Why .NET Core is Thrilling The Developers?

This post was originally published here. Suddenly everyone started talking about .NET core 3.0. What’s really going on? Is it something brand new or just the maturation of features spawned out of the previous versions? Well, Yes .NET Core 3.0 Has A Lot Of Exciting Features To Offer. It Highlights The Support for Windows desktop applications, Windows Presentation Framework UWP XAML Entity Framework 6 Razor components Support for C# 8.0 Supports Machine Learning and IoT To understand, how .NET core 3 came into existence, let’s first walk through the history of .NET Core Development What is .NET Core? The .NET core is a free and open-source platform developed by Microsoft and maintained by the .NET community on GitHub. .NET Core 1.0 The first version of .NET, .NET Core 1.0 released in 2016 with an aim to develop open-source and cross-platform (Windows OS, Mac OS & Linux) support. It can be even used to develop cloud & IoT applications and also supports Docker containers, Razor pages, C#, visual basic and F# languages. Everything can be done from the command line without the need for IDE. .NET core 1.0 came up with the new versions of ASP.NET and Entity Framework (EF). The Components Of .NET Core Are Distributed In the Following Ways: .NET Core Runtime— includes the .NET Core runtime and framework libraries. NET Core Runtime— includes ASP.NET Core and .NET Core runtime and framework libraries. .NET Core SDK— includes the .NET CLI Tools, ASP.NET Core runtime, and .NET Core runtime and framework. .NET Core 2.0 The release of .NET core 2.0 is faster than its predecessor. Developers can build applications using command line console and can get support with more than 20,000 APIs which was not supported in previous versions. It supports the common framework for the enterprise code on all the devices and cloud. It also included Windows-only APIs and also brought Razor Pages and SignalR that were missing from .NET core 1.0. .NET Core 3.0 The release is really focused on developing Windows desktop applications using Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), Windows Forms and Entity Framework 6 (EF6). While the .NET core 3.0 has a lot to offer; it is essential to have a good understanding of what features and advantages it has stored-in for developers. So, here is the.Net Core 3.0 for all those enterprises or developers who are planning to get an application made or upgraded to.Net Core 3. The Deployment Model Do you think that .NET is changing its model? Well no, It isn’t changing with this new version. Image Courtesy: devblogs.microsoft.com Architecture has not changed; Web, Data, AI/ML, Cross-Platform is the same as the previous version. The new part is Windows Desktop packs which support Windows application on the .NET core in the Windows OS. This enables the developers to develop Desktop apps in the same environment. Before the release, two different frameworks were needed, which consumed more time and resulted in a tedious process. Developers will be able to run new and existing Windows desktop applications on .NET Core 3.0 and enjoy all the benefits that .NET Core has to offer. Let’s See Some Of The Features Of .NET Core 3.0 Support of Entity Framework Core 3 (EF core 3) LINQ (Language Integrated Query) enables to write a virtually unlimited complicated query; which is a huge challenge for LINQ providers. To address this, .NET Core 3 support a new version of Entity Framework (EF Core 3), which includes significant changes to its LINQ implementation to generate efficient queries. EF core will choose what part of the query can be translated to SQL and then execute the rest of the query in memory. Moreover, with EF core 3.0, developers will be able to use awesome features of C# 8.0 like Async streams, Nullable reference types etc. Side-By-Side Versions That Support WinForms And WPF: In the existing scenario, only one version of the .NET framework is supported on a machine. This may create some issues like security fix, bugfix or new API can break applications on the machine. But, with .NET core 3.0, developers can run multiple versions side by side. Applications can be locked to one of the versions; when ready and tested it can be moved to use different versions. Makes It Easy To Convert Existing Desktop Applications to .NET Core 3.0 It follows the straightforward process of converting an existing desktop application to the .NET core 3. The developers need to do is: Analyze the third-party dependencies when running on .NET core Target the existing desktop applications to the .NET Core 3 and recompile for ensuring API alternatives Then update the project files to target .NET Core 3. Execute the plan based on the structure of the framework. According to the Microsoft team, the Paint Application has already been tested on .NET core 3 and it is converted to the .NET core just by using WPF binaries without even making modifications in the code. Moreover, they observed faster startup along with additional benefits while running on the .NET core. Provides An Easy Way To Update Project Files .NET core 3.0 has adopted SDK-style for project structure which offers, Much smaller and cleaner project files PackageReference instead of package.config to manage NuGet (free and open-source package number) dependencies directly within project files. Allows editing project files in Visual Studio without unloading Simpler response to source control When developing Windows desktop application with the use of .net core 3.0, you will be prompted to modify the project files to the newer SDK-based structure. Ships Framework Directly Into An Application Prior to .NET core 3.0, developers can run only one version of the .NET framework on the machine. So, if developers want to take advantage of the latest framework, they had to install software built on a newer one. But, .NET core version 3.0 will allow developers to ship the latest framework, functionality, and APIs as a part of the application. This means developers do not have to install the framework separately on a computer or server. This functionality is useful when developers are hosting applications in shared or managed environments. Implementation Of Server-Side Blazor Components With the integration of, Blazor components, the same code will run on different devices without changing the code. This will enhance the compatibility of web apps. Blazor uses open web standards to create UI components that can run in the browser, mobile, WebAssembly without using plugins or code translation. It Offers The Following Advantages: No need to use javascript; developers can write code in C# Developers can easily use the existing .NET libraries to develop the .NET ecosystem Provides consistent tools, languages, and APIs for a full-stack development However, Blazor being in its early stage, Microsoft is still working on rounding out the technical issues. .NET Core 3.0 Is Great For Developing Desktop Apps – Quick Summary Users will be glad to check out the performance improvements and other runtime updates It is easy to use or test the new version of dot net core3 Enables both machine-global and application-local deployment It supports Net core CLI tools and SDK-style projects in Visual Studio .NET Core 3.0 – The Future Of Framework .NET Core 3.0 provides developers with a robust, flexible, and efficient tool to build amazing desktop apps. With this release, the developers can explore exciting new features, embrace competitive advantages, modernize the desktop application and make it more advanced. Undoubtedly, .NET Core 3.0 offers a bunch of additional features and upgrades to enhance the desktop application. If you want to gain a competitive advantage and know about our asp .net development offerings, get in touch with us.

