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Blockchain vs DLT – An Explanatory Guide You Can’t Miss On

Posted on 14/10/202113/11/2021 by Anteelo Master

As blockchain is evolving, many startups and developers are exploring and dissecting the potential of the technology in all aspects. They are not solely taking interest in knowing how the technology can revamp their existing business models.But, are also entertaining all the originating buzzwords. While some are using them as synonyms, others are taking an interest in finding the differences between them.

One such newly originated name is Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT).

What is DLT has become one of the buzz questions of the current time, with what makes it similar/different from Blockchain being the close second

Let’s cover both in this article. But first, let’s have a sneak peek of Blockchain vs DLT by considering a platform example of both, i.e, Ethereum (Blockchain) and R3 Corda (DLT).

Now while this would have given you some insights on the difference between blockchain and DLT, let’s jump into the decentralized world and study them in detail – starting with the basics of Blockchain technology.

A simple definition to Blockchain technology

Blockchain is a decentralized, distributed and often public database type where data is saved in blocks, such that the hashcode present in any block is created using the data of the previous block. These blocks offer a complete set of characteristics like transparency, immutability, and scalability that makes every brand and developer interested in investing their time and effort into Blockchain development guide.

Advantages of Blockchain:

Blockchain technology enables businesses to verify any transaction without involving any intermediaries.
Since transaction stored in the blocks are stored on millions of devices participating in the Blockchain ecosystem, the risk of data recovery is minimal.
As consensus protocols are used to verify every entry, there is no chance of double entry or fraud.
Another benefit of blockchain technology is that it offers transparency in the network, which makes it easier for anyone to be familiar with transactions in real-time.

The technology came into limelight as backend support force for cryptocurrencies, but soon made its place in different business verticals including Healthcare, Travel, Real Estate, Retail, Finance, and On-demand. A complete information about different industries that Blockchain is disrupting can be taken from this image:-

With this attended to, let’s turn towards DLT.

A Brief Introduction to Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT)

The answer to what is Distributed Ledger technology (DLT) is that it is a digital system used for storing the transaction of assets, even when the data is stored at multiple places simultaneously. It might sound like a traditional database, but is different because of the fact that there is no centralized storage place or administration functionality. Meaning, every node of the ledger processes and validates every item, and this way, contribute to generating a record of each item and building a consensus on each item’s veracity.

A timeline of DLT’s movement can be seen in this image –

The concept is attracting almost every app development company with a complete set of advantages as shared below.

Advantages of DLT:-

In DLT, data is 100% tamper proof till the database ledger is distributed.
It offers highly secure and trustworthy experience.
A decentralized private distributed network enhances the robustness of the system and assures continuous operation without any interruption.

Now, as we have looked into what the two terms mean, let’s look into the DLT and Blockchain relationship before turning towards the comparison of two.

Relation between Blockchain and DLT

As depicted in the above image, Blockchain is just a piece of the vast ecosystem of DLT. It is a type of DLT where records are stored in blocks after being validated cryptographically. That implies, a hash created using the data stored in a block is fed in the next block added such that it gives an impression of a chain.

“Every blockchain is a distributed ledger, but not every distributed ledger is a blockchain.”

Now, while this might be giving you a rush to compare Blockchain and DLT at once, let’s take a twisted path. Here, we will first learn about other types of DLT besides Blockchain, and then move to the core part of the article, i.e, Blockchain vs DLT.

Here are the popular forms of DLT that exists apart from Blockchain.

1. Holochain

Holochain, in simplified terms, is a type of DLT which does not rely upon consensus model or on the concept of tokenization.

Here, each participating node has its own secure ledger and can act independently, while also interacting with other devices on the network to meet the basic needs of decentralization. This way, it lets you build more customized and scalable solutions than what Blockchain offers.

2. Hashgraph

Another form of DLT that exists in the market is Hashgraph. It is basically a patented algorithm that has the potential of delivering all the benefits of Blockchain (decentralization, security, and distribution), but without compromising at transaction speed rate. Something for which it relies upon the concept of Gossip about Gossip protocol and Virtual voting technique.

One real-life implementation of Hashgraph that has proven to hold the potential of becoming a replacement of Blockchain is Hedera Hashgraph, about which you can learn more in this blog.

3. Direct Acyclic Graph (DAG)

Direct Acyclic Graphs (DAGs) or you can say Tangle is also one of the prime types of DLT that pertains in the tech world.

Under this concept, multiple chains of nodes are created and managed at the same time and are interconnected to one another. They, unlike Blockchain, exist both in serial and parallel form.

Factors to Consider While Comparing Blockchain and DLT

1. Consensus model

The foremost factor to focus upon while checking into Blockchain vs DLT is the consensus mechanism.

Since only a limited number of nodes participate in the case of DLT, there is no need for any consensus. But, the same is not true in the case of Blockchain where anyone can participate and contribute to the addition of a new block to the chain.

2. Block structure

Another factor that you must keep a watch on while differentiating between Blockchain and DLT is block structure.

While blocks are added in the form of a chain in a Blockchain, they can be organized in different forms in the case of Distributed Ledger technology.

3. Tokens

Tokens, i.e, the programmable assets governed by Smart Contracts or underlying distributed ledger, is also one of the prime comparing factors in Blockchain vs DLT war.

While tokens are must to consider while working with Blockchain technology, they are not required when dealing with DLT. And the reason behind is that only invited (limited) nodes are allowed to participate and validate any transaction in DLT environment which reduces the size of complete ecosystem.

However, you might be requiring tokens when you wish to perform block spamming or work on anti-spamming detection process.

4. Sequence

In Blockchain environment, all the blocks are arranged in a particular sequence, i.e, in a serial mode. However, there is no as such constraint when talking about DLT. Blocks are organized in different ways in the case of DLTs.

5. Efficiency

A DLT can complete a significantly high number of transactions in a minute than what is possible by Blockchains. So, it delivers higher efficiency with minimal cost than Blockchain-based solutions.

An outcome of this is that today, various Blockchain development companies are looking ahead to enter into the DLT ecosystem.

6. Trustability

Another factor that you can consider to see the difference between Blockchain and DLT is Trustability.

In the case of DLT, trust among participating nodes is high. And it is even higher when the corporate initiates building their own internal blockchain or organizing a consortium. Also, the censorship resistance in this template is low since they can be centralized and/or private.

However, it is not so in the case of Blockchain.

In Blockchain ecosystem, the censorship resistance is too high with one vote per PC. But, with the progressive concentration of mining with upgraded hash power in the hands of fewer decision makers, the chances of trustability is low.

7. Security

To access data stored in a blockchain, users have to employ a key. If they lose the key, they would lose access to their account and funds. A real-life example of which is that the loss of access on nearly $145M of bitcoins and digital assets on the death of a cryptocurrency exchange CEO.

However, such situations are not majorly possible in the case of DLT, since the data is distributed, encrypted, and synchronized across multiple ports.

8. Real-life implementations

When talking about the comparison of blockchain and distributed ledger technology in terms of real-life implementations, blockchain leads the battle.

This is so because many entrepreneurs are slowly and gradually understanding the nature of Blockchain via some guide and use them into their traditional model for leveraging better advantages. In fact, various recognized brands like Amazon, IBM, Oracle, and Alibaba have started offering Blockchain As a Service (BaaS) solutions.

But, when it comes to Distributed Ledger technology, DLT enthusiasts and application developers have begun to explore the core of the technology. They are looking ahead to come across different use cases of DLT, but there are not many significant real-life implementations yet.

So this was all about what you should know when looking into Blockchain vs DLT. But, in case, you have some more queries or confused about which one to invest in, feel free to connect with our Blockchain consultants.

Mixed Reality (MR): Advancement in Modern Surgery

Posted on 08/06/2021 by Anteelo Master

Mixed Reality (MR) is empowering health science experts to reimagine and renovate the healthcare industry by accelerating the process of diagnoses, making the care-time more efficient, enabling a personalized experience for patients, and improving the outcomes.

When it comes to using technology practically then, MR technology has revolutionised the surgery procedure by making it possible for surgeons to perform an operation on a patient that is thousands of miles away. With mixed reality surgery, nurses can sharpen their skills and perform hundreds of operations virtually before even touching a patient. It is safe to say that mixed reality in healthcare is making the impossible possible.

MR combines elements of virtual and augmented reality. It allows an individual to interact with the external world where virtual objects are present. MR technology is widely applicable in medicine. Let’s discuss a few trends below:

The AV/VR in the healthcare market is expected to reach 7.05 billion USD by 2026. Hence, the application of mixed reality in healthcare is going to increase tremendously. This increase in market demand is due to various factors such as the advancement of 5G technology, mobile applications, increasing disease awareness etc.
Augmented reality and virtual reality are emerging technologies in the healthcare industry. AR and VR could be used in a variety of settings including physician training, patient treatments and hospital management. In 2018, the North American healthcare AR and VR industry was valued at 477 million U.S. dollars. By 2025, that is expected to increase exponentially to 4.64 billion U.S. dollars.
The global mixed reality healthcare market size was valued at USD 54.2 million in 2019 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 48.7% from 2020 to 2027. Increasing awareness regarding the utilization of mixed reality technology in surgery and rising adoption of MR in medical training processes are the key factors driving the growth of this market.

