What Intel XDK IDE brings to Mobile Development

         

Mobile app development and Intel? Well, we know Intel isn’t really synonymous with mobile app development and is more in the processor and chip design realm. Also Intel’s forays in this space (mobile) have not been very successful as you can see from the reception that the Intel Atom chip has got. But of course, Intel is Intel and they’re not going to go back.

So, they’ve come back to mobile development with something seemingly new up their sleeve again. Yes, we’re talking about the Intel XDK IDE. Developers today need a development environment that allows them to work with multiple technologies and devices. XDK IDENTITY gives you precisely that. It lets you write applications using HTML5, Javascript and CSS 3 and test them against multiple devices. But go a little deeper and there is more to it than merely this.

No Native apps

Intel XDK IDENTITY will not allow you to create native apps. When you build a native app, you build it so that it will have access to more APIs than that are available when you use just HTML5 and Javascript. But that’s just a small bargain for the rest you get.

The advantage with XDK is that you get to develop the app with technologies that you are familiar with, and you can then deploy them in multiple platforms.

The XDK Editor

This is the most important part of any tool where you write the bulk of your code that forms the design of your application. The best part is that the Intel XDK delivers here. With solid syntax highlighting, easy usability, reducing the amount of text, it has got all that a code could possibly ask for. XDK’s code completion stands at par with any commercial editor that you can find.

The only grudge that the coder could have here is that it doesn't come with the ability to install plugins. Poor that.

Emulation

With XDK, you can also define the positioning of the device, for when you wish to test out code which makes use of the devices accelerometer, as well as changing the screen orientation of the device itself. This is handy for testing your code across multiple devices without having to spend thousands of pounds. Cool!

Top 5 Platforms To Build Your Mobile App

                            

Building an app involves quite an investment of both time and money. So it is essential that you carefully plan your app strategy and find the right tools to execute your plan to perfection. But one of the advantages of mobile app development today is that it doesn't require thousands of dollars or long months of planning. With mobile app platforms that allow you to build an app within a month (that too, on a small budget) your work is much reduced. This article takes a look at 5 of the best mobile app development platforms today.

1. Appery

Well, you knew it, didn’t you? Appery is an enterprise cloud-based mobile app builder that allows you to create apps rapidly and in a cost-effective manner. Integrated with Apache Cordova, Appery allows you to build apps with Android, iOS and Windows. Appery.io, for all its functionality, requires remarkably little in terms of code knowledge from you as the bulk of the work is done by the drag-and-drop visual editor itself.

2. The App Builder

The App Builder is a perfect platform to create multi-platform apps. The objective behind this ‘tool’ itself was to allow just anyone to build mobile apps, the way Wordpress allows anyone (meaning the ones without any technical knowledge) to build a website. Much of The App Builder involves just selection of templates. For example, if you want to create an app for fitness, you have the fitness template with all the related tabs. You can then customize this for your requirement.

3. App Machine

App Machine allows you to build native apps for both Android and iOS. App Machine too, has a drag and drop interface that gives you a variety of features with more than 30 pre-coded building blocks. Easy to use and exciting to design, App Machine is a mobile development platform that promises much more in the future..

4. Appy Pie

As the name suggests, make an app as easy as a pie. Appy Pie is a cloud-based DIN mobile app development platform that allows users with little or no technical knowledge to build apps in Android, iOS, and Windows. With its latest product app builder 2.0 Snappy, built as a single platform application, you can create apps ‘ultra-fast’ and codeless. The new release also comes with lots of customization features that you wouldn’t want to let go of.

5. Mobile roadie

You must be wondering why this didn’t come up earlier. As the rest of the tools in this list, Mobile Roadie too allows you to create apps in iOS, Android and Windows. The advantage with the Mobile Roadie is that it supports all media types with automatic importing of Twitter, RSS or Google News keywords. With formatting and customization options too available in plenty, Mobile Roadie is a tool that’s here to stay.

Common Pitfalls When You Develop a Mobile App

How does one popularise a killer idea? Well, the best way to do it today would be to build a mobile app to implement it. Not only will it be actionable, it will be used by millions all over the world. All you need is a level-headed strategy with proper design and implementation. And of course, some spunk. But why doesn't everyone succeed. Well , there’s no paucity of pitfalls. We’ll look at some of them here:

1. Get your platform right

For all practical purposes, it’s two platforms in mobile now: Android and iOS. Decide which way you’re going to go. If it’s the global market that you’re targeting, Android must be your choice. If you are looking at a US centric market, you could go for iOS. If you want to go for both, the costs could outweigh the benefits (if any).

