8 Recent Trends in software technology

The future of software development is, as they say, very bright (and exciting). 

1| Mixed Reality (MR): massive potential for business solutions

Mixed reality (MR), a combination of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), has excellent potential for business applications. AR integrates digital content with users' physical environment, while VR creates an immersive experience for users.

Organizations in many sectors, such as defense, tourism, architecture, construction, gambling, healthcare, etc., can derive significant business value from this technology. The global MR market is increasing. According to the IndustryARC market analysis report, this market will grow from $1.054 billion in 2017 to $9.982 billion by 2024, with an average annual growth rate of 73.2% between 2018 and 2023.

For example, depending on the nature of your business, you may be considering several MR applications:

Manufacturing companies can use 3D modeling in a VR environment to improve their design processes and overall engineering techniques, as explained in our guide "Applying Virtual Reality in Manufacturing."

Companies, government agencies, and even non-profit organizations can use AR and VR to train their employees to perform complex tasks.

The ability to superimpose real-time digital information on a physical environment gives companies many opportunities to use augmented reality. For example, augmented reality mirrors can show drivers digital images of objects they would not otherwise see.

Media and entertainment companies are making extensive AR and VR services to provide engaging content to consumers. VR games are top-rated!

Companies can use AR and VR services to allow potential customers to 'try out' their products virtually, which will boost their sales. I already explained this in the article "How to create an augmented reality hairdressing app."

If you want to learn more about these use cases, check out the article "6 use cases for mixed reality in business".

2| Blockchain 

Complementing business solutions with transparency, efficiency, and security. The blockchain is a peer-to-peer (P2P) network that offers decentralization, distributed ledger, security features, and transparency.

The smart contracts in blockchain networks are tamper-proof and transparent, which increases trust. Their enforcement is irreversible, which can facilitate contract management.

Companies and governments are eager to explore the blockchain, which explains this global market's rapid growth. According to a Cision PR Newswire report, the blockchain technology market expects to reach $57.641 billion by 2025, growing at an impressive CAGR of 69.4% between 2019 and 2025.   

Blockchain has the potential to add value to many industries. Here are some examples of blockchain use cases:

Improving supply chain management: supply chain management is a complex process involving a lot of paperwork, manual processes, and inefficiencies. With shared ledgers, immutability, and smart contracts, blockchain can improve this function.

Blockchain can improve Identity and Access Management (IAM) processes with tamper-proof data and distributed ledgers. For more information, read "The advantages of blockchain in identity management.

3| Language and framework trends for enterprise application development

Technology is evolving. What languages and frameworks should you use to develop your enterprise application?

JavaScript is the most popular language, followed by HTML/CSS, SQL, Python, and Java.

The most popular web framework is jQuery, followed by React.js, Angular, and ASP.NET.

Js is the most popular among libraries and other frameworks, followed by NET.

MySQL, PostgreSQL, and Microsoft SQL Server are the three most popular databases.

Both Kotlin and Swift, popular languages for native development on Android and iOS, feature prominently in the 'most popular languages' list.

4| Cybersecurity: an essential aspect of building enterprise solutions

With experts repeatedly pointing out that cybercrime causes trillions of dollars in damage, it is not surprising that cybersecurity plays a vital role in enterprise application development. Cybercriminals are organized, and they are constantly improving their skills.

Cybercriminals use a wide range of attacks, such as phishing attacks, distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks, etc. Market observers estimate that cyber-attacks will cause US$6 trillion in damages by 2021, as you can read in the article "11 eye-opening cybersecurity statistics for 2019".

It would help if you proactively mitigated key application security risks. Mitigating application security risks largely relies on good project management, adherence to IT architecture and coding guidelines, etc.

The main application security risks are:

• Injection;
• Ineffective authentication;
• Disclosure of sensitive data;
• External XML Entities (XXE);
• Improper implementation of identity and access management;
• Inadequate security configurations;
• Cross-scripting (XSS);
• Deserialisation without sufficient security;
• Use of outdated software with known security vulnerabilities;
• Suboptimal logging and monitoring processes.

5| Progressive Web Applications (PWA) 

When it comes to mobile apps, native apps offer the best user experience and performance. However, native app development can be significantly costly, as Android and iOS need to be developed separately. You also need to consider the long-term maintenance costs of two different code bases.

"Progressive Web Apps" (PWAs) are web apps but offer a partially similar user experience to native mobile apps. They are responsive, fast and secure, and can run offline. For more information, see "Why to build a progressive web app?".

PWAs can be installed on the home screen and can also support push notifications. Users no longer have to search for PWAs in app stores but can find them online. PWAs are linkable and always up-to-date. Flipboard is an example of a PWA.

Although PWAs fall short of the user experience of a native app, their development can be a good choice if your development budget is a priority. There is only one code base to develop and maintain, making PWAs less costly. In recent years, several companies have seen improved customer engagement with PWAs, as you can read in the article "Progressive Web Apps (PWA): Source Material."

6| Low-code development

A significant trend that has emerged in recent years is that of low-code development. Companies using this approach want to improve the efficiency of software development and try to minimize hand-coding.

Low-code development platforms provide graphical user interfaces and use by developers to draw flowcharts that describe business logic. The platform then generates code to implement the business logic.

Using low-code platforms, you can significantly accelerate digital transformation and reduce the backlog of IT development projects. These platforms also reduce your dependence on specialized technical skills that are difficult to acquire. You can read more about such media in the article "10 Best Low-Code Development Platforms 2019".

To take advantage of these platforms, look for enterprise-grade platforms with industry-standard security features. Appian and Mendix are good examples of low-code development platforms.

7| Code Quality

Some things never change! The importance of code quality in software development will never diminish, so make it a high priority.

There are several aspects of code quality, including:

• Readability;
• Consistency;
• Predictability;
• Reliability;
• Consistency; Predictability; Predictability; Predictability; Predictability; Predictability;
• Maintainability;

Software development teams that maintain high-quality code enable their organizations to keep the code easily. Because they write less complex code, the organization does not have to fix too many bugs. Read more on this topic in "What is code quality? And how to improve it".

8| Outsourcing

As the global business environment becomes more complex, organizations are looking to make the most of their existing capabilities. Here is the dilemma! A manufacturing company may have many IT assets, but it is not an IT company! They may have developed many software solutions over several decades, but that is not their core competence.

Companies have realized the importance of focusing on their core competencies and outsourcing the peripheral tasks to partners with core competencies. This realization continues to drive the trend towards IT outsourcing.

Large companies increased the percentage of their IT budget spent on outsourcing from 6.3% in 2018 to 8.7% in 2019, while mid-sized companies have also supplemented this percentage from 4.7% to 6.5%, as you can read in this MarketWatch report.

These are top trends that are followed by top software outsourcing companies in India. You too may need to outsource your company's software development, but make sure you