You are now well aware how the adoption of mixed reality in healthcare is changing the industry and bringing the healthcare industry together. Let’s discuss its applications and benefits.

Benefits of Mixed Reality In Surgery

Mixed reality in modern surgery enables pre-procedural planning and visualization. It also helps in reducing errors and improving the overall experience of the patient. Let’s dive deep and discuss the uses of mixed reality in surgery!

1. Learning opportunities for healthcare professionals

Imitation of a particular procedure is the most effective method of education. It helps one to prepare for various situations that could go wrong during a surgery. Mixed Reality can help a medical student in such rare situations, which may be difficult to arrange for in real clinical settings. MR related simulations are way more cost effective than traditional simulation devices.

In simple words, before surgery, training nurses as they virtually work out challenges they could encounter during real-life procedures, and improving the collaboration and communication between doctors and patients is one of the biggest benefits of mixed reality.

Training simulations are expected to be a major application of immersive technologies in the healthcare sector within the next two years according to 68 percent of XR industry experts who responded to the 2020 survey.

Use Case: In order to launch apps like HoloHuman and HoloPatient two companies collaborated. Pearson- a world renowned education company joined hands with Microsoft to make these apps come to life. These apps use holograms to train medical professionals to diagnose and treat the patients.

2. Reduced time and error risk in reconstructive surgery

Human error is a possibility in all the surgical procedures. On the other hand, mixed reality enables the process of reconstructive surgeries. This process has been proven to be very successful at the Imperial College at St. Mary’s Hospital, London. With the help of reconstructive surgeries, surgeons are able to locate and reconnect major blood vessels. The holographic overlays help surgeons to see the bones and identify the course of blood vessels which assists them in their surgery, improving the outcome for the patient.

For example: An article in The Times showed examples of reconstructive surgeries on a 41-year-old man and an 85-year-old woman that were performed successfully.

3. Better than traditional methods

MR virtual reality opens various doors to efficient communication and collaborations among medical professionals sitting in different parts of the world and their patients that traditional methods of surgery could not. MR helps healthcare professionals to access the patient’s medical information and anatomical pictures in 3D during the surgery. It also helps to build a bridge between surgeons working in different parts of the world to collaborate by the use of microphones and sensors. All these amazing features make mixed reality a valuable asset in the medical industry.

4. Planning and assisting become more effective

The MR technology in the medical field can be really helpful for planning the surgery. Further the plan can also be used while assisting the surgery. A plan of surgery made on an X-ray of the patient can be used while operating. The plan can be reflected on the patient while operating which in turn makes the work easier and accurate. This technology can do wonders when it comes to increasing the accuracy and providing a positive result.

Applications of Mixed Reality Technology

1. Medical mannequins with MR

Medical mannequins are brought to life using Mixed Reality, which is an invaluable asset during training medical students. Traditionally, the mannequins used in medical training are dummies and do not give the experience of a real person. But with image recognition, MR translates the dummy into a real person. When the trainee sees a real person in stress through MR the situation becomes more realistic. This technology will also provide a risk- free environment and give space to learners to make mistakes and learn from their own mistakes at the same time.

Did you know the mannequin can be remotely controlled by a computer to continue reacting to the scenario? This is believed to be the most effective and consistent way of learning by professionals. This way teachers can observe how students interact with the patients while operating and check their technical skills.

2. Telesurgery with MR

Telesurgery is a remote controlled surgery via a robot. Such applications can be beneficial on battlegrounds, in army camps or in remote rural areas. Telesurgery being such an advanced technology still comes with some drawbacks which can be covered using MR technology. The major issue that comes to light is that of latency. In simple words, latency is the time delay between the instruction given by the surgeon and the movement of the robot which responds to instruction.

MR can solve this issue by replacing surgeons instructing the robots with the surgeons operating in the virtual world and the robots imitating the surgeons in the real world. The robotic use for operation can be improved by combining MR Telesurgery technology with the MR Surgery technology where a mannequin is placed to imitate a real person. Surgery guided by mixed reality will change and digitize the healthcare industry completely.

3. MR in Pharmaceuticals

The MR technology can be effectively used in the development of drugs. With the help of MR the pharma students can actually have a look at how a particular drug reacts in our body. As the technology advances the students will also be able to see different reactions of different medicines in different bodies. This will help the students to study the reactions in a more detailed and efficient way. This will also inspire professionals to introduce effective drugs for a better future.

The Future of Mixed Reality

Without a doubt I can say that mixed reality will continue to improve the quality of healthcare, surgeries and medical training. We can provide faster and better care at lower costs by deploying mixed reality before, during, and after procedures. You can now leverage mixed reality to enable continuous learning and widespread knowledge sharing.

Anteelo has helped many clients build custom mixed reality apps, which integrate applications with the latest technologies. If you are looking for AR VR MR app development services, get in touch with us and let’s discuss how we can make mixed reality possible for you.

How CI/CD saves up to 20% of mobile app development time?

Posted on 07/06/202107/06/2021 by Anteelo Master

Continuous Integration and Continuous Delivery has grown to become a software development practice which brings down not just the effort but also the app development cost that goes behind.

Through the CI/CD for mobile apps process, businesses can avail a plethora of benefits, straight from the one time setup: Automated builds, improved communication, automated shipping, and zero server maintenance.

In a sans CI/CD world, some mobile app development companies release their apps manually, by handing them off from one team to the next.

There is almost always a delay at every stage which leads to irritated teams and unhappy clients. And the app ultimately gets live via a tedious and error-full process which delays the entire revenue generation possibilities.

Now if you look at the continuous delivery pipeline illustration below, you will get a different picture.

It depicts how the developers write their code and commit them to a source code repository once/multiple times a day. Following which, testing, staging, and production happens inside the CI pipeline and is deployed to the customers directly.

What is CI and CD?

Let us first answer what is mobile continuous integration before moving on to filling in the details on what is continuous delivery and what is continuous deployment.

Now before we go on with defining what the approach stands for, let us put something out in the open.

Even though there are a whole lot of different mobile app development process sets operating in the market today, the answer to what is Continuous Integration and Continuous Delivery in devops and what is CI and CD in agile would be exactly the same.

With that clear, let’s head out with the explanation.

Continuous Integration

Custom Integration or CI is the custom mobile app development practice where regular integration of code changes happen in a shared code repository. Usually, the practice happens at least once and maximum of multiple times in a day. This encourages committing of small changes often compared to committing of large changes less frequently.

Every commit then triggers a build in which tests are run which helps in identifying if something is broken.

Continuous Delivery

It is all about the capability to regularly deliver the integrated code to production. The end result of this stage is that you have green builds that are ready to be released in one click.

Continuous Deployment

This process goes one step ahead for it enables automatic deployment of every main branch change which passes the CI pipeline. However, it is better to avoid doing this, for you would need to perform testing which are not limited to automated.

Stages of CI/CD for Mobile Apps Development

The process of integrating CI/CD for mobile apps can be divided into seven sections or stages.

Code: Code is the backbone of any application. The process of writing them which starts with the development phase goes on to the maintenance phase. In the continuous integration and delivery approach, developers write code for CI components, which in turn, prepares it for automation in the next stages.

Build: This is the part where the app is built. Multiple developers work on the process happens every day. What is different in case of CI/CD for mobile apps is that once the developers have finished their work, they add them in the CI application.

The output of the stage is a URL.

Test: Once the code components are entered in the CI platform, the next step is to see how the app performs with inclusion of new updates. The CI software here gives developers reports on how the app is performing, in addition to some useful analytics.

Even though it is automated, it helps to involve someone from the mobile app quality assurance team in the stage to ensure that the changes are acceptable.

Package: Once the performance and quality tests are made, it is time to deploy the application. The stage is applicable both for the new apps and the existing apps whose new version is going to be released.

Release: The next stage of the incorporation of CI/CD for mobile apps is applying the new URL for the app on devices for release.

Configuration: The next stage is configuration of the infrastructure. You would need to format the entire coding and management tools, which would enable people to regularly access the CI platform.

Monitor: Once the app is running, you would still need to continue monitoring its performance. The developers, at this stage, ensure that any additional code written for improving the app has gone through the CI stages first. Doing this, lowers the chance of any bugs or problems emerging mid way.

Getting started with Continuous Integration and Delivery

It is not difficult to get up and running with Continuous Integration. Here are the steps that mobile app development companies generally follow to start using CI/CD for mobile apps smoothly.

How to Implement Continuous Delivery for Mobile App

Implementation of a version control of choice – SVN, Git, or Bitbucket
Writing test for critical elements in the code base
A suitable CI/CD service which would enable running the tests on every push to repository.

Let’s look deeper into what the implementation of continuous integration can offer to the everyday software development process. The realization of these advantages and the answer to how continuous integration and delivery helps translates into reduction of risks attached with building and paving the road to get the features out to the customers.

Business Benefits of Continuous Integration & Continuous Delivery

1. Faster feedback loop

In application development process, not knowing can really hurt. One of the primal things that slows down the software development process is the lack of feedback on the impact of changes and the quality of work. It is easy to get disillusioned that you are moving too fast if you are commiting codes frequently and moving to other tasks without running any tests. While the reality is that it’ll get extremely difficult to figure out what changed in the code and by whom, when there is an issue.

