All posts tagged OS

Experiencing the BlackBerry PlayBook Innovation

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BlackBerry PlayBook entered the market just a few months ago, and people are already clamoring to become the owner of one. The BlackBerry PlayBook is a seven-inch, 1024×600 WSVGA LCD touch screen on a 130mm x 194mm x 10mm tablet that is designed for portability and usability. Unlike the smartphones usually produced under the same brand name, BlackBerry PlayBook runs on the new BlackBerry Tablet OS. The new OS is founded on the QNX Neutrino real-time operating system, which was designed to run ADOBE AIR as well as BlackBerry WebWorks applications. BlackBerry prides itself on being able to produce a lighter and more portable tablet than its competitors while still not sacrificing any of the applications needed for better performance.

Some of the BlackBerry PlayBook features include a 1 GHz dual core processor which pairs up with the product’s multi-touch display and ability for multitasking. This means that users can perform multiple demanding tasks without compromising speed. Included in the perk’s list is a 3 MP front-facing camera which can be used for video conferences over Wi-Fi. It also features a 5 MP rear-facing camera which is capable of supporting up to 1080p film playback.

But features are only a small part of the package. On the other hand, the PlayBook also has as many as three thousand additional applications from BlackBerry App World present during the initial BlackBerry PlayBook launching. Unlike BlackBerry smartphones, however, BlackBerry PlayBook apps do not include the characteristic mail, contacts and calendar applications. As of now, the only way to be able to access these on your PlayBook is to utilize the BlackBerry Bridge to facilitate pairing between the PlayBook and your BlackBerry smartphone. This can become quite a downside for non-BlackBerry smartphone users.

Many reviewers and comments about BlackBerry came out after the initial release. Some were quite positive in their assessments while others seemed bent on nothing but negative analysis. The main argument seems to be on the fact that the producer company decided to remove the mail, contacts and calendar applications from the PlayBook itself. Although as stated earlier, one can still access them through BlackBerry Bridge. In response to these reviews from their customers, the company has made plans to make these apps available on the next software update on the PlayBook. Other BlackBerry PlayBook software updates to look forward to include the addition of BlackBerry Java and Android-based applications in BlackBerry App World.

Features Your Project Management Software Must Have

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Managing a project can be a very exhausting task, considering one has to manage different modules of all the projects, read large amounts of files, check each minute detail and bring out the relevant information. This is where project management softwares come to your rescue. However, it is important to know that for efficient management, a software that possesses some key features should be wisely chosen. Here are a few of those:

1. Flexibility

Whenever you start with a project, there are some requirements you enlist. However, these requirements keep changing from time to time and thus you will have to add or subtract a few things from your planned schedule. It is also important that all of these changes are conveyed to your employees, and the project management software you use, should be able to involve the whole team.

2. Easy usability

The software you use should be simple. You would not want your employees to waste their time on first understanding every minor detail of the software and then working on it. It should not require formal training, before the employees can actually start working on it. Anybody who has basic computer and software knowledge should be able to work with it.

3. Multi user login

A project is not handled by one person. It requires the inputs from your employees, clients, vendors etc. Therefore, it is important that the software you buy or develop, has multi-login functionality. However, you should be able to grant them access points, ensuring the security of the project. Each and every one should not be able to access all the modules of the software, and be given accessibility to only those modules, on which they need to work.

4. File sharing:

A lot of people are involved when work is being done on a project. This means each and every person has their work-station, where they complete their designated job. However, it is important that each and every change made by one employee, is reflected in everybody’s copy. This implies that the software should be centralized. A good idea is to have a -check in- and -check out- feature in the software. If a person tries to access a document which is already being used by another user, then the former would be alerted for the same; the document would be given a -checked out- status.

5. Platform Independence/Not Operating system specific:

The software to be developed should be able to work on any simple operating system. This will make it more popular amongst a lot of users, owing to its ease of being able to work on any OS.

6. Internet enabled:

Having an internet-enabled software is extremely important for a well-coordinated project. One should never take the risk of taking an offline project management software. It does not allow one to reflect changes in the entire system and is a complete failure.

These are some of the main features a software should have; apart from the ones listed, a calendar which reminds you of the set deadline, automatic e-mail notification, Gantt charts are other important features.

Investing in a business financial software becomes necessary with the growing needs of the company. For more information on other business softwares, check this website.

Mobile Application Lifecycle Management Post Launch

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A lot of people believe in the myth that once a mobile application is developed and launched (either on the public stores or for an enterprise), the job is complete. This cannot be farther from the truth. In fact, the quantum of work required to manage the lifecycle of a mobile product after its launch is way higher than what went into creating it. It is like having a baby. The real work of parenting starts after the delivery of the child. You don’t see the new parents coming out of the labor room and thinking, -That’s it, our job is done, and the baby will grow up on its own-. Similarly, the application development team cannot orphan their creation once it is launched. The need to invest time and effort in keeping it relevant to ensure growth.

Unlike the traditional client-server or web applications that go live as full – featured products, mobile software has a more iterative development cycle, with incremental improvements following in short cycles. Therefore, managing mobility product lifecycles is very different from the traditional software. Since the functionality is incrementally added to the core code, the support requirements post launch are much more intense compared to traditional products. There are a number of tasks that need to be performed for the post launch lifecycle support.

1. Adding features and functionality – The software will need to be kept relevant. In today’s world of fast paced technology evolution, what’s exotic today will become commodity tomorrow. The very features that your customers downloaded your application for, and that were your differentiator, will very soon be imitated and even enhanced by your competition. In order to stay relevant and continue to be valuable to your existing and potential customers, you need to keep innovating.

This means constantly improving the existing features of your app, and adding new ones. This will require on – going development effort, along with a core strategy team to guide and govern the development group. You need to constantly evaluate your competition, and their strategy, to create a counter – strategy.

2. Supporting new devices – there is a flood of new devices in the market, courtesy the myriad of device vendors. There are new devices with different form factors and specs getting added to the mix every now and then. It is very challenging to create code that will work on all the possible device and OS combinations that are available in one go. Therefore, you need to keep adding to the certified device list even after the launch. To do this, you need to test, modify, re – code (if required) and certify your app to work on additional hardware.

This is not just important for marketing. It gives you and your software access to a larger community of potential customers, which means a new and ever expanding revenue stream.

3. Updates and bug – fixes – It is not just about adding capabilities. Despite the most rigorous testing routines, any code can have unresolved issues, known and unknown. As your users report issues and concerns, you need to remedy them, and release updates to distribute the new code to the existing users. If your app is a paid app, you also need to set up a mechanism for the users to contact you for support. Depending on the volumes, this might mean an investment in a full time helpdesk.

The author holds a content writer positions with one of the top mobile apps development companies. The mobile application companies in Noida with its team of mobile banking app developers has created mobile apps to meet customized demands of clients.