Posted on: 16 December 2019 | 7:51 am

Chatbots – Transforming Customer Experience to the Next Level

40% of consumers do not care whether a chatbot or a real human helps them if they are getting the help, they need By 2020, the average person will have more conversations with bots than with their spouse 57% of our respondents were interested in getting real-time answers from bots on a company website 67% of US millennials said they are likely to purchase products and services from brands using a chatbot By 2020, chatbots should take over 85% of customer service interactions What do these statistics and trends point towards? Rise of the “Chatbots”, yes, for sure plus something more. These proven statistics indicate that chatbots are surely the face of the future and more importantly, chatbots are turning out to be the most active and popular medium to enhance the customer experience. These bots can have actual conversations with the consumers and make their lives better. It is the jet age today. Expectations of technology are higher than before. There is an increasing need for fast, real-time, on-demand, effective and simplistic information supply. Clients are bound to either get frustrated or lose trust if these parameters aren’t met. And that has given rise to chatbots getting closer to customers and offering them an appealing experience. Chatbot responsiveness is on a high. Customers are wanting to interact more with chatbots and as a result, organizations are keen to embed chatbots in their business.  Before we plunge deeper into how chatbots are instrumental in offering an augmented client experience, let us glance through what chatbots are and their key features. “Chatbots Will Be Indistinguishable from Humans by 2029” - Ray Kurzweil Chatbots – The Face of the Future There are chances you may have interacted with a chatbot, not realizing it was a chatbot and not a human figure. That is what is the magic of a good chatbot. As an application to perform basic tasks, answer customer queries, help clients in their tasks, etc., chatbots are majorly responsible for streamlining interactions between businesses and customers. Artificial Intelligence Solutions is revolutionizing the business world and hence chatbots driven by AI are becoming the latest buzzword today. Especially from the point of view of a customer, an AI-driven chatbot offers an enduring and appealing experience, very similar to that of a human being.  Chatbots prove to be advantageous to both – the business owners by seamless and continuous interaction with customers and to the customers for having assistance as and when required. With the help of AI, chatbots are now all set to perform tasks that haven’t been seen before for e.g., helping customer do shopping, choose their preferences, plan a vacation, etc. Only time will tell! The very first question that comes to our mind: “Where Do Chatbots Reside?” Chatbots reside on popular platforms such as Snapchat, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, etc. Their working is dependent upon a pre-described set of guidelines. Preliminary level of chatbots can perform just the commands that they have been programmed to work on. Advanced level of chatbots, along with the help of AI, can perceive the language as well as the commands. Chatbots can manage and monitor the different level of tasks such as simplifying a purchase, collaborate with clients, offer content level data, provide answers to queries, etc. What Are the Key Benefits Offered by Chatbots For an Impeccable Experience to Customers? Round the Clock Support and Service A service and support criteria very important for the customer is that it should be available any time of the day. Chatbots just do the same. They are never off work and hence can provide 24 * 7 support to clients. There are no chances of the customer having to face voicemails or email messages. Since chatbots can recognize a certain range of feelings, it becomes easier to satisfy the customer by relocating the call to the concerned, for a quicker and effective action. Least Waiting Period Usually, customers find it very irritating to keep waiting for the next free person in communication. With chatbots, there is generally no wait time. Chatbots are available as soon as you connect to them. Chatbots possess a lot of customer information with them and hence can solve client queries almost immediately. This also creates a good impression with the customers and offering them the least wait time. Collate Customer Information and Customize Interactions While interacting with clients, chatbots can collect a variety of information and provide it to the concerned departments for further analysis/action. This can help them tailor their interaction with the customers and offer them a pleasing experience.  Enhances Brand Faithfulness and Customer Relationship Organizations are keen to have a closer rapport with their customers and thereby build their brand image. Chatbots help them connect frequently with customers with different reasons like wishing them on their birthdays, offering them attractive schemes, asking for a product review, reminding them of the next purchase, etc. Such activities help businesses build up their brand image in front of customers and keeps the clients happily connected. Facilitates Live Chatting  With the aid of Natural Language Processing (NLP), most chatbots are well equipped to chat live with customers. They can understand, analyze and reply to customer queries, as well as human interaction would. Nowadays, chatbots are integrated into organizational websites or applications so that customers can instantly access the needed resources with the chatbot’s help.  Better Version of IVR Interactive Voice Response (IVR) systems are the most common methodology to interact with customers but at times, it gets very frustrating for clients to keep patience while the IVR gets you to the right channel. Chatbots can be considered an enhanced version of IVR wherein they are almost as natural and receptive as humans. Customers are sure to get a feeling that they are being understood and heard instantly.  Flexible Ways of Connecting with Customers Be it text or voice, chatbots are effective. Be it through Facebook Messenger or any other website, chatbots can do it. Chatbots turn out to be flexible enough to connect with customers through disparate methods and channels and hence are more approachable.  Brand Embodiment Since chatbots have many faces that can be represented, many channels through which they can connect, it is easier for them to portray different facets of the business brands. They can easily engage with clients, keep them engrossed, raise their curiosity level and keep them glued to the business brand. Also, they can be leveraged to attract an increasing number of clients via different marketing activities. Faster Availability of Client Details Customer finds filling in forms as a very boring task. They are always unenthusiastic to fill in n number of details and this could be the main reason they may not be further interested in exploring products. Chatbots turn out to be quite effective in getting basic client details from the client and storing that information in the desired manner.  Lesser Resources Needed for Client Support Chatbots are efficient and faster versions of human figures and hence can replace human resources to a large extent. The need for more resources automatically reduces and leads to big time-saving in cost-effectiveness. Of course, no one to replace human interference for some tasks, but surely, chatbots can be of great help in reducing the number of resources. It also plays an instrumental role in getting increased productivity and saving on person-hours of efforts put.  Automation of Monotonous Activities At certain times, there are numerous tasks that are repetitive in nature and yet important to perform. Chatbots can be of great help in getting those tasks done, even if it involves interacting with the customer and thereby, save a lot of energy, time and money.  A Smoother Experience While the client is navigating through websites or applications, chatbots can be fitted in appropriately to offer needed information to fasten the process. It can also be helpful in collecting data, offering suggestions, gathering feedback and tracking information.  Reduced Anxiety to Customers Usually, customers find it very tiresome to contact the support team because of many reasons like wait time, inadequate information, delay in getting solutions, communication gap, etc. Chatbots can be helpful in overcoming most of these irritations and offer customers a relaxed and positive experience. The entire customer service procedure would be streamlined, effective and fastened. Some of the Popular Chatbots, Ruling the Globe Spotify Sephora CoverGirl Nodstrom Charity Water 1-800 Flowers Swelly eBay Lyft yes Sire Facebook Messenger Top Chatbot Trends Ruling 2019 Steady, Augmented and Broader Receiving of Chatbots Improved Human-like Feel of Chatbots AI-Driven Chatbots Improved Data Analytics, Pattern Recognition, and Detailed Insights Traditional App Interface Getting Replaced Chatbots in the Internet of Things  Conversational Bots  Developing Bots Done by Organizations Also Higher Security and Chatbot Regulations  Multilingual Chatbots  Voice Chatbots Interaction Between Bots Automated Call Centres The Takeaway  "All that glitters is not gold". There are certain drawbacks of chatbots that the world may keep facing until they are solved. But, looking at the ratio of positives to negatives, the positives are much higher. Chatbots are surely having a bright future.  As technology advances, chatbots driven by AI will be extremely instrumental in offering the best of customer service and support. The major reason for such an explosion in acceptance of chatbots is the increase in usage of mobile messengers and involvement of AI in our lives. Business owners will have to rework on their communication processes to embed chatbots and thereby, satisfy their customers. Let us await the wonders of the chatbot technology to be a part and parcel of our daily lives. What more magic could technology create!

Posted on: 22 August 2019 | 9:12 am

Mobile Device Management (MDM) a Modern Day Challenge

The story for mobile devices has completely changed in today’s enterprises. Mobile devices surpass the very indispensible laptops and desktops and are harbingers of technology that manage day to day tasks for various business activities. These devices move out from the controlled areas of the enterprise to the field, the homes of the workforce and even the client premises.  MDM regularizes BYOD Bring Your Own Device for all the stakeholders of the company fuels thoughts for safeguarding and monitoring happenings on these devices. A robust Mobile Device Management (MDM) policy needs to be in place for enterprises to ensure valid and verified usage of these devices with or without direct supervision of authorized persons. MDM puts in place fool proof methodologies for monitoring and scrutinizing mobile devices issued to workforce to be used within or outside corporate premises.  An efficient MDM ensures safety and security of a group of devices using various service providers, operating systems and networks. It exercises discrete control over ever the increasing mobile devices for smoother and secure workflows.  MDM To Dos While planning a mobile device management system judicial planning is needed to have a useful system. Besides maintaining the inventory of devices, intelligent grouping and maintenance of inventory becomes very helpful in maintenance and reporting. Physical verification and registration of devices joining the group is quite advisable for ensuring proper security. The appropriate integration of various platforms and databases that the different systems and devices coming together might belong to is the toughest challenge for a praiseworthy MDM.  MDM Security Aspects     a) Intelligent user verification logic not only authenticates any user accessing the software, but also gives proper rights to the users as per the roles assigned.    b) A corporate management policy limits the usage of MDM bound devices to relevant tasks. Indiscriminate usage of resources especially the internet is controlled and a disciplined usage of the devices is enforced.    c) Highly secure communication channels are maintained amongst the devices and the central panel for intercommunication, secure workflows , monitoring and tracking.    d) Asset management of the devices is a very important task to be rolled out by the MDM. Management of devices lost or not being used correctly is a part of the disciplinary issues addressed by the MDM.    e) Real time reports and alerts should be generated as and when needed by a capable MDM to keep the management aware of the on goings and the risks as well. SPEC INDIA offers a highly acclaimed MDM system as a product or as a value added solution to ZooM, the  flagship solution to Mobile Sales Force Automation. 

Posted on: 9 January 2015 | 4:35 am

Less Framework - The Dynamic Style Sheet Language

Development of mobile first projects is the latest buzz word in the world of designing. The most popular frameworks for this technique are unquestionably Bootstrap with its successor Less Design Framework. These design frameworks make front end web development very fast and cater to a variety of devices with ease and comfort. Be it Android powered phones or tablets or the iOS devices like the iPhones or the iPads or even the Windows Phone Series; when it comes to responsive and adaptive mobile first projects; Less Framework comes across as a dependable framework based on HTML, CSS and JS. It is compatible with all the well known browsers like IE 9, Safari, Google Chrome, Firefox and Opera. Both Less Framework and Bootstrap are licensed under the MIT license and available at GitHub as an open-source. They share the common purpose of enabling mobile apps and websites to become cross-platform and cross-device. Less - How it Works Less frame work uses static width and media-queries to switch between different designs for different popular screen resolutions. It consists of 4 layouts and 3 typography sets based on a single grid. The CSS grid framework modifies the designs of the websites and mobile apps into adaptive and queries code the Child and the Dependent Layouts. Child layouts are obviously controlled by device size and browsers. Less is a CSS pre-processor, extending the CSS language by allowing variables, mixins, functions and other objects making it more maintainable and scalable. Less runs inside Node, in the browser with compatibility with third party tools for compilation. Less Framework more than achieves its task of building efficient websites with consistent layouts. The single grid base gives the layouts a similar look and feel where the elements can be reused and fitted easily across the layouts. Less sticks to simple HTML and CSS coding. It makes the development and design simple for all browsers and various devices.