2. Mobile is NOT the same as web

A majority of website owners do not focus on developing a mobile application that is optimized for all mobile platforms. All that they do is rely on responsive website features or consider that mobile app development should be done with just few necessary elements and features of a website.

3. Designer vs Developer

Remember that design is for development. This means you need to ensure the design follows the functionality since we often find that apps where design dictates functionality fail inevitably.

For instance, if you plan to include a search box in your app, and the designer envisions one with a type-ahead search, it would mean considerable effort on the part of the developer.

4. User experience trumps all

When you say what comes to their mind first? Well, it’s not difficult to guess. The reply would be its elegance/user experience. So, it’s important to know that a mobile user is more demanding and intuitive when it comes to UX. This is borne by the fact that 26% of the apps are opened only to be never used again and 48% are opened less than 10 times. Make sure you test your app with Craigslist or better find early beta testers.

What we’ve mentioned are just some of the pitfalls that mobile designers encounter when they set out to develop an app. For more, keep watching this space!

The Path To a Mobile-Friendly Ecommerce Website

                  

Ecommerce has undergone a sharp shift over the past few years to mcommerce with users not diffident to make payments on their mobile as well. To leverage this advantage though, you need to optimize your mobile ecommerce website. In this article, we look what you need to do to make sure you maximise the mobile potential.

The first thing you notice when you search anything on the net on your mobile is the look and feel of the website. But this alone will not ensure visibility. The site needs to have good content, navigation, check-in and check-out processes and show robust performance in order to get to the top. In case you wanted a bullet list of what to do, we have a checklist ready for you.

1. Keywords - The first thing that comes to the mind of any consumer when he/she searches for content on the internet is the keyword. All important keywords need to be covered during the first phase of writing itself so that it becomes easy to search related material. Also try and make use of the keywords with the help of hyperlinks to attract more traffic to your website. 

2. SiteMap – Just as the contents page of a novel helps the reader easily find the page, so does site-map with links help a user navigate web pages on a mobile website the user is looking for.

3. Social Media - Promotion of websites, blogs, groups, forums, etc. by linking online communities in social media (Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn, etc. )

4. Advertisements – This involves hard-selling your website through advertisements, pay per click ads and updating relevant content on the website.

5. Email Signatures – Here, the customer gets in touch with the owner of the website through the designated signature format used at the end of the emails. 

Here, you need to ensure that your mobile website is appropriate in all respects, i.e. in terms of images, icons,content, tools and more. All said and done, your web pages should not crash or hang as it ensures all the good work gets lost. With a majority of people accessing e-commerce websites through mobile phones, it is important to ensure proper backup of the website during server downtimes as well. Lastly, get the best developer in town to design it for you!

Does Your Mobile Development Ensure Quality?

Your mobile developers have to give you quality in development and delivery. Now that comes only with knowledge sharpened by years of experience. With over 18 years of experience in developing mobile apps for businesses across sectors and an ISO 27001:2013 certification for our security systems, this comes naturally to Openwave.

It’s time your apps go responsive

Are your apps responsive? Being responsive is all about being multi-device compatible and dynamic both in terms of content and presentation. Non-responsive not only fail with the customers today, they are not even indexed in searches by Google. If you’re looking for the right partners to develop your next-gen mobile app, you’ve found the right partner in Openwave!

Have you got the right Android developers?

Android development is exciting, it is also great fun to work with. But it is also fraught with competition. This means there is little scope for errors. That’s why you need to hire the best of developers who combine competence with experience to give you the best Android app that fits your business. So, does your app reflect your business? Come, get the Openwave advantage.

Integrating payment systems with your app!

When it comes to integrating payment solutions with your mobile app, it’s all about being simple and secure. With Openwave providing you with White-label solutions, Push notification services, IVR payments and MPI integration services that are PCI-DSS compliant, what more can you ask for! Come, get the Openwave advantage!

Have a problem rebranding your app?

You can put paid to any worries regarding rebranding your payment solutions with Openwave giving you the freedom of White label solutions which allow you to rebrand and repackage the solution however and how many ever times you want! Once the solution is delivered to you, it is all yours to use and sell!

Is Your Mobile Application Simple and Quality Enough?

For a mobile app to be successful, its design needs to be simple, interactive and effective. Along with this, it also needs to stand up to the quality the user expects. And who better than Openwave, with its ISO 27001:2013 certification? If it’s mobile, it has to be Openwave!

