Must Study Apps

Learning of new codes is an essential element in the growth trajectory of a software developer.  If you are a new app developer and are particularly interested in learning about Android app development online, then you are at the right place. In this article, we will provide a list of some of the apps that provide a wholesome learning experience for those who wish to try their hands at Android app development.

1) LeafPic

One of the best apps to try for a beginner is LeafPic. This app will help you to know more about photo gallery and video app development for the Android OS. Dynamic theming done on this app helps to understand the functionality.

2) Easy Sound Recorder

As it’s a very small app, it is much easier to understand for a beginner. It helps you grasp the concept behind creating a full-fledged audio app. You can learn about the intricacies of executing audio manipulation from this app. Watch out for the material design done in the project as this will be a relevant design concept for the future.

3) Simple calendar

This app best exemplifies Kotlin (programming language for modern multiplatform applications). A simple yet smart design makes it good for new developers to try out. Customization of a widget text, as well as the background, adds to its charm.

4) Master Android

This is a step by step guide for Android app developers. The full detailed tutorials makes it easy to understand technological terms and makes your learning process smoother. The app is divided into 3 sections.

a) Android lessons.

b) Ask your doubts to developers.

c) Coding challenges for you.

5) Learn Android development

If you have just a basic understanding of a programming language, you can still use this tutorial app to design and create a working Android mobile app. It’s not just theory but practical guidance is also provided here. Do watch the demos for various Android activities as well get the source code.

6) Tutorial for Android: Examples

Use this tutorial to learn Android application development. This app is primarily divided into 3 sections

a) Android tutorials

b) Android examples and

c) Android quiz.

7) Create your own app

This app is perfect for basic Android coding and Android source codes. This learning app allows you to download the source code as a text file. Some of the other things this app distinguishes itself from other apps are: code downloading and feedback sending option, SDK setup detail and basic/advance Android codes.

8) Learn Android programming

This fast growing app lets you learn the basics of Android programming and it’s also helpful for those programmers who are already coding. It helps you to specialize in the Android programming sector by providing the latest in technology via its tutorials and assignment questions. This is one app that you should definitely look into if you like programming for Android.

In conclusion, it can be said that while there are thousands of apps to choose for an upcoming Android developer, he has to choose depending upon his own criteria, his area of interest, and the specialization he intends to do in that aspect.

The Big Data Industry

Most experts believe that Big Data is proving to be quite a Game Changer. The majority of the modern industries have started implementing it to their advantage, while some old school industries have started warming up to it. The advantages of Big Data are numerous; increase sales and cost cutting are some of them. To know more about which industries are best utilizing Big Data, read the lines below.

1.     Financial Markets

When data is one of your industry assets, it pays to invest in it. Financial data analytics has resulted in big payoffs for the companies implementing it. When real time data is of utmost importance it pays to invest in them. Hedge fund managers have been using Big Data Analytics for long in the form of cutting edge Data Science.

2.     Retail Banking

From the last 2 decades, retailers have started analyzing consumer buying behavior and data. They need to know the demand and supply equation, as retail is a season centric business. As thousands of pieces of data are collected in a given year, Big Data will help the information become more accurate. This, in turn, will help retailers accurately forecast demand and thereby buying that requirement of stock. The company will not only save on wastages, but it will also help to satisfy customer need as they won’t have to return due to lack of stock.

3.     Energy

Today developed countries have started using Big Data to balance loads, manage infrastructure and price energy products. The Alternate energy consortium has taken a lead regarding Big Data. The old school energy industries are slowly catching up to this trend. Smart meters are proving to a boon in this space, as it provides millions of pieces of data to the supplier and the regulator.

4.      Web Analytics

There are tremendous opportunities for Big Data in the web analytics field. With the popularity of social media, humungous amounts of data packets are generated. With Big Data we can know a user’s profile, how many times he logs in a day, where he has shifted his house. Also, you can find the user’s spending habits as well as the amounts of time he spends on a particular website.

5.     Mining and Natural Resources

Most mines are fully automated with sophisticated machines and Equipment. They throw up large amounts of data daily. Sometimes the size of a single day data is in terabytes. This Data can be suitably used to increase mine efficiency. It can also channelize to improve yield optimization and predictive asset management. The value chain in the mining industry can be further strengthened with the help of Big Data.

