Challenges with hiring Android, BlackBerry, iPhone development resources - Whitepaper

At the ScreamingToaster consulting practice, I have been talking to small, mid, and large size businesses, in every imaginable vertical, for the last 3 years. The need for mobile initiative rollout was nonexistent for the last few years (since 2008). However, with 2011 everything has changed. IT and investment budgets are thawing and there is a huge market opportunity to leverage to make a lot of money in the smartphone software and services space. Hardware companies and telcos are leveraging this market and making a lot of money from it. Software on the other hand, is woefully outclassed and outpaced by hardware and infrastructure. If you join us, with the simple solutions outlined above, we can turn this problem into an opportunity and reinvest out way out of this decade-old rut of web-complacency!

The future of mobile is multiplatform - Whitepaper

As the smartphone segment continues to grow, and more consumers become accustomed to the greater capabilities delivered by these cloud connected mobile platforms, your business has to evolve as well to meet these expectations. This not a question of technology. It is a question of keeping your business competitive, and leveraging the new revenue streams that are now possible, as tens of millions of smartphone users use their devices in their daily life, and spend a lot of time, energy and money on them and through them.

Why the “mobile web” is useless, aka, “how to spot the fake mobile web app” - Whitepaper

Introduction The term mobile web is used interchangeably with the word app, but in reality they are not at all the same and these terms cannot be used interchangeably. They really aren't mobile apps at all, they are just tiny webpages you view in your smartphone’s web browser. Mobile websites are a cheap and easy way to let people view some parts of your website on their smartphone, and they are inexpensive to build. However, these mobile websites cannot do very much, and usually only allow people to read static content and do not integrate with a smartphone’s native applications or functionality. They are VERY basic and very “one way” as in the content flows from the owner of the website, to the reader.

Hype driving iPhone/smartphone app development

Building mobile apps is a hype-based decision, and Apple is the one generating this hype. It is not a business decision. Apple has made it super easy to make simplistic mobile apps, most of which are just mobile web views. Most iPhone apps on the App Store are simplistic, meaning they don't really do anything interesting, and don't take advantage of the iPhone’s capabilities. Companies are doing the least amount of work and build the simplest app they can, just to be part of the hype. The simplistic iPhone apps more companies make are just an attempt to be part of the cool crowd and the hype. They are not a commitment to mobile, and don't involve any real risk, investment, or foresight. iPhone development is so easy that many web developers are able to create simple web view “mobile apps” and this is good enough for most companies because they just need something to show to be part of the crowd.

How much should Android, BlackBerry, iPhone app development cost? - Whitepaper

My hope is that this article will help people get a more realistic sense of pricing for their next mobile/smartphone project and initiative. Smartphones are new. This space is constantly evolving. It is always expensive to create novelty. Smartphones are not even close to being a commodity yet, so don’t make the mistake of applying commodity pricing models to it.

Amazon will legitimize mobile application distribution

The problem with all the app stores today is that they suck as distribution channels. They do not allow their catalog to be easily discovered, leading to them invalidating their own existence. The whole point of the app store is not to promote the app store, but to promote apps in the app store. Eg, Newmans Own does not advertise. They leverage effective distribution networks (like grocery stores) to highlight and promote their products to retail consumers. This keeps the retail reseller in business, and the suppliers as well. With app stores/worlds, there is no such healthy ecosystem. The ego and self obsession with a vendor's app store is what perpetuates the store but doesnt benefit consumers or ISVs that make software for consumers.

Update of the smartphone market (Android, BlackBerry, iPhone) - Whitepaper

The smartphone market is still in its infancy right now. While there is a lot of buzz around smartphones, it’s important to keep in mind how small this market really is. The number of smartphone units sold annually in the US are measured in the order of 10’s of millions. Of the 350M or so US citizens, around 30M have smartphones (that’s less than 9%). In contrast, feature phone sales are measured in the order of 1000’s of millions of units sold worldwide. Laptop sales are in the order of 1000’s of millions of units worldwide, as well. So, this is still an emerging market. Not to say that it is not growing rapidly, and faster and stronger than anyone would expect, given the recent global economic crisis, and US economic meltdown.

3 Steps to avoid failure with your first attempt at smartphone app development on Android, iPhone, and BlackBerry - Whitepaper

The first step is for you to select the right mobile platform for your mobile initiatives. The following table outlines the major differences between the major platforms and can act as rough guidelines to help you match your requirements to the right platform for you.

