Software development best practices and processes
The enterprise software development landscape has changed drastically with the rise of Kotlin, Clojure, Python and JavaScript. From a focus on functional programming to new takes on object-oriented analysis and design, Java programmers and JDK architects can learn from these languages' development processes and software engineering best practices.
Top Stories
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Tip
18 Apr 2025
Agile vs. Waterfall: What's the difference?
Is change good or bad? The manner in which you embrace change might influence whether you prefer Waterfall or Agile methodologies. Here we compare the two approaches. Continue Reading
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Video
16 Apr 2025
Agile software development or the Waterfall framework?
Ever wonder if you've chosen the right software development strategy? Here we explain when Waterfall is right, and when an Agile approach makes more sense. Continue Reading
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Feature
02 Dec 2016
How to turn your DevOps failures into ALM successes
Doing the right thing doesn't always mean you're doing things right. But don't fret, because short-term DevOps failures can mean long term ALM success. Continue Reading
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Feature
29 Nov 2016
Conversational UI approaches pushing AI development forward
Find out about the latest AI conversational UI approaches available for developers today from Apple, Amazon, Google, IBM, and Facebook. Continue Reading
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News
10 Nov 2016
DOES16 keynotes quantify the benefits of a DevOps transition
At the DevOps Enterprise Summit 2016, Tripwire founder Gene Kim stated his case on why every organization should embark upon a DevOps transition. Continue Reading
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News
22 Sep 2016
Fight antipatterns with YAGNTI: You ain't gonna need that interface
To go along with acronyms like TAGRI and YAGNI, we'd like to add YAGNTI: You ain't gonna need that interface. Learn why that applies to JavaOne 2016. Continue Reading
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News
21 Sep 2016
From JShell to Jigsaw, reactive programming is built into Java EE
If we learned one thing from the JavaOne 2016 keynotes, it's that the Java EE platform is built to enable reactive programming. Continue Reading
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Feature
30 Aug 2016
Five trends that help developers ensure a successful startup
From garnering expert talent to learning how to properly share ideas, expert Mark Goldstein shares how developers can contribute to the success of a software startup. Continue Reading
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Feature
26 Aug 2016
The Agile lifecycle is changing the face of Java ALM
As organizations respond to shorter development cycles, the Agile lifecycle is changing the way Java-based organizations do ALM. Continue Reading
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Feature
24 Aug 2016
Fighting censorship through anonymous browsing with the Hola app
From avoiding censorship to avoiding government controls, the Hola app has simplified anonymous browsing for its clients. Continue Reading
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Podcast
03 Aug 2016
Java Champion Trisha Gee on NoSQL, IntelliJ and Java 8
Presenting at QCon New York, Java Champion Trisha Gee talks about the hot-button topics in the conference's community, including NoSQL, IntelliJ and Java 8. Continue Reading
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Feature
25 Jul 2016
The right language for microservice orchestration and development
As organizations create a microservices-based component architecture, many wonder which programming language to choose for microservice orchestration. Continue Reading
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Feature
12 Jul 2016
Analyzing big data is big science at Change.org
For Change.org, managing big data and analyzing results is a big science problem that technology is helping to solve. Continue Reading
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News
29 Jun 2016
Accelerate edge device development with Couchbase Mobile
TheServerSide talks to Couchbase's Arun Gupta about full-stack NoSQL applications, like Couchbase Mobile and Couchbase Server. Continue Reading
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News
15 Jun 2016
Do you have what it takes to be a full stack developer?