CI/CD for mobile apps solves these issues by giving you prompt answers on the question if something broke in a commit.

2. Increased visibility & transparency

When the CI/CD pipeline has been set up, the whole team would know what is going on with the builds in addition to getting the latest test results. This means, they would be able to plan their work in context and would get a clear idea of which changes tend to break the builds more often.

3. Avoidance of integration mess

If you look at software as legos where each of the pieces are created by developers individually, the whole software development picture becomes one where different legos meet to become one giant piece. What eases this process is the lack of friction.

Even if a lego piece is fine, you will still have to make sure that it fits well with the entire system – Continuous integration does exactly that by connecting the pieces of software together everyday.

4. Identification & solving of issues early on

An obvious phase of software development is bugs. Now, the more bugs pile on, the harder it then gets to identify and solve them. With different kinds of automated tests running in the continuous integration pipeline, you’d get to know what is to be fixed the moment a test fails.

5. Improve testability & quality

The easier it would be to test something, the more convenient it would become to test the quality. The simple rule is that the more your code is written in a way that it can’t accommodate writing tests, the more difficult it would be to make it bug free. The testability efforts ultimately depends on how easily the new builds are made available and the kind of tools you work with, plus the control you have on the test environments.

Top Mobile Continuous Integration CI/CD Tools

Jenkins

Founded in 2006, it is the top open-source continuous integration server. Developers have developed over 300 plugins for adapting Jenkins into different build, test, and automation based workloads.

CircleCI

The tool enables developers to release codes by automating the build, test and deployment process. It allows them to identify and fix bugs much before it reaches the customers.

Travis CI

It is another top mobile continuous integration tool operating in the market today. It is a distributed, hosted services used in the development and testing of projects which are hosted on GitHub. It also offers custom deployment of proprietary version on the client’s hardware.

Bitrise

It is a continuous integration & delivery Platform as a Service which focuses on mobile app development. The developers, through the tool, are easily able to automate the test and deploy phase of their apps within a few clicks.

Visual Studio App Center

The Microsoft backed tool brings different services, usually brought into use by developers in an individual, integrated product. It enables mobile app developers to build, test, and deliver, monitor their apps, while allowing them to create an installable app package with every push made to the repository.

While these are just five, there are a plethora of different continuous integration and delivery service providers available in the market. Here are a few things to consider when researching the choices:

How to select the best CI/CD tool for your app development needs?

1. Proprietary vs Open Source

On the basis of context, there can be instances where open source tools might be off the table for some clients. But at the same time, investing in proprietary tool can be a little costly side.

If going with open source tools fits in the context and budget, there are a number of options present in the market.

2. In the Cloud or Self-hosted

If you are willing to host the CI/CD service yourself and have the time and resources for setting it up, configuring, and maintaining it, you should go with Self-hosted services. But, if you are looking for crossing off build infrastructure maintenance off the work list, go with a Software as a Service solution.

3. Ease of setting up

A frictionless adoption of CI/CD is the secret to getting everybody on board. So, going with a tool that takes a lot of time in setting up can backfire your intention of choosing the approach.

The Best from the Rest Using Intuitive Search Specs

Posted on 03/06/202104/06/2021 by Anteelo Master

Sometimes you hear people utter the phrase “I had an intuition” at which point you may wonder whether he/she has the ability to view the future. But that isn’t the case. Intuition is the feeling people derive based on instinct and this instinct isn’t based on conscious reasoning.

This subliminal, cerebral concept holds immense significance in the world of mobile app design. After all, why do we associate one symbol with a specific action? Is it a natural tendency or one that emerges from our daily experiences? Today we’ll chase the answers to such questions and determine what features and facets constitute an optimum intuitive search functionality in a mobile app.

What is Intuitive Design?

An intuitive app design consists of everything that defines the importance of UI/UX design in an app. Its components, be it the typography or content flow, allow guesswork to guide action, say searching for information. An intuitive design subtly conveys its meaning at the same time staring the user in the face, quite literally. It is so symbolically evident that the user cannot and must not think of anything else, other than the intended use of the feature. An intuitive design architecture must engender the following characteristics to be considered instinctive:

Discoverability is second nature to mobile app design search. From the menu bars to the profile sections, you can explore everything within a click-or-two without losing your way.

Affordance is another word for perception. Intuitive UI uses a barrage of visual cues to tell the user what would clicking a button result in. Its elements keep in mind what the user wants/expects from a button. This brings us to our next point.

Expectations of the user should be complemented by visual cues. A bell commonly denotes a notification, thumbs-up a like, etc. Intuitive UI design integrates a diaspora of icons that appeal to common sense.

Efficiency should be thought of in terms of minimalism. A minimalist design is non-confrontational in that the users go through exactly the steps that they must to accomplish a task.

Responsiveness of the app communicates whether the performed action by the user is successful. Intuitiveness takes it a step forward and expounds on corrective measures in instances of a boo-boo.

Importance of Intuitive UX Design

Mobile has gained a domineering position in almost every aspect of our life. For many, they’ve totally replaced desktops. As a matter of fact, 40% of people use their phones for online searches. Of all the video views in the world, more than 50% come from smartphones.

Factoring in the time and utility people thrust on to their phones, intuitive design elements pose as an exercise that any mobile app design agency would undertake foremost and one that everyone should know when reading into a mobile app design guide.

Creating Intuitive Mobile App Search

Search is probably the first action most users perform in any app. It’s a wormhole that lets users fast-forward to their area of choice. Yet, you would find striking differences between the search functionality of a great app and a good app.

Having been a mobile app design company since our foundation, it is our DNA to go intuitive-first, as we have on so many occasions. As a result of which we’re in a position to share with you our thoughts on how to go about designing a user friendly in-app search option. We’ve divided the process into 4 stages for better understanding.

1. Search Bar

Let’s begin with the physical attributes of the search bar, its form, and on-screen positioning.

Search Bar Size

The bible for UX search best practices recommends making the search bar big enough.

If your design permits, the search field should ideally be an expansive box placed in the view of the user. Often, you would come across search icons, clicking which expands the search field. Though it appears interesting, yet from a UX point of view, it bears negative results and thus can be noted as a UI/UX mistake you should avoid.

Not recommended

Contextually, the icon is supposed to simplify typing a query, but the icon-only search adds an extra step before the user can do so. Opting for an open text field would point the users in the right direction.

Recommended

Search icon

The search field should, without fail, be represented by a magnifying glass. Thanks to all the snitch flicks that stereotyped magnifying glasses to look for something, people have come to accept the sign by default. Use the most simplistic image of a magnifying glass with little to no graphical additions. This is one place where the less you do, the more it speaks for itself.

2. Entering Search Query

Most of us have been typing in the Google search bar for years now. Yet, we commit typos. Misspellings annoy users as not everyone is a grammar-nazi and usually want to rush through the entire step. Therefore, it is the responsibility of a mobile app design company to make entering the search-input as easy as possible.

Keyword-based Search

Nothing overboard about it. You enter the search query in the search field and down below appears a list of search results that match your keywords. Click the option closest to your intended information and there you go. Quite a few apps continue to employ this mechanism. Twitter for one displays both the hashtags associated with your query followed by the social handles if any.

But such a system has its shortcomings. It depends on the consumer typing the correct input every single time. This is solved by some of the more innovative solutions thanks to the emerging deployment of AI in search, as we shall see in the coming sections.

Filtered Search

Websites with a product catalogue stretching into the thousands integrate heavy handed filtered search to deliver a refined search functionality in the app. Examples include domains such as E-commerce, Edtech, and travel. Given that there are thousands of results matching the inputted keyword, it is wise to let a user zero-in on options most closely related to their search.

While some apps offer the option to add filters right before hitting the magnifying glass, there are others that daunt the user with total results and then make them sort through.

Predictive Search

In terms of apps that involve a lot of data entry, such as conversational apps (like Whatsapp) or lifestyle apps (like Pinterest), incorporating an auto-complete option is a good idea. The feature is one of the ways AI can help develop next-gen apps. The app design firm that undertakes the development of your application must build in-app capabilities that register recent searches as part of the search history. Upon re-entering a keyword the first thing that the user would see in the auto-suggest drop-down list will be his/her recently entered keywords.

If yours is not an E-commerce store, then auto-suggest should blend in perfectly as there is a pattern to everything the user does and your job is to uncover that to make in-app search simple.

Limited Search

Onloading your app with various sophistications may not always be the right choice. Websites want to prolong user-sessions in order to maximise page visits. An app runs contrary to this theme and focuses on recurring visits by the user, even if the sessions last a couple of seconds.

Design search considerations could entertain the idea of limiting search features in an app. Keep only the amount that transports users where they want to be, for instance, compartmentalizing your content into categories as is done in Hotels.com.

Voice Search

Voice search is designed for a hands-off experience while using the app. Apps that cater such a functionality often tend to be those that are used for cross-connection and multimedia broadcasting. Google offers one of the best voice search functions beginning which the market started designing content that is voice search friendly. Spotify is yet another example, which allows you to search songs with the hold of a button.

3. Fetch Results

The thumb rule states search results should come up as soon as the finger hits enter. However, you could seldom face network lag, in which case the user should know to expect a delay.