Introducing Zen Application Framework for BlackBerry - Whitepaper

We use the Zen Application Framework exclusively to build our mobile applications, and so can you. Zen is free for all ScreamingToaster Consulting clients, and its source code comes as part of the deliverables at the end of every consulting project. Zen training courses are available upon request to consulting clients only. ScreamingToaster has a commitment to open source software (OSS) and democratizing knowledge for the good of the developer community, and humanity as a whole, which is why we give Zen away for free to our consulting clients. Our clients can make changes or additions to the applications we build them, and they can also use Zen to build applications in-house after taking our BlackBerry developer training courses.

Whitepaper - Smartphone mobile software testing

I hope I provided some insight into how we polish and refine our products before they are made ready for public consumption. This is also why we don’t believe that giving our apps away for free is a sustainable business model for us. There’s more to an app and a company and people than the price tag. As savvy consumers, you have to look at all that you’re getting. You’ve paid a lot of money for a BB, and even more for the voice/data plan just to make it go. When you put an app on it, make sure that this app will add value to your purchase, and not take away from it by bricking the device, making it unresponsive, etc. Some people like to think about the upfront cost of an app, while forgetting the entire lifecycle cost. We don’t. We are committed to delivering a tremendous amount of functionality, fantastic customer service and support, at a great value. Doesn’t mean it’s free, but if you add up what you’re paying for what you’re getting, you will be happy at the bargain you are getting it at.

1 million Android smartphones sold in the US

T-Mobile has announced that it’s just sold the 1 millionth G1 smartphone in the US! :) I like Android, and want it to succeed, so it’s good to see positive numbers. However, there’s a long way to go still, with stiff competition coming from LiMo this year, and a dearth of Android powered devices in the market. In about 7 months, T-Mobile was able to sell about 1M G1 units, which is not bad, but not that great either. It still remains to be seen if Android is going to be a major player or not. We shall see.

Whitepaper - Google Android SDK and Platform - review and analysis

I've always been passionate about mobile user experiences, apps, services, infrastructure, and have spent many years working to create platforms using various technologies. I was really excited when the iPhone was announced with the availability of OSX... there was so much potential for that device to be a game changer for mobile. However, without the official inclusion of an SDK or a way to give 3rd party developers/ISVs a way to load software on to the device, it eliminated a lot of possibilities, on what 3rd parties could do with the device and platform, which is a shame. With the press releases that Google made about Android, it is marketed as an "open" platform, and without the restrictions that Apple places on the iPhone. It's more "open" than Microsoft's Windows Mobile and RIM's Blackberry. So there is hope for this to be a good platform for developing mobile apps and services on. Or is it? In this white paper, I'm going to cut through the marketing rhetoric and do an in-depth analysis of the merits of the Android SDK and platform and discuss the problems that might arise due to it's openness and the fact that at the time of this writing, there is not a single commercially available wireless smartphone or phone running Android. I'm not going to repeat information that you can get from Google's Android website, which I reference where necessary for background information, and more indepth information.

Challenges with hiring Android, BlackBerry, iPhone development resources - Whitepaper

At the ScreamingToaster consulting practice, I have been talking to small, mid, and large size businesses, in every imaginable vertical, for the last 3 years. The need for mobile initiative rollout was nonexistent for the last few years (since 2008). However, with 2011 everything has changed. IT and investment budgets are thawing and there is a huge market opportunity to leverage to make a lot of money in the smartphone software and services space. Hardware companies and telcos are leveraging this market and making a lot of money from it. Software on the other hand, is woefully outclassed and outpaced by hardware and infrastructure. If you join us, with the simple solutions outlined above, we can turn this problem into an opportunity and reinvest out way out of this decade-old rut of web-complacency!

The future of mobile is multiplatform - Whitepaper

As the smartphone segment continues to grow, and more consumers become accustomed to the greater capabilities delivered by these cloud connected mobile platforms, your business has to evolve as well to meet these expectations. This not a question of technology. It is a question of keeping your business competitive, and leveraging the new revenue streams that are now possible, as tens of millions of smartphone users use their devices in their daily life, and spend a lot of time, energy and money on them and through them.

Why the “mobile web” is useless, aka, “how to spot the fake mobile web app” - Whitepaper

Introduction The term mobile web is used interchangeably with the word app, but in reality they are not at all the same and these terms cannot be used interchangeably. They really aren't mobile apps at all, they are just tiny webpages you view in your smartphone’s web browser. Mobile websites are a cheap and easy way to let people view some parts of your website on their smartphone, and they are inexpensive to build. However, these mobile websites cannot do very much, and usually only allow people to read static content and do not integrate with a smartphone’s native applications or functionality. They are VERY basic and very “one way” as in the content flows from the owner of the website, to the reader.

