Optimize your work: A few tips from software developers
In this article, I would like to talk about how to develop a software project, what are the tricks, and what should be considered to be well-represented on mobile devices. The examples I will give in the article are examples from the React Native framework, but they are relevant to any software development projects.
Prepare project documentation
If you want to develop a successful software project, first take care to prepare requirements (SRS) in which the essence of your project will be laid out in a simple and detailed way. An SRS should contain information about
– target users groups, divided by roles,
– key functional and non-functional features,
– demands to hardware and describe the highest potential traffic pressure,
– integration with external services (if needed);
– clarification about backups, data recovery as well as the issues of privacy policy and user data protection demands;
– some wishes about future development and scalability of the software.
Among the best practices are descriptions of actions and limitations for each group of users, divided by roles.
Split the Project into Small Threads
Complex structures are those things that are difficult to understand in general. Each complex project developed in the field of software is difficult to quickly understand and will require the development of special skills. As work progresses and as requirements grow, traceability becomes more complex, and incompatibilities between modules begin to increase. This is an unwanted process.
The division of complex structures into coordinated work sections will both increase the efficiency of the work and improve the quality of its result. For this reason, when planning a project, it will always be more correct to clearly define the details that appear to be the most functional and express them in modules. The development of each detail should be individual, and their inclusion in the work will depend on their usefulness for the final result. But; be careful not to overdo it when highlighting separate streams of information. Excessive semantic fragmentation of the text makes it difficult to understand.
Use a Version Control System
Version control systems are indispensable for software projects. It can take weeks, months, or even years to create them. This system comes to our aid to keep track of the changes made to this process. When everyone thinks about version control (source/version control), the first platform that comes to mind is GitHub. Let’s take a quick look at its functionality. Using the git framework, this service allows users to download source files for projects that you developed on your own portal, send updates for projects that you downloaded, and check for updates you release, keeping previous versions to help plan projects, etc. This is a structure VCS (Version Control System) offers many possibilities.
When we use this service and others like it, we get the ability to track who updated which section, when, and what changes were made. If changes cause errors in our project and we need to revert to a previous version, or if we have abandoned the updates we made, we can use the version control system in order to revert to the previous version. This version makes VCS an indispensable companion for any professional programmer.
Perform Tests Regularly
When drawing up documentation and business plans, you can also define the modules and infrastructure that will be used in the work. I advise you to test these structures thoroughly before including them in your project. In fact, it is best to run tests in a “dummy” project that you created in the same version as your project, and then include it in the main project after the processes are approved. The reason is that when working with these modules, large-scale databases that you want to include (which you think can lead to success) will conflict with databases that you added to your project earlier, or lead to inadvertent changes to the main the content of the work. To prevent this from happening, it is best to conduct external tests that allow you to identify and eliminate errors in the program.
For example, if you are going to use a database in your mobile project, you can create a “test project” containing data in the same version as your project (to avoid version conflicts), test the database module that you include in this project. Prepare and run custom tests as needed, and then move them into your main project. This approach allows you to avoid the appearance of numerous errors.
Comply with Coding Standards and Principles
In software, coding principles are a set of “guidelines” for improving the development process and improving the quality of projects. This is not a rule of thumb because you can always make improvements without following them. However, in this case, obtaining a positive result will be difficult. The principles presented here are guidelines that many professionals adhere to, and their application yields high-quality results, both materially and psychologically.
Regardless of which programming language you are dealing with, be sure to thoroughly study the principles of coding of this language and make improvements, adhering to these principles. Especially if you are just learning the language. By following these principles, you can learn this language faster and more accurately.
Each software language is constantly updated and offers new structures to offer the user the most optimal performance. A good level of mastering the programming language fully helps to understand what structures it consists of. This is important so that the user can intuitively understand what level of design he will use for this language. The best way to quickly master a programming language is to write documentation using this language.
In addition, knowledge of universal coding standards is the most basic skill for a programmer. Learning information such as variable naming, coding, and function writing techniques, and coding anti-patterns are essential parts of a professional programmer’s job. And that’s all I wanted to say at the moment. I wanted to prepare a small guide for those who are going to develop software on their own. I hope I was helpful to you readers.
