5 Things to Consider Before Developing Your Own Software

If you have a unique idea for new software that’s great! If you think it’s going to smash all the other programs out the park, that’s also great! But remember, a unique bit of kit isn’t necessarily going to work wonders if you haven’t planned properly. If you are new to developing software and you’re unsure of where to start in your new project, have a look at some of the key points to consider below.

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1.      Planning

The planning stage is extremely important when it comes to software design and many top software developers will tell you the same. If you don’t have a good plan, the chances are, you’re not going to have good software. Don’t jump straight into coding an application because you’ll regret it somewhere down the line when it comes to security and user-friendliness. The planning stage may well take days or even weeks to complete, but with a good plan, you’ll find the development process is easier and thus much more efficient.

2.      Security

As with the planning stage, the security of any software must be at its best otherwise not many users are going to be willing to download your software. Implementing security is key to the success of any application and it should be at the planning stage where you think about the security aspects of your project.

3.      Future Development

Most problems amateur software developers run into when it comes to developing apps is that they don’t think about the future updates or further development. A newly released piece of software isn’t going to be the finished product - many new features will need to be implemented later. Always think about OOP (Object Oriented Programming) and cleaner code to ensure future developments are easier to implement. Cleaner code will also provide a cleaner and faster experience.

4.      User-Friendliness

An application needs to be user-friendly otherwise it’s not going to provide the experience users crave. If your application does the job it’s supposed to, that’s great, but it’s just as important to ensure your users get the best experience when it comes to speed and navigation. If a user doesn’t like the look of your application, they won’t download it.

5.      Speed

Speed is important for any software to have any chance of success. Planning and security should be the first points to consider when developing software. However, it’s always important to write code that’s going to provide speed so your users will get the best experience. Slow software is software that doesn’t get much notice.

Development is never easy, regardless of the size of the project - many points need planning and considering before the development stage even takes place.