When designing a new product of any kind, you cannot overestimate the importance of knowing – and speaking to – your target users. Without them, you can be reduced to designing and producing something based on conjecture and hearsay, so you really shouldn’t be surprised when nobody wants to use it. Despite this, talking...
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If you are unfamiliar with the term, Kanban is a system introduced at Toyota Manufacturing. It is a Lean methodology for indicating when operations need more materials, using coloured cards. In 2009/2010 it was co-opted for use in software development to improve efficiency and flow. Kanban is not a process like Scrum, it is...
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When thinking about accessibility, it’s very easy to become overwhelmed by the sheer number of unique and complex requirements that some people have, just to get them through the average day. It can also, unfortunately, be easy to pigeon-hole all disabled people together and assume that they are some sort of minority user group...
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If you are engaging with a development partner you may be given a timeline of months, or even years, to complete your project. This is due to the linear nature of the work. You will want to make sure that the developers have the correct requirements. This usually means that a “design phase” will...
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As I write this, we are in lockdown due to the unprecedented crisis brought about by the COVID-19 coronavirus. It will be a period when some people have a bit more time on their hands than usual, and they might be looking for some ideas of what to read to help while away the...
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It is 2020 and nobody should be developing software without the support of a source control system. As we will see, these kinds of tools offer great benefits with very few, if any, drawbacks. In this article we will explain what a source control system is, and why it is so beneficial to use...
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Being in the software industry, I sometimes feel I get a glimpse of what it must be like to be a doctor. Whenever someone asks me what I do for a living it is almost always followed by a question like “oh great, I’ve got an idea for building an app, can you make...
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Following on from our recent post “How much does it cost to build an app?” this article aims to help you understand the costs of running a digital product, once it’s live and in use. When you are planning a product build, it’s easy to focus on the upfront price and forget about the...
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“How much will it cost to build my app?” This is the question we’re asked by every new customer. The answer is it’s completely variable and depends on many factors, some of which we are going to explore in this article. If you are thinking of asking this question at an early meeting with...
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When we talk about the app design phase of a software development project, we tend to think it’s about colours, graphics and fancy animations but that’s a common misconception. In reality, the design phase is a broad term that covers several different stages of the app development process, as we discuss below. Discovery workshop...
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