Business and Software

I have said it before, and I’ll keep saying it, “user feedback is the single most important driver behind new features and improvements in my products”.  It doesn’t get simpler than that.

Most of the software I develop for Applied PDA is primarily for my own initial use.  Why build something that I won’t directly benefit from?

As the software gets used internally more each day though, various designs and features change.  It quickly becomes apparent that it is not enough to create something that only I can use, but that others can intuitively utilize as well.

So before anything gets released, it has to pass what I call I.B.U.T, “inside the building usability test”.   This is a hack title for a process which simply means that until everyone in the building can intuitively understand the software and are not afraid (or annoyed) to use it, it does not leave the building.

This enforces an active role to get local user feedback and in a way, requires an approval from everyone who might potentially be supporting the software.  A common software term for this is called “dogfooding”.

Such a process can delay the release of software for a short while.  But it also ingrains an attitude that the product is open to suggestions from its users, and that real people stand behind its virtual skin to provide a service in supporting its growth and maturity.

The formula is simple:  You talk + I listen = Better Software.

Many years ago there existed a gap between mobile PDA's and cellular phones.  The phone was essentially a mobile radio, and the PDA was a little computer that held all of your data, calendars, contacts, etc.

Then as time went on, the mobile phone absorbed most of these PDA functions.  The evolution of the phone turned it into a PDA with a cellular radio.  The PDA became a phone, and the phone became a PDA.  They are both the same thing now, branded as the new PDA.

No matter what you call it though, the point is that it is a versatile handheld instrument, used for communication with other people and machines (e.g. The internet).  This is the platform which will open access to computing in every corner of the world, and with it also, bring a piece of our software to empower people and their imaginations.

My vision is to have handheld instruments that are ubiquitous, intelligent, and indispensable to your exploration adventures around the world.  And the most important component of it I believe, is the software.

I enjoy hearing stories of people who give feedback of where they took my software.  From Antarctica, through the many ocean studies, to military equipment and robotics, it brings me much fulfillment to know that my software running on handheld devices has aided people in their exploration of our planet.

If you have a good story then please share it with us.  It just might inspire new development for more great applications.

Happy adventuring!