Posted on: 17 December 2014 | 6:55 am

How Is Java Knitting Rapidly Into The Embedded Space?

The "Java" family of technologies has always been considered on the apex of all software technologies. Owing to its salient features, such as flexibility, open source nature, compatibility, ease of use, adaptability and many more, Java has always been interweaving itself into multiple latest happenings, frameworks and architectures. Java Application Development has been pervasive in the embedded space at a very rapid rate. Java has been chosen as the apt language for embedded devices owing to the continuously increasing complexities in the software arena. This embedded technology is woven into devices and systems, ranging from chips (on credit cards or ID cards) to bigger server class instruments to home driven equipments and is tightly coupled with the device. It brings about a real time experience for the user. Today, there are many daily usage devices based on this technology and Java is spreading its embedded wings into devices like SIM cards, printers, bank machinery, mobile handsets, TV, AC to name a few. Java Embedded is usually not available for direct download or installation to users. It is based on an integration mechanism by the electrical / electronic manufacturers, directly on the device. Why is Java Embedded getting so popular and in-demand?     • Since it is highly functional, trustworthy, convenient and secure, Java Embedded tends to get attracted to solution providers at a breath taking pace.     • It is bound to improve product quality.     • Presence of standardized class libraries is bound to increase productivity and decrease rework.     • It can encompass small as well as large embedded appliances.     • One of the major highlights is its portability because of its OS independent nature. Hence, code written once can easily be ported on to any type of hardware.     • Ensures good quality and higher performance.     • Bound to reduce the Total cost of ownership and thereby fasten processes.     • Higher level of code modularity and OOPS concepts lead to development of a robust and scalable software application. How is Internet of Things (IoT) Imbibing Java Embedded?   Internet of Things (IoT) is a concept creating waves today, in the industry, encompassing not only companies but homes too. It can be explained as a network consisting of material units which are connected via various wireless mechanisms. Their units have inbuilt sensors and embedded technologies and this is what they use to sense and communicate. Owing to IoT, daily utility things are connected the Internet and are being stuffed with intelligence. It is wondrous to see how these devices are able to talk to each other digitally and centrally, ensuring higher efficiency in quality, security and cost savings. SPEC INDIA, an ISO 9001:2008 software development company, has its proficiency proven in Java Application Development with numerous projects and applications successfully implemented world-wide, for a wide range of clientele. Its experience in creating n-tier applications with MVC technologies giving Java / J2EE development services, has been remarkable. Java Embedded is an area in which SPEC has proven its presence.

Posted on: 26 September 2014 | 8:19 am

Google Web Toolkit for Mobile Applications Development

Google Web Toolkit is an open source set of tools that allow creating and maintaining JavaScript Front-end applications using Java. These can be supported on any platform with the GWT files. Optimizing complex browser-based applications is also a chief task of GWT. What’s more, it is completely free and constantly improvised by the dynamic open source community. Google itself puts GWT to use by using it extensively for Google AdWords, Google Wallet, Google Blogger, Google Offers and Google Groups Developing mobile applications with Java and have them work on iOS, Android and Windows Phone is a a dream come true for many. GWT, Google Web Toolkit is what you are looking for then. Simply write the Java code that compiles into cross-platform Javascript and HTML, and discover how to take advantage of these features on several popular devices, such as the camera, accelerometer, and GPS using the ingenuity of GWT. Development with GWT Using GWT, developers can develop and debug Ajax applications in the Java language using the Java development tools of their choice. When the application is deployed, the GWT cross-compiler translates the Java application to standalone JavaScript files that are optimized. When needed, JavaScript can also be embedded directly into Java code, using Java comments. GWT applications can be run in two modes, Development Mode for writing the code and debugging and Production Mode to execute the compiled JavaScript for deployment. The various open source plugins available make GWT development easier with other development environments like NetBeans and Eclipse.     The Application Development Lifecycle with GWT The application development lifecycle is quite simple and obvious with the GWT. • Develop          A) GWT SDK with core Java APIs and Widgets is used to write the AJAX applications.          B) Any of the Java development tools can be put to use to develop the source code.          C) A higher level of abstraction on top of common concepts like DOM manipulation and XHR communication is achieved by development in this fashion.          D) The developers can mix handwritten JavaScript in the Java source code using the JavaScript Native Interface          E) Design and Development is object-oriented because Java is being used.          F) Dynamic and reusable UI components speed up the development cycle. • Test and Debug        A) The GWT Developer plugin bridges the Java code supplied to the debugger and the JavaScript.          B) Facilities like inspect variables, set breakpoints, and all the other debugger tools available with the Java environment make aid in testing the code.          C) Since the coding is done in Java, tools like Firebug and Inspector can be used.          D) The JavaScript generated can be easier to understand or obfuscated and smaller to download. • Optimize • Code Optimization      Optimization starts with the GWT compiler across the Javascript code itself by           o Removing dead code           o String optimization           o Inlining of methods and functions • Browser layout Optimization and CSS Optimization           o Speed Tracer is a new Chrome Extension in GWT that enables you to diagnose performance problems in the browser. • Execute           • Just before deployment, GWT complies the Java source code into Java script files.           • These are optimized, stand-alone files which automatically run across most common browsers and mobile platforms like Android, iOS and Windows Phone. As a call of the times, smart developers put in rigorous efforts for platform independent development for both web applications and mobile applications. It is then, but a natural step for them to explore technologies like Google Web Kit for cross platform development.

Posted on: 18 September 2014 | 7:51 am

HTML5 - The Language Funky Devices Speak

HTML5 is the language synonymous with cross platform development. In the recent days it has moved on from becoming just a tag based language for structuring and presenting content for the World Wide Web to become the indispensible tool of the internet. The Application Programming Interfaces for both mobile web applications and mobile applications are rolled out effectively by using the crossplatform abilities of HTML. Compatible and rich user experiences are incomparable when designed with HTML5. The responsive and adaptive design concepts deliver consistent UI / UX across devices giving users the freedom to explore devices and gadgets like never before. The unique crossplatform capabilities empower the applications and solutions developed with HTML5 to come across as the most dependable and practical. Crossplatform Applications using HTML 5 • Easy to develop It is easy to develop applications using HTML 5 and most of the developers like to write code using HTML. • Crossplatform deployment cost Crossplatform apps are developed only once. It is common for all platforms and hence the cost of redevelopment for each operating system is avoided. • Performance HTML 5 is known to be the common language of the web, It works seamlessly across mobile platforms and browsers. They can be installed from the web as icons on home screens across any phone with the same performance and user experience. • Searchable contents The contents on HTML 5 can be crawled and indexed by search engines, so possibly discovered by people searching on the net. This increases the accessibility of the app tremendously. The Advantages of HTML5 in a nutshell HTML5 offers many incomparable advantages, but in a nutshell the following are the most talked of. Speed and ease of Development Crossplatform Support Ease of Maintenance Easy upgrades of apps Freedom from Appstores Reduced Cost of Development and maintenance Uniformity in UI / UX CSS3 Styles implementation GeoLocation Services Storage Improved Security & Performance. Searchable contents RIA Video Audio Streaming Support Rich Media HTML5 for Mobile Devices HTML5 for mobile websites, mobile applications and mobile operating systems provide niche features like Geolocation APIs , offline web application support, WebStorage, CSS3 Selectors and 2D animations. Capabilities of CSS3 and and extended video / audio support are also offered through HTML5. SPEC INDIA has 27+ years of experience as a software application development partner for clients spread across over 20+ countries using varied technologies providing customized solutions in areas of Desktop Application Development, Web Application Development, Mobile Application Development and Enterprise Mobility Solutions. As mobile and wearable devices take over the world today, we recognize the powers on HTML5 and HTML as being the most mobile ready tool to develop mobile sites and apps across various platforms and devices making it a popular cross platform development technique. Our teams keep up pace with new technologies and solutions to enhance older ones and bring them into our services.

