The Ecom Store Launch Checklist: 6 Steps You Cannot Miss

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Get familiar with these 5 Best PHP Frameworks for Modern Web Development

Web Application development is quite a complex and prolonged process.  But, with the right PHP framework, Sun Dew Solutions can ease out the process and minimize the time required for development. PHP, also known as Hypertext Preprocessor is one of the most powerful and popular server-side scripting languages which provides a wide gamut of frameworks that build complex applications and enterprise-class websites easily.PHP Frameworks come in all categories of form and sizes and have targeted developers with different levels of experience, application needs, hosting capabilities, and development time-frames. One should always consider picking the modern PHP Framework that provides well organized, reusable and maintainable code. It’s also important to understand why PHP 5 and 5.6 became obsolete, since outdated versions can create major security and compatibility issues for web projects. Most modern PHP frameworks follow the Model-View-Controller pattern that ensures the separation of presentation and logic and support modern web development practices.Look at the 5 best PHP Frameworks that increases productivity and makes web development streamline-1.    LaravelLaravel PHP framework is comparatively new and it is one of the most robust and popular tools which is been used extensively by a large number of experienced web developers. The framework is designed with lightweight template processor called ‘Blade’ elegant syntax that makes task simple and enables frequent chores such as authentication, caching, sessions, Restful routing, and queuing easier for developers. Laravel also includes a local development environment called homestead that is a packed Vagrant box.2.    SymfonySymfony is the second most popular PHP Framework after Laravel. It is a reliable and high performing framework developed for creating websites and applications.  Symfony is also built on similar web architecture design patterns like Laravel which includes components such as Drupal, EZ Publish and phpBB.  It’s hard to determine which is superior among Laravel and Symfony as they both have common and excellent features and are among the most popular framework used in website development.3.    PhalconPhalcon is another popular framework among the developers because it is fast with low overheads and it is written in C and C++ to attain the highest level of performance. Phalcon not only speed up the execution process but it also decreases resource usage.  Phalcon framework is equipped with advanced features like auto-loader, asset management, caching, security, translation and many more. It is definitely worth a try! 4.    CakePHPCakePHP is great for commercial web applications and is packed with cool features such as database access, caching, validation and so on. Even though it a decade old framework, but it is still counted as one of the popular PHP frameworks. However, the latest version CakePHP Framework 3.6 upgraded the session management, modularity and enhanced the ability to create more standalone libraries. CakePHP has been used by many big brands like BMW, Express and Hyundai for developing their websites.  5.    CodeignitorCodeignitor is a developer friendly framework with the simple installation process and minimalistic configuration setup which can save you from a lot of hassle. It is an ideal choice if you want to avoid PHP version conflict and works fine on almost all shared and dedicated hosting platforms.  As Codeignitor is not built on MVC development pattern, it gives developers a great freedom where they can use their own code and naming conventions. Being one of the lightweight frameworks, it gives developers an opportunity to add third-party plugins to perform more complex functionalities.Each framework has its own perks and flaws, however choosing the right one depends on various factors like speed, ease of use, security, scalability, documentation and hosting sources. Along with that, the skill sets of the developer and the project they will be working on also come into consideration. Just be sure to check the company behind the development of each framework to be certain, it is actively maintained and has long-term support which will ensure that it remains updated in the future.

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Future of dashboard. Designing a Business Intelligence Dashboard for Next-generation