With this wide coverage, it is no wonder that ‘leaders’ within 900 organizations surveyed by IBM are 166% likely to make most decisions based on data. Big Data analytics will drive strategy and tactics around the data explosion that will continue to happen as we read this post.

Designing Better IOT Products

The most happening “IT” topic near the office coffee machine has to be IoT (Internet of Things). Its applications and uses are growing by leaps and bounds. In the next decade, it would not only emerge as a game changer but also a life changer. Consumers too are taking to IoT very warmly. But designing consumer centric IoT products is a totally different ball game altogether. There are many things to pay attention to. Here are some tips your company can benefit from when designing IoT products for consumers:

1) Scope and Scale of the Design

As IoT grows in momentum day by day, it becomes imperative to launch a product that evolves at it grows. Stagnation of a product’s evolution brings its downfall. For example, in the world of hand gestures, a biometric device with just thumbprint will not suffice anymore. Something more radical will be needed to captivate users and gain market share. The IoT product has to progress with each new introductions in IoT technology. The advancement and the success of the product depend on its ability to walk hand in hand with technology.

2) Superior UX

Gone are the days when a company made products according to its own comfort, style, and design. Today, the main focus of every company should be to design and launch a product that provides a superior User Experience (UX). The user should be central to the product. The company should keep every minute detail in mind for a wholesome UX performance. Consumers today have multiple choices so they will only purchase a product that gives them complete satisfaction.

3) Focus on the overall experience

IoT experiences for users designed by businesses should follow certain guidelines for a fulfilling product success. We list some of these here:

• Integration of connections should support the content.
• These should support every type of brand interaction – from sales to loyalty development

These guidelines help the IoT systems to go beyond being a mere endpoint to full-fledged interaction ‘hotspots’

4) Better online-offline integration

According to a recent Accenture study, it was found that 82% of the people still prefer to buy from brick and mortar stores. So it’s necessary to integrate all the channels for a business to run seamlessly. Here IoT comes very handy. Some of the stores have started implementing IoT-specific technologies like RFID and magic mirrors. For example, a person walking in a store immediately gets all the sales and discount offers the store is currently running. The user also gets a bill on his mobile after checkout.

5) Factor in the security aspect

Security is the primary concern and fear of every consumer today. We routinely come across news of privacy issues, data leakages, and security breaches by hackers. The company should try to make sure that the components used in the product are of extremely high quality. Also, the company should protect the communication devices with highest level security which adheres to toughest certifications. The company can keep a full-time CISM (Certified Information Security Manager) to follow the protocols across the organization.

To sign off

These tips will help you make a better IoT product for your consumers which are easy to use for a layman, but smart enough to change the way he lives his life.

Applications To Help The Modern Student

A students life is generally spent on the run juggling between petty finances, studies, assignments and grades. Instead of spending time on social media apps, there are a few apps out there which can help students be more productive.

We bring to you 5 such apps for students which can prove beneficial for them.

Punchit

Nowadays, comparison becomes the most important part of our life from shopping on E-commerce platform to buying a birthday gift for your love once. Punchit is an amazing platform where you can compare anything in the very easiest way.

Awesummly

This is an amazing short news apps which will save you a lot of time and effort. It also helps you to stay in the competitive times. It is great for searching and organizing news stories. You can save news articles and other blogs as well. The best part is that after you save your content, you don’t need an internet connection to see it again. Also whenever you find any interesting news on web you can short it by clicking on the option to short with Awesummly and you don’t have to read the full article. 

CamScanner

Have an urgent assignment to be sent to a friend? Scan using CamScanner, create an instant PDF and send it along. The app also comes to the rescue when a few pages from a library book needs to be scanned in an easy manner. 

Evernote

So we all make notes during that lecture. The best thing about Evernote is its cross-platform availability and despite the fact that it is hugely popular, this one never grows old in the list. Along with those notes, you can use images and voice notes as well. 

In Fact

It is one of the best application for students. As students need to be aware of the world and the latest events around the world, this app allows students access to information according to their needs on a daily basis. In Fact brings the best of facts, knowledge and information from across the world.

Utilize these apps and stay ahead of the times.