Posted on: 5 September 2014 | 8:07 am

Terabytes to Petabytes, The Evolution of Enterprise Data Warehouse

Moving on from Gigabytes to Exabytes enroute Terabytes, Petabytes and Zettabytes; data storage has come a long long way. Reminiscences of the past tell us of the modest floppy disks, CDs, DVDs and the Hard disk drives where organizations felt ‘rich’ having just a few Gigs of data…. Enter Data warehouses, Big Data and Business Intelligence; a cocktail of data storage, which got so big that it has been very appropriately christened BIG Data and the very intelligent platform for data interpretation; Business Intelligence. The Data Collection: What is Enterprise Data Warehouse? In simple words an Enterprise Data Warehouse, EDW is designed to store data in such a way that it can be accessed easily for later use in reporting, data analysis and predictions. Cohesive storage platform for data captured from disparate operational sources and platforms is provided by Data Warehouse making it a central repository for all the data relevant to an organization. The Magicians in the Enterprise Data Warehouse The Enterprise Data Warehouse or EDW itself evolved as requirements, prudence and hardware capacities along with the devices increased over the years. Right from Data mart, Online Analytical Processing, Online Transaction Processing EDW has found its way to include Predictive Analysis in a big way. And what about Big Data and BI ? • Big Data The data that we have been collecting over the years is finally so big that it is rightly called Big Data now. It is a large volume of unstructured data which cannot be handled by other Database Management systems. Big data uses statistical inference to determine regressions, nonlinear relationships and data dependencies from a large volume of data. • Business Intelligence BI uses descriptive statistics or statistical analysis with the data collected to interpret the hidden meanings. It is used for transformation of raw data into meaningful and useful information for business analysis. Large amounts of unstructured data are interpreted by BI to identify new opportunities and develop new strategies for businesses. Coupled with Predictive Analysis Tools, BI puts the theories of probability and predictions to use. This justifies why Enterprise Data Warehouses are now augmenting themselves with concepts like BI and BIG Data to get a more complete picture of the past, present and the future of the data. SPEC INDIA is a boutique ISO 9001:2008 certified software solutions company with 27+ years of consistent and sustained growth implementing critical business systems at Multi-location. We provide end to end custom Business Intelligence (BI) and Data Warehousing (DWH) solutions with assurance of easy availability and accessibility of real time business critical information at right time using both open source and license platforms. We offer a simple proof of concept or fully integrated business intelligence solution over Microsoft, Oracle, Pentaho, Jaspersoft tools. We are a one stop shop that can provide services like: Installing and setting up the BI server, Creating dashboards, Scorecards, Reports, Cubes, Analytics and integrated security to end-user training and after sales support.

Posted on: 20 August 2014 | 8:00 am

The Design Revolution - From User Interfaces to Natural User Interfaces

Devices become a part of our life to the extent that they rule our lives. Hordes of applications come along. Social behavioral patterns change because of devices so much so that the devices talk to each other to make smart and smarter choices for us. Only till yesterday, the watch was a modest instrument to measure and display time; the glasses & contact lenses were simple correction techniques and of course the phone was a simple machine to talk to people! Look where we are today with imagination of wizards and creative geniuses! Devices around our homes and cars are getting there soon too! Designs around us then have moved on from the traditional, visuals only arena. The design bureau, takes care not only of the sights and sounds and the appeals, it becomes much more. To put the feel into these intelligent applications, the design becomes intuitive. The emotions added into these software sums up to a natural User Experience (UX) with a good mix of User Interactions (UI). This is the Interface Design. Imagine then, looking into some one’s face while paying for your coffee or maybe stealing a look into the naive watch to check your email or letting your contact lenses keep a tab on your blood sugar. Device to Human Interactions give rise to a special kind of designing; Interaction Design. We already hear of smart shelves in supermarkets all set to recognize and adapt to consumer behavior. The beacons guiding the consumer through alleys and floor in a store are not unheard of.  Driving an intelligent car that maneuvers us in a saga of role change will not remain the forte of a sly spy. Adventure is already at our door steps with Augmented Reality and Location Based Services let loose. Designing for the IoT; people connecting to services rather than technology, in tandem with each other with a specific purpose is here too. The digital experiences that we have been having with the devices through gestures, taps, touch and voice are all set to change. Industries like home security, health and wellness, travel, education, retailing besides the usual are getting into the devices. Natural User Interfaces, our skin, our eyes make a slow move into the design domain with biometric based technology. Finger print ids and retinal recognition tools are now becoming a part of all our gadgets. The designs then move on at a different pace. The design revolution seizes us. SPEC INDIA boasts of 27+ years of experience as a software application development partner for clients spread across over 25+ countries using varied technologies providing customized solutions in areas of Desktop Application Development, Web Application Development, Mobile Application Development and Enterprise Mobility Solutions. Our design team at SPEC believes in showcasing your business to the world in a way that no one forgets!! We have carved a niche in UI/UX designing and Graphic designing giving your apps and websites a complete makeover to enhance your corporate brands. As a call of the day, SPEC INDIA puts in rigorous efforts for integrating contemporary design techniques into applications and solutions developed to give you a meaningful, satisfying User Experience.

Posted on: 13 August 2014 | 9:00 am

Microsoft .Net A Powerful Web Framework

Microsoft .NET platform is a free, resilient and resourceful framework for both Web Application Development and Desktop Application Development alike. It provides competent features like WebForms, MVC, AJAX framework, dynamic data scaffolding, templates and themes, built in controls and free developer tools to promote rapid application development to offer a robust platform providing solutions for Mobile Application Development using Windows Mobile and Windows Phone as also the very competent Business Intelligence Applications. Primarily running on Microsoft Windows, it includes a large class library known as Framework Class Library (FCL) which provides user interface, data access, database connectivity, cryptography, web application development, numeric algorithms, and network communications. This integration of technologies and concepts is the driving force behind the Microsoft Web Development techniques which offers numerous advantages. Better, Quick & Fast. Microsoft Web Development • Easy to Install The Microsoft Web Platform Installer which includes .NET framework with ASP .NET and Visual Web Developer Express bundles up all the required tools needed to build a web application. • The Power of .NET Framework Offers built-in security, reliability and robustness Allows developers to experiment with niche programming styles and patterns • WebForms & MVC Two distinct approaches to support ASP.NET Features like membership-based authentication and authorization, URL routing, caching, master pages and localization Rich server-side controls and data binding with ASP.NET WebForms Control for HTML with ASP.NET MVC. • SEO friendly Provides features to create and handle search-engine friendly URLs The free Search Engine Optimization (SEO) toolkit optimizes other areas of your Websites or Web applications for search engines to increase traffic • AJAX & JQuery Interactive Web applications that work across all popular browsers AJAX and JQuery are compatible A complete AJAX framework allows to provide rich end-user experiences promoting contemporary UX JQuery gives better control for HTML, event handling and animations • Customizable Data Data can be customized to suit the needs through a range of built-in data controls ASP.NET includes support for technologies such as LINQ and the Entity Framework that allows access to a variety of data sources such as databases, XML files and Web services in Web applications • Consistency through Templates & Pages Master pages, user controls and templates promote a consistent look and feel for the Web applications Easily manageable solutions by central control for style and code through ASP.NET, HTML, CSS and JavaScript. .NET Framework Support for Devices and Platforms .NET Framework also includes restricted versions for mobile or embedded device use. .NET Compact Framework, is available on Windows CE platforms, to cater to handhelds and other low powered or resource constrained devices. SPEC INDIA has 27+ years of experience as an Outsourced software application development partner for clients spread across over 20+ countries using varied technologies. SPEC INDIA adopts the Microsoft .NET platform since its inception in the software development arena. We provide Customized Solutions in areas of Desktop Application Development, Web Application Development, Mobile Application Development and Enterprise Mobility Solutions. Our professionals have extensively worked in ASP.NET, Silverlight, WCF, WPF, MOSS, SQL Sever and LINQ, while developing n-tier applications with in-depth implementation of MVC (Model View Controller) or Entity Framework.