There has been an increasing call in the industry for full stack developers. Java Champion Trisha Gee gives us her take on what such a position entails. Continue Reading
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News
19 May 2016
Google Allo and Google Duo shine bright at Google I/O
The Google I/O conference moves to Mountain View, as new products and product enhancements for everything from Google Duo to Google Allo to Android N are announced. Continue Reading
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Feature
11 May 2016
Excellent programming is about function, not form
Are language architects, or would-be language architects, doing a disservice to Java by overthinking it? Let's not over-design our object models. After all, being fancy isn't their primary function. Continue Reading
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Podcast
02 May 2016
Overcome inherent bottlenecks in app lifecycle management
The software development world is simply too busy to have inefficient ALM. Expert Gerie Owen reimagines app lifecycle management as something streamlined and totally painless. Continue Reading
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Tip
29 Apr 2016
Five tips to improve an offshore team
Using an offshore team can save time and money, but if used ineffectively, they can cost more than they save. Here are five tips on how to use offshore development teams effectively. Continue Reading
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Feature
28 Apr 2016
Modernize your project lifecycle management process
In today's lightning fast world, app development has to be flawless. Expert Gerie Owen explains how to modernize your project lifecycle management process. Continue Reading
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News
22 Apr 2016
How a data center improves car engineering
McLaren Automotive has highlighted that racecar engineering principles can innovate better software. More specifically, how a data center can help with that. Continue Reading
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Feature
14 Apr 2016
Backend system integration the new mobile development challenge
While developing a fun UI was once the biggest hurdle facing mobile development teams, the new challenge is going one step further and performing backend system integration properly. Continue Reading
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Tip
12 Apr 2016
Lasting impacts of software failure and poor application performance
Customers have a short memory and lots of alternatives, so organizations must ensure that poor performance and software failure doesn't leave a lasting impression on users. Continue Reading
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Feature
30 Mar 2016
Continuous integration the key to Agile and DevOps transformations
What is the key to getting both Agile and DevOps transformations right? It would appear that successfully implementing a system of continuous integration is key. Continue Reading
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Feature
24 Mar 2016
Modularity thrives when microservices and SOA comes together
Many organizations think they need to make a choice between service oriented architectures and microservices. The fact is, the most modular solutions happen when microservices and SOA comes together. Continue Reading
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Feature
23 Mar 2016
IT modernization using a reactive approach
As application portfolios grow, more organizations are looking at adopting a reactive approach to software architecture to address their IT modernization and management needs. Continue Reading
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News
21 Mar 2016
CloudBees answers the call with a Jenkins private SaaS edition
CloudBees has made a name for itself by providing cloud-based approaches to Jenkins users, but its latest private SaaS edition gives users more control over their Jenkins CI infrastructure. Continue Reading
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Tip
18 Mar 2016
Automated acceptance testing pitfalls to avoid
How can organizations get the most out of their software testing with the least amount of effort? Here are some best practices on how to sidestep these common automated acceptance testing traps. Continue Reading
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News
18 Mar 2016
Bridging the gap between Web and native apps
Native applications have always been better at engaging consumers, but a new approach, called progressive app development, promises to make the browser more engaging than ever. Continue Reading
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News
18 Mar 2016
Seif project makes Web security a priority
Creating a safer Internet has become a central topic of discussion at Fluent 2016. The Seif project is one attempt to improve Web security and deliver trusted infrastructure to the Web. Continue Reading
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Feature
07 Mar 2016
Tips for effectively scaling Agile across large, distributed teams
Many methodologies that work well in small teams, run out of steam when the teams get large and distributed. Here are some tips on how to effectively scale Agile software methodologies. Continue Reading
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Tip
29 Feb 2016
The key to mobile UI development is planning
There is no such thing as over-planning when prepping for each stage of the mobile UI development. Jenner Lochridge discusses five areas to account for in advance. Continue Reading
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Podcast
29 Feb 2016
Combine continuous integration software with GIT
As microservices abound, organizations are finding that integrating Jenkins CI with source code tools like GIT can simplify development and help make the DevOps successful. Continue Reading
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Podcast
26 Feb 2016
Are reactive systems the future of software architecture?
