The spark of creativity in our computers
The amount of software in the market is huge, with tens of thousands of titles that can help you do everything you need to do on a computer. But have you ever wondered how new software is created? Where are the brains that come up with the ideas and...
The amount of software in the market is huge, with tens of thousands of titles that can help you do everything you need to do on a computer. But have you ever wondered how new software is created? Where are the brains that come up with the ideas and turn them into a programme that is then used widely, in some cases by tens of millions around the world?
I-Tech approached Uniblue, an Msida-based software development company for the home and small office market. It is owned by a Swedish family but the majority of staff is Maltese and its products are well-known in the American, European and Far East markets. Its titles include software to optimise the performance of a PC, to see what's running on it and to care for it. Some of the programmes have received awards from international entities such as CNET, PCWorld, Wall Street Journal, USA Today and Smart Computing.
"The origin of most, if not all, new product ideas, is an understanding of what people need," explained Johan Malmberg, chief visionary officer at Uniblue.
"A good place to start when developing new software is simply to ask yourself how you can make computers easier to use and simpler to understand. As we have grown, we have the luxury of harnessing the imaginative power of software developers, technologists, product strategists, market analysts as well as sales and marketing people."
So how does the company promote creativity?
"By making sure that the company stays a fun place to work, and then give employees enough freedom and support, to develop their own ideas," replied Mr Malmberg. "It is easy to forget that a single central department to unify and coordinate the expression of the company brand and strategy is seen as an indulgence by many managers, whereas we see it as a source of competitive advantage.
"The software industry is dynamic and constantly changing, while the speed bad press gets around the internet could almost redefine the laws of physics! So the only long-term success strategy is to combine excellence and flexibility at a corporate level and use that to ensure you deliver outstanding products."
According to David Darmanin, the creative director at Uniblue, the ideas, the software code, the interface are important but there are other factors.
"I would say all of the above, and then add in effective HR, administration, finance management and support. It's old hat business school teaching, but a weak link in any of the components of the value change can see your products failing."
He highlighted the importance of putting the needs of the end user at the center of the design process.
"There are too many IT firms in the world who see the product interface, web graphics and visuals, as being slightly "trendy" add-ons that detract from the clever software at the heart of the application. By contrast we understand that creating attractive and intuitive interfaces, that end-users can use effectively, allows the client to release the full power of the underlying code, and is therefore an essential aspect of our products' core functionality."
In a nutshell, what are the major phases/steps in developing software? User-centric design is important and so software is created by selecting a team of product owners from various areas of the company. These then research the product's requirements before generating user cases (i.e. an extended list of features and functions) based on this research. From these user cases the software developers design the utility, whilst relying on user acceptance tests generated by the support and design teams, to ensure that the product remains user focused throughout development. To speed up the process the Agile method of development is used.
With thousands of software titles on the market and most of them do the same thing in different, if not the same way, what makes a good software programme?
"Our creativity is probably closer to the great tradition of 20th century industrial designers, rather than otherworldly eccentric artists whose uncompromising vision goes unappreciated in their own time." claimed Mr Darmanin. "Many products look similar, but that's largely because there are a number of imitators in this industry. By contrast, the full development of a new software product extends beyond simply programming a stand-alone product. We use creativity to design applications to be simple and easy to use, and to develop underlying engines that integrate the most cutting edge technology (which obviously always changes). But we still need to provide technical support for our products, and promote them with advanced marketing techniques that are just that little bit more advanced than those of our closest competitors. All of these tasks requires creativity in their own right, but also to coordinate them effectively."
The website www.uniblue.com is hugely important for the company and it is its shop front on to the world.
"The great luxury of being web-based, as opposed to being a bricks and mortar operation, is that we can have one site that is finely crafted and minutely optimised, for every single client, whereas, other leading consumer technology firms will need a store in every major jurisdiction," explained Piers Allen, technical writer within the creative team.
He stressed the importance of constant optimisation to improve user experience and to improve the delivery of the improved user experience.
"We use detailed metrics on everything to ensure that we learn from what we do, and then thorough research to find out what we should be doing next. On top of that, the company enthusiastically sponsors us to travel to seminars, events and training courses worldwide, to keep us sharp and at the cutting edge of our fields. From a user's perspective, this research and optimization should be completely invisible."
The prospects for the future look good and users should expect more interesting software for the computers, according to Johan Malmberg.