Have you maximised your Android mobile UI impact?

Your Android mobile application’s use interface is the door to unlock your organization’s growth potential. A good UI is the first step towards ensuring a good user experience. Openwave, with its team of experienced mobile app designers knows what it takes to tailor a responsive mobile app to suit your business.

Worried about budget figures for your mobile app?

Want to build a quality mobile app but put off by the numbers that are shown by people? Well, it’s time to cast your doubts aside as Openwave gives you quality, responsive and user-centric mobile apps that are well-within your budget. Openwave does this with its ISO 27001:2013 certified quality delivery process!

To succeed, your Focus must be on quality!

There are many Open Source tools available today like Pttrns, Unsplash, Ios fonts etc. to develop the best design for your mobile app. But given the fact that everyone uses them, how does yours make a difference? This is where the developer’s quality come into focus. Take a look at Openwave’s portfolio and what our clients have to say about our quality to get an idea!

Ios has evolved, have you?

iOS has come a long way from its start by delving deeper and deeper into newer technologies and making them its own. With Swift and iOS 8, it has set the bar higher and this needs a new development approach too! Have you hired the right development partner to help you do this for you? Openwave, with its result-oriented delivery and ISO 27001:2013 certified quality process, is the right choice for you!  

How Effective Is Mcommerce?

         
Mcommerce is not just the latest fad in the mobile world, it is also the avenue of the greatest growth in the future.In this challenging market where marketing is as important you need to take the right approach. You may also face bottlenecks in the implementation of M-Commerce.

The use of M-commerce is a valuable tool to be used as a good marketing strategy In order for your business to be successful, it is necessary for your business to make people know about your brand or services that you offer.In this article we discuss some of the most effective strategies which increases reach & frequency of the visibility of your business to your target audience.

 Mobile commerce help in online transactions and promotes the buying and selling of wide range of goods and services through online banking, bill payment, information delivery and also known as m-commerce through making its way into purses or shirt pockets with some human touches.

What is the area of efficacy of mobile commerce applications?

Storefront modules 

This is the place where catalogs are categorized and compiled to facilitate easy browsing sessions for customers for collection of information.

Advertising module

This element enhances the merchants to extend their marketing channels to spread maximum awareness through targeted, direct marketing campaigns.
Ticketing module

This element enables the vendors to distribute vouchers, coupons and tickets and grab more customers.

Customer support module 

Customer support services are the entry point where a customer gathers information, offerings and deals, updates and latest information about the company, current discounts, shop locations and others.

Mobile banking 

Payments are the vital part of the whole process which make mobile billing, payments via sms, credit card payments and at physical POS terminals with NFC technology possible.

What are the benefits of Mcommerce?

Easy execution 

M-campaigns are easy to form and process and spread very fast.

Popular & inexpensive method 

Very cheap method to run a business & market the products/brands or services to reach people on a global range.

Effective and Higher response rate 

This is the most effective medium where the response rate is higher than any other media.

Greater  interactivity

Reaches more customers the place where they are due to their highly effective two-way communication.

How To Ensure Your E-commerce Website Is Mobile-Friendly

With mobile becoming the go-to medium for anyone wishing to capitalize on developing markets, it is important to ensure that your website is built for the mobile. This means optimising your mobile ecommerce website as more than 75% of the people purchase through their mobile phones. In this article, we look at the boxes you need to check to make sure you maximise the mobile potential.

The first thing you notice when you search anything on the net on your mobile is the look and feel of the website. But this alone will not ensure visibility. The site needs to have good content, navigation, check-in and check-out processes and show robust performance in order to get to the top.  In case you wanted a bullet list of what to do, we have a checklist ready for you.

 1. Keywords - The first thing that comes to the mind of any consumer when he/she searches for content on the internet is the keyword. All important keywords need to be covered during the first phase of writing itself so that it becomes easy to search related material. Also try and make use of the keywords with the help of hyperlinks to attract more traffic to your website. 

2.  Website SiteMap – Just as the contents page of a novel helps the reader easily find the page, so does site-map with links help a user navigate web pages on a mobile website the user is looking for.

3. Social Media –  Promotion of websites, blogs, groups, forums, etc. by linking online communities in social media (Twitter, Facebook,  Pinterest, LinkedIn, etc. )

4.  Email Signatures – Here, the customer gets in touch with the owner of the website through the designated signature format used at the end of the emails. 

5.  Advertisements – This involves hard-selling your website through advertisements, pay per click ads and updating relevant content on the website.