The latest wave of business intelligence drives an organization to build a Business Intelligence dashboard or analytical business report. Nowadays, there is no longer a need to engage data scientists or IT specialists to create cutting-edge dashboards which are the catalyst to take effective business strategies. Designing a business intelligence dashboard may sound challenging for designers with scanty technical knowledge, but it is a speedy process.The best dashboards must be dynamic enough to keep up with the face pace of the modern business world. Creating a static business dashboard may be useful temporarily, but after certain times, variables change with the ever-growing new analytics aspects! Design an analytics platform or an up-to-date business intelligence dashboard that gives transparent information about the business operations and status of work to the employees, partners, and customers whenever they need it.Creating Business Dashboards SwiftlySearch-driven analytics allows business users to create charts and dashboards within a short period based on both simple and complex queries. Having access to search-driven analytics allows employees to answer important questions and produce custom visualizations without hassle.Users do not need coding experience. They can type into the search bar and immediately land on an answer along with an automatically generated best-fit chart.BI Dashboards Throughout the EcosystemSome companies have multiple locations around the world and it is common for businesses to employ remote workers. Many organizations work with partners spread out across the globe. It is needless to say, it is a challenge to gather everyone on the same page.Embedded BI dashboards keep everyone on their toes to explore the latest data insights. Business users can instantly share in-depth analytics dashboards in communal portals. With multiple data insights on one page, millions of users stay in the loop and access the interactive visualizations required to make informed decisions.Designing a state-of-the-art Business Intelligence dashboardSuccess in today’s technology-driven world correlates to the quality of the information relating to the business, the client, the competitor, and the market as approaches to the metrics. However, IT departments no longer hold exclusive access to data. With the analytical details acquired from the information shown on BI dashboards, knowledge is empowering users to create their own, interactive reports, utilize data visualization, and spread knowledge with internal and external stakeholders.Business intelligence dashboard design consolidates charts and graphs on a single screen, providing the reader with a big picture of the situation it is assessing. BI dashboard tools don’t have a fixed, determined nature. They adapt to the needs of the people by displaying the metrics relevant to their function, industry, or platform. The Purpose of Designing a professional Business Intelligence dashboard and how businesses will be benefitted?BI dashboard helps users to make better-informed decisions by letting them gather, consolidate and analyze the data, and visualize it in a meaningful way. BI dashboards organize data cohesively through advanced intelligence tools that help you brainstorm various business strategies. With highly visual data representation and tools, you can produce charts, graphs, and other powerful visualization instruments that empower you to interpret the data and transform it into actionable insights that will benefit your business in different ways. To outline the unrivalled value of designing such a dashboard, check out the primary benefits of utilizing a BI dashboard.Trend identificationDynamic dashboards empower businesses across sectors to analyze positive trends related to business activities while isolating negative trends to improve efficiency and a dashboard will allow you to achieve this. A business analytics dashboard improves efficiency by displaying relevant real-time data, making you informed to make accurate decisions that eventually catalyze your success.100% Accurate real-time dataThe ultimate business goal is to get ahead of the competition. It is essential to have accurate data in planning, analysis, and reporting which is achieved by real-time access to data. It can provide instant insights into how your business performs on an operational level.Interactive data visualizationAs more data sources emerge, there is a requirement to compile a centralized point of access where data can be presented in an organized way with instant insight. As humans process visual data faster than written, graphics are the most preferable option to present the business standard information. Not only ordinary graphs and charts but also represent interactive business practices. It predicts outcomes and provides business users with instant, actionable insights.Self-Service FeaturesImplementing a modern self-service design to create a BI dashboard is easily the need of the hour so that the users do not need a versed technical IT skill. The dashboard offers company-wide access to invaluable data-driven insights that people can share swiftly to the contrast of the mobility that traditional data processes simply cannot match.Freedom & flexibilityThe centralized and completely portable nature of a business intelligence dashboard means that it is possible to analyze invaluable business insights from a multitude of devices 24/7. This level of flexibility increases productivity and enhances business intelligence on a consistent basis which is one of the key ingredients of success.Top 4 Business Intelligence Dashboard Best Practices1. Be sure of your Reporting RequirementsWhen you prepare any type of management, financial, and marketing report, the first thing you need to clarify is why do you need to report, and to whom? Knowing who is your target audience will help you narrow down specific aspects of the data relevant to their needs. This data must match their expectations and technical skills. Communicating with different stakeholders gives you a consolidated idea about their reporting requirements.Once this is done, it will be easier for you to choose from lists of Key Performance Indicators (KPI), the ones that will best fit your audience best. It must be noted that the purpose of a BI dashboard is to evaluate your business reality so that the management and the users can make the right decisions at the right time. KPI is necessary to solve the data analysis questions which provide you with a framework and allow you to focus on specific data sets.Analytical: This type of dashboard is engineered to provide detailed data analysis pertaining to data trends. Analytical dashboard solutions place a particular emphasis on measuring data variables regarding time (week, month, year). It considers a multitude of different measurables for the purposes of aligning goals with a performance which are complex and highly focused.Operational: Where analytical dashboards monitor the overall health of an organization, operational dashboards focus on Key Performance Indicators. These will vary depending on the industry and audience (sales, marketing, finance, etc.), but they will monitor the real-time operations of an organization or entity. Operational dashboards will specialize in monitoring the functionality for various KPIs that exist within an entity. Tactical: A tactical dashboard is incredibly analytical and targets several key areas of a company’s internal processes. These types of dashboards offer a great deal of insight into weekly metrics and are pivotal in improving internal formulating mid-to-long-term strategies across marketing, finance, and human resources departments.2. Emphasize a well-organized visual orderOne of the most influential factors that impacts dashboard data analysis is the subconscious desire to achieve visual order. Let’s catch a quick glimpse of the elements of a well-ordered dashboard, engineered for visual success.White Space: White space is a design term referring to space within a presentation that is not allocated to any specific element. It is a space void for all images, colours, text, data, and other visible page elements. You should be keen to take advantage of listless proven benefits including enhanced design and balance, the appearance of sophistication, enhanced readability, and prioritized data elements.Use of Contrast: Contrast has its own unique properties and features which create incredible visual aesthetics applied via a change in the data colour scheme. It is likely to be focused on a “point of emphasis” element. Simple colour and design variations will cheer for a seamless information gathering process.Consistent Alignment: A good default alignment rule is to have your most informative data positioned in the upper left. Knowing what and where to place is as important as knowing what not to place. Regarding that, a second general rule is to avoid the temptation to place diagonal elements, especially those linear in nature, and add little benefit while reducing alignment significantly.3. BI dashboard design mantra: More Communication, Less ClutterCommunication is a science, and the Business Intelligence dashboard design should reflect comprehensive, concise, and fact-based communications. There is a tendency among data professionals of overburdening audiences with clutter.While its forms vary, the inherent nature of clutter will likely always remain the same. It occupies the cognitive space within the mind of the users. However, it fails to have any substantive or beneficial impact. Clutters fail to have a positive impact on an audience as it falsifies the appearance of the data as it looks more complex than its true nature.  Once you select the type of dashboard you desire to implement, you can implement a concise and effective design. While an “easy on the eyes” design scheme may appear tempting, effective communication should always top the list4. Interactive BI Dashboard Design to display crucial Business InsightsWho wants boring presentations and unintelligible analyst reports?  Nowadays, interactive dashboards are the coolest tool to present information. Interactivity is especially crucial to deliver insights in today’s digital world.How to design an interactive dashboard? Here are the must-included features-Click-to-filter to dissect dataShow or hide chartsTime interval widgetsReal-time metricsDrill-down featuresResponsiveness for mobile and webInteractive dashboard capabilities engage users as active participants instead of a captive audience. By giving users control over the data they want to collect, an interactive dashboard encourages the users to explore for themselves. Why do so many BI tools have interactive dashboards as a key feature?  Interactivity adds value and boosts engagement.ConclusionBeing an international award-winning techno-digital design & development company, we create head-turning BI dashboard designs. To ensure sustainable success, your BI dashboards must be adaptable to display analytical business insights that are crucial to ideate your strategies having relevance for the future. The digital world is in a constant state of flux, which remains adaptable to change and makes continual improvements. 