"I would just add that I can't think of a more exciting business to be in: The technology sector is enjoying unmatched levels of innovation, while the world is experiencing exploding levels of global affluence with which to enjoy the benefits of these changes. Looking to the foreseeable future I'd be surprised if software development didn't lie at the heart of most, if not all, social, technical or cultural changes."
I-Tech approached Uniblue, an Msida-based software development company for the home and small office market. It is owned by a Swedish family but the majority of staff is Maltese and its products are well-known in the American, European and Far East markets. Its titles include software to optimise the performance of a PC, to see what's running on it and to care for it. Some of the programmes have received awards from international entities such as CNET, PCWorld, Wall Street Journal, USA Today and Smart Computing.
"The origin of most, if not all, new product ideas, is an understanding of what people need," explained Johan Malmberg, chief visionary officer at Uniblue.
"A good place to start when developing new software is simply to ask yourself how you can make computers easier to use and simpler to understand. As we have grown, we have the luxury of harnessing the imaginative power of software developers, technologists, product strategists, market analysts as well as sales and marketing people."
So how does the company promote creativity?
"By making sure that the company stays a fun place to work, and then give employees enough freedom and support, to develop their own ideas," replied Mr Malmberg. "It is easy to forget that a single central department to unify and coordinate the expression of the company brand and strategy is seen as an indulgence by many managers, whereas we see it as a source of competitive advantage.
"The software industry is dynamic and constantly changing, while the speed bad press gets around the internet could almost redefine the laws of physics! So the only long-term success strategy is to combine excellence and flexibility at a corporate level and use that to ensure you deliver outstanding products."
According to David Darmanin, the creative director at Uniblue, the ideas, the software code, the interface are important but there are other factors.
"I would say all of the above, and then add in effective HR, administration, finance management and support. It's old hat business school teaching, but a weak link in any of the components of the value change can see your products failing."
He highlighted the importance of putting the needs of the end user at the center of the design process.
"There are too many IT firms in the world who see the product interface, web graphics and visuals, as being slightly "trendy" add-ons that detract from the clever software at the heart of the application. By contrast we understand that creating attractive and intuitive interfaces, that end-users can use effectively, allows the client to release the full power of the underlying code, and is therefore an essential aspect of our products' core functionality."
In a nutshell, what are the major phases/steps in developing software? User-centric design is important and so software is created by selecting a team of product owners from various areas of the company. These then research the product's requirements before generating user cases (i.e. an extended list of features and functions) based on this research. From these user cases the software developers design the utility, whilst relying on user acceptance tests generated by the support and design teams, to ensure that the product remains user focused throughout development. To speed up the process the Agile method of development is used.
With thousands of software titles on the market and most of them do the same thing in different, if not the same way, what makes a good software programme?
"Our creativity is probably closer to the great tradition of 20th century industrial designers, rather than otherworldly eccentric artists whose uncompromising vision goes unappreciated in their own time." claimed Mr Darmanin. "Many products look similar, but that's largely because there are a number of imitators in this industry. By contrast, the full development of a new software product extends beyond simply programming a stand-alone product. We use creativity to design applications to be simple and easy to use, and to develop underlying engines that integrate the most cutting edge technology (which obviously always changes). But we still need to provide technical support for our products, and promote them with advanced marketing techniques that are just that little bit more advanced than those of our closest competitors. All of these tasks requires creativity in their own right, but also to coordinate them effectively."
The website www.uniblue.com is hugely important for the company and it is its shop front on to the world.
"The great luxury of being web-based, as opposed to being a bricks and mortar operation, is that we can have one site that is finely crafted and minutely optimised, for every single client, whereas, other leading consumer technology firms will need a store in every major jurisdiction," explained Piers Allen, technical writer within the creative team.
He stressed the importance of constant optimisation to improve user experience and to improve the delivery of the improved user experience.
"We use detailed metrics on everything to ensure that we learn from what we do, and then thorough research to find out what we should be doing next. On top of that, the company enthusiastically sponsors us to travel to seminars, events and training courses worldwide, to keep us sharp and at the cutting edge of our fields. From a user's perspective, this research and optimization should be completely invisible."
The prospects for the future look good and users should expect more interesting software for the computers, according to Johan Malmberg.
"I would just add that I can't think of a more exciting business to be in: The technology sector is enjoying unmatched levels of innovation, while the world is experiencing exploding levels of global affluence with which to enjoy the benefits of these changes. Looking to the foreseeable future I'd be surprised if software development didn't lie at the heart of most, if not all, social, technical or cultural changes."