Individual software development

Individual software development of all kinds

Not every software project starts at 0 and ends at 100. Sometimes it is necessary to extend the development capacities externally in the middle, to obtain advice from specialists or to have another developer’s eye look over the finished software in order to fully exploit the last potentials.

Complex tasks include designing and developing advanced software architectures as well as maintaining, expanding and optimising application software (apps) and many other solutions:

In the software world there are now countless programming languages for processing data, many of which are similar, build on each other or there is the possibility of combining several languages. In the following, we will introduce you to the three most common programming languages. This is a summary of their most important features and areas of application:

What are frameworks and what advantages do they have for individual software development?

A framework, as the name suggests, provides a framework structure for the individual software and contains various libraries and classification criteria that accelerate software development. Depending on the use case and the customer’s specifications, software developers use various modern web, app and test frameworks. Particularly for the development of software applications in C++, C# and Java, the technical support provided by a framework is useful, but they also represent a useful technology when programming embedded software (ARM, AVR, SPARC).

Qt: A framework that can map almost everything from database access, software logic to GUIs and enables platform-independent application development in C++ or QML.

Boost: Probably the best-known C++ library collection for portable software as well as for the operating systems macOS, Windows, Linux and others.

Microsoft.NET Framework  (with WinForms, WPF, ASP.NET & .NET Core): C# development for all web, mobile and desktop applications, microservices, cloud services, IoT and more.

SPRING: Open source framework for web development with Java.

If you compare individual software development with a journey, you can say that it is advantageous to speak many languages at the beginning. This way, you can safely reach your destination on a journey. It is also faster and more direct with a map that shows you the possible routes. If a car with an appropriate driving licence is also available, then the project will soon be achieved quickly and safely. This means: a software developer always needs good equipment to get the most out of what he has in him and to be at the forefront of the competition.

Good planning is the golden key to developing efficient software for businesses. Even though most programmers would prefer to start coding the software within the first minute of starting the job, and this approach may seem efficient at first – this way system gaps are predetermined. Within an individual software development, there are often changes and revisions throughout the project process. Conventional project management approaches are therefore too inflexible and ineffective, for example through rigid release processes. At the same time, unforeseen cost and time expenditures can be avoided in cooperation with customers. Therefore, agile project management should be used in the development and test departments and the individual needs of the customer should be addressed.

It should be possible to implement individual wishes flexibly and individually. It is particularly important that the project management model fits your company, the project, its status and the individual requirements. The procedure can be based on SCRUM as well as the Lean Startup model. These four stages provide the basic roadmap:

1. planning the software project:

As with classical models, agile software development also plans in advance which budgets and timeframes are to be adhered to under the overall goal. Taking into account the specifics of the project as well as the software development approach, it is also planned which programming language and associated toolkits will be used to get the best out of your new software solution.

2. goal setting for the first development phase / the first “sprint”:

Visions and requirements can best be realised in small, concretely formulated stages. The team of software developers assembled for your project agrees in sprint planning to implement the user stories and intentions of the first development step, the so-called sprint, as defined by the product owner. In addition, the purpose of this sprint is defined so that each team member has an understanding of the upcoming work content and its individual solutions.

3. first sprint phase:

From now on, the first hot phase begins. The first lines of code are written, backlog items are implemented and daily or weekly updates are given. Different approaches to individual software development and quality assurance can take place. During the sprint, progress is accurately documented. The time frame of a sprint phase varies between one and four weeks, but remains the same within a project. Thanks to digital time recording, all participants always keep track of the current progress.

4. evaluation & acceptance of the software development:

After completion of the first increment, it is presented, analysed and the methodical procedure is evaluated retrospectively. If certain potentials are discovered, direct improvement measures are planned for the next sprint phase and then the interim result is presented. If the customer is dissatisfied, the result is corrected in parallel to the following sprint or the focus is once again holistically on optimisation before moving on to the second, third and fourth sprint.

A project often evolves in its requirements and solutions. Most software agencies focus on agile methods and lean models in project management, as these allow for additional flexibility and bring more efficiency as well as productivity. For each project, a team of software developers is individually assembled with a product owner / project manager, as envisaged by the Scrum concept. This ensures that the project framework is adhered to and the value of the product to be developed is maximised.

In the area of individual software development, igniti supports your company from the initial conception to the implementation of various projects – regardless of status and model – as a long-term software service provider with all the trimmings or relieving you as a support engineer.

Do not hesitate to contact us. Together we can achieve great things and develop the right software solution for you. The service you need is not mentioned on our website? Contact us anyway – we love challenges!