Building with microservices and asynchronous messages is a start, but according to Typesafe's 'Going Reactive 2016' survey, reactive systems are the future of software architecture. Continue Reading
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Podcast
26 Feb 2016
Solving the problem of scaling Agile across the enterprise
Small to medium-sized development teams have had success using Agile methods. Here's how enterprises can scale Agile beyond development and across the entire ALM stack. Continue Reading
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Feature
02 Feb 2016
Skimble CEO talks Android and iOS development
Skimble CEO Maria Ly discusses developing her startup fitness application for both Android and iOS. Continue Reading
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Feature
01 Feb 2016
Inside the app startup Skimble
Expert Barry Burd talks with the co-founder of app startup Skimble about application deployment processes. Continue Reading
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Feature
08 Jan 2016
The next big challenge in IoT evolution: Getting the protocols right
In this article you will learn about some of the considerations that need to be taken into account for leveraging different protocols while writing applications for the Internet of Things (IoT) Continue Reading
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Feature
07 Jan 2016
How to quickly move a microservice infrastructure off AWS in a weekend
In this article you will learn how a small development team moved a 200-service application infrastructure away from AWS in order to reduce cost and increase resiliency. Continue Reading
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Feature
04 Jan 2016
Java APIs to bridge the gap between today and future development efforts
At JavaOne 2015, a big topic of conversation was APIs and API development. In the IBM keynote, the promise was that an evolutionary approach to API development will help modern day developers pass the torch to those doing development in the future. Continue Reading
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Feature
01 Jan 2016
Perfecting product migrations without customer disruption with Agile
Learn how MobiTV created a software development process for powering the future of connected TV. Continue Reading
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Feature
28 Dec 2015
OnePlus 2 mobile phone: Part two, the hardware experience
Expert developer Barry Burd recently took possession of a OnePlus 2 mobile phone. He shares his experience with the phone and what he thinks of the phone's hardware. Continue Reading
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Tip
28 Dec 2015
Continuous DevOps documentation: It's a necessity
Too often, documentation takes a back seat when organizations struggle with new methodologies and development approaches, but there is a need for documentation in a DevOps world. Continue Reading
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Feature
28 Dec 2015
OnePlus 2 mobile phone: Part three, the software experience
Expert developer Barry Burd recently bought a OnePlus 2 mobile phone. Learn what he thinks of the phone's software. Continue Reading
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Feature
28 Dec 2015
The OnePlus 2 mobile phone: One user's experience
In this first part of a three-part series, expert developer Barry Burd takes you through his experience ordering, receiving, unwrapping and setting up the OnePlus 2 mobile phone. Continue Reading
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Feature
22 Dec 2015
The benefits of integrating blockchains into distributed enterprise architectures
Blockchains aren't just for Silk Roaders paying with Bitcoins. Integrating blockchains into a distributed enterprise architectures has many benefits. Continue Reading
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Feature
01 Dec 2015
How Notion Baked Intelligence Into the Server to Simplify the IoT
Here we take a look at how Notion, an IoT startup, built a sophisticated tier of server applications to empower a new generation of customizable sensors. Continue Reading
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News
01 Dec 2015
Are you putting software projects at risk?
In this interview, Daniel Bryant discusses how many software projects are at risk due to development fallacies. Continue Reading
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Tip
23 Nov 2015
How to move a microservices architecture off of AWS
Although many companies use AWS to cut costs and improve scalability, one software developer found that moving its microservices architecture off of AWS was the right thing to do. Continue Reading
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Tip
20 Nov 2015
How to automate a Kubernetes cluster to manage containers
The software industry is rallying around Kubernetes clusters as a way to automate deployment of container collections. Here are best practices for using a Kubernetes cluster. Continue Reading
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Feature
10 Nov 2015
How collapsing the database stack improves developer productivity
Developers are reducing development time by collapsing the database stack and focusing on customer satisfaction and not on operations overhead. Here is how they are doing it. Continue Reading
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Feature
02 Nov 2015
Is crowdsourcing bug fixes the next big wave in quality assurance testing?