It is extremely important to ensure that your mobile website is appropriate in all respects, i.e. in terms of icons, images, content, tools and so on. All said and done, your web pages should not crash or hang as it ensures all the good work gets lost. With 80% of people accessing e-commerce websites through mobile phones, it is important to ensure proper backup of the website during server downtime. And finally, make sure you have a valid certificate for the same. 

Extension and Widgets in iOS 8

               

A lot has been said about the multiple features in iOS 8, but what among them all is the most powerful? This is a question that must be asked. Any seasoned developer will tell you that it is the feature of extensions that provide different ways to share data and functionality of your app with other iOS apps that is the most powerful.

Every extension deals with one specific part of the system. This article looks at extensions in iOS, in particular at Widgets, also known as the today extension that appears in the Today view in the notification center.

What are Extensions

Extensions allow you to share custom functionality from your app to other iOS devices. The areas in the operating system that support extensions are known as Extension points. There are 7 extension points in iOS overall:

1) Today extension – See quick updates in the Today view.

2) Action – Edit or view content provided by a host app.

3) Share – Share content with others or post it to a website.

4) Document Provider (iOS) – Access and edit a repository of files.

5 )Photo Editing (iOS) – Edit a photo or video using the stock Photos app.

6) Custom Keyboard (iOS) – Provide a customized system keyboard.

7) Finder Sync (OS X) – Show information about file sync state within Finder.

Inside Xcode, each extension template is tailored for exactly one of the extension points listed above. There is no concept of a “generic” extension that will work with more than one extension point.

Every extension exists inside a container app as a separate binary. They are added to an existing project as a new target. This means you don’t release extensions individually. Instead, they are released alongside their container app. One app can contain several different extensions. Let us now look at Widget extensions.

Widget extension considerations

Before we know more about Widget extensions, you need to know that Widget responsive, sharp and need to provide quick information. Widgets should not include processes such as signing in, browsing extensive data etc. In essence, extensions should not be step-intensive.

For those of you wondering about the code it takes to build a Widget, you actually don't need to do much once you get the drift of NCWidgetProviding.

The Mobile Impact on Ecommerce

                                       

First, it was online shopping. Then it became full-fledged ecommerce. And now, it has gone mobile. If we look back we will find that shopping has evolved rather dramatically over the years. It used to involve newspaper ads, clipping coupons and driving from store to store to compare deals. Now social media and mobile innovations allow shoppers to post photos of their purchases, ask their friends for recommendations, read reviews etc without having to leave the store aisle. We look at how retailers can use mobile to improve consumers’ overall shopping experience.

Social media is increasingly influencing shopping habits with 3 out of 4 customers admitting to having used Facebook to choose a shopping destination or restaurant. A majority of customers also hold online conversations with brands to seek a better experience in the future. So, how do businesses use mobile to provide that extra value to the consumer?

1. Store-specific apps

Retailers with their own apps can follow shoppers to create lists, find relevant coupons and deals, and even load these deals directly onto loyalty cards. Some businesses have taken doesn't even further by allowing users to start shopping on one device and pick it up later from another.

2. Help shoppers find items

Some apps offer in-store location features that can help customers find a specific product without flagging down a salesperson. This is very useful as users like to be guided to the product without third-party intervention.

3. Compare/Contrast

When it comes to making a purchase decision, shoppers are always looking for easier ways to read reviews, check prices and compare multiple products. For example, Best Buy puts QR codes on all of their products to help with this, allowing customers to simply scan the codes for additional product info and compare up to 4 Best Buy products at a time.

4. The checkout needs to be easy!

While in-store mobile payments are still in their infancy, the appeal of speeding up the checkout process is undeniable. Sloppy checkout processes are foremost among the reasons for customer frustration and easing it would go a long way in ensuring satisfaction.

5. Ask them to visit again

Every store wants repeat business and an app is the perfect way to get customers back. Apps can send alerts about new items, notify customers when their prescriptions need to be refilled, or promote limited-time sales.

6. Give them the whole picture

Retailers can use apps to ensure a positive brand experience even after customers leave the store. Offering ‘how-to’ videos and suggestions based on customers’ past purchases would be a good idea. For example, a customer who just bought an iPod might be interested in a speaker.  

Need iOS developers? You’ve found the right partner!

Developing apps in iOS is one of the best ways to build your brand and advertise your company. But how do you sell yourself among a million others? That’s where Openwave comes in. We provide you with the most experienced hands at iOS development helping you build an app that sustains your business.

Think app, think Openwave!

