The software industry has grown by leaps and bounds in the past few decades, and this growth shows no signs of slowing down. From prominent startups to household names like Microsoft, the software development industry is one of the world’s largest and most valuable industries.
While this makes developing software easier and more popular, it also presents challenges that companies must overcome to gain the most from their projects. Even in this age of automation, artificial intelligence, robotics and programming remain in high demand.
The demand is due to the continued need to modernize existing systems, develop new software from scratch, keep computers safe from attack and more. This article will discuss the top trends in the software development industry and where it’s headed in the next few years.
What is software development?
Software development is the process of designing, building and maintaining computer software. It is a creative process often involving collaborative teams working on specific projects.
Many different types of software are available, including office automation, enterprise resource planning (ERP), customer relationship management (CRM) and social networking services.
Software development has increased the demand for software engineers and programmers who are needed to build applications and, thankfully, universities such as Baylor are making it easier for the software engineers of tomorrow to kickstart their careers by offering a range of online degrees, including computer science, which can all be studied completely remotely.
Top 6 trends in software development industry
In the modern world of technology, companies need to be aware of multiple trends impacting the software industry as they plan for future products and projects. Here are six of the biggest trends impacting the world of software development.
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Cloud platform services
The advent of cloud computing has introduced many benefits, such as scalability, mobility and lower costs. It is only natural that cloud platform services have become one of the top trends in the software development industry.
This trend has impacted every software development process, from design to deployment. Applications are being built on public cloud platforms such as Amazon Web Services instead of on-premises data centers to take advantage of these improvements.
However, you cannot develop all apps in the cloud due to regulations and specific hardware requirements. In those cases, you can utilize hybrid environments to deploy critical components on-premises while deploying other less mission-critical components onto public cloud platforms.
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Coding techniques
There are various coding techniques that developers use to create software. One common technique used is object-oriented programming, which uses data structures to define methods and classes and how objects interact with one another.
Developers often pair this technique with another popular coding style called dynamic programming. The latter consists of data types and variables that change depending on the situation in the code.
You can also divide code into subroutines or functions that developers can execute multiple times throughout a program. With this technique, programmers don’t need to worry about how variables will behave inside various parts of the code.
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Big data
With the amount of data generated by customers and sensors, big data is taking over the tech industry. The need to extract insights from these data sets has driven the development of new technologies and innovations.
One specific innovation that is gaining traction is cloud technology. Cloud computing provides a way to store and analyze all this data without investing heavily in hardware or software.
This option saves companies time and money while providing greater flexibility when scaling up or down their operations. Big data is also causing significant disruptions in other industries, including manufacturing, retail, finance and even healthcare.
For example, retailers can track how many people look at an item online and how they navigate the site before clicking on the product page. You can make changes to increase sales with more information about who’s visiting your website.
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Internet of Things
The Internet of Things (IoT) refers to the network of physical objects with embedded technology to communicate, sense or interact with their internal states or external environment.
One of the most commercially successful IoT applications has been intelligent appliances. For example, you can use a Nest thermostat to remotely control the temperature inside your home through an app on your phone.
Other popular IoT applications include smart wearables and connected toys that send data back to a company’s servers about what kinds of games kids play. These devices often collect user data to optimize performance, create new features or improve the product overall.
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Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence (AI) is a game changer. It’s not just a buzzword or trend. It’s one of the most significant developments we’ve seen since the invention of computers.
AI impacts every aspect of society, from healthcare and education to transportation and finance. Today, no industry is safe from disruption by intelligent machines growing increasingly intelligent through data processing at unprecedented speeds.
Experts predict that AI will continue to evolve rapidly as research advances. Industries will require new ways for humans and AI to interact if humans maintain relevance alongside their latest creations.
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Virtual reality
Immersive virtual reality is shaping up to be one of the most exciting trends in software development. It’s been around for a while, but the technology has become affordable and easy enough to use so you can implement it in everyday life.
For example, because of virtual reality, people will soon be able to buy furniture online and see what it will look like before they purchase it. Real estate companies are now using this technique to allow potential buyers to experience houses without visiting them in person.
Virtual reality lets architects and engineers get an inside view of their design before construction begins. With this technological trend in the software development industry, product developers can create fully immersive environments with interactive graphic interfaces.
Wrapping up
The software industry is growing, with many companies now employing software developers. You can attribute this growth to the increased popularity of SaaS and mobile applications, and the need for innovation.
These trends will likely continue into the foreseeable future, and you can expect them to change with time. With the rapid rate at which new developments occur, both developers and entrepreneurs must stay up to date so that they’re prepared to take advantage of all these changes.