The UX Glossary

If you are into UX designing, you will surely know its significance for a site or application. In case you aren’t aware, here are some stats for reference. According to market reports, a whopping 88% of online consumers will abandon a site if their navigation experiences aren’t impressive. That speaks a thousand words about the significance of the value provided by a UX designer and why budding design enthusiasts are choosing it as their career choice. In case, you have planned to take the same route, here’s a list of the most popular terms related to the UX design arena.

Get knowledgeable of the terms for UX Designer

1. Affinity diagrams: Plan your site layout with the concept of affinity diagramming. Data organization is imperative in creating layout designs, and that’s where this concept helps.
2. A/B Testing: Testing is an integral part of the UX design process and what other than A/B Testing can help you do that.
3. Beta Launch: Let the UX designer develop an idea of the viability of his creation. Beta launch is the best way to do so, as you will have the chance to interact and see the site live!
4. Analysis: Data collection and analysis helps the designer to work on his ideas thus adopting the best design approach.
5. Color Theory: Colors have a significant impact on human mind. If you are building a website, try doing some research on color psychology.
6. Card Planning: Designers always segregate tasks into various pockets. With systematic and organized digital cards for content creation, site navigation, link addition, and others, you can develop innovative designs within a few hours!
7. Competitor analysis: Comparing your designs with competitors which give a profound idea of the merits and demerits of your creation.
8. Comparative analysis: Effective and specific comparison of granular site elements.
9. Content strategy: From development and creation to publication of site content, every task comes under content strategies.
10. Content audit: Performing assessment and review of site contents, where designers can create a catalogue of important content

Some more important terms for a UX Designer to know

1. Experience architecture: Prepare a roadmap for the users, where they can get the hang of how to navigate through the site.
2. Contextual questions: Know what your consumers feel while checking out your website. That’s crucial to reach the desired goals.
3. Diary study: Studying user behaviors for a long time helps a lot in the design process. You won’t get instant, real-time reactions, but it is useful.
4. Interaction design: Interaction design refers to the process of creating comprehensible, meaningful, and relatable site designs.
5. Iterative designing: Refers to the perfect camaraderie between planning, prototyping, review, and implementation.
6. Heuristic or Usability reviews: The designer can check the usability of the designs and what they add to the website.
7. Persona creation: Make sure site designs are meaningful, and they help you target different consumer groups. That is what persona creation does for you!
8. Mood board: A unique and eye-catching collage of images, text chunks, content, and colors.
9. Prototyping: The process of creating design outlines.
10. Entry field: Users might need to fill in information, and that’s where an entry field is required.

Related terms

When it comes to unleashing your creativity for UX designing, you should develop crystal clear understanding of the crucial terms and concepts. Here are some more terms that happen to be integral parts of this process.

1. Qualitative research
2. Progressive disclosure
3. Scenario
4. Storyboard
5. UI elements
6. Quantitative Research
7. User Journey
8. Usability
9. User centered designs
10. Error analysis

A knowledge of these concepts and terms will help you devise creative UX strategies and incorporate them in the right channels

Android Browser App – Venus Browser

GoodWorkLabs has designed an Android mobile browser app called Venus Browser. It is a novel browsing app that detects location and provided content based on the user’s location preference.

The UX is designed in such a way that allows the user to easily navigate between information. The USP of this browser is that it aims to provide regional content to users based on the location that is updated. The browser also comes with special features such as Night Mode and Secret Mode (similar to the incognito feature of Google)

It helps users to personalize the look and feel of the browser by providing different theme and color options.

Download the browser to experience its features.

O For Oreo

On 21st August 2017, coincidentally on the day of the total Solar Eclipse, Google has made an official announcement about the new version of Google Android 8.0 Oreo. This latest mobile OS brings many new features and improvement that comprises improved battery life, Picture-in-Picture mode, system optimization, improved security, new icons and emoji and several more.

What’s new?

A lot of things. There’s a feature called Pictute in Picture that lets you watch a video while you are doing other things. This might not seem like a new feature until you realize that it works with YouTube, too. Notification dots have also been added which let you see notifications without launching it by long pressing the app icon. Also, there’s a notification snooze option that’ll come in handy if you want to deal with some notifications later on but not at the moment. Also, now you can choose what kind of notification you’d like to see. A lot of other stuff, some of which are old things that have been improved, are mentioned below.