This speed test indicator is a good example. It uses a speedometer animation to divert attention from the fact that the app is consuming time to calculate the actual network speed. If alongside the animation, you can display the total time (hopefully seconds) the user should wait then all the better.

4. Display Outcome

Mostly, the search results are expected to be accurate. But as a mobile application design company, Anteelo also pays close attention to error-prone queries that lead to a dead-end. What comes next shouldn’t be anybody’s guess but a rational step-by-step approach to get the right input from the user, as we find out in the upcoming sections.

Tackling “No Matches Found”

Never leave the customer staring at the wall. Even if the code does not find suitable results to display, offer something to the viewer. When there are no relevant results to show for, show alternative or remotely related products or the most popular search categories. You never know if that was the intent of the user. A blank page in such conditions leaves a bad taste in the mouth of the user who may take the app to be inefficient.

Correspond the Right Message

While displaying related products is one way to appease the user, what if the problem runs deeper than that. The backend could actually have malfunctioned and there is no shame in admitting and underlining the encountered problem to the user. But make sure you give hope that the issue may be resolved sooner than later.

Amazon does one of the best gimmicks in this area, with finesse. Everybody loves dogs, so Amazon developers thought why not use them to their advantage. Have a look at that error message.

Help Users Correct Entries

We all make typos. It’s normal. And most people sensibly accept their fault when an algorithm points it out. In case of Google searches, the majority of us are glad that the engine knows our search intent as it rectifies and suggests correctly spelled words. This doesn’t change with the app, but it can get better.

Without fail, whether you’re building an app inhouse or outsourcing the work to a mobile app design and development company, make sure the algos are trained to correct misspellings.

Create Category Headers

When the content is highly diversified it is best positioned under parent categories. Take the case of Spotify. It has millions of songs and they have demarcated specific search categories by which to sort them. Their parent tags are artists, songs, podcasts and if the user knows their genre, then they can jump right into it. Think of how you can distribute your content likewise.

Choose a Layout Template

Presentation has a lot to do with the way your floor the content. Netflix is a prime example, pun intended, to display a side-slide search functionality. It proved oxygenated air against the stale, tried and overused style of content flow that included carousels, and pagination. Infinite scrolls have also been proven to be addictive and equally effective.

On-demand Loading

Also known as lazy loading, it is a content optimization technique deployed to display the content that is intended for first, than bulk loading the page in one instance. It saves time and consumes lesser network bandwidth, and renders instant gratification to the user. Lazy loading allows developers to avoid code execution that can be delayed till the point the user demands further information.

Drawing it to a Close

Anteelo started out of an intuitive decision by a group of friends and today has a growing stature in the world of mobile app development. Despite the accolades, we keep our head to the ground, happily accept projects that we can wrap under our sheets and politely admit if something is beyond our means, which has thankfully never transpired. If intuitive design is what got you here, we bet you’d be amazed to know the full extent of our services.

OWASP Mobile Top 10 Security Risks-Real-world Cases

Posted on 16/05/202102/06/2021 by Anteelo Master

Carrying an industry record of developing 100% hack proof applications come with a responsibility and a baseline guarantee that none of the digital solutions developed under our name would face security breach. As a way to achieve that, Anteelo’s Quality Assurance team are familiar with all the possible security risks which an app can face. Knowing the risks makes it easy to ignore pitfalls and write secure apps. Helping us be on top of the game when it comes to assuring security is having complete knowledge of OWASP secure coding practices (Open Web Application Security Project). It is an online community of security specialists who have developed free documentation, learning materials, and tools for building secure mobile and web applications.

Along with other things, they have also compiled a list of OWASP Mobile Top 10 security threats in mobile applications.

While the OWASP security practices document is fairly clear, it can sometimes be difficult for businesses to connect it from real-world cases.

In this article, we will give you a basic overview of Top 10 mobile security risks and give examples of the real world disclosed vulnerabilities for each of them. It will give you an insight into what we prepare for at Anteelo when we work on your application.

Before looking into the risks, let us look into statistics.

NowSecure looked into the apps on Google Play store and App store identified that over 85% of apps violate one of the risks.

Of these applications, 50% have had insecure data storage and somewhere the same number of apps were working with insecure communication risk. Here’s a graph showcasing the percentage of occurence of the OWASP Mobile Top 10 risks

List of 10 Most Common Threats to Mobile Applications and the Best Practices to Avoid Them

M1: Improper Platform Usage

The category of OWASP security testing consists of the misuse of a device functionality or the instance of failure when using platform’s security controls. It can include platform permissions, Android intents, misuse of the TouchID, Keychain, etc.

Real-World Case:

Three iOS apps: “Fitness Balance app”, “Heart Rate Monitor”, and “Calories Tracker app” came into light for bypassing Apple’s Touch ID. They were asking users to use their fingerprint to get fitness information, while they were using it to charge money from the App Store.

Best Practice to Avoid:

The developer must not allow Keychain encryptions through server route and keep the keys in one device only, so that it’s impossible to get exploited on other servers or devices.
The developer must secure the app through Keychain to store the app’s secret that has a dedicated access control list.
The developer must take permission to limit which apps are allowed to communicate with their application.
The developer must control the first of OWASP Mobile Top 10 list by defining the explicit intents and thus blocking all other components to access information present in the intent.

M2: Insecure Data Storage

OWASP consider it a threat when someone gets access to a lost/stolen mobile device or when malware or another repackaged app starts acting on the adversary’s behalf and executes action on mobile device.

An insecure data storage vulnerability usually lead to these risks:

Fraud
Identity Theft
Material Loss.
Reputation Damage
External Policy Violation (PCI)

Real-World Case:

Dating apps like Tinder, OKCupid, and Bumble have time and again been scrutinized for their insecure data storage practices. The security lapses present on these apps vary according to feasibility and severity and feasibility, can expose users’ name, login details, message history, and even location, in addition to other personal account activity.

Best Practices to Avoid:

For iOS, OWASP security practices recommends using purposely made vulnerable apps like iGoat to threat model their development framework and apps. This will help the ios app developers understand how APIs deal with the app processes and information assets.
The Android app developers can use the Android Debug Bridge shell for checking the file permissions of targeted app and DBMS to check database encryption. They should also use Memory Analysis Tool and Android Device Monitor to ensure device memory doesn’t have unintended data.

M3: Insecure Communication

When devising a mobile app, data is exchanged in client-server model. So, when the data is transmitted, it should first traverse the device’s carrier network and the internet. The threat agents could exploit vulnerabilities and intercept sensitive data while traveling across wire. Here are the different threat agents who exist:

Adversary who shares your local network – a compromised Wi-Fi
Network or Carrier devices – cell towers, proxy, routers, etc.
Malware on the mobile device.

The interception of sensitive data via communication channel would end up in a privacy violation, which can lead to:

Identity theft
Fraud
Reputational Damage.

Real-World Case:

Rapid7 security company disclosed several vulnerabilities attached with kids’ smartwatches. Those watches were marketed as ones used by parents for tracking their children and sending them messages or making calls on their smartwatch.

The watches were supposed to be contacted by approved contact numbers through the mode of a whitelist, but the company found that the filters were not even working. The watches even accepted configuration commands via text messages. It meant that a hacker could change the watch settings and put children at risk.

“You can identify where the phone or the child is, you can gain access to audio, or make phone calls to children,” said Deral Heiland, the IoT research lead at Rapid7.

Best Practices to Avoid:

Developers should not only look for leakages over traffic communicated between app and server but also device that holds the app and other device or local network.
Applying TLS/SSL for transporting channels is also one of the mobile app security best practices to consider when it comes to transmitting sensitive information and other sensitive data.
Use certificates given by trusted SSL chain verifications.
Do not send sensitive data over alternate channels like MMS, SMS, or push notifications.
Apply separate encryption layer to sensitive data before giving to the SSL channel.

M4: Insecure Authentication

The threat agents who exploit authentication vulnerabilities do so via automated attacks which makes use of custom-built or available tools.

The business impact of M4 can be:

Information Theft
Reputational Damage
Unauthorized Access to Data.

Real-World Case:

In 2019, a US bank was hacked by a cyber attacker who took advantage of the bank’s website flaw and circumvented the two-factor authentication that was implemented for protecting accounts.

The attacker logged into the system through stolen victim credentials and upon reaching the page where PIN or security answer had to be entered, the attacker used a manipulated string in the Web URL, which had set the computer as a recognized one. This enabled him to cross the stage and initiate the wire transfers.

Best Practices to Avoid:

The app security team must study the app authentication and test it through binary attacks in offline mode for determining if it can be exploited.
The OWASP web application testing security protocols must match those of mobile apps.
Use online authentication methods as much as possible, just like that in case of web browser.
Do not enable app data loading until the server has authenticated the user sessions.
The places where local data us eventual, ensure that it is encrypted through encrypted key derived from users login credentials.
The persistent authentication request must also be stored on the server.
The security team should be careful with device-centric authorization tokens in the app, since if the device gets stolen, the app can get vulnerable.
Since the unauthorized physical access of devices is common, the security team must enforce regular user credential authentication from server end.

M5: Insufficient Cryptography Risks

The threat agents in this case are the ones who have the physical access of data which was encrypted wrongly. Or where a malware is acting on the behalf of adversary.

