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Slide 1: Platform Selection Wilco van Duinkerken November 20th 2009
Slide 2: About Me • 1995: Started Web Development • 1999-2001: Snakenetworks • 2001-2004: Dots and Crosses • 2004-2006: SoundCream • 2006-2009: Sparkboxx • 2009-... : Othonis
Slide 3: My Target Today
Slide 4: Provide you with enough material to keep you surfing the Internet for a day
Slide 5: Because Slinger is getting bored with the standard PHP/ Joomla prototypes
Slide 6: How to choose a Platform?
Slide 9: These are your Garage Days • Focus on “proof of concepts” • Technically, but especially • Business wise • Your constraints: Time + Money • So...
Slide 10: Be Lazy...
Slide 11: Ask yourself: “What do we have to prove?”
Slide 12: Excercise • Find yourself a competitor • Explain your product as: • We are similar to [X] but we do [Y] better • Your job is to develop [Y]! not [X]!
Slide 13: Example • We are just like Google Search, but we organize the results better • Your Job in the Garage days: • Learn the Google Search API and present the results differently • DON’T build a search engine!
Slide 14: Example • We are just like Hyves / LinkedIN / • Your job: • Get an open source implementation like Community Engine Facebook, but we focus on the elderly • Redesign it for the elderly
Slide 15: Find a Foundation • Is there any open source use? implementation you can start using? • Are there any WebServices you can • Are there any apps available with an API you can use?
Slide 16: Example Foundations • Imaging applications: pixlr.com API • Document management: zoho.com API • Search/ localization application: google and yahoo APIs Exact Online plugin • Financial administration: write an
Slide 17: Example Foundations • CRM application: highriseapp.com API • Messaging: Twitter API • Community sites: Facebook app or Community Engine Mephisto • Content Management: Radiant, • E-commerce: Spree
Slide 18: Try re-use first! Focus on your unique selling point [y]
Slide 19: Start Developing “outside-in” • Design first! • Make a prototype • Start the implementation • Stay away from a database as long as possible
Slide 20: Design First
Slide 21: Choose your Platform • Web (works on mobile and desktop as well) • Desktop • Mobile
Slide 22: Web Development Platforms and Tools
Slide 23: Web Basics • HTML (checkout HAML) • CSS (checkout SASS and COMPASS) • Javascript
Slide 24: HTML (content) • Easy to Learn • HTML 5 is really powerful! (Google Wave) • A lot of “ready made” material available • Works on (almost) all Devices
Slide 25: CSS (layout) • Easy to Learn, Hard to Master • Quite some cross-browser issues • CSS Frameworks to the rescue • Blueprint CSS • 960gs (demo)
Slide 26: Javascript • For the Web2.0 Feeling • Advanced layouts and interactions • Use a framework: • JQuery and JQuery UI (demo) • Prototype + Script.aculo.us • YUI: Yahoo User Interface
Slide 27: Developing for the Web • LAMP (Linux-Apache-MySQL-PHP) • Ruby - Rails, Sinatra, merb • Google Web Toolkit (Java) • Adobe Flex • Microsoft Silverlight
Slide 29: Rails is used by • Twitter.com • Omroep.nl • Shopify.com • NEDAP
Slide 30: Ruby on Rails • Turbocharged Web Development • About 10.000 plugins and “gems” • Loads and Loads of instruction videos • railscasts.com • peepcode.com • Free hosting at heroku.com
Slide 31: Desktop and Mobile
Slide 32: Developer Aids • Traditional • Visual Studio .NET (Windows) • Xcode (Mac) • IntelliJ (Java)
Slide 33: Developer Aids • 4TH generation tools • Servoy (free academic license) (demo) • WinDev (free lite version) • Cordys process factory (mashups)
Slide 34: Appcelerator
Slide 35: Proof of Concept(s) • Are NOT complete products • Are deliverables that prove a point i.e. • Technical Feasibility • User interface • Customer interest
Slide 36: Summary • Define your unique selling point (USP) • Try to re-use everything but your USP • Prototype your USP: first visually, then technically • Use the prototype to test your USP • Be Lazy! Use the right toolset.
Slide 37: Some (off-topic) Personal Notes and one-liners
Slide 38: Competitors are the best thing that will ever happen to you.
Slide 39: Keep track of the hours you spend on the product
Slide 40: Keep a sustainable pace (check out Pivotal Tracker)
Slide 41: Build your own website in minutes using • www.rackspace.com • www.wordpress.com • www.typepad.com
Slide 42: #fail...please, #fail... (and admit it)