Learn how crowd sourcing can incentivize the development of bug fixes and new features for open source software. Continue Reading
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News
15 Oct 2015
Life beyond the JavaOne sessions: Mastering life in San Francisco
You won't spend every moment at JavaOne in a session, so here is some advice from Barry Burd on how to navigate San Francisco and get the most out of the JavaOne experience. Continue Reading
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Tip
11 Sep 2015
State-based streaming emerges as REST development alternative
Developers are looking to increase Web application performance with alternatives to REST development approaches. Continue Reading
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Tip
11 Sep 2015
How to add voice recognition features to the Echo device
Have you thought about taking Amazon's Echo device for a test drive? Expert Barry Burd walks you through the process of developing apps for Echo. Continue Reading
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Tip
11 Sep 2015
Novel P2P server infrastructure may be game changer
A new approach to a P2P server infrastructure for Web applications is gaining recognition. Expert George Lawton provides an overview. Continue Reading
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Tip
26 Aug 2015
Improving software quality means mixing DevOps with Agile
As DevOps evolves and merges with advanced Agile methods, developer teams will have greater success at improving software quality. Continue Reading
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Tip
05 Aug 2015
New QUIC protocol promises faster Web apps
The QUIC protocol may or may not become a standard, but either way, use of the protocol could provide a performance boost for Web and mobile apps. Continue Reading
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Tip
04 Aug 2015
Securing mobile apps raises a new set of concerns
When it comes to mobile app security, can developers ever really learn from past mistakes? TheServerSide talks to software systems security expert Dan Cornell about the challenges mobile application developers face when securing mobile apps. Continue Reading
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Tip
04 Aug 2015
NoSQL technology remains key to drawing BI from big data
Both business users and vendors are challenged with managing and using big data. Learn how NoSQL technology providers are meeting the challenge. Continue Reading
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Podcast
23 Jul 2015
Boost runtime performance with NoSQL
IT pros are turning to NoSQL to enhance runtime performance and fulfill non-functional requirements. Continue Reading
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News
23 Jun 2015
Red Hat announces support for the Open Container Project
Red Hat joins other vendors to support the Open Container Project, not a surprise. Continue Reading
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News
29 May 2015
Google I/O keynotes announce plenty of toys for Andriod developers to love
The Google I/O conference keynotes never disappoint, and this year, with announcements ranging from new online cloud storage capacities to new IDE features and new Android APIs, there's plenty for developers of all stripes to love, especially Android developers. Continue Reading
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News
20 May 2015
New to OpenStack: Learn these 5 cloud computing terms
Newcomers to OpenStack and the OpenStack conference will fit right in if they become familiar with these five cloud computing terms. Continue Reading
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Feature
18 May 2015
The challenge of managing distributed data can only be solved with NoSQL solutions
Managing data over large geographic areas where latency and reliability problems exist is a major challenge for relational databases, but fortunately, NoSQL databases are solving the problem of managing distributed data. Continue Reading
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Feature
12 May 2015
Cutting costs in the cloud with modern PaaS based solutions
Cloud computing has been an incredibly disruptive technology, but more than SaaS and PaaS, enterprises are cutting costs and realizing new efficiencies by leveraging Platform as a Service (PaaS) based solutions. Continue Reading
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Tutorial
04 May 2015
Asynchronously invoking a second managed bean method in JavaSever Faces (JSF)
The new features added to JSF make doing an asynchronous call to the server incredibly easy, but what if you need to follow that first asynchronous call with a second asynchronous call to a JavaServer Faces managed bean? It's a bit of work, but in this tutorial, we walk you through it. Continue Reading
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Feature
27 Apr 2015
Failing to integrate security with DevOps? Do so at your own peril
Security is often considered as an afterthought in the software development lifecycle. But organizations need to keep up with vulnerabilities as they move to more agile DevOps practices. Read on for some best practices in building a security conscious culture. Continue Reading
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Tip
22 Apr 2015
High-performance computing with cloud clusters
An expert offers tips for using cloud clusters to roll out high-performance computing applications in the cloud. Continue Reading
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Feature
21 Apr 2015
Improve software quality by paying early attention to application security
There are a number of strategies enterprises are taking to keep security on pace with faster development cycles. These include earlier code reviews, leveraging PaaS with built in security, and using cloud services for static and dynamic security analysis. Continue Reading
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Feature
15 Apr 2015
Who are the heroes of the tech world?