Posted on: 4 August 2014 | 8:27 am

Android Wear. Information on the Move

"OK Google". We got it. You are changing our lives, completely taking control of what we do and how we do. Wearable technology announced in March this year and consolidated by the previews at the Google I/O; Android wear is technology coming of age. We are now not just talking about augmented reality; we are using it as it should be. Carry it, pocket it, drive it, see it or wear it…….. Its just as simple as saying “OK Google”, in your own voice to send messages and emails or check the route to be taken, navigate, the weather to expect, the next train, your schedule today, whose birthday it is today, nearby events, record the ever so important match on the TV and the restaurant to go to; all simply with a smart thing on you.  Search Google with your voice too while on the move. And after a hard day’s work play your favorite music with a simple command. So after smartphones it is the turn of smart watches and other wearable. Coupled with an android phone, Android Wear brings Google Now, the intelligent personal assistant to all Android Wear devices. Google now is a natural language UI to ‘talk’ to Android for getting answers, searching web and also predicting questions before even asked based on usage pattern. Use your watch or glass to respond to your commands. Even throw in your Android TV respond to these gadgets besides your android phone. The possibilities are to the scores……..     • Get intelligent information when most needed     • Ask, ask and ask. Get answers to anything and everything     • Monitor health and fitness every moment     • Make an assembly of devices. With a single key; Android Wear   And the most recent. After the successful Google Fit, a measure for sleep and exercise parameters on Android; Google forays into wearable health and fitness gadgets too.  Giving meaning to technology, the Google Lens would be a smart lens to monitor blood glucose levels in diabetics. The lens measures glucose in tears using a wireless chip and a mini glucose sensor. It is obviously expected to be a part of the Android Wear community soon. SPEC INDIA is an ISO 9001:2008 software solutions company, offering Mobile Applications and Enterprise Mobility Solutions in a range of domains, demonstrating expertise in the likes of iOS, Android, Windows Phone and Cross-platform technologies. As a call of the day, SPEC INDIA puts in rigorous efforts for integrating contemporary techniques in applications and solutions developed and rolling out new ones regularly.

Posted on: 22 July 2014 | 1:50 am

New Technologies for Java 10 and Beyond Version

Technology is enhancing day by day and so Java technology too. There are so many versions and latest one was Java 8 which was released in March 2014. There are predictions that Java 9 and 10 is forthcoming. Java 9 can be introduced in 2016. Project named Valhalla will incubate and advance the java language and JVM technology. This project will be served as an idea on openJDK mail list. This project will include great features like value types, generic specialization, and enhanced volatiles. Main important things in the project Valhalla is value type & specialization. This thing are met to work with problem of boxing in which integer use more memory and it needs to be de-occupied to get payload and there is cache miss in this process. The thinking is tiny aggregates custom numeric types such as unit 128 etc can receive benefit of objects during performance maintenance. This project will work at many levels which normally include type system, language, VM and libraries. In its starting phase this project will be run at level of VM, defining clear semantics and underlying help which can be use by Java and some more languages on java virtual machine. This hard effort is part of very simple and normal process of including Java via open governance process.

Posted on: 8 July 2014 | 4:52 am

Software Development Outsourcing in India Today

The second republic has arrived in India. The mantra for one of the economic growth for one of the largest republics with its new leash of life is Thinking Out of The Box ………….. Offloading work then, to this promising economy is a wise choice for enterprises with the need for software development outsourcing. It is the practice of obtaining resources to do work outside the Enterprise realm. Software Development Outsourcing encompasses the complete software development life cycle; Requirements Study, Design, Development, Testing, Implementation and Maintenance or the required few. The Offshore Development model for outsourced software development takes the outsourcing jobs to locations away from the enterprise location, whereas the Onshore Development model gets resources from the outsourcing firm to work at the locations of the client. India, located strategically between the Western and the Eastern Time zones is a prudent choice of venue. Outsourcing reduces the efforts and costs involved in building an IT development team in-house. The efforts involved in building and retaining a competent team and achieving quality software are too big as compared to outsourcing. It becomes much easier for the outsourcer to focus on its core business and use the services of the IT Company when required. This strategy reduces the cost of maintaining a technically sound team offering greater flexibility. Benefits of Outsourcing Software Development to India Concerns of the Outsourcing Strategy Since the outsourced jobs are carried out by other than the enterprise, it gives rise to general concerns from the enterprise’s point of view for      Maintenance of software quality      Keeping up of schedules      Observing confidentiality of work      Security in communications      Cost Controls A competent outsource partner would put to rest these concerns and unravel the benefits of outsourcing for the enterprise. Association Methods A software development outsourcing partner associates in various fashions to implement 1) Technique      For development of a technology to be used in the project where the client does not possess the skill required 2) Process      To execute a particular functionality of the process workflow like design or testing 3) Complete Development      To execute all the activities required for the software development life Deliverable's The software development outsourcing partner delivers various documents to enable smooth project rollouts and transparency to the outsourcer      Requirement Specification documents      The Proposal Analysis document      The Contract Execution document      The Software Development Plan      Quality Assurance Plan India emerges as a major software development outsourcing hub in the recent years. Collaborations with Software Development firms in India for outsourcing assignments; offshore, onshore or hybrid, have all proven to be rewarding. The new direction and impetus given to its economic growth by a new futuristic, stable government are indications of associations that are certain to be fruitful. Advantages of Outsourcing Software Development to India With its geographical location and the historical association with the western world, India has an edge as compared to other countries for being an offshore development center. SPEC INDIA with 27+ years of experience as an Outsourced software application development partner for clients spread across over 20+ countries using varied technologies provides Customized Solutions in areas of Desktop Application Development, Web Application Development, Mobile Application Development, Enterprise Mobility Solutions, Business Intelligence and Big Data. SPEC INDIA demonstrates its technical and functional capabilities by maintaining a preferred vendor status with Fortune 100 clients year on year. Our Project Management Practices and consistent Quality Assurance Practices put the software developed by us into a different league altogether.

Posted on: 27 June 2014 | 7:53 am

Agile Software Development - A Simplistic and Flexible Approach

Whenever we talk about software development methodologies, we encompass executing, managing and testing all the phases of the Software Development Life Cycle, starting from Analysis to Implementation to Maintenance. Traditionally, Waterfall and Iterative approaches have been popular till date. But looking to the increasing need of close communication between the development team and the client at each phase of the project, the most popular and sought after approach is the Agile software development Methodology. It is a group of methods, which has been derived based on the Iterative method, wherein the requirements and their solutions advance through teamwork between self-organizing and cross-functional teams. The primary advantage of this methodology is the discipline that it induces into the entire project, because of which there is a regular and continuous monitoring and inspection of requirements and their interpretation into the software application. A Typical Agile Workflow: Agile methods focus on unceasing prioritization and client review to ensure that the deliverables, at each stage meet the client requirements and errors are minimized at each stage, thus leading to a robust, scalable and ready-to-go solution. It breaks the product into small incremental builds, which are provided in iterations. In each iteration, the business and development teams work simultaneously on each stage of SDLC to cull out a working product which is quality and process driven and abides by the client requirements, to its best. Advantages of using the Agile Model     •    Realistic approach to software development     •    Higher levels of visibility, quality and predictability     •    Accelerates product delivery     •    Enhanced customer satisfaction     •    Close co-operation between development and business teams, promotes team work     •    Minimization of errors / rework     •    Frequent delivery of a partial working solution (in weeks)     •    More emphasis on people and interactions rather than processes and tools     •    Ease in management and in adapting to changes and enhancements Methodologies included in the Agile Spectrum     •    Scrum     •    XP (Extreme Programming)     •    Crystal     •    FDD (Feature Driven Development)     •    DSDM (Dynamic Software Development Method)     •    Lean     •    AUP (Agile Unified Process) Tools used for Agile Methods There are various tools being used in the market today, for implementing the Agile methods. Some of them are as mentioned below:     •    JIRA Studio as a hosted development suite     •    JIRA + GreenHopper for agile project management     •    Confluence for agile collaboration     •    FishEye for code analysis     •    Bamboo for continuous integration     •    Clover for code coverage     •    Crucible for code reviews     •    Pyxis - creators of GreenHopper SPEC INDIA, the single stop solution of all types of IT requirements, has been into Customized Software Development since 27+ years and specializes in a range of technologies, domains and software development methodologies. Keeping pace with the fast emerging trends, we have adopted the Agile Software Development Methodology in a variety of projects and have gained a good amount of customer satisfaction and trust during execution of the projects. Find Agile Model from here: http://www.spec-india.com/custom_software.htm

