Software application development
This blog is intended to provoke discussion and exchange between like minded software application developers, engineers, architects, project managers - and keen hobbyists too.
Wednesday 31 October 2007, 11:56 AM
The role of SCM for RIAs
I’ve blogged a good deal recently on Rich Internet Applications (RIAs) but mainly concentrated on the runtime and application structure sides of the equation. So let’s be fully rounded and look at how RIAs are changing the rules for Software Configuration Management (SCM) systems. Originally, SCM systems evolved to deal purely with text-based source code written by developers while other digital assets (e.g. graphics and document data) were managed by separate Digital Asset Management solutions.
In recent years, the more agile SCM systems have been used to manage all data in one central repository. However, because developers write source code, technical writers write documents… and so on, it is not always the case that all data is actually kept together.
For an angle on this topic, I spoke to Perforce Software’s European director of operations Dave Robertson. “RIAs blur the definition of what it means to write source code. With RIAs, developers will now be creating code using tools that produce ‘code’ in a wide range of binary formats, Some believe RIAs are destined to be the dominant application development form. So, companies looking to RIAs will need to have an SCM that can cope with them.”
The problem, according to Perforce, is that currently, most SCM systems struggle to support binary files. They often have no native understanding of binary formats and will treat them as impenetrable objects that cannot be searched. They also don’t scale well, frequently copying entire files when branches happen. Such SCM systems do not give developers the information they need to quickly solve development problems such as fixing bugs or adding new features.
The answer, arguably, is to build a system with repository design that enables binary files to be stored and branched without using unnecessary disk space or compromising on performance. You also need to think about the kind of visual tools that let developers find information contained in the binary files quickly so that (with some user customisation) it is possible to search within these files for text strings. The future of SCM systems looking to support RIA development will rely on the storage, search and retrieval of ‘source’ of any kind.
Monday 29 October 2007, 1:24 PM
Apple Opens Up To Third Party iPhone Apps
Many developers will have picked up on the news that Apple has announced that third-party software engineers will be able to create apps for the iPhone in the near future. This is somewhat of a U-turn from Apple’s previous position where the company insisted that third-party development could open the door to security risks for both the device itself and the operator networks it works within. That said, the SDKs will not be released until next year, so you had better choose something else for your Christmas stocking.
Looking further afield, I notice that last week the Open Mobile Terminal Alliance published a paper on handset security with the intention of, “Exploring potential threats to mobile platforms and providing guidance on best practice.” As it turns out, there’s a lot more to consider when trying to strike a balance between creating open mobile platforms and guaranteeing security and privacy – so Apple’s final direction and position on this issue will be a compelling story to follow.
For a third-party opinion on third-party development I spoke to Antony Edwards, VP of developer product marketing for Symbian. “It's certainly not easy to create an open platform for mobile application development. Developers demand freedom and we need to give it to them so that they can be innovative and produce compelling applications. At the same time we also have to ensure that consumers continue to have the faultless experience they are used to on mobile devices and that the security of the operators’ networks can't be compromised. It's not a surprise that Symbian OS is one of the very few operating systems that even attempts to provide an open platform outside of the traditional PC world.
“We have always been about being an open platform, it's our DNA, so we've been working hard on this since the beginning through Symbian Signed and our Platform Security architecture. We’re also constantly talking to developers, enterprises, consumers, OEMS and network operators to understand how we can provide an even better experience. But it's not easy and we think that many within the indusrty have a lot of catching up to do,” said Edwards.
So as the third-party application ecosystem evolves, will Apple provide us with the right tools for the job – or will it all turn sour. Watch this space.
Wednesday 24 October 2007, 2:57 PM
Home-grown headaches
Just at the time when we are hearing more and more about self managing software systems, automation for lifecycle management, autonomic self-healing computing and pre-packaged tools and components I got speaking to a company today who assert that home-grown software is a major cause of IT downtime.
OK, so we know that reducing downtime is a perpetual challenge for IT departments, despite the advent of technology that helps companies to monitor IT services and circumvent hardware issues. According to Managed Objects, part of the problem is inaccurate software configuration data, which can condemn software updates to failure. Application-dependency software is now able to map out standard, 'off-the-shelf' software: enabling an accurate "packaged" software inventory to reduce the risk of change. But, so I’m told, home-grown software is the hardest to map and the most damaging to the business when it goes wrong.
If you believe the stats (conducted by Vanson Bourne looking at the retail, commercial and banking sectors) home-grown software accounts for up to 90% of a company's application mix. While off-the-shelf software products can be mapped out, these are rarely the systems that provide a company's competitive advantage. Meanwhile, home-grown software is the most rapidly evolving software as well as the most essential. Perhaps this is why IT departments often assigning huge man-power to manage software configuration changes.
So what’s the answer? More configuration management software, more change management software, more business service management tools, a refreshed approach to more nimble systems and rapid application development perhaps? If you are a vendor, I suspect the answer is all of the above.
Monday 22 October 2007, 2:14 PM
Wolf in sheep’s clothing?
My recent trip to India’s TechParks reminded me of the fact that there is an inherent reluctance to let traditions slip in the sub-continent. From tea drinking to steam trains, India hangs onto some of the more civilised parts of life. So as part of my week’s meetings I was actually able to attend an old-style press conference. Having worked in tech media for a decade and half, I’ve seen this tradition slip and almost disappear.
Press conferences are something for the Prime Minister, the White House and the Spice Girls reunion announcement right?
In technology media circles the press conference has morphed. This wolf in sheep’s clothing is now called a study tour, a roundtable, a lunch, or – wait for it – an influencer dinner. I’m being unkind, these are all good - it’s just funny to see the old fashioned media briefing die off.
In India, the spokespeople sit at one end of the room and talk for 20 minutes. The journalists dutifully listen (without interruption) and take notes on paper pads. They then ask questions when and only when the floor is turned over to them. From my time in the US I know that they also occur, but it’s usually as part of a developer symposium – so that may not be a good gauge. Oh well, just for the record, this is not a request for invites
Saturday 20 October 2007, 5:51 PM
It’s all Greek, Persian, Tamil and Cyrillic Russian to me!
Web users across the planet can now play around with their name in their own language (i.e. not English or other “Western-style” languages that use the same Latin alphabet that I am using to write this blog) thanks to the fact that the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has commenced live testing of Internationalised Domain Names.
At the moment 11 languages are supported: Arabic, Persian, Simple Chinese (no - that’s not an oxymoron for us non Chinese speakers), Traditional Chinese, Cyrillic Russian, Devanagari Hindi, Greek, Korean, Yiddish, Japanese and Tamil.
The wiki pages can be accessed by typing example.test in the characters of one of the 11 languages. ICANN has put a video explaining the evaluation process on YouTube. You can also find it here http://idn.icann.org The 11 evaluation wikis will remain online until IDNs are fully implemented and the first top-level domain is introduced in the evaluation language.
The full introduction of IDNs will mean that people can write the whole of a domain name in the characters used to write their own language. At the moment you can only use these characters before the dot, so .com, .net, .org and the like can only be written in characters from basic Latin. IDNs will change this so that literally tens of thousands of characters will be available to the world.
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