Hype driving iPhone/smartphone app development

Building mobile apps is a hype-based decision, and Apple is the one generating this hype. It is not a business decision. Apple has made it super easy to make simplistic mobile apps, most of which are just mobile web views. Most iPhone apps on the App Store are simplistic, meaning they don't really do anything interesting, and don't take advantage of the iPhone’s capabilities. Companies are doing the least amount of work and build the simplest app they can, just to be part of the hype. The simplistic iPhone apps more companies make are just an attempt to be part of the cool crowd and the hype. They are not a commitment to mobile, and don't involve any real risk, investment, or foresight. iPhone development is so easy that many web developers are able to create simple web view “mobile apps” and this is good enough for most companies because they just need something to show to be part of the crowd.

How much should Android, BlackBerry, iPhone app development cost? - Whitepaper

My hope is that this article will help people get a more realistic sense of pricing for their next mobile/smartphone project and initiative. Smartphones are new. This space is constantly evolving. It is always expensive to create novelty. Smartphones are not even close to being a commodity yet, so don’t make the mistake of applying commodity pricing models to it.

Update of the smartphone market (Android, BlackBerry, iPhone) - Whitepaper

The smartphone market is still in its infancy right now. While there is a lot of buzz around smartphones, it’s important to keep in mind how small this market really is. The number of smartphone units sold annually in the US are measured in the order of 10’s of millions. Of the 350M or so US citizens, around 30M have smartphones (that’s less than 9%). In contrast, feature phone sales are measured in the order of 1000’s of millions of units sold worldwide. Laptop sales are in the order of 1000’s of millions of units worldwide, as well. So, this is still an emerging market. Not to say that it is not growing rapidly, and faster and stronger than anyone would expect, given the recent global economic crisis, and US economic meltdown.

3 Steps to avoid failure with your first attempt at smartphone app development on Android, iPhone, and BlackBerry - Whitepaper

The first step is for you to select the right mobile platform for your mobile initiatives. The following table outlines the major differences between the major platforms and can act as rough guidelines to help you match your requirements to the right platform for you.

Introducing Zen Application Framework for BlackBerry - Whitepaper

We use the Zen Application Framework exclusively to build our mobile applications, and so can you. Zen is free for all ScreamingToaster Consulting clients, and its source code comes as part of the deliverables at the end of every consulting project. Zen training courses are available upon request to consulting clients only. ScreamingToaster has a commitment to open source software (OSS) and democratizing knowledge for the good of the developer community, and humanity as a whole, which is why we give Zen away for free to our consulting clients. Our clients can make changes or additions to the applications we build them, and they can also use Zen to build applications in-house after taking our BlackBerry developer training courses.

Introducing RainOrShine - Whitepaper

RainOrShine is a free location-based weather application for BlackBerry. It provides real-time, current weather conditions for your current location. Using ScreamingToaster technology, RainOrShine also delivers location-based real-time updates for any Wikipedia information available for your current location, and movie show times for theaters near your current location. RainOrShine is a showcase of location-based services (LBS) possible on the BlackBerry platform, brought to you by ScreamingToaster.

What is an enterprise BlackBerry app? - Whitepaper

In this article, I am going to define what a BB app is. I will define the building blocks of every service-enabled BB app: the UI, enterprise information integration, and service orchestration. And I will tell you why there is no 80% complete, template-based, simple, BlackBerry app.

Whitepaper – Get more ROI from your BlackBerry Enterprise Server

As the CTO of ScreamingToaster, I work a lot with of organizations that are rolling out innovative mobile projects providing them with guidance, architecture recommendations, training, and implementation services. All of our clients have attempted and failed at rolling out mobile initiatives - mobile is not their core competency, they just want to leverage mobile technology to enhance their business operations. Because mobile is new, there are a lot of pitfalls that will guarantee failure. They come to us to guide them on a path away from the pitfalls, and to success.

Whitepaper - Smartphone mobile software testing

I hope I provided some insight into how we polish and refine our products before they are made ready for public consumption. This is also why we don’t believe that giving our apps away for free is a sustainable business model for us. There’s more to an app and a company and people than the price tag. As savvy consumers, you have to look at all that you’re getting. You’ve paid a lot of money for a BB, and even more for the voice/data plan just to make it go. When you put an app on it, make sure that this app will add value to your purchase, and not take away from it by bricking the device, making it unresponsive, etc. Some people like to think about the upfront cost of an app, while forgetting the entire lifecycle cost. We don’t. We are committed to delivering a tremendous amount of functionality, fantastic customer service and support, at a great value. Doesn’t mean it’s free, but if you add up what you’re paying for what you’re getting, you will be happy at the bargain you are getting it at.

