Four Windows 8 Tips from a Senior Software Architect
The Windows 8 buzz just goes on and on, and you may be wondering, “Is this operating system even appropriate for an enterprise situation like mine?’
The answer is, maybe, depending on what you want to use it for. Here are four tips that you should consider from a software architecture perspective:
Windows 8 Launches Early: “Swiping is Believing”
We were excited to hear today that the long awaited Windows 8 operating system launched a day early. The reports have been rampant from early adopters of the product detailing the good- increased functionality and attractive interface, to the ugly – namely, the Start-less home screen that contributes to an unaccustomed learning curve for a Windows product.
But in their press event, Windows executives were confident and very enthusiastic about how much people will learn to love Windows 8 once they get past how different it looks. Chief executive Steve Ballmer encouraged the crowd to head out to stores and try out new Windows 8 machines. “In the case of Windows 8, seeing, touching, clicking, and swiping is really believing.”
Microsoft Educates Windows 8 Users
We’ve all been hearing the hype about the Windows 8 launch. The reports so far point to a UI that will be foreign territory to most users, who are very familiar with the old desktop environment. A recent article on cnet.com noted that “early adopters have claimed that the new interface may be difficult to understand for new users and was not designed with traditional desktop PCs and laptops in mind.”
In creating an operating system that is so completely different, Microsoft has a very interesting challenge: how to train Windows 8 users in a brand new language? And more importantly, what good reason do people have to switch from a perfectly fine operating system to one that, at least at first glance, has such a steep learning curve?
Top 5 Signs of Bad Software
We look at software as both an art and a science. In order to build good custom software, you have to have true designers involved along the way. If not, you could end up with a tool that doesn’t meet your needs – and you might not even know that it could be better. We’ve seen a lot of bad code over the years.
Here are the top 5 signs you’ve got bad software:
Entrance Quoted at the Houston Tech Fest by Chinese Media
Entrance is excited about the coming launch of Windows 8. At Tech Fest, there was some buzz about how it will change how we use technology and what it means for Microsoft. Entrance’s marketing manager, Laura ten Bloemendal was quoted there by CNC Media in their “Lifestyle Bites”:
“The Windows 8 is coming out in October. That’s driving a lot of companies to do a lot of changes. Then they are thinking about what their systems are doing right now. It’ s a very high-level topic in the industry at the moment. They are thinking about what’ s coming next. And when you do that, you have to have very specific business drivers behind it. I think that’ s what is driving all these people to talk so much. It’ s going to justify the investment and the technology that will then pay off.”
Where Does Windows 8 Fit in the Business World?
A Closer Look at Metro Style Apps
Last week, we covered what Metro-style apps are, how they relate to Windows 8 and how they can be useful for quickly consuming information. This week we would like to cover when a Metro-style app would be a good fit in the business world. While the Metro-style would not be appropriate for all business applications, we believe that it can be an extremely valuable approach for the right scenarios.
Sharepoint 2010 the Basepoint for Kodak’s New Product
Kodak recently announced a scanning and workflow product that is based in Sharepoint 2010, called Info Activate Solution. According to their release, the product will help businesses with paper intensive operations quickly convert that paper to a digital format. And because the back end is based on Sharepoint, anyone already using the tool will be able to leverage their existing investments.
“KODAK Info Activate Solution helps businesses eliminate the black hole of costs, time and resources associated with entering information from paper documents into SharePoint,” said Michael Frawley, CEO, Edge Digital Group. “What used to require customer investment throughout the year in specialized training for different technologies and tasks is now provided from a single solution that most users can learn within minutes.”
Wondering How Windows 8 Will Play into Your New App?
Metro style apps and your business
Companies creating a new custom Windows application or considering an update of an existing Windows application should at least consider the unique features of Windows 8.