Broken cryptography generally result in these cases:

Information Theft
Intellectual Property Theft
Code Theft
Privacy Violations
Reputational Damage.

Real-World Case:

Sometimes ago an alert from DHS Industrial Control Systems’ Cyber Emergency Response Team and the Philips advisory warned users of a possible vulnerability in the Philips HealthSuite Health Android app.

The issue which was tracked back to inadequate encryption strength, opened the app to hackers who could get access to users’ heart rate activity, blood pressure, sleep state, weight and body composition analysis, etc.

Best Practices to Avoid:

To solve this one of the most commonly occuring OWASP Top 10 Mobile risks, developers must choose modern encryption algorithms for encrypting their apps. The choice of algorithm takes care of the vulnerability to a great extent.
If the developer is not a security expert, they must refrain from creating own encryption codes.

M6: Insecure Authorization Risks

In this case, the threat agents are able to access someone else’s application typically via automated attacks which use custom-built or available tools.

It can lead to following issues:

Information Theft
Reputational Damage
Fraud

Real-World Case:

The Information security specialists at Pen Test Partners hacked Pandora, a smart car alarm system. In theory, the application is used to track a car, cut off the engine if stolen and lock it until police arrive.

On the other side of the coin, a hacker can hijack the account and get access to all the data and the smart alarm functionalities. Additionally, they could:

Track vehicle movements
Enable and disable alarm system
Lock and unlock car doors
Cut the engine
In the case of Pandora, hackers got access to everything that was talked about inside the car through the anti theft system’s microphone.

Best Practices to Avoid:

The QA team must regularly test the user privileges by running low privilege session tokens for the sensitive commands.
The developer must note that the user authorization schemes go wrong in the offline mode.
The best way to prevent this risk is to run authorization checks for permissions and roles of an authenticated user at server, instead of the mobile device.

M7: Poor Code Quality Risks

In these cases, untrusted inputs are passed by entities to method calls made in the mobile code. An effect of this can be technical issues which can lead to degradation of performance, heavy memory usage, and poor working front-end architecture.

Real-World Case:

WhatsApp last year patched a vulnerability that hackers were taking advantage of for installing surveillance malware called Pegasus Spyware on smartphones. All they had to do was place a WhatsApp audio call on the targeted phone numbers.

Within a simple few steps, hackers were able to get in the users’ devices and access it remotely.

Best Practices to Avoid:

According to the OWASP secure coding practices, the code should be rewritten in the mobile device instead of fixing them at the server side. The developers must note that bad coding at the server side is very different than poor coding at client level. Meaning, both weak server side controls and client side controls should be given separate attention.
The developer must use third party tools for static analysis to identify buffer overflows and memory leaks.
The team must create a third-party libraries list and check it for newer versions periodically.
Developers should see all the client input as untrusted and validate them irrespective of whether they come from users or the app.

M8: Code Tampering Risks

Usually, in this case, an attacker exploits code modification via malicious forms of the apps hosted in the third-party app stores. They might also trick users into installing an application through phishing attacks.

Best Practices to Avoid:

The developers must make sure that the app is able to detect code changes at runtime.
The build.prop file must be checked for the presence of unofficial ROM in Android and to find out if the device is rooted.
The developer must use checksums and evaluate the digital signatures to see if file tampering has taken place.
The coder can make sure that the app keys, code, and data are removed once tampering is found.

M9: Reverse Engineering Risk

An attacker typically downloads the targeted app from the app store and analyzes it inside their local environment with a suite of different tools. Following which, they are able to change the code and make the app function different.

Real-World Case:

Pokemon Go recently faced the security breach glances when it was found that users had reverse engineered the app to know the vicinity of the Pokemons and catch them in minutes.

Best Practices to Avoid:

The best way to safeguard an app against the risk, according to OWASP mobile security, is to use the same tools as the hackers would use for reverse engineering.
The developer must also obfuscate the source code so that it gets difficult to read and then reverse engineer.

M10: Extraneous Functionality Risk

Usually, a hacker looks at the extraneous functionality inside a mobile app in order for discovering the hidden functionalities in the backend systems. The attacker would exploit extraneous functionality from their own systems without any end-users involvement.

Real-World Case: The idea of Wifi File Transfer app was to open port on Android and allow connections from the computer. The problem? An absence of authentication such as passwords, meaning, anyone could connect to a device and get its full access.

Dropbox Store and JetPack in Modern Android App Architecture

Posted on 14/05/202103/06/2021 by Anteelo Master

A few days ago, Dropbox acquired an open-source Store library. The aim behind taking the ownership was to modify it to make it more suitable to the prevailing Android developer ecosystem.

Now, Store also includes Google JetPack collection of libraries which poses as a solution for creating current-day Android apps.

Google JetPack makes it possible to create high-quality Android apps while accelerating the development process.

There are two objectives that this library fulfills – It leverages advanced Kotlin features in order to reduce the boilerplate code and offers high-level abstractions besides those found in the Android SDK, i.e., Fragments and [Activities]. These allow the developers to present complex tasks in an easier and simpler way.

Like in case of the traditional mobile app architecture, there are numerous components in Jetpack that developers can use independently and cover four areas – Architecture, Foundation, User Interface, and Behavior.

In fact, Google uploaded its own recommended Android app architecture along with JetPack defining the set of modules that make up an Android app and how they interact. As shown in the image, a well-architecture Android app is fundamentally based on the tenets – model-driven UI, separation of concerns, and one-directional dependencies across several modules.

However, though Jetpack offers most of the components for the creation of an Android app based on the architecture suggested by Google, there is an exception – the Repository layer.

On this matter, Mike Nakhimovich, the creator of Store states-

“Repository currently only has a few code samples and no reusable abstractions that work across different implementations. That’s one of the big reasons why Dropbox is investing in Store–to solve this gap in the architecture model above.”

Store, while relying on a reactive design, aims to support Android app development where data flows in and out of the UI in a seamless manner without forcing the users to navigate back and forth. Mike goes on to say on this matter –

“Reactive front ends led me to think of how we can have declarative data stores with simple APIs that abstract complex features like multi-request throttling and disk caching that are needed in modern mobile applications.”

To explain this in brief – Dropbox Store helps in connecting the app model with an external data source by using a declarative interface centralizing all data-related activities.

Store aims at optimizing network usage in order to keep it at a minimum. This library was rewritten Kotlin backed by Coroutines and Flow, followed by another major change of discarding RxJava for structured concurrency paradigm which is implemented in Kotlin reactive streams.

This switch poses a big impact on ensuring all resources employed in concurrent tasks are freed whenever the task completes, says Mike.

“The big problem with RxJava’s approach to scoping background operations is that it’s too easy for engineers to forget to call dispose. Failing to dispose of active subscriptions directly leads to memory leaks.”

In addition, the Store also supports disk caching, memory caching with TTL and size policies, explicitly skipping the cache to fetch new data from the data source, multi-casting of responses, among many others.

Now, that Dropbox is implementing many changes in the Store for improvement, it has been set on a path of becoming a great source of resources for all Android app development developers.

creating-a-culture-of-design-critique-within-the-team

Posted on 21/11/202014/05/2021 by Anteelo Master

One of my friends and mentor once shared the secret behind his success- I’ll always be grateful for my struggles and the criticism I received because if not for them, I would have never been where I am today.When I asked him what kind of criticism– positive or negative– was most helpful, he replied – “This is where all problems begin. We weigh feedback as positive or negative criticism. Instead, we must think of feedback as one of the ways to accelerate learning and do better next time.”This made me remember a quote from Norman Vincent Peale- “The trouble with most of us is that we would rather be ruined by praise than saved by criticism.”

We all have done that at some point in our life. We want to hear more praises to validate our talent. But we associate criticism with negativity. The moment we hear criticism, we let our guards up.

What we need is a mindset shift that allows us to look at criticism as a tool to improve our work.

Why is critique culture so important?

Short answer– to create better ideas, build better products and become a better designer/developer/leader.

Long answer– The answer lies in C. S. Lewis’s quote that says “Two heads are better than one, not because either is infallible, but because they are unlikely to go wrong in the same direction.”

Consider this example- while designing a healthcare application, a designer oversees the usage of colors and letter casing in designs. Another designer, who has past experience in working on healthcare apps shares why letter casing is important to consider during design decisions.

This is just one of the many examples. I’m sure you can think of one from your own experience where, upon receiving feedback, you were happily surprised- “Wow! That’s a great suggestion. Why didn’t I think of that?”

What should critique givers keep in mind?

Critique-givers have a defining role in the success of a product.

Pixar co-founder Ed Catmull credits the success of Toy Story to the honest and candid feedback that everyone in the team shared when they saw the first screening of the movie. He admits that “Early on, all of our movies suck.” and goes on to say that it’s the critique that brings out the best in their movies.

What should critique-seekers keep in mind?

Theodore Roosevelt once said- “It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming.”

If you’re a critique receiver, one thing to keep in mind is that criticism is not for you, but for your work. So, even if there are any harsh words, take them in your stride.

How to run critique sessions?

For critique seekers

Before beginning the critique sessions, set the context for everyone who is going to share their feedback. Send an email to your team with the time and location details of the session. Mention the subject of the critique and include a short summary of the design you will be presenting.

For example- always tell your team about the user personas for whom you’ve designed the application. It helps them understand the rationale behind your decisions.