What do you need to build a successful app? Competence, experience, and some spunk. Well,with some of the best developers you can find and a process flow that’s designed to ensure the highest quality, Openwave is the de facto choice for businesses looking to build apps. So why wait?

Are you ready for Android?

Android development is making waves all over the world. But have you found the right partner to help you build the app that catapults your sales figures? Openwave has what it takes to do that. An app development team built on talent and experience that has built interactive and robust apps for clients the world over.

iOS is changing, have you?

Ios has turned a new leaf with its latest release, iOS 8. This means you need an app development who is abreast of the changes in iOS development. Openwave, with over 18 years of satisfying customers has prided itself on changing with the times and building apps that are truly next-general. So, are you ready for the Openwave experience?

Mobile apps require experience, have you?

Mobile apps development is not for dilettantes. To build a secure, high quality and easy to use mobile app requires a team of developers who are highly competent and driven. That’s precisely what we have at Openwave. Talent, experience and value is what defines us.

Ensure the best user experience, the Openwave way

User experience is what decides if your app sells or not. And you need well thought-out design to ensure that. That alone won’t do, you need to follow it up with the best development. With Openwave, you get exactly that. Don't let go of this opportunity!

The Basics Of Designing A Mobile Website

                                         

Who doesn't want a mobile website? With the pace at which mobile users are continuing to grow, it is only a matter of time before mobile sweeps the entire demography of the earth. And as the sales continue to rise, the costs continue to plummet. With the Wireless application protocol (WAP) introduced long back, customers have no problem accessing the same websites that they access on their desktops on their mobile phones.

But designing for a normal website and designing for a mobile-optimized one are not the same. This brings us to our fundamental question. What are the major differences when it comes to building a mobile website?

First, the mobile internet is not fundamentally different from the web in that the gateway retrieves the pages the user requested for from the web. Later, these pages are converted into a phone readable format.

Now to the differences or limitations in building a mobile website:

1. Normally, we are used to using tables to design a website. This however, is not possible in designing a mobile website as only cascading style sheets can be used to design the layout.

2. Secondly, there is a difference as to the usage of characters as only characters encoded using the UTF-8 standard will be accepted by the browsers of mobile phones.

3. Importantly, only Extended HTML (XHTML) And Extensible Markup language (XML) can be used for hardcoding the design of the pages.

4. Now, each phone has its own specific size and therefore you need to pay attention to the page resolution which doesn't usually exceed 120 pixels.

5. Images play an important role when it comes to designing mobile phones and here comes the major difference. A mobile website would accept only GIF and JPEG image formats.

6. Embedding Flash, images or providing links to videos or PDFs may be a part of normal web design, but are a strict no-no for mobile websites. As a mobile page is written in pure HTML, you cannot do any of the above and instead will have to code it in.

7. Last but not the least, you need a content editor to design the user interface of your mobile website.

Key Features Of CORONA SDK

         

In order to achieve cross-platform development, a developer obviously needs some application development tools. Corona Software Development Kit (SDK) offers some of the best features and API's available today in terms of mobile app development tools. This tool set makes it easier for developers to transition between Google's Android platform and Apple's iOS platform.

Corona SDK is especially beneficial for mobile app developers, designers, and non-traditional developers who create applications for iPad, Android, and iPhone.  Using the great features for application development makes it easy to share the applications quickly.  Here are a few of the features Corona SDK offers.

Cross-Platform Development 

Using Corona SDK makes it simple to share applications between platforms, screen sizes, and OS versions.All it takes is writing the application once, and then clicking a button to build the application for iOS or Android.  Corona also makes sure to automatically scale the mobile application to fit a variety of screen sizes.

Native Device Features 

When using Corona SDK it's simple to use features that are native to either the Android platform or the iOS platform.  A few of these features are Google Maps, accelerometer, GPS, camera, Webkit, software keyboards, GPS, multitouch, and more.  In addition to all this, it is simple to access social networks and certain services, like mobile analytics.

High-Performance Graphics 

With Corona SDK, users can utilize the same industry-standard architecture that popular mobile games use. This includes the games that were developed by Electronic Arts, ngmoco, and Tapulous.  The set of tools has been built on top of OpenAL, OpenGL, and Lua to provide excellent performance that's super fast.

Integrated Game Engine 

It's easy to develop great games with Corona SDK that are able to outperform other games that were developed using web-based technologies, including Appcelerator Titanium etc.  Corona also makes it easy to use gaming features, such as sprite sheets, Facebook Connect, Box2D graphics, and OpenFeint social gaming.