Posted on: 20 June 2014 | 7:28 am

Apple Launches New Xcode, 'Swift' Programming Language

Swift amongst the fastest animal on the planet, with some of the fastest measured flight speeds of any bird inspires Apple to christen its latest programming language, Swift with the indication that it is set to completely replace Objective-C as the scripting language both for native iOS and OS.x apps.Learning Swift is easier and faster thus ensuring increase in productivity in delivering apps and solutions for iOS devices.Advantages of Swift SafeSwift language comes with strong type checking making the language safer and securer. It is quite similar to C++.Unlike Objective-C the type of the object is known at compile time increasing the safety by restricting direct access to the pointer. With a strong type inference, the compiler knows the full types of objects, helping making function call decisions faster.Memory management in Swift is automatic, making the environment safe and stable completely avoiding crashes due to poor memory management. ModernSwift incorporates updates and features that are previously not known or introduced by any language, like optional, letups and generics to mention a few.Since it is inspired by Objective-C, Swift code feels natural to read and write to a mature programmer.  An examplelet     Cities  =      [“Ahmedabad”,”Delhi”,”Rajkot”,”Bombay”]let     SortedCities =     sort(Cities)  {$0 < $1} PowerfulSwift comes up with powerful pattern matching abilities. Developers can directly access the UIKit framework and Foundation framework from the languages. String formatting, assigning objects and usage of conditionals is much more flexible as compared to other languagesExamplesvar dictionary =     [“a”:”1”,”b”:”2”,”c”:”3”]var array =     [1,2,3,4]varobjectName :AnyObjectobjectName = NSDate()objectName = UITableView() InteractiveSwift language is much more interactive and users can manipulate the code as the offers the Playground feature.By using Xcode 6 New File->PlayGround , users can create playground and check all the run time values of code snippets. Without a need to build and run the app, a Playground user can prototype by writing the code and evaluating the results at the run time in the same screen. It is best for debugging and learning process.SPEC INDIA is an ISO 9001:2008 software solutions company, offering Mobile Applications and Enterprise Mobility Solutions in a range of domains, demonstrating expertise in the likes of iOS, Android, Windows, Cross platform and Blackberry. As a call of the times, SPEC INDIA puts in rigorous efforts for integrating contemporary techniques in applications and solutions developed. Read more : Swift: An Innovative Language Bundled with iOS 8

Posted on: 16 June 2014 | 6:28 am

Open Source BI V/s Commercial BI - What to Choose?

More the alternatives to use Business Intelligence (BI), tougher it is to choose which tool to select for BI implementation and why? There are two major buckets: Open Source BI tools and Commercial BI tools. How to choose the apt BI solution? Should we choose a tool with a given quality and cost or should we go ahead with a tool which lets you customize more? As always, the decision of choosing the tool always varies and depends upon the requirements of the organization and various other factors like cost, budget, type of development and so on. As there are two sides of a coin, there are pros and cons of choosing either of the tools, be it open source or a commercial one. There are certain criteria which have to be taken into account while deciding on the tool: Scalability Total Cost of Ownership Security Risk Product Support Here is our analysis of both these options based on which there can be a consensus of which option to choose. Open Source BI tools These software tools are available for free and allow the users to change the source code. Open source software is there in all BI services, starting from data modelling, reporting, OLAP to ETL. Since it is community driven, there are new features which come from the contribution of the community rather than R&D from the teams. Some of the pros of Open source tools are Easy to get started, Lower in cost and Easily customizable. Some of the disadvantages are not-so-robust features, unavailability of instant help and support. A few Open Source BI tools are JasperSoft, Pentaho, SpagoBI and so on. Commercial BI tools Commercial solution is considered to be a comprehensive solution for the organization, wherein the total control lies in the hands of the owner. Though it may look costlier in the start, considering the annual maintenance cost along the years, it turns to be comparable to the open source tools. The major plus point here is the ownership of the software by a well renowned company and hence, a trust worthy support and service anytime required. Also, since the source code is not changeable, it enforces a more stable source code. The disadvantage being the high upfront cost that it offers which might prove to be difficult for companies with lower budget. SPEC INDIA is running its BI and Big Data division since years and has been able to garner a lot of experience using many kinds of BI tools indulging into many BI services. We would be glad to demonstrate before you any BI requirement of yours.

Posted on: 4 June 2014 | 5:26 am

Which One to Select - Native vs. Cross Platform?

Native Applications, work on the platform for which they have been developed. When the applications need to work across multiple platforms and devices, different set of code needs to be written and maintained for different platforms. Managing such scenarios for enterprise applications can become a challenge. Cross Platform Applications Development introduces development using HTML5, JavaScript and CSS3; standardized web development technologies which are software and hardware independent, giving the Applications and Solutions the ability to perform anywhere and everywhere. Hybrid Apps embed the generic HTML5 apps inside Native containers like accelerometer, camera, sound or GPS, to give you the best of both the worlds, broadening the horizons for diverse functionalities. PhoneGap and PhoneGap Build are the current buzzwords for cross platform enthusiasts. The debate is heated between what to use; Native Applications or Cross Platform Applications….. There are several points to be discussed. User experience, security, ease of development, reusability of code, cost and speed of rollout are all the major factors. Benefits of Using Native Applications: • Better User Experience o Since Native apps are developed for specific platforms, they easily interact with various features of the operating system and grant exceptional advantages which are not achievable using Cross Platform. • Faster Graphics & Fluid Animations o Graphics are faster, plain and simple in native apps as they directly communicates using frameworks, which are specially, designed for specific platforms. This capability has a major significance in interactive apps like gaming apps which manipulate images and sounds. • Improved Security o Native apps are more secure as they use native frameworks and APIs. Benefits of Cross Platform Apps: • Reduced deployment costs o HTML 5 and JavaScript are known to be the common language of the web, and works seamlessly across mobile platforms and browsers. o Apps and Solutions developed using cross platform need not be re-written for each platform they need to work on, instead the same code works on all the platforms after compilation. • Ease of Development o It’s easy to develop applications using HTML 5 and most of the developers like to write code using HTML. • Re-usability of code o Apps are reusable across platforms without the need to redevelop the programs. • Searchable contents o The contents on HTML 5 or JavaScript can be crawled and indexed by search engines, so the probability of being discovered by people searching on the net is much higher. This increases the visibility of the apps tremendously. • Unrestricted Distribution o The apps and solutions developed using any of the cross platform technologies can be freely distributed across platforms and devices. Native Vs Cross Platform Native Apps & HTML 5 Mobile Apps both are acceptable based on functionality of applications. If the applications have limited functionality and are less complex, then cross platform development is better, but the user Experience of a native application cannot be matched to by a cross platform app. At SPEC INDIA we recognize the need for the applications and enterprise solutions to maintain uniform performance across the ever increasing mobile devices and their varied technologies. The gap is ever increasing between the platforms like iOS, Android, Blackberry and Windows. SPEC INDIA is an ISO 9001:2008 software solutions company, offering Mobile Applications and Enterprise Mobility Solutions in a range of domains, demonstrating expertise in the likes of iOS, Android, Windows and Blackberry. As a call of the times, SPEC India puts in rigorous efforts for Cross Platform Development using HTML5, JavaScript, CSS3 and now PhoneGap. Read More about : The Endless Debate: Cross Platform or Native Applications?

Posted on: 11 April 2014 | 3:47 am

PhoneGap: Build Cross-Platform Mobile Apps

Uniformity in diversity is the biggest challenge for the performance of mobile applications and enterprise solutions across the ever increasing mobile devices and their varied technologies. The Phonegap is widening between the platforms like iOS, Android, Blackberry and Windows. Native Applications are developed for a specific mobile platform using the development tools and language it supports, like Objective C with iOS, Java with Android and more. Native Apps, work only on the platform for which they have been developed. When the applications need to work across multiple platforms and devices, different sets of code needs to be written, compiled and maintained for each platform. Efforts of development, deployment and maintenance are directly multiplied by the number of platforms catered to by the app. Cross Platform Applications Development using HTML5, JavaScript and CSS3 use standardized web development technologies which are software and hardware independent, giving the Applications and Solutions the ability to perform anywhere and everywhere. Though the developers can create intricate apps entirely with HTML5 or JavaScript, the character and nativity of the app is lost forever in cross platform development. It is an accepted fact that native apps look and run the best, demonstrating a strong feel of the platform, while cross platform apps adapt to all environments in a much generalized manner. To strike a balance, Hybrid Applications embed the generic HTML5 or JavaScript apps inside Native Containers like accelerometer, camera, sound or GPS, combining the best of both; Native Features and Cross Platform adaptability & flexibility. PhoneGap is a revolutionary mobile application development framework based upon the open source Apache Cordova project for developing Hybrid Apps. It allows creation of mobile apps with HTML, CSS or JavaScript and then wraps them into the PhoneGap framework for deployment across platforms. PhoneGap Build is a cloud-based service built on top of the PhoneGap framework which allows building of the mobile apps in the cloud. These apps can then be installed as native mobile applications across multiple mobile device platforms smoothly. PhoneGap give the best of both the worlds, native and cross platform, broadening the horizons for diverse functionalists across various platforms, proving equally beneficial the developers and the business itself.   Why PhoneGap?   Speed of development and deployment is directly proportional to savings on time and cost. With PhoneGap, the applications need to be developed only once. These applications, including designs, user interfaces (UI) and the code itself is reused on a diverse platforms like iOS, Android, Blackberry, Windows and Web. Truly out of the box thinking with all in one box!! SPEC INDIA is an ISO 9001:2008 software solutions company, offering Mobile Applications and Enterprise Mobility Solutions in a range of domains, demonstrating expertise in the likes of iOS, Android, Windows and Blackberry. As a call of the times, SPEC India puts in rigorous efforts for Cross Platform Development using HTML5, JavaScript and CSS3. It is then, but a natural step for SPEC to put PhoneGap development services & PhoneGapBuild at the helm of all its cross platform development projects. Read More Here of : Cross-Platform Mobile Application Development