During the session, listen to everyone’s feedback with an intent to improve your designs. Explain everything that must be explained. Remember, you’re the only person in the room who has the entire picture in your mind. Everyone else is seeing the project for the first time, so it’s okay if they question your choices (By the way, they won’t if you share the context beforehand.)

Be present in the discussion. Listen with utmost attention. Capture everything; even the harsh feedback. You can always decide later which ones you wish to implement. And when the session ends, thank everyone for their time and feedback. You really must do that.

Most importantly, avoid contradicting the critique by getting into an argument with critique-giver. Getting defensive or angry or taking criticism personally (even if it’s hurled at you in your face) means that you are not ready to hear the truth about your work.

After the session, take time to reflect upon every feedback. Not everything would be worthy of action. So don’t fret over implementing every single feedback. In case you need any clarification, reach out to the person who gave you feedback. Don’t stop before you implement, showcase, iterate on the feedback and present a better solution than before.

For critique givers

Before the critique sessions, understand every detail about the project you’re going to see. If it’s not already provided, ask for related information about the project’s goals, the user personas, their pain points, so that you’re in a better position to suggest improvements.

During the critique session, make sure that you are criticizing the work, not the person. Put aside all biases and prejudices and focus on solving the problem. Empathize with the end user (not the designer), and keep your target audience in mind. Ask genuine and thoughtful questions that help you uncover the intent and rationale of the designs. The designer has worked hard to design the project, they deserve your patience and respect.

If you like something, praise lavishly. If you don’t like something, be critical. But avoid being harsh or rude. Offer constructive feedback, something that can inspire the designer to think in a different way. Listen attentively to what others have to say and provide inputs in case you want to add something to it.

After the critique session, follow-up with the designer to check if he/she needs further help. If the person comes back to you with iterations, share your candid feedback (once again!) without shit-sandwiching it.

When two people discuss and take feedback from each other, they build on each others’ suggestions and make the product twice better. When more people get involved, it takes an exponential form where each member builds on others’ opinion, or suggestion. This is why critique sessions, as a cultural practice, are far more effective than peer-to-peer feedback.

Another reason to create a culture of design critique is that it creates an atmosphere of psychological safety in the team where everyone knows they’ll get honest, candid feedback from their peers and leaders. In such teams, learning and growth happens organically, not forcefully. Passion to do more, be more, drives people, rather than appreciation or promotions. And when that happens, people don’t feel an iota of hesitation in sharing their thoughts. They openly talk about what’s on their minds. They share ideas, opinions, and criticize when things don’t go right.

Isn’t that enough reason to create a culture of criticism?

How Can AI Be Used to Improve User Experience in Mobile Apps?

Posted on 30/10/202012/06/2021 by Tushar

Imagining Artificial Intelligence in situations and use cases where there are a massive number of data in picture makes perfect sense. But what happens when the situation is entirely based on human discretion? Will an artificial intelligence user experience design would also be able to do what AI did to several other industry verticals?

Designing, almost in all its different forms is driven by keeping the human part of process at a much higher ground than the analytical and data driven side. While there are some domains like CAD design or Product Design that leaves some space open for machine learning to enter, when the design form in question is mobile app design, the gap seems to become negligible.

However, Artificial Intelligence, like a number of other industries have found a place in the Mobile App Design vertical as well, giving birth to the concept of artificial intelligence user interface design. A concept that is ought to bring a new level to the relationship between artificial intelligence and customer experience.

While, the answer to whether machine would replace designers is next to impossible, there are ways that the designer community has started taking AI user experience together in their journey to designing memorable mobile apps in multiple ways, like –

Getting time-taking manual works like image resizing automated
Making designs localized by taking help of AI based translation
Bring system consistency between users and products
Give insights into which elements are users interacting with, which needs attention

This participation that the deisgning industry is witnessing coming in from the AI driven UI domain is something that is showing to have a huge impact on the industry’s present, while paving the way to a world where AI and the future of design is much better linked.

Now that we have seen the impact that AI carries on Mobile app Design and how it is soon becoming one of the proven tips to enhance mobile app design, the next step is to look at the principles that guide their unison in the domain of designing AI experiences

The Guiding Principles that Combine Mobile App Design with Machine Learning

Develop a Shared Language

Elements like user experience review, product vision, and business goals are something that needs to be understood and shared by the complete team. You would only be able to create a meaningful and truly intelligent user experience if the mobile app design and machine learning development methods complement each other through shared concepts and common language. The machine learning experts and user experience designers should come together to develop a common blueprint which includes data pipelines and user interfaces, with the aim to set a blueprint that grounds the team’s product planning with the users’ reality.

Focus on Use Case

The important thing when developing a consumer facing app, as the top software designers would tell you, is not the technology that backs it but the business goal and the user experience that you plan on achieving. And so, it is extremely important that you crystallize the use case. With a separate focus on the use case, you can then put your intricate attention on the user flow, which then allows the team to identify the main points where machine learning can be added to enhance the experience.

A clear understanding of the use case also enable teams of the mobile app design company to determine the right KPI for the development of user experience program, which in turn is aligned with machine learning metrics.

Mix Quantitative and Qualitative Data

In order to understand the true impact of combining the machine learning solution and user experience design, it is important that both qualitative and quantitative data is considered. You should make use of qualitative research methods like questionnaires, interviews, etc to measure how the users are experiencing your app.

The reason why we are emphasizing on using a combination of quantitative and qualitative data is because when designing a new app, it is possible that you meet unexpected factors that affect machine learning developmant and user experience. Factors like: Effectiveness of feedback loop, ability of data point capturing intention and user behaviour, which are must to know parts of Artificial Intelligence app design can best be answered only after a deep consideration of both the data types.

Bring Your Combined Data to Real Life Setting

How do you make sure that machine learning is actually used to develop comprehensible and fluent user experience? By setting up an end to end solution that shows how machine learning and user experience fit together in real world. An MVP that includes the working data pipeline along with the machine learning models makes it easy to iterate the AI assisted design together and helps in getting a direct feedback from the users via beta or user testing.

When both UX designers and Machine Learning experts of your partnered AI app development company share the understanding of product design issues, iteration is productive and fast. While on the other hand, user experience designers become aware of possibilities that surrounds machine learning: when it can be used to improve the user experience and how.

Be Transparent About Collecting Data

Designing for AI and with it, needs a constant effort and for it to be absolutely on point, it is important that you give a special focus to the data you have collected. It is very important to consider the end user side in this cycle of collect data – convert data into information – iterate design. Tell users that their data is being used to feed the AI and give them the option to alter the collected information in a way that the best context comes through. In addition to giving users the option to change what data is collected by the AI, you should also give them the option to change what the AI learns – to ensure that the predictions are what the users desire.

While these principles that we just saw help in giving some clarity into how the combined AI and UX design should function, let us look at how some of the famous designing and editing tools that are backed by the developers community across the globe are using the technology to offer better mobile app user experience.

Tools That Use Artificial Intelligence for Design

Tailor Brands

The Tailor Brands logo maker is a famous product used by businesses to get professional logo in a small budget. The AI designs are built upon with your input coming in form of information that would be entered in logo.

Adobe Photoshop

The Select Subject functionality that Photoshop offers make use of AI for memorizing the shape, and then shifting, changing, and editing them with much ease. The tool works on an internal AI system known as Sensei that enables changing backgroungds by recognizing the different subjects in the image.

Prisma and Deepart

Both the famous image editing tools/AI design software make use of artificial intelligence for identify the different aspects of your video and photo and transforming them in a style of your choosing. They give you the option to work around filters and colours among other things.

Let’s Enhance

One of the most frequently arising issues in the designing industry is low quality images. Let’s enhance, powered by AI improves the quality of images using three filters. Anti-JPEF filter converts image to high quality PNG while Boring filter scales up image to around 4 times without any compromise on the image quality. Magic, the third filter allows you to add detailing inside the image. Making Artificial Intelligence a primary part of the Mobile App Design process is something that comes packaged with several add on factors that have to be considered to ensure that that User Interface and User Experience is intact.

And this in turn is not an easy process.

Packaging your app’s user experience with Artificial Intelligence in a way that the whole process gets translated into Artificial Intelligence design patterns calls for a lot of homework, which in itself is heavily dependent on the information that the users provide with consent.

If you are just starting with making your designs smarter, there are some UI patterns that would help you start on the intelligent journey.

A. Criteria Sliders

A number of apps use machine learning algorithms to predict an outcome or pass recommendations. A criteria slider comes in handy here for it helps userss adjust and then fine tune recommendations on the basis of criteria that is meaningful to them. Here, you will have to ensure that the criteria that the users are manipulating with is mapped correctly to data which the machine is using in algorithms.

B. Like and Dislike Button

A simple like and dislike button help better the user experience that someone shares inside the application. Wwhen you ask users to feed in their experience even through a simple like and dislike button, you give them the option to not just build upon the recommendation system but also give feedback on what they don’t like and why.

C. Confidence Inducing Tips

More often than not, users not just not know how the whole prediction and artificial system works, but also they don’t know how much confidence they can place in the system. When you ask users to feed in their data or answer questions in return of something – better matched clothes choice, next show to follow option, etc. The confidence quotient increases even more when you give users the result and let them approve or disapprove it. Doing this makes your users in charge of the charge – something that automatically instills confidence in the app.