Interface changes

For the most part, the UI remains pretty much the same as it is in Android Nougat. There are some changes, though. The biggest change is in the settings menu. To get around easier, some settings have been renamed and relocated. Many of the settings submenus have been redesigned, as well. A lot things can now be seen in one submenu instead of several, which makes it easier to navigate around in the settings. The quick settings is now in grey. Also, the quick settings icon and the profile buttons are now at the bottom of quick settings instead of the top. The emojis are now more colorful and the face emoticons are now round. These are all minor changes that the average user will have no difficulty getting used to. A bigger change, however is the adaptive icons. You can now choose what shape you want your icons to be in. Customization freaks will find this especially exciting.

The seemingly invisible stuff.

A lot of features that come with Android O are under the hood. Bugs from Nougat have been fixed. Android O now offers a wider array of colors that can be displayed, of course, for the devices that support them. A number of new bluetooth codes have also been added natively to Android O. Considering how smartphone manufactures are ditching the headphone jack, these new codecs are going to be especially useful for bluetooth headphones. Android will also limit how apps operate in the background. This will help avoid unnecessary battery drainage by some notorious apps that love to suck your phone’s battery (Ahem, facebook). Also, Google play protect is now rolling out. It is not an Android O exclusive and will be available for Nougat and Marshmallow, as well. This feature lets you distinguish safe apps on the play store from malicious ones.

APIs.

A number of new APIs have been added in Android O, which will be useful for app developers and consumers alike. There’s a new autofill API for password managers and a new WIFI Aware API that’ll let devices communicate with each other without being connected to the same network. Some other APIs have also been added that let external hardware, like keyboards and mice, communicate better with the device. This will be helpful for Chromebooks which now support Android apps.

Here are some of the features in detail:

New Emoticons

We are in an age where smartphone users can converse simply via emoticons—or emojis as they are widely known. Emojis make any conversation a lot more enjoyable. Starting with Android v8.0 Oreo, Android will now come with differently designed emoticons. Previously, Google had ‘blob faced’ emojis and the inclusion of freshly designed emojis brought mixed reactions from people because some don’t like how flashy these newer models are.

Also, with Android v8.0, Google is now compatible with Emoji 5.0. This simply means that Android will now support a whole set of new emoticons including vomit face and dinosaurs.

Battery Life

With Android Oreo, Google has opted to limit background processes of applications when users have multiple apps running on their phone. This limitation is a much-needed move as applications, especially social media ones, consume a lot of battery when running in the background. Also, restriction for apps running in the background results in better performance because it optimises RAM management in any smartphone.

Android Oreo will primarily impose restraints on applications based on what an app running in the background can do.

Smarter Wi-Fi

If you use the Tasker app, you probably have enabled a task which toggles Wi-Fi according to your location. Some of us don’t use this application and just turn off Wi-Fi manually. We do this to save our battery or to stay away from any unsafe network. With Android v8.0 Oreo, smartphones running on the latest version of Android will be able to toggle Wi-Fi depending on users’ location. Users will be able to set locations where Wi-Fi will be toggled. This feature will surely save time and battery.

Autofill Password

Autofill Password is a feature which has made using Windows easier. Android v8.0 Oreo will also have this feature. With inbuilt AutoFill API, all password manager apps will just fill up passwords according to usernames while keeping the information secure. This feature will surely save Android users from going through the hassle of typing passwords every time.

Adaptive Icons

If you use a pure version of Android on your smartphone, you are probably mad at having to download icon packs just to see some changes in the UI. Meanwhile, your friends are probably rocking some built-in feature which allows them to change their icon shapes according to their wish. There’s good news for you! Google is adding ‘adaptive icons’ feature into its operating system.

Users will now get a chance to choose from five different icon shapes—Square, Rounded Square, System Default (Original), Teardrop and Squircle. With this move from Google, we will now get a chance to see similar icons everywhere.

The smartphone companies have already started to work on getting the latest and greatest from Google for their smartphones. Some major manufacturer giants who are already working on it are companies like Asus, HTC, Nokia, OnePlus, Samsung and Sony. They have already confirmed that some of their devices will receive Android Oreo update as soon as possible.

Are you geared up for some Oreo?