You can think of Windows 8 as running two separate application eco-systems. One eco-system is very close to Windows 7, and is meant for traditional desktop applications. In this eco-system we have a task bar, we can run multiple windows in windows, and we have tools similar or identical to what we’re used to in prior versions of Windows (e.g. control panel, task manager, folders and files). Desktop applications built for Windows 8 will also run on prior versions of Windows.
Shale Industry Helps Make Houston a Great Place to Invest in Business
The Houston Business Journal reported recently that compared to other cities within the United States, Houston is a great place to invest in a business. In fact, Houston never suffered the same losses as other areas around the country. And although we might like to attribute this to being especially lucky, analysts say this is largely due to the presence of oil and gas companies. And now that things have really begun to heat up here in the last six months, Houston Entrepreneurs Organization board member Mark Martin remarked that “overall job growth is being fueled by the energy industry. The shale plays in South Texas keep everyone spinning.”
HBJ asked Entrance president, Nate Richards to weigh in on the topic. “For us, the shale boom and domestic energy exploration is a big driver. Shale production is so new that the old technology for drilling does not fit that well. This creates a need for us to fill, and that is driving growth.”
TG Mercer and Entrance – Engineering Intelligence for Midstream Energy
Our partnership will push the entire midstream forward in efficiency and safety compliance with strategic software.
TG Mercer and Entrance have partnered to create SpreadBoss, a logistics support tool that allows thousands of joints of pipe to be tracked, providing customized inventory reports and creating a pipeline status history database. Not only does the software reduce time and effort spent on tracking pipe, it also provides accurate and timely data capture, as well as consistent documentation. The software solution has become a differentiator for TG Mercer, because it makes them the best in the industry for providing fast and accurate field data for corner office decisions, while reducing the labor cost of that information and making it easily available for regulatory and safety purposes. The project was recently covered in Pipeline and Gas Journal!
Nate Richards on Technology Debt and Custom Software Modernization
“As we’re getting to know them and talking about building new applications or modernizing old applications, clients are surprised at how much this will cost. For years they’ve had one or two support or freelance developers, or even specialized engineers coding on the side. And it’s just worked for the last ten years. The question is ‘Why, all of a sudden, do we need to change everything and rewrite? Why have we reached the end of the road?’
And the answer to that is that while they’ve been designing and building the application only looking at what was immediately in front of them, they have neglected to look down the road and consider total cost of ownership. Because they’ve only looked at immediate cost of the features they needed today, it’s seemed cheap and easy.
SharePoint Mobile – The now (and the future) of professional collaboration!
Consistent observation:
If a person is idle for more than 5-10 seconds, the odds are very high that they will produce a mobile device of some kind and bury their attention in it. My point? Mobile devices are here to stay and growing ever more quickly. In fact, Flurry.com found that in June 2011, consumers spent 81 minutes per day on mobile apps compared to 74 minutes per day web surfing!
Engineering Software Development for Pipeline Services
Work is coming along on the engineering software development project we announced last spring. The re-vamped software is progressing nicely, and our software engineers are feeling good about an initial release sometime towards the end of next year. Our client is excited about the work, as they are anticipating that its improved user experience and capabilities will really set them apart from the competition.
One great feature we are really excited about is that the future release will allow purchasers of pipe to perform multi segment pipe design. Currently they can only design one pipe at a time, which is not the best representation of how pipes operate in reality. This will really represent an improvement in productivity and ease of use.
Evil Consulting Model of the Month: The “Self-taught Programmer”
While this is not a universal truth, developers who have academic backgrounds have been trained on and understand the fundamentals of how software and computers work. This gives them a deep understanding of the choices, and often times trade-offs, of your technology platform decisions. In addition, a view of software as a engineering as a practice, with rules and methodologies causes software engineers to author cleaner, more maintainable code – resulting in a lower Total Cost of Ownership for you!
These firms often come in the form of a former professional who “just picked up programming” while working in a particular industry. Commonly engineers, accountants and IT guys will “just learn programming” then become it the in-house programmer at their firm, eventually to leave and “go on their own.” While a self-taught programmer who had a career in your industry may seem like an advantage, good software consultants learn new businesses every day. It is not necessary to work as an engineer at an oil company to understand the data and processes specific to petroleum engineering.