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5 Benefits of Coding with React Native

React Native was first introduced by Facebook in 2013. It is a programming language that allows developers to build cross-platform mobile applications using JavaScript. This particular framework comes with many tools that are best for web developers.Furthermore, it has brought a style to UI development that hinges on a modest idea. As per React Native, UI is a function of data and if that data changes, UI must also change. With React-Native it is possible to develop an application once and deploy it on both iOS and Android. React Native allows developers to see their code and incorporate on real mobile screens at the same time. Some of the benefits of React Native are outlined below:    Community-drivenThe development of the React Native framework, responding to the need of the developer community, combined the advantages of mobile app development with the power and agility of the native React environment.There are substantial advantages to using such a community-driven environment like the availability of a huge team of enthusiastic JavaScript and Native developers keen to share their knowledge and expertise and huge catalogues of freely available components.If you choose React Native for developing a mobile app, you do not have to be concerned about the framework falling behind in terms of improvements in mobile software. React Native is consistently improving, so one can always be assured of having the application built on the best of technologies. Maximum code reuse & cost savingBy using React Native, one can deploy the same code on iOS as well as on Android. This saves a lot of development time and cost. Ideally, this will cut the development effort by half. While in practice, the cost saving will be a little lower but it will make the investment worth your while. As per the recent studies, about 90% of the code can be reused between Android and iOS, but it would be wise to calculate some extra time for practical alterations as well. Live reloadReact Native allows you to create powerful mobile applications with additional feature like ‘live reload’, enabling you to immediately see the result of the latest change that you have made to the code. If you have two windows opened – one containing the code and the other showing a mobile screen as a result of the code – you can immediately see the effect of what you have changed in one screen, or on the other screen. Strong performance for mobile environmentsThe React Native architecture is very well tuned to mobile devices and they are relatively faster than Native apps. It makes use of the Graphics Processing Unit, while native platforms make use of Central Processing Unit.   Modular and intuitive architecture similar to ReactThe modular and intuitive interface makes it easy for other developers to delve into someone else’s project and build upon it. This surges the flexibility within a development team and makes it easier to create updates and upgrades to web applications. Also, testers will need less time to understand the programming logic and build appropriate testing setups.Benefits of Coding with React Native can be further extended from web to mobile and vice versa. These merits are worth considering before kicking off with React Native.