JDE 5.0 Beta

RIM just released a new JDE version, you can download it here. Here’s a review of an early release of OS 5.0 on an actual Bold. 5.0 is going to be an awesome OS! In writing software for OS 4.6 for some time now, I’ve run into lots of limitations in media capture that are being addressed by 5.0! Video capture is coming in 5.0!

RIM announces new Blackberry platform features

Research In Motion (RIM) has announced some brand new features in its Blackberry platform that will benefit handset users, Blackberry Server administrators as well as developers.

Dataset and Mindset

Introducing Zen Application Framework for BlackBerry - Whitepaper

We use the Zen Application Framework exclusively to build our mobile applications, and so can you. Zen is free for all ScreamingToaster Consulting clients, and its source code comes as part of the deliverables at the end of every consulting project. Zen training courses are available upon request to consulting clients only. ScreamingToaster has a commitment to open source software (OSS) and democratizing knowledge for the good of the developer community, and humanity as a whole, which is why we give Zen away for free to our consulting clients. Our clients can make changes or additions to the applications we build them, and they can also use Zen to build applications in-house after taking our BlackBerry developer training courses.

Introducing RainOrShine - Whitepaper

RainOrShine is a free location-based weather application for BlackBerry. It provides real-time, current weather conditions for your current location. Using ScreamingToaster technology, RainOrShine also delivers location-based real-time updates for any Wikipedia information available for your current location, and movie show times for theaters near your current location. RainOrShine is a showcase of location-based services (LBS) possible on the BlackBerry platform, brought to you by ScreamingToaster.

What is an enterprise BlackBerry app? - Whitepaper

In this article, I am going to define what a BB app is. I will define the building blocks of every service-enabled BB app: the UI, enterprise information integration, and service orchestration. And I will tell you why there is no 80% complete, template-based, simple, BlackBerry app.

Challenges with hiring Android, BlackBerry, iPhone development resources - Whitepaper

At the ScreamingToaster consulting practice, I have been talking to small, mid, and large size businesses, in every imaginable vertical, for the last 3 years. The need for mobile initiative rollout was nonexistent for the last few years (since 2008). However, with 2011 everything has changed. IT and investment budgets are thawing and there is a huge market opportunity to leverage to make a lot of money in the smartphone software and services space. Hardware companies and telcos are leveraging this market and making a lot of money from it. Software on the other hand, is woefully outclassed and outpaced by hardware and infrastructure. If you join us, with the simple solutions outlined above, we can turn this problem into an opportunity and reinvest out way out of this decade-old rut of web-complacency!

The future of mobile is multiplatform - Whitepaper

As the smartphone segment continues to grow, and more consumers become accustomed to the greater capabilities delivered by these cloud connected mobile platforms, your business has to evolve as well to meet these expectations. This not a question of technology. It is a question of keeping your business competitive, and leveraging the new revenue streams that are now possible, as tens of millions of smartphone users use their devices in their daily life, and spend a lot of time, energy and money on them and through them.

Why the “mobile web” is useless, aka, “how to spot the fake mobile web app” - Whitepaper

Introduction The term mobile web is used interchangeably with the word app, but in reality they are not at all the same and these terms cannot be used interchangeably. They really aren't mobile apps at all, they are just tiny webpages you view in your smartphone’s web browser. Mobile websites are a cheap and easy way to let people view some parts of your website on their smartphone, and they are inexpensive to build. However, these mobile websites cannot do very much, and usually only allow people to read static content and do not integrate with a smartphone’s native applications or functionality. They are VERY basic and very “one way” as in the content flows from the owner of the website, to the reader.

Hype driving iPhone/smartphone app development

Building mobile apps is a hype-based decision, and Apple is the one generating this hype. It is not a business decision. Apple has made it super easy to make simplistic mobile apps, most of which are just mobile web views. Most iPhone apps on the App Store are simplistic, meaning they don't really do anything interesting, and don't take advantage of the iPhone’s capabilities. Companies are doing the least amount of work and build the simplest app they can, just to be part of the hype. The simplistic iPhone apps more companies make are just an attempt to be part of the cool crowd and the hype. They are not a commitment to mobile, and don't involve any real risk, investment, or foresight. iPhone development is so easy that many web developers are able to create simple web view “mobile apps” and this is good enough for most companies because they just need something to show to be part of the crowd.