D. Give them an In and Out Option

Not all users would want to feed in data for you to fetch and feed in the artificial intelligent system or even want to take the smart route. So, give them the option to opt in and out of the smart options as and when it suits them. Doing this, they would not just have a more positive outlook towards your app but also, knowing that they have an out option, they will be more willing to add in their data in the future.

Now that you have seen the ways AI powered UX is impacting the app design industry, the guiding principles of designing for AI, tools that are already using AI, and the UI patterns that you should add in your design manifesto to make your users open to the idea of AI, there is only one last thing left to do.

And that last thing is to make AI an active part of your mobile app design process. Let our team of UI/UX designers help you with that.

Without Downtime, Here Are Five Ways To Deal With Digital Transformation

Posted on 16/07/202008/06/2021 by Anteelo Master

Advanced technologies are significantly impacting and transforming the way people communicate and collaborate. How are businesses tackling this evolving corporate landscape?

From an option to a necessity – the trek of the digital transformation journey has always been full of obstacles and problems. When advanced technologies started having a significant impact and transforming the way people communicate, interact, and collaborate with a business, the majority of CEOs realized that it’s a matter of survival in the ever-evolving corporate landscape.

A survey conducted by Tech Pro Research Center in 2018 revealed several interesting facts. Out of all the respondents, 70% admitted that their business heads are either working on a digital transformation or already have one in place. Moreover, the survey also revealed that the budgets for IT transformation have been increased in the past couple of years by senior-level executives.

With the acceptance of C-LEVEL executives, every businessman knows that digital solutions are crucial for the success of an enterprise. However, the percentage of businesses that invested in a digital transformation strategy is surprisingly less. What’s the major contribution to such a low adoption rate? What’s hindering you from adopting digital transformation solutions?

The last ten years of information technology have been about changing the way people work. The next ten years will be about transforming your business!

A lot of CEOs are afraid that they’ll have to stop their business process while they undergo digital transformation. However, with proper planning and monitoring, you can easily conduct digital transformation in your company while keeping your business running.

Here’s a list of stats that’ll help you decide by yourself:

A report by Adobe & E-consultancy stated that companies with a digital-first approach are 64% more likely to achieve their business goals than their competitors.
According to a case study conducted by Deloitte, 45% of companies tell people that digital transformation has a positive impact on their business and reported higher net revenue growth.
A published article by PwC stated that 52% of the companies plan to cut their defer investment amid the rise of COVID-19, while only 9% are likely to do the same with digital transformation’s budget.

As the statistics suggest, businesses that have adopted digital transformation strategy not only have an edge over their competitors but also allow them to get a higher revenue growth. In this article, you’ll know about five assured ways to tackle digital transformation without downtime. However, before we start, let’s get back to the basics and understand the correct meaning of digital transformation.

The Main Issues of Downtime

For most digital transformation services company owners, downtime is the single biggest reason behind the loss of production time. According to research by Vanson Bourne Research Study, 82% of companies have experienced unplanned downtime at least once over the past three years. Aberdeen’s Research further includes the cost of a company that can go as much as $250,000 an hour. Not just the production, but companies are also facing issues related to productivity, IT, and customer service due to the downtime.

The study by Vanson Bourne also revealed high levels of asset estate ignorance across organizations, wherein 70% of companies lack full awareness due to equipment maintenance, upgradation, or replacement.

The same study also reveals another issue that occurs due to unplanned downtime is that the unplanned downtime results in loss of customer trust and productivity. This loss resulted in a 37% loss in production time and 29% inability to support equipment for production.

When unplanned downtime occurs, no value is generated but the cost of digital transformation grows constantly specifically around overhead operations , which in parallel impacts a company’s bottom line.

The unplanned downtime is the real issue that is pervasive and finding a solution for this downtime gap is a primary step in an organization’s digital maturity and an essential role for a transformative journey.

Road Towards Zero Downtime

As organizations create and invest in their digital transformation business strategy, we are soon entering a time where zero tolerance and zero unplanned downtime will turn into a norm. The key to this is an understanding of and interest in field service management and asset performance management.

As indicated by Vanson Bourne, eight out of ten organizations have effectively perceived that digital tools can improve the visibility of assets and eliminate unplanned downtime. Around half of the organizations confirmed their intent to invest in field service and asset management in the following three years, while 72% claim that zero unplanned downtime is presently the focus of priority.

One of the significant barriers to digital modernization is the challenge to replace systems while maintaining business continuity. To build a strong customer base, and empower employees with modern technical skills, there is a strong need to increase the uptime and follow digital transformation maintenance to bring digital and IT transformation strategy in the business. Let’s look at the ways businesses are overcoming digital transformation challenges and adopting digital business transformation strategy.

5 Ways To Conduct Digital Transformation Without Missing Business

Digital transformation is a sure-shot way for large and successful organizations to stay ahead of their digital-only competitors. That’s why these projects are usually large in ambition and scope, but there are always some chances of risk. With that said, let us take a look at some of the handiest tips that allow you to undergo digital transformation without any downtime

1. Phase-wise Approach

Instead of following the traditional “rip and replace” methodology, you need to approach transformation in a more efficient way to prevent the risk of downtimes. Consider taking a phased approach to reduce the risk in your transformation. You can release a minimum viable product (MVP) into production early to get realistic structural and operational criticism. This phased approach lets you focus on each stage to make changes and develop a customer centric product.

To tackle the digital downtime, the first phase should always be to create and deploy a front-end proxy. The proxy will provide the data. Only after getting the data, you should move to now comes the time for the second phase which includes the replacement of the old stack.

2. Identify Problems Earlier

As downtime can be caused by a native problem, for example, a software glitch in a workstation, remote server, a major event, or any other reason. Thus, for a major transformation phase, you need to build an early warning system to validate and test things in each phase, so that not much time is wasted in detecting the issue and then resolving it.

Identifying problems earlier also helps in having a solution right there, so when the problem occurs then it is easier to correct it without affecting any productivity. With a little bit of testing, iterating, and assessing, you can easily manage traffic to the new system and identify any potential problems earlier.

3. Plan For Accuracy and Reliability

While undergoing a digital transformation, you must visualize, collect, and alert on in-depth operational metrics. It’s better to have a dynamic plan to ensure functional accuracy and operational reliability to minimize the chances of errors and move towards the next step. The plan can involve the right management. Then comes the skill development to streamline standard operations, decrease downtime, allow quick decision-making, enable employees to attain the skill effectively, and improve brand reliability.

The accuracy provides a convenient digital strategy framework to identify important components within the system and reliability helps in decision-making which is meant to upgrade the system availability or reduce the mean duration of system downtime.

4. Establish A Multi-Layered Fallback Mechanism

Multi-Layered Fallback Mechanism helps to reduce the use of the old system while decreasing the impact and elegantly degrading in case of problems. The mechanism helps in a way that the issues arising in one service do not harm overall operations.

During the transformation, you need to make sure that your team gets familiar with the use of new systems to prevent the product or service quality from degrading. That’s why it’s always a good idea to plan for multiple layers of fallback to keep your back covered.

5. Keep Everyone Involved in the Plan

One of the major issues is the skill gap in what needs to be transformed and what is there in the workforce. Thus, to make everyone in your organization understand the process, recognize the process, and agree that it will be worth the efforts, it is important to involve everyone in the plan. Involving the team in a plan helps to track the progress that is being made towards the goal. It helps build trust within the team and provide employees a chance to come up with approaches that they think will work in a way. Also this helps in getting out-of-box ideas from different members, preparing business transformation strategies, and there are chances of not wasting much time in finding a solution or explanation.

The After-Transformation Effect

Although DT is filled with numerous revolutionary technologies, the top ones are the internet of things, cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and big data. However, it’s more than just the use of technology – transforming corporate culture and business processes are also an integral part of the digital transformation process.

While it’s easier to manage the disruption created by technology to your business, you also need to make sure that your people can cope up with the changes – and it’s more than just technical skills. It’s more about embracing the change and being resilient and resourceful enough to make decisions faster and better.

If you have any business transformation challenges in your organization, you can partner with a digital transformation agency like Anteelo to take care of the migration and adoption needs. We are a well known brand that builds digital products and processes to help teams get acquainted with changes through the shortest learnability curve. We have served digital transformation companies across the globe including digital transformation companies in USA and parts of the globe.

Business changing powerful entities: AI and IoT

Posted on 10/07/202008/06/2021 by Anteelo Master

Before autonomous drones and machine learning came into foray, James Cameron enthralled the world with his dream project The Terminator in 1984 where he introduced ‘Skynet’, a futuristic artificial superintelligence network that wants to replace humans with machines. Much has been debated about the film franchise ever since as scientists passed it off as a fan service action series, yet the seed of technological brilliance was sown. Whether Artificial Intelligence will take over the world or not, it certainly has given businesses a means of revolution and to readers/debaters like us, food for thought.

Another important piece of disruptive technology that is equally changing lives is IoT which expands to the Internet of Things. Like AI, the IoT has come of age. Its utilities include not just making smart homes but also wearable devices, smart vehicles and smart cities. The role of Artificial Intelligence and IoT in business is currently at its epitome.

