Changing the Game

Whether you are an independent developer, a member of a software development shop, an employee in an IT department, or a developer of software for retail, the Animit Data shortcut is a new way to transform the way you design data-driven applications. It's more than just a tool, it's a new and improved process of creating solutions, which solves many of the most glaring problems faced by developers and consumers.

Consider a business or other organization in need of a real, comprehensive solution to store all of their data and make it available in a secure manner. Unless the organization has a lot of money, the most obvious options are not encouraging. Even if the organization is large enough to have its own IT department, that department may find the challenge of custom application development to be cost-ineffective. The Animit Data Shortcut may be just the tool to solve each of their problems from the perspective of the developer first and then the end user.


The Problems

First, the smaller organization could do some web searches to try and find industry-specific solutions, which have already been built. Depending on the industry, such cookie-cutter solutions can be overpriced, difficult to use, and may not offer personalized customer support. Making matters worse, cookie-cutter solutions may have complications from data fields, which the organization doesn't use, or they may lack means of tracking data, which the organization does need. Additionally, the solutions may not flow with the internal processes and structure of that organization.

Second, the small organization could contact a large software development firm. Such organizations are pricey, and they may be too busy to get started on the project right away. Also, organizations which specialize in software development may not be well equipped to provide customer support. That's especially true when the solutions they create are unique to each customer, and time causes their memories to fade.

Third, the organization could turn to a local, independent software developer. Maybe the developer is a friend, a family member, or an owner of a local software development firm. That developer is working by himself or herself with limited availability. Such projects can take a very long time, and the costs are high. However, the time investment for an independent developer is normally longer than even they expect, and their income per hour may get spread very thin if the project was priced at a flat rate. This often results in a tired, discouraged developer with a disappointed, impatient client. The project may not even get finished as both parties grow weary of the situation. I've seen this happen multiple times in the past.

In the case of an organization with an internal IT department, things may not be much better. The IT department normally already has a full plate. They must deal with all of the daily needs and emergencies of other departments as well as their own. They could hire additional staff, but their budget is normally not padded for that, and it can be a large expense for the company. Also, new staff won't be familiar with the company's unique procedures and needs. Finally, project creep is worst when you have the largest number of end users. How can the IT department cope with the project that will not end? How much longer will they have to pay the additional staff?

The Solutions

The developer of industry-specific applications needs a way to produce their products with a lower time-investment. It would also be handy if such a tool could enable the end user to make basic, high-level modifications of their products to fit their needs. The improved usability and lower time-investment, can allow for more sales at lower prices, so the developer can make more money. Also, the end-user will be more satisfied with the better-fitting product.

The large software development firm needs a way to invest less development time per client, and maintain more uniformity and intuitiveness across client solutions. Those advantages would enable them to charge lower prices while still making higher profits, and it would make customer support much easier. They could service more clients, reduce costs by reducing development time, and make their customers happier for the long-term as they need support.

Independent software developers need a shortcut most of all. It's difficult to under-promise and over-perform when you're competing with the big guys and doing it all yourself. Clients want everything and they want it right now. You may find even the most understanding clients may lose their patience when you are forced to support previous customers, and you have to drop the new project temporarily in order to fix old ones. Wouldn't it be great if your customers could see functional results just a few days into the project? You should find them much more tolerant of delays when you're merely customizing the application for aesthetics and process flow.

The large organization's IT department needs a way to produce a functional, bare-bones application quickly. Later on, they can invest available time to polish and refine the application for aesthetics, internal process flow, etc. That way, they can use existing staff with minimal interruption of their daily responsibilities. Finally, they need a platform, which will enable them to easily make changes to their systems. That way, changing and ever-growing demands won't require total rebuilds, and they won't require expensive, short-term contracts.

How does Animit Data Shortcut achieve all this?


The most important thing it does is save time... it is a shortcut after all. When you get the job done faster, the value of the product is not necessarily reduced. In fact, when you use a well-tested foundation, the quality may be increased. That means you can charge the same or higher prices. Alternatively, you could split the difference between your previous prices and the new value of your time investment to beat the competition while still making a higher hourly wage.

The shortcut allows you to produce a functional UI to your data structure relatively quickly. Then, you evolve your application until it is complete. That means the end users can often start using the application much earlier than before. That may add extra value for a client who is in a rush. Also, they will likely be much more patient about a process of refinement when they are already able to use their application. If the end users want a purely functional solution with no frills and a low price, you may choose not to refine it at all.

The common foundation will, as the shortcut matures, ensure great reliability in the end product. The availability of pre-installed features will make it practical for you to deliver more features to your end users. Also, that same foundation will make customer support for problems, changes, and updates much easier. As you use the shortcut for multiple clients, you will become increasingly familiar with it. Applications with completely different data structures and appearances can be uniform beneath the surface.

The last advantage highlighted in this post is flexibility. The Animit Data Shortcut does not constrict the structure of the data. Instead, it molds itself to the structure and automatically responds to info you give it about the nature of the data. This process is already well known. It is called scaffolding. The shortcut combines templates and other helpful features to accelerate and support the evolutionary process, which makes your final product complete. Also, that same flexibility will allow easier modifications as the end users' needs change. It does all that without requiring your creativity to conform to it. You may choose to completely override the scaffolding as you mold the application.

The shortcut is still pre-release at the time of this post. Much of the work is already done. Future posts will be increasingly specific about features, implementations, requirements, and the underlying technologies. The development process will be open to advice, requests, constructive criticism, and other feedback both now and in the future. It is my hope and expectation that this shortcut and related products will transform the way people make data-driven applications forever. The result should be a better experience for both developers and end users.