technologies and domains. If you have any custom application ideas in mind and need our expertise, please feel free to write to us at sales at mindfiresolutions dot com and we will revert back within a business day. You can also avail our limited period risk-free trial offer now.

HTML5 mobile app development tips for developers

Creating mobile applications using html5 can possibly make an experienced web developer to the mobile app developer. Lots of businesses have began creating business mobile applications with HTML5 and JavaScript. Because of the rise of HTML5 based mobile operating systems, like Firefox OS along with Sailfish OS, the idea of building HTML5 apps has achieved huge popularity. These days the developers are happy to create apps with the help of HTML5. HTML5 can do excellent things and it's being supported by big players including Adobe, Google, and Amazon.

Ensure that it Support Various Operating Systems - The concept of building apps using html5 is becoming quite common these days. The skilled web developer can easily code mobile apps by using HTML5. The rise of smartphones in the marketplace drives the business owners to build HTML5 based mobile applications. Incorporated with remarkable and innovative features these savvy hand-held gadgets are ready at an affordable price.

Develop a good User Experience - Much delightful and the most gratifying client experience should be a HTML5 developer’s primary focus. Before you can start the composition of code, you should understand what exactly your client is wanting and then plan the strategy. Once you have the strategy, you could potentially start with the coding. You need to value what your client probably expect and how they can get interrelating to the app.

Go With Appropriate App Type - What types of app, packaged or hosted, the one you select to build is important. A packaged app is actually a single zip file which users may download and can do the installation through the app store, whereas assets of any hosted app are generally hosted over a web server. Every app type has some advantages and drawbacks. Hence, it is important to choose which kind of app is ideal for your users and will scale your needs.

Make Use Of Templates Whenever You Can - At the time of building your app, think about the benefit of pre-built templates as well as code snippets whenever possible. Many of the programs and frameworks offer a starter project that may help you speed-up your app development. Make use of them to minimize total development cost besides save a lot of your valuable time.

Think about the Size of the Screen - There are certainly lots of devices found in the market these days, and all comes with a different screen size. It is likely that even more devices are going to be launched in the future, therefore, try not to develop an app simply for a couple of devices. Rather, make it adjust to whatever screen size. The greater amount of devices an application supports, the more and more people will likely adopt it.

Focus On Language Localization - In order to encourage user use of any kind of app, you should not create it for any specific device. Rather, develop it to get universal. Many of the mobile OS that are based on HTML5 such as Firefox OS that has got a large user base of non-English and thus, localization of an app is very important. Therefore no matter if that is a packaged or a hosted app, as per the local of an user, the content needs to be served.

Offer Offline Support - Among the common mistakes which the app developers over and over again do is making an assumption that the user might have accessibility to the internet. Whereas packaged apps usually do not need any kind of internet connection. However, hosted apps require. Offline support has an important role to play in keeping user’s experience when you will find some short of interruptions within network connectivity. For this reason, craft your apps using offline support.

Test Prior To Deployment - Regardless of how attractive or well-functioning you may have built your app when you ignore to test it prior to release, all of your efforts might ruin. It's the stage that enables you to notice whether the app is created in a manner that you wish to be used by your audience. The actual test of an app is for testing it among those individuals who did not test it in the past. When you do the testing prior to deployment, one can know if things are all right or have to do some changes.

Based on a survey, HTML5 use by the developers is quite active nowadays. This will certainly increase the developers approach and the use. This can further increase the need of professional developers of HTML.

At Mindfire Solutions, we have a team of senior HTML5 developers, who have developed over 50 custom HTML5 Applications to our esteemed clients. If you have a custom web application development need, please feel free to write to sales at MindfireSolutions dot com and we would revert back in one business day. You can also avail our limited period Risk-Free Trial offer.