Platform SelectionWilco van Duinkerken November 20th 2009

About Me

• 1995: Started Web Development

• 1999-2001: Snakenetworks

• 2001-2004: Dots and Crosses

• 2004-2006: SoundCream

• 2006-2009: Sparkboxx

• 2009-... : Othonis

My Target Today

Provide you with enough material to

keep you surfing the Internet for a day

Because Slinger is getting bored with the standard PHP/Joomla prototypes

How to choose a Platform?

These are your Garage Days

• Focus on “proof of concepts”

• Technically, but especially

• Business wise

• Your constraints: Time + Money

• So...

Be Lazy...

Ask yourself: “What do we have to

prove?”

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]!

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!

Example

• We are just like Hyves / LinkedIN / Facebook, but we focus on the elderly

• Your job:

• Get an open source implementation like Community Engine

• Redesign it for the elderly

Find a Foundation

• Is there any open source implementation you can start using?

• Are there any WebServices you can use?

• Are there any apps available with an API you can use?

Example Foundations

• Imaging applications: pixlr.com API

• Document management: zoho.com API

• Search/ localization application: google and yahoo APIs

• Financial administration: write an Exact Online plugin

Example Foundations

• CRM application: highriseapp.com API

• Messaging: Twitter API

• Community sites: Facebook app or Community Engine

• Content Management: Radiant, Mephisto

• E-commerce: Spree

Try re-use first!Focus on your unique

selling point [y]

Start Developing “outside-in”

• Design first!

• Make a prototype

• Start the implementation

• Stay away from a database as long as possible

Design First

Choose your Platform

• Web (works on mobile and desktop as well)

• Desktop

• Mobile

Web Development Platforms and Tools

Web Basics

• HTML (checkout HAML)

• CSS (checkout SASS and COMPASS)

• Javascript

HTML (content)

• Easy to Learn

• HTML 5 is really powerful! (Google Wave)

• A lot of “ready made” material available

• Works on (almost) all Devices

CSS (layout)

• Easy to Learn, Hard to Master

• Quite some cross-browser issues

• CSS Frameworks to the rescue

• Blueprint CSS

• 960gs (demo)

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

Developing for the Web

• LAMP (Linux-Apache-MySQL-PHP)

• Ruby - Rails, Sinatra, merb

• Google Web Toolkit (Java)

• Adobe Flex

• Microsoft Silverlight

Rails is used by

• Twitter.com

• Omroep.nl

• Shopify.com

• NEDAP

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

Desktop and Mobile

Developer Aids

• Traditional

• Visual Studio .NET (Windows)

• Xcode (Mac)

• IntelliJ (Java)

Developer Aids

• 4TH generation tools

• Servoy (free academic license) (demo)

• WinDev (free lite version)

• Cordys process factory (mashups)

Appcelerator

Proof of Concept(s)

• Are NOT complete products

• Are deliverables that prove a point i.e.

• Technical Feasibility

• User interface

• Customer interest

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.

Some (off-topic) Personal Notes and

one-liners

Competitors are the best thing that will ever happen to you.

Keep track of the hours you spend on

the product

Keep a sustainable pace

(check out Pivotal Tracker)

Build your own website in minutes using

• www.rackspace.com

• www.wordpress.com

• www.typepad.com

#fail...please, #fail...(and admit it)