How much should Android, BlackBerry, iPhone app development cost? - Whitepaper

My hope is that this article will help people get a more realistic sense of pricing for their next mobile/smartphone project and initiative. Smartphones are new. This space is constantly evolving. It is always expensive to create novelty. Smartphones are not even close to being a commodity yet, so don’t make the mistake of applying commodity pricing models to it.

Amazon will legitimize mobile application distribution

The problem with all the app stores today is that they suck as distribution channels. They do not allow their catalog to be easily discovered, leading to them invalidating their own existence. The whole point of the app store is not to promote the app store, but to promote apps in the app store. Eg, Newmans Own does not advertise. They leverage effective distribution networks (like grocery stores) to highlight and promote their products to retail consumers. This keeps the retail reseller in business, and the suppliers as well. With app stores/worlds, there is no such healthy ecosystem. The ego and self obsession with a vendor's app store is what perpetuates the store but doesnt benefit consumers or ISVs that make software for consumers.

Update of the smartphone market (Android, BlackBerry, iPhone) - Whitepaper

The smartphone market is still in its infancy right now. While there is a lot of buzz around smartphones, it’s important to keep in mind how small this market really is. The number of smartphone units sold annually in the US are measured in the order of 10’s of millions. Of the 350M or so US citizens, around 30M have smartphones (that’s less than 9%). In contrast, feature phone sales are measured in the order of 1000’s of millions of units sold worldwide. Laptop sales are in the order of 1000’s of millions of units worldwide, as well. So, this is still an emerging market. Not to say that it is not growing rapidly, and faster and stronger than anyone would expect, given the recent global economic crisis, and US economic meltdown.

3 Steps to avoid failure with your first attempt at smartphone app development on Android, iPhone, and BlackBerry - Whitepaper

The first step is for you to select the right mobile platform for your mobile initiatives. The following table outlines the major differences between the major platforms and can act as rough guidelines to help you match your requirements to the right platform for you.

Introducing Zen Application Framework for BlackBerry - Whitepaper

We use the Zen Application Framework exclusively to build our mobile applications, and so can you. Zen is free for all ScreamingToaster Consulting clients, and its source code comes as part of the deliverables at the end of every consulting project. Zen training courses are available upon request to consulting clients only. ScreamingToaster has a commitment to open source software (OSS) and democratizing knowledge for the good of the developer community, and humanity as a whole, which is why we give Zen away for free to our consulting clients. Our clients can make changes or additions to the applications we build them, and they can also use Zen to build applications in-house after taking our BlackBerry developer training courses.

Introducing RainOrShine - Whitepaper

RainOrShine is a free location-based weather application for BlackBerry. It provides real-time, current weather conditions for your current location. Using ScreamingToaster technology, RainOrShine also delivers location-based real-time updates for any Wikipedia information available for your current location, and movie show times for theaters near your current location. RainOrShine is a showcase of location-based services (LBS) possible on the BlackBerry platform, brought to you by ScreamingToaster.

What is an enterprise BlackBerry app? - Whitepaper

In this article, I am going to define what a BB app is. I will define the building blocks of every service-enabled BB app: the UI, enterprise information integration, and service orchestration. And I will tell you why there is no 80% complete, template-based, simple, BlackBerry app.

Whitepaper – Get more ROI from your BlackBerry Enterprise Server

As the CTO of ScreamingToaster, I work a lot with of organizations that are rolling out innovative mobile projects providing them with guidance, architecture recommendations, training, and implementation services. All of our clients have attempted and failed at rolling out mobile initiatives - mobile is not their core competency, they just want to leverage mobile technology to enhance their business operations. Because mobile is new, there are a lot of pitfalls that will guarantee failure. They come to us to guide them on a path away from the pitfalls, and to success.

Whitepaper - Smartphone mobile software testing

I hope I provided some insight into how we polish and refine our products before they are made ready for public consumption. This is also why we don’t believe that giving our apps away for free is a sustainable business model for us. There’s more to an app and a company and people than the price tag. As savvy consumers, you have to look at all that you’re getting. You’ve paid a lot of money for a BB, and even more for the voice/data plan just to make it go. When you put an app on it, make sure that this app will add value to your purchase, and not take away from it by bricking the device, making it unresponsive, etc. Some people like to think about the upfront cost of an app, while forgetting the entire lifecycle cost. We don’t. We are committed to delivering a tremendous amount of functionality, fantastic customer service and support, at a great value. Doesn’t mean it’s free, but if you add up what you’re paying for what you’re getting, you will be happy at the bargain you are getting it at.