AI and IoT are redefining the way businesses used to perform. On one hand, AI with its powerful subset of machine learning, has paved the way for smarter task execution with real-time analysis and greater interaction between humans and machines; IoT, on the other, has upped the scale of communication between devices and humans via effective intelligent technology. The confluence of the Internet of Things and Artificial Intelligence makes each other’s applications more varied and powerful.

The merger: How AI and IoT joined forces

IoT accumulates large amounts of data through device connectivity via the internet and AI, especially through its powerful mechanism, Machine Learning helps in assimilating and evaluating this data. Machine learning in IoT devices helps to identify patterns and detect any faults in data collection through extremely advanced sensors. Intrinsic things such as stimulation to air, temperature, humidity, pollution, sound, vibrations, lights, etc. are derived with this technology over a period of time. Unlike traditional technology, IoT and machine learning make operational forecasts 20x faster with heightened accuracy. This is the reason why businesses that use AI technology sees a growth in their revenue numbers – a validation of which can be seen in the graph below

Revenues generated by businesses using AI from 2018 to 2025 (estimated)

AI’s role in IoT’s revolution has helped in a massive revenue boost which also means in the sale of more connected devices.

Below is a graph that shows how many IoT-powered devices were there in 2025 and the estimated curve predicts a huge nerve till 2025.

The demand for IoT is certainly going uphill. IoT, along with AI, are currently on demand by every business, whether it’s a Fortune 500 or a startup. Since there is no limit to either’s abilities, companies wish to use them to their full potential and unbridle their potentiality to the world. The following image draws a comparison among different technologies and shows which ones are the most trending.

As IoT keeps collecting data, AI takes the onus of converting it into meaningful and creative actions. Data exchange happens through sensors and in the process, a few of the following things happen:

Data insights are more accurately obtained, monitored and evaluated
The entire process becomes faster and more efficient
Surveillance against cyber-attacks is more defined and stronger

Advantages of AI and IoT in business

Together AI and IoT are unstoppable forces of technology. There are a lot of advantages which the two provide. The following elaborates the same:

Data collection, sharing and formulating user perceptions

Data collection is extremely vital for a business’ growth and development. A business with an IoT strategy knows how technology can transform data compulsion by offering greater access to consumer information. AI makes it easier to handle that information. IoT devices have this unique mechanism to track, record and observe patterns in a user and his/her interaction with the device(s). Businesses use the acquired data to devise better means to enhance consumer experiences.

Elimination of downtime

Oil and gas manufacturing organizations use heavy machinery which can suffer unseen/unplanned breakdowns. This causes downtime that can incur huge losses. Having an AI-enabled IoT platform makes it possible for predictive maintenance. It helps in anticipating machinery failures and breakdowns in advance by utilizing the analytics so that you can plan a course of action beforehand and not let your operations get affected. A study by Deloitte led to the following conclusions-

20-50% reduction in time taken for maintenance planning
5-10% cutback in maintenance costs
10-20% increment in equipment availability and uptime

Strengthening security measures

With the current rise in data breaches and theft of confidential information, security and safety are the most concerning factors for a business. IoT powered by AI provides militant support to your private information and doesn’t allow third parties to intrude. Machine-to-machine communication is being facilitated by various organizations to detect incoming threats and give out automated responses to hackers. A common example could be in the banking sector where illicit activities in ATMs are picked up by IoT sensors and conveyed immediately to law enforcement bodies.

Automated operational efficiency

IoT deployment streamlines your business and helps in making accurate predictions, all of which are extremely crucial for improving the efficiency of the business. Placing your money on the Internet of Things investment is very necessary in today’s time as the technology also helps in giving you insights into redundant activities and the ones which are consuming a lot of time. A good example will be Google’s reduction in expenditure in cooling their data centres which they could do with AI and IoT. Like Google, you too can find out which of your operational activities need some fine-tuning so that efficiency is not neglected.

Helps in processing business analysis

There needs to be a fine balance between demand and supply. AI helps in improving inventory management and letting go of the pressure on the stock as it will help you to know in advance when you need to restock. This provides an important aid to retailers as they at times hoard too many products to find out later on that all of them cannot be sold. This proves how accurate it is than manual methods. There are IoT applications which help them in gathering the data and analytics for the maintenance of stock.

Better at Risk Management

Earlier we mentioned how AI and IoT help in maintaining cybersecurity. When it comes to risk management, which includes handling financial loss, personnel safety and cyber threats, the pair effortlessly deal with situations and give out prompt responses so that such situations do not arise. For example, Fujitsu, a Japanese IT equipment and service provider makes certain worker safety is maintained through data collected from wearable devices with the help of AI.

Scope for new and improved products and services

The Natural Language Processing (NLP) technology which aims to improve communication via speech, text or gestures has augmented the transmission of information between humans and devices. AI-powered drones and robots give a whole new meaning to monitoring and inspection which never existed previously. It helps to fetch data that a human may never be able to do physically. This proves how strong the IoT and AI future is. For commercial vehicles, it helps in fleet management by monitoring every measurable information. Rolls Royce is a great example of AI-powered IoT use cases. Plans to use AI technology to implement IoT-enabled aeroplane engine maintenance needs. This will help in creating perceptual patterns and help explore in-depth insights.

Examples where AI and IoT are showing brilliance

Now that you’re aware of how AI and IoT solutions help in leveraging business opportunities, let us mention a few examples from real-life instances to prove how the role of artificial intelligence and IoT is helping to create new business models and provide better user experiences. Many of these examples also make up for the most cutting-edge and futuristic trends to watch out for.

Wearables

By now you must have heard how wearables play a key role in the current IoT scenario. Fitness trackers, smartwatches, wearable panic buttons, remote monitoring systems, GPS trackers and music systems are some of the most popular examples of wearables which take up a large part in the IoT ecosystem. You need to simply download IoT applications in your smart devices to get the most precise information.

Robotics

The manufacturing industry was in dire need of adopting AI-focused IoT solutions. This helps in facial recognition, deep learning, big data analytics and especially robotics. Robots and robotics have always been the frontrunners of technology for decades and now, with the passage of time, they have become smarter, more reliable and more efficient. Through implanted sensors meticulous communication is facilitated. Using the fusion of AI and IoT, robots can learn and adapt to newer environments with precision. This makes the manufacturing process linear and saves time and money.

Smart Homes

The smart home ecosystem is growing and is currently valued at $91 million. It’s one of the most pleasing activities of technology where you do not have to get and go to a particular appliance and operate it. The AI-powered IoT technology enables the controlling of your light, fans, television, thermostat, ACs, etc. through your phone. Not just inside but even if you’re travelling outside, say to an outstation and you need to check whether an appliance has been wrongly set on, you can do it with a simple command. Or if you’re returning home after a tiresome day at work and need a bath, you can set the temperature of the water say 10 minutes before you reach home.

Self-driven vehicles

The thought of autonomous cars and vehicles seems exciting and thrilling at the same time. With powerful sensors, installed cameras and robust hardware and software integration, a car gathers monumental information roads, traffic, additional routes, navigation, weather conditions, consumer behaviour and whatnot. Self-driven cars are the perfect examples that will highlight the role of artificial intelligence in future technology. One major concerning factor is safety. Many will face apprehensions over their initial journeys in driverless cars, but that’s what the whole game is about. It has mindblowing learning abilities and high-powered AI mechanisms that will give priority to the passenger’s life at all costs.

Amazon Go

This is truly a masterstroke in AI technology use. To support its retail outlets, Amazon uses IoT to make the shopping experience more convenient for the user. With no cashier or even cash counters, the sensors present will optimise the entire process. For example, sensors are used to determine your activities. Like a supermarket or retail outlet, items are arranged and when you pick up any product, it automatically adds it to your cart and the moment you keep it back, it’s removed from your cart. It connects to your payment mode(s) so when you leave the store with the items, the total amount is debited from your account or online wallet. Just like self-driven cars, they used computer vision, deep learning algorithms and sensor fusion, procreating the ‘Just Walk Out’ technology.

Healthcare

This is currently the need of the hour. With the Coronavirus pandemic, everyone has become extra cautious with their health and technologies like AI and IoT are leveraging the entire healthcare system. The IoT applications and deployments powered by AI help in collecting data to provide preventive measures for a person/patient, early detection and providing drug administration. It draws data from internet-powered medical devices, medical records, fitness trackers, healthcare mobile apps, etc. Many healthcare companies around the globe are making IoT investments so that people stay safe under such hazardous conditions.

Smart Cities

This is the biggest example to show the prowess of the AI and IoT pair. If it is able to maintain civic decorum, then it speaks volumes about technology’s success. Things like smart traffic management, smart parking, smart waste management, smart policing, smart governance and many other factors are the components which constitute a smart city. The Internet of Things for smart cities changes the way cities operate and delivers amenities to the public which includes transportation, healthcare, lighting, etc. Smart cities are arguably a futuristic concept and have a lot of ground to cover. The above video explains how three cities have successfully implemented it.

There are many IoT application development company who have done a tremendous job of integrating the technology into various business types and creating something unconventional out of the banal scheme of things. AI is truly reinventing IoT along with other modern-day techs, and businesses that are vigorously using this technological emergence only have good things to say. No second thoughts need to be spared to explain — The future of IoT is AI and will remain so.