TheServerSide has spoken with many up and coming stalwarts in the industry, and what we wanted to know was who they looked up to as thought leaders and heroes. The names they picked might surprise you. Continue Reading
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Feature
07 Apr 2015
Google's Project X: Solving the worlds problems, one moon-shot at a time
Using the ambitious plans to put humans on the moon as a source of inspiration, Google is asking young minds to come up with their own 'moon-shots' that approach solving important problems in new and creative ways. Continue Reading
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Feature
06 Apr 2015
Where are the REST alternatives for real-time applications?
Enterprise developers face number of challenges in creating frameworks for building scalable real-time applications that power modern apps like the cars moving in Uber. Read on to find out how new protocols and automatically synchronized database frameworks can help to simplify these kinds of applications. Continue Reading
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Tip
23 Mar 2015
Improving software quality in every application lifecycle management (ALM) stage
Development lifecycles have become tremendously compressed, which means many stages of the application lifecycle management process are iterated over time and time again. Here are some lessons SFactory's Sorin Zaporojan learned throughout the ALM process. Continue Reading
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Tip
09 Feb 2015
5 ways to boost security and reduce mobile risks
Mobile risks are a constant concern for businesses with employees who work on mobile devices. Here are ways to mitigate security concerns. Continue Reading
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News
05 Feb 2015
IT spending in 2015: Mobility projects and cloud
Mobile application development and cloud-based services will be focus of IT spending in 2015, according to a TechTarget survey on IT priorities. Continue Reading
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Feature
20 Jan 2015
How realistic is your mobile testing strategy?
Given the unpredictable nature of the way handheld devices will be used, organizations must ensure they employ a realistic mobile testing strategy, or face the reality that problems will be a reality after deployment. Continue Reading
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Feature
15 Jan 2015
Can a pattern become an anti-pattern? How to avoid the loose coupling mistake
Nobody is debating the benefits of loose-coupling, but far too many SOA architects take the practice too far. Make sure you know when loose-coupling makes sense, and more importantly, when it doesn't. Continue Reading
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Feature
12 Jan 2015
Cloud based IDEs continue to mature, changing the software development process
There has always been talk of doing software development in the cloud, but the reality has been far from the promise. But recent improvements are changing attitudes, enticing developers to change their software development process. Continue Reading
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Tip
09 Dec 2014
Behavior-driven development: Five tips for keeping BDD projects on track
Many organizations are approaching software design in a new way, with one of the most popular being Behavior-driven development (BDD). Here are five tips to keep your BDD projects on track Continue Reading
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Feature
15 Oct 2014
Choosing the right log aggregator to mine your performance data
To maintain and improve an existing system, being able to read and understand log files is an absolute requirement. Here we look at how various logging technologies compare with each other. Continue Reading
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Feature
07 Sep 2014
Top 5 DevOps best practices for achieving security, scalability and performance
How do you get the most out of your applications? One way is to adopt a DevOps approach to deployment and apply these five best practices for achieving security, scalability and performance. Continue Reading
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Feature
18 Aug 2014
HTML5 now rules the desktop, but shortcomings make it a hard sell for mobile
HTML5 is changing the game for both mobile and desktop developers, but that doesn't mean HTML5 is a panacea. Performance problems, a lack of tooling and missing features are causing a roadblock for some organizations, especially in the mobile space. Should you go with HTML5, or is a hybrid or native approach right for you? Continue Reading
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Tutorial
20 Jul 2014
Integrating Ajax into your Facelets pages: Death to JSF's request-response cycle
If you're doing Facelets development, this might be the most important tutorial you will ever read. It will explain to you how to throw out that annoying request-response cycle, and explain how to integrate Ajax based JSF components with a dynamically re-rendering Facelets page snippet. Continue Reading
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Tutorial
20 Jul 2014
Template based web design with JSF Facelets: ui:insert versus ui:include
When creating a web page template with JSF, a developer needs to know the difference between ui:insert and ui:include. They're actually quite different, but the similar sounding names can create confusion. Here's a great example of when to use ui:insert and how to properly use ui:include. Continue Reading
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Feature
06 Jul 2014
The challenge of tagging for analytics in a world of unstructured text
Many organizations are managing massive amounts of information in their big data systems, but handling that inflow, and making it make sense is a massive challenge. Tagging is one solution, but how does one tag unstructured text? It's a problem that is slowly being solved. Continue Reading
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Tip
18 Apr 2014
Software architecture: Five things every developer should know
Learn five things every developer should know about software architecture for present-day technologies. Continue Reading
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Feature
11 Jan 2014
People and process trump tools when it comes to improving software quality
There are a variety of new tools emerging on the market, but if your organization is working to improve the quality of their product, improving the process and dealing with the culture is more important than the tools of the trade. Continue Reading
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Tip
05 Jan 2014
With Java EE 7, your Design Patterns are dead. And your EAR is ugly too.