For more on what good consulting looks like, visit our knowledge base…
A Word to the Wise: “DIY” Software Fables
On July 22, 2009, Nate Richards, President of Entrance Software, will be giving a presentation at the CEO Network Partners meeting in Houston at the Houston City Club. In our business, we come across MANY firms who have tried and failed at software projects either by hiring programmers in-house, or by engaging with the WRONG SOFTWARE FIRM. Come hear some of these war stories and learn how NOT to get burned on software projects. The presentation begins at 7:30 a.m. and all attendees will receive our whitepaper “The Software Consulting Guidebook: How to Find and Engage the Best Software Firms”.
Entrance Announces a New Client
Entrance is excited to announce signing a new client today for a large software modernization project. The client is a leader in the pipeline industry, and as a service to customers, they provide a software product that helps users plan and design the pipes they need to purchase. The software has become outdated, however, and the user experience needs improvement. This project also represents an interesting engineering software development challenge for Entrance, as we will be including many thermodynamic calculations in the back end that will improve its automation abilities.
Evil Consulting Model of the Month: The “Jacks of All Trade”
Chances are, if the firm excels at a particular skillset, they are profitably doing business as specialists and will not need to overly diversify their technology offering. However, some firms offer a full range of services at varying levels of diversity. Read More
Your Application May Not Be Secure
Security is an important component of your application’s design. Unfortunately, in many systems it is a secondary consideration – if it is a consideration at all – and is often implemented as an afterthought. A poorly designed security scheme can have serious consequences ranging from unauthorized access of internal company information to loss or theft of customer data, all of which can cost your company money.
Verifying the identity of your users and controlling what they are allowed to do is essential in any business application. These are two distinct steps known as authentication and authorization. Authentication establishes that you are who you claim to be, usually by checking a piece of information that only you know, such as a PIN or password. Authorization determines what you are allowed to do once your identity has been confirmed. This can be accomplished by directly assigning permissions to each individual user, or by associating users with application roles.
Even if your application implements authentication and authorization, your data could still be vulnerable. There are many ways that an application can fail to enforce adequate access controls. Here are just a few examples:
- A single username and password that is shared by all users: In this scenario all users end up having the same level of access and it is impossible to know who performed which action.
- Password strength not enforced: Users are allowed to select weak or easily guessed passwords, which can lead to unauthorized access.
- Permissions that are too broad: Users may inadvertently be granted access to data they should not be allowed to see.
- Permissions that are too fine-grained: Maintaining these can become error-prone and also lead to unauthorized access.
Our Expert Software Audit can help you identify these and other security risks in your application.
Evil Consulting Model of the Month: The “Managed Offshore” Company
An offshore software company is not a wholesale bad idea. Offshore developers are not any less talented or capable on an individual basis than any given US programmer. However, several factors, including time zone skew, communication barriers, and quality of computer science education do a lot to weaken the likelihood of project success.Read More
Evil Consulting Model of the Month: The “Proprietary Software Platform”
You engage with a firm because of their “unique software platform” which gives them an “edge” over the competition, because they’ve “already built most of the application into the platform.” You find that their proposal does, in fact, include 30-40% fewer hours during the implementation phase. Your project is implemented, but you find that you are encouraged away from certain enhancement requests for reasons that are not really business drivers, or with technical jargon that is over your head as a client. You might also find that deadlines slip, or deliverables are not exactly what you asked for, especially when a feature you requested was “already part of the platform.” One day, you decide to seek other options, and you present this to your current vendor. This is when you find out that the Vendor actually owns the platform. And you do not have rights to use it if you are not their customer, so they’re happy to give you your source code, but it won’t be much good without “the platform.” Even if you do negotiate for a copy of the platform, you are likely to be restricted to developing new features on it or enhancing it in any way, as it is not licensed to you to use in any way you see fit.Read More