Posted on: 3 March 2014 | 6:37 am

SFA - Prolific Solution for Sales Force

"SFA", Sales Force Automation, is the emerging and must have business concept which is gaining more and more popularity nowadays in India. As the name itself interprets that it is related to automate sale force of any organization and enables the field sales people to speed up the work in order to cover more customers, more areas/territories and to fetch more and more business. SFA contains important modules like pre-sales, direct sales, field surveys and more. Now some very basic and important questions arise here and they are - What SFA offers? How SFA can be useful for the business? What SFA offers? Sales force automation is a one point enterprise solution that offers almost every aspects of selling and thus helps the business to grow like anything. Some key features of SFA are: Order/Inventory Management Customer Management Collection Management On Field Surveys Stock Management Employee Attendance/Expense Management SFA can boost the business with following valuable impacts: Increase revenue generation and thus increase profit margine Speed up the customer service frequency Increase customer satisfaction level Reduce workload on sale professional Knowledge of market trends Increase business efficiency and transparency How SFA can be useful for the business? To achieve the growth, each and every business must follow certain strategies like reducing processing time, faster services, frequent market surveys to know the latest market trends, etc. Let's have a look on a scenario where a sales person goes to some isolated place far from the core city area. This person will be carrying the Order book, Receipt book, Lists of items/customers etc. which sometimes becomes unbearable for the person to work with such a heavy burden. It certainly reduces the productivity of sales person and does not help the person to spare effective time to fetch more business. Now just imagine, if the same sales person carries a simple hand-held device having sales force automation application then his entire journey, to serve the scheduled customers, can be very fruitful. The person will use the finger tip just to enter/access all the information which he will collect from the customer. This, not only improve his productivity but also helps to expand the business. In addition, the sales person can also perform some additional tasks like conducting field surveys, manage collections, view stocks, set reminders and many more. Thus in country like India, use of such SFA application can be fruitful for every organization. ZooM – A flagship SFA solution developed by SPEC INDIA, is a complete package for the field sales people having all these above mentioned features and innovative and pure concept of traditional SFA. With a proven solution having all capabilities, it enables user to do the rapid business in few clicks only. The expectation level of ZooM is too high in the world of SFA.

Posted on: 19 December 2013 | 8:03 am

An Overview of Cryptography

Cryptography is the algorithm or process of encryption of plain data to cipher data and decryption of cipher data to plain data. A secret key(s) is used in this process and the length and type of keys are varies depending on the algorithm we choose. Everyone wants their message is transfer over a network securely. Encryption also needs as it is required by organization or country law. There are many organizations and country having law that people may not share/upload data on FTP or cloud without encryption. Basically, there are two type of cryptography is being used: Symmetric cryptography and Asymmetric cryptography. Symmetric cryptography It is one of the ways to encrypt the plain text and decrypt the cipher text via common/secret key. In this algorithm common/secret key is shared between all concern parties, so they can encrypt and decrypt the message with same keys. Advantage of this approach is that implementation is simplest and faster than the asymmetric cryptography. However, main drawback is that we have to share the key securely between concern parties. There are various symmetric algorithm available and it can mostly be classified in two categories : Stream and block cipher. DES (Data Encryption Standard), Blowfish, RC4, AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) are the commonly and widely used symmetric algorithm. Asymmetric cryptography Asymmetric cryptography/encryption, also called as public key cryptography/encryption, is another way of encryption and using the key pair (public-key and private-key) instead of only one key in case of symmetric cryptography. Here, public-key is used to encrypt the message and private-key is used to decrypt the message. Public-key may be shared to the users to encrypt the message. However, only authorized user who have corresponding private-key can decrypt the message. No one can decrypt the message if they have only public-key. Advantage of the public-key is it is more secure than symmetric cryptography. However, it is much slower than the symmetric algorithm. RSA (Rivest Shamir Adleman), ECC (Elliptic Curve Cryptographi) and Digital Signature Algorithm (DSA) are the widely used asymmetric encryption algorithm where public-private key pair is being used. Public cryptography generally used 1024 bits long key. However, now a days key with 1024 bits length is not considering secure. However, increasing key length slow down the encryption/decryption process. So there is a trade off to choose the correct length of the key pair. Currently, 2048 bits long key is widely accepted and used. Digital Signature Algorithm, is used to verify the sender. Here, sender and receiver respective keys to sign and verify the message. Sender digitally sign the message using his private-key. To make sure that the content is received of the correct sender, receiver verify the signature using corresponding public-key of the sender. SPEC INDIA is a leading Java application development company from India, specialized in Java and J2EE technologies that provided best software solutions for all type of business. Such high-performance, flexible, future-ready, platform-independent software solutions are built using proven software development methodologies and best practices in architecture.

Posted on: 1 October 2013 | 6:25 am

Google Maps 2.0 Application For iPhone/iPad

On 16th July, Google has launched a new Maps version 2.0 under Navigation Category on Apple Store. Google Maps 2.0 for iOS runs on iOS 6 and above. It is believed that Google Maps are launched mainly to give a tough competition to Apple Maps. The Google Maps 2.0 claims to run on older Apple devices such as Apple iPhone 3GS. Till now it has reported to have more then 1000+ downloads from AppStore. Google Maps are more optimized for iPhone 5 then its previous versions. The GUI of Google Maps 2.0 for iOS is more simple and more performance friendly than previous ones. Although it is not mentioned on iTunes but it has improved a lot of User Experience. This application is working smoothly on older devices as well. It also provides support for offline maps, which was not previously supported by Google Maps. Google Maps 2.0 is having a feature called Public Transit, which provides the accurate information regarding the public transit system related to current location. It has been found that Google is using updated information for this purpose. Google Maps 2.0 provides live traffic updates to its users. This is something because of which every iPhone or iPad user will download this application from Apple Store. The new features in Google Maps 2.0 include: • New design for iPad • Enhanced navigation including live traffic updates and incident reports. • Explore: A new way to browse and discover popular local places to eat, drink, shop, play and sleep • Simple 5-star ratings and reviews from friends, plus expert Zagat content • Great deals from favourite brands with Google Offers • Indoor maps with walking directions for malls, transit stations, airports and more All these above features are buzzing, in this new application on Apple Store. **Note: Source Google Maps App on iTunes Store