Adam Bien isn't without opinions when it comes to modern day enterprise programming techniques. From the use of design patterns, to the manner in which projects and modules are divided, Bien isn't without opinions when it comes to developing Java applications. Continue Reading
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Feature
09 Dec 2013
DevTest in the Cloud: Why pre-production in the cloud makes sense
People have a lot of fears about moving infrastructure to the cloud. They worry about security, or losing control over policies and access, or instances not being turned off and costs spiraling out of control — or all of the above. Continue Reading
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Feature
25 Aug 2013
Application Lifecycle Management (ALM) tips from the industry's TaskTop expert
Mik Kersten of TaskTop has continued to lead the industry in the application lifecycle management (ALM) space, and here we look at some of the insights and tips he has provided TheServerSide with over the years. Continue Reading
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Feature
29 Jun 2013
Software lifecycle integration bus: New ALM tool is the key to social coding
The software lifecycle integration bus could be the key social coding ALM tool that will bring open source coding success to the enterprise. Continue Reading
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Feature
29 Jun 2013
Simplify Application Lifecycle Management (ALM) with the AWS Elastic Beanstalk
Using the Elastic Beanstalk, part of the Amazon Web Service (AWS) suite of of products, can greatly simplify application lifecycle management tasks suck as scaling, monitoring and provisioning. Continue Reading
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Feature
22 May 2013
Inside advice on the use of Platform as a Service in the enterprise
CloudBees founder and CEO Sacha Labourey answers tough questions and hands out practical advice about PaaS and how it works in the enterprise. Continue Reading
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Tutorial
23 Apr 2013
How 'big data' solved the content management (CMS) problem
Content management systems that need to sift through huge amounts of data are big data problems in need of a solution. Fortunately, projects like Hadoop and MapReduce are coming to the rescue. Continue Reading
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Tip
14 Apr 2013
Software requirements and expectation management key to project success
Many shun the task of properly documenting a system, but successful projects know that effective requirements docs lead to better expectation management and a greater degree of success. Continue Reading
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Tip
07 Apr 2013
BEST: Simple web service alternatives to SOAP, XML and REST
Sometimes architects over-complicate web services, but indeed, effective solutions can be created without SOA, REST and SOAP. Continue Reading
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Feature
01 Apr 2013
Key benefits of architecting loosely coupled SOA-based solutions
Service-oriented architectures (SOA) experience the most benefits when architects use loose coupling to build their solutions. Continue Reading
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Tutorial
13 Mar 2013
Mobile application development tutorial
Looking for a start in developing mobile apps for existing enterprise computing systems? This mobile application development tutorial is here to help. Continue Reading
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Tip
15 Feb 2013
ALM expert says Agile methods are the way to conquer mobile ALM
Enterprise application developers are finding mobile application lifecycle management has challenges. ALM pro Howard Deiner advises an Agile approach. Continue Reading
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Feature
06 Feb 2013
How big data and distributed systems solve traditional scalability problems
The highly centralized enterprise data center is becoming a thing of the past, as organizations must embrace a more distributed model to deal with everything from content management to big data. Here we examine how technologies like Hadoop and NoSQL fit into modern distributed architectures in a way that solves scalability and performance problems. Continue Reading
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News
11 Dec 2012
How Amazon discovered hybrid HTML5/Java Android app development
While their early approach to hybrid HTML5/Java Android mobile apps may have had a few hiccups, Java developers can still learn from it. Continue Reading