Joomla – The Easy To Use Tool

A remarkable, easily navigable, feature-rich, and powerful website is no longer a choice. It has turned into an irreplaceable necessity for business owners. Since a powerful CMS plays the pivotal role in the site building process, it’s crucial to choose the best one from a myriad of options. Of late, Joomla is gaining grounds and earning huge recognition in the professional arena. Site developers and website creators are relying on Joomla, for accomplishing site goals and dealing with operational challenges.

That brings us to the most significant part of the discussion. What makes Joomla so popular and almost indispensable for site development? Here are some reasons that explain it all!

Why opt for Joomla?

1-Extensive and innovative content management

As a highly popular CMS, Joomla lives up to its name. The presence of unique features and an innovative interface has turned it into a dynamic system for effective content management. The following features will tell you why:

• Presence of menus, pages, and section makes it the perfect choice for beginners.
• Perfect monitoring of 3^rd party and built-in functionalities.
• No additional plug-ins or codes
• Creation, development, sorting, and publication of contents

Joomla helps developers streamline their operations. As a result, the site building process no longer remains an ordeal!

2 – Standardized functionality

With standardized controls and functionalities, it becomes easier for developers to work on Joomla. It is true that a multitude of features and operational controls lead to learning curves, but this CMS doesn’t make this curve steep. If you know the art of performing one particular task on the CMS, you will also develop crystal clear ideas of several others.

3 – Unique interface

While the innovative and exceptional features are potential reasons for its popularity, it’s the unique interface that makes Joomla a complete winner. With standard MVC-based programming interface, this particular CMS makes room for numerous integrations and customizations

4 – Perfect template control

Sites that require extensive and diverse design elements will love Joomla. With a multitude of diverse template options, this CMS allows designers to choose and install innumerable templates, alongside giving them the liberty to create multiple overrides. Template developers and creative site designers will surely have the time of their lives.

5 – International linguistic support

Linguistic flexibility is a prime reason for Joomla’s popularity. The CMS supports multiple language variations and developers can install it according to their linguistic preferences. Depending on the settings, a particular segment, section, or part of a site can be built with the help of the CMS. Quite naturally, it emerges as a global platform for site development and creation!

6 – ACL features and User Management

If your business site requires user registrations, content restrictions, and user account creation, Joomla will be the ideal option. Here’s why:

• User Manager
• User Registration System
• Multiple Access Control Lists

Parting thoughts

The CMS chosen by you should comply with your design requirements. You simply can’t work with a Content Management System that doesn’t suit the site development process, and it is these factors that are compelling developers to opt for this innovative platform!

Mind Blowing Facts About Big Data

We have been seeing a lot of hype surrounding big data but we believe Big Data paints a much bigger picture than what we perceive and the following facts will help to paint a realistic picture of the phenomenon, a phenomenon that is changing the world as we know it.  

1. Every 2 days we create as much information as we did from the beginning of time until 2003 .

2. Over 90% of all the data in the world was created in the past 4 years.

3. It is expected that by 2020 the amount of digital information in existence will have grown from 3.2 zettabytes today to 40 zetabytes.

4. The total amount of data being captured and stored by industry doubles every 1.2 years .

5. Every minute we send 204 million emails, generate 1,8 million Facebook likes, send 278 thousand Tweets, and up-load 200 thousand photos to Facebook .

6. Google alone processes on average over 40 thousand search queries per second, making it over 3.5 billion in a single day.

7. Around 100 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute and it would take you around 15 years to watch every video uploaded by users in one day.

8. Facebook users share 30 billion pieces of content between them every day.

9. If you burned all of the data created in just one day onto DVDs, you could stack them on top of each other and reach the moon – twice.

10. AT&T is thought to hold the world’s largest volume of data in one unique database – its phone records database is 312 terabytes in size, and contains almost 2 trillion rows.

11. 570 new websites spring into existence every minute of every day.

12. The boom of the Internet of Things will mean that the amount of devices that connect to the Internet will rise from about 13 billion today to 50 billion by 2020.

13. Big data has been used to predict crimes before they happen – a “predictive policing” trial in California was able to identify areas where crime will occur three times more accurately than existing methods of forecasting.

Big Data is Big, literally and figuratively. Its implementation can save your business huge losses and lead your firm towards a data friendly future.