Posted on: 2 August 2013 | 4:29 am

How To Use Airplay In iOS Devices

Airplay, previously known as AirTunes, was used for streaming your music in your network and then listening to it in all over your house/work station/or any place from your devices. Previously as AirTunes, It was used for only streaming of music. Now it is called "AirPlay" and supports wireless streaming of all types of media like audio, video, photos. Now think, you are watching a video into your iPhone (it may be live or already stored into your app or in iTunes) and you want to play the video in a big screen for making everyone from your family to see it or playing an audio (it may be live or already stored into your app or in iTunes) and you want it to play into your home theatre system. But how will you do that? The answer is "Airplay". For this purpose, apple has developed AirPlay. It is a great feature provided by iOS 7. From all features of iOS 7 AirPlay is most usable and helpful by users. AirPlay allows user to redirect the audio and video to the high-definition displays and audio systems. AirPlay can be used to redirect audio and video from iTunes or iOS app to apple TV or to an AirPlay enabled sound systems. AirPlay can stream audio and video live from Internet or already stored into iTunes or any iOS based device. As of now we know that AirPlay is used to redirect audio and video from iOS app or already stored in iTunes or iOS compatible device. But here the most important thing is that "AirPlay is user controlled". How to use AirPlay in iOS devices? Necessary conditions for AirPlay: 1) Your device should be one of the following (iOS 5.0 or later) a. iPhone 4s (or later) b. iPad 2 (or later) c. iPad mini d. iPod Touch (5th Generation) 2) Apple TV (2nd or 3rd Generation) or MAC Mini (2011 mid onwards) 3) Wi-Fi (802.11a/g/n) network Enable AirPlay 1) Connect your iOS device and your Apple TV on the same Wi-Fi network 2) On your iOS device, double click the home button to see the recent used apps 3) Swipe the recent used apps from left to right until you see the AirPlay icon. 4) Tap AirPlay icon to display all the output devices available for AirPlay. 5) Select the Apple TV and toggle ON/OFF slider to ON. Now as developer perspective, you should know that whatever content you are providing for AirPlay should be compatible to AirPlay and should also verify that your app or website works correctly for implementing it in your application. As an iOS developer, you can make it very interesting to use AirPlay in many ways. You should provide enough content to the user to feel the experience of AirPlay. For example: - User should get a list of output devices in which he/she can redirect the content. - You should provide audio metadata while playing audio using AirPlay. - Should always listen and respond to the events occurring while playing the content through AirPlay. For example if user wants to pause the audio or video, it should be able to get the event for pause and when wants to play, should be able to get the play event. Prepare Your Media and Server for AirPlay: To play your media over AirPlay, your media should be able to play in iOS based devices such as iPhone, iPod and iPad. For your server to work with AirPlay, it needs to be configured to send audio and video over HTTP. When preparing media for AirPlay, one should keep in mind following things. - Encode your audio using mono or stereo AAC or MP3 compression. - Encode your video using H.264 compression. o Use baseline profile 3.0, if you want to play your video on iPhone 3G or earlier. o For playback in iPhone 4 or later, iPod touch, iPad and apple TV use baseline profile 3.1. o Use main profile 3.1, if you want to play your video on iPad, OS X and Apple TV. - Use a QuickTime reference movie or an alternate-stream playlist to provide an alternative version of audio/video content with an AC3 surround-sound track and high-definition video to be used when your media is being played through a home theater system. You can package your media in .mp3, .aac, .m4a, .m4v, .mp4 and .mov files. You can also generate .m3u8 playlists but these are automatically generated by HTTP live streaming which also generates .ts files from the media. The AirPlay enabled sound system that is playing your media may support AC3 surround-sound audio also. You can provide an alternate stream that has an AC3 selection to give your app richer sound when your output device supports it. Same as audio your video output device also may support high definition video, for that provide 1280*720 video stream to support richest display possible. Configure Your Server: As we know for AirPlay, your server needs to be configured for sending audio and video over HTTP. The most important step in configuring your server is to set proper MIME type for each supported file type. If you are using HTTP live streaming to deliver your media, you can increase transmission efficiency by enabling on-the-fly gzip compression of .m3u8 files from your server.

Posted on: 26 June 2013 | 9:40 am

Pentaho Data Integration

Problem:  Pentaho Data Integration [aka kettle] community edition 4.4 gives “Unable to close open File” error when writing data in excel file using the template option on Linux platform. PDI – Template option : When user run the ETL job on Linux OS, ETL job may gives the  below error.Solutions: Required to add “-Dfile.encoding=Cp1252” keyword in the kitche.sh file as per the below steps. 1. Open kitchen.sh using any editor (For example, vi /home/data-integration/kitchen.sh) 2. Add “-Dfile.encoding=Cp1252” word in the OPT variable. So the kitchen.sh file will looks like as shown in the below image.  3. Save and Close the kitchen.sh file.

Posted on: 23 May 2013 | 10:32 am

Apple’s Next-Gen Phone’s: iPhone 5S and iPhone 6

iPhone 5 is now not new in the market, just about six months before only it was lunched successfully world-wild. Till now its sales are increasing continuously. By seeing this many company had jumped in the smartphone market. Today in market there are many companies which are offering different functions and features from the existing ones. Samsung has launched Galaxy Note 2, Galaxy Grand, Galaxy S4 and lots of other smartphone’s. Sony has launched Experia Z with the best features. Actually, in this throat-cutting completion Apple is not left behind. In the coming day’s only Apple is also planning to launch new iPhone 5s and iPhone6. Apple always gives surprise to customers and iPhone developers. In past there was rumors that Apple will launch its advanced feature iPhone 5s and iPhone6 in the middle of 2013. But after the high rise competition, Apple is focusing more on iPhone 6 than iPhone 5S. It’s been expecting that iOS 7 will be releasing near to September/October with the inline release of new iPhone. Release Date:   There are lots of rumors in the market about the release of iPhone 5S. Everybody says something different from all the iPhone can be expected in new iPhone 5S release. There was rumor in past, that iPhone 5S will be launching near to June but it was cleared later that Apple is coming with another new iPhone 6 in 2013. Many sources claim that iPhone 5S production and manufacturing will be starting from June. In 2012, Digitimes declared that iPhone 5S release date will be a little later because of some manufacturing problem. Apple wants to launch the next generation iPad and iPhone in the middle of the year 2013. iMoreRumours in March early said that iPhone 5S will be in stores near to august 2013 and later on Digitimes also agreed with this rumor. Also said that iPhone 5S will come probably in September 2013. So if you see all these, then you will find lots of rumors are there in the virtual world for iPhone 5S and iPhone 6. But from all the rumors and gossips we can understand that, Apple in going to launch it’s both iPhone 5S and iPhone 6 in the year only. Display: As per all the research and rumors, iPhone 5S and iPhone 6 will have Super HD display. It has also reported that new iPhone will have Retina along with Sharp IGZO display which would have High definition resolution of 1080 pixel. Camera: In January 2013, iLounge got the information regarding iPhone 5S camera and indicated that iPhone 5S will have the same camera design as iPhone 5 but the only difference would be that it may have larger flash on back. Some new rumours also indicated that iPhone 5S will have 13 MP camera that the Sony Experia Z has already provided to the customers. Some phone reviewers also suggested that apple should provide a handset with dual SIM. NFC: Rumors have been out of control about the NFC until apple will incorporate the NFC in iPhone. There were some rumors about iPhone 5 that apple will incorporate NFC at some stage in handset but it didn’t. But apple has included passbook into the iPhone 5. As per some wrong information or wrong rumors China Times has indicated that apple will provide iPhone 5S with NFC and also with finger print scanner to provide security. Nobody is sure about this rumors but apple may provide these features in next iPhone 5S because in last June apple took over Mobile Security Firm AuthenTec in $365 Million. Wireless Charging: According to the information of CP Tech, Apple filed a patent application for wireless charging along with Near Field Magnetic Resonance. It means that apple is going to provide wireless charging to its customers. From the all above information we can understand that both the iPhone 5S and iPhone 6 will be having some unique features and functions to fight out smart phone market competition.

Posted on: 9 May 2013 | 5:13 am

Importance Of "ibData" File Into InnoDB Engine

DBMS: Database Management System. It’s an integration of huge data files. Number of users can access database at same time. Most of the web application uses database development services through My SQL. Mostly application require open source database to retrieve data through application weather it is web or desktop applications.  DBMS support query languages, by this we can update, access, modify database. There are different types of query languages Like My SQL, MS SQL, Oracle etc. InnoDB file belongs to SQL and it is a storage engine. InnoDB provide high reliability and performance to DBMS through query languages. In DBMS arrangement of data make impact while doing operation on database. And InnoDB take part very effectively to support and maintain that database. While going into depth InnoDB, ibdata files are also an important corner of InnoDB engines. Existence of Ibdata file is essential for InnoDB engine. If you lost ibdata file then forget to access InnoDB engine. Main problem with ibdata file is, it will occupy big memory size while performing DML operations. So clearance of memory space is one the issue while using it. You can delete ibdata file, its does not matter if you are not using InnoDB engine. But if your process passing through InnoDB engine then it might create some error into starting process of MY SQL. Latest InnoDB offers various significant features over MY SQL: a) Scalability b) Reliability c) Flexibility d) Usability SPEC INDIA has very vast experience in various types of database services like: database design, database implementation, up gradation, database Installation, RDBMS migration, data warehousing, web based solution, re-engineering, data mining, upgrading and integrating existing database, data migration from various products, business intelligent solution. We are the leading database development company for providing vast solutions for enterprises and other organizations. We like to invite your business related queries on lead@spec-india.com. Our experienced and skilled resources ensure to fulfill your business requirements.

Posted on: 11 March 2013 | 7:29 am