Dodgy software development hasbeen responsible for everything from Olympic defeat to death by radiation poisoning.
Several deaths were reported in cancerpatients who received massive overdosesof radiation resulting from glitches in theTherac-25 radiation therapy software thatwas supposed to be treating them. Morefortunate was Spanish boxer Rafael Lozano,who defeated his US opponent Eric Griffin totake gold at the 1992 Olympics thanks to aflaw in the computer scoring system.
Software development isn’t easy.
The software industry’s patchy history hasbeen marked not just by serious glitches butby budget blow-outs, overlong developmenttimes, baffling IT speak and products that simply don’t do what they’re supposed to.
Agile Digital specialise in using cuttingedge development practices to delivercompelling and innovative software productsthat people love to use. Agile focuses on boththe social and technical practices that drivesuccess in software product development.Our expert engineers work with the latest technology to deliver mobile apps, large-scalecloud database systems and sophisticated web applications.
We are the software development partners behind allhomes.com.au, Canberra’smost trusted home-grown brand accordingto Grey Canberra’s Eye on Canberra 2011report. Since re-launching the productin 2007 we have continued to work withAllhomes P/L to support and extend their world-class real estate software – which services over 2 million page views each dayand is enjoyed by more than 300,000 people in a month.
Our development methodology has beenrefined over many years from best practicesdrawn from multiple engineering disciplines.We now work to ship to our customers their first working software release within six weeksflat, thanks to insights gained from Lean manufacturing techniques.
Other than the discipline of ourmethodology, our other secret to softwareproject success is having the best engineering talent.
By and large anybody can presentthemselves as a software developer. That”anybody” could be the next Bill Gates,or a very expensive mistake. Through arefined process of technical exams and interview scenarios we have become adeptat identifying those talented individuals whomake the best outcome and quality focussed software engineers. That’s how we assure ourcustomers that our software professionals arein the top 20 per cent of their field.
Although our methodology and talentselectionprocesses are well established, thetechnologies we work with are constantly changing. When we started out the world was still three years away from seeing its first iPhone. Now mobile Internet device sales are exploding, with estimates that by 2016 oneout of every two Australians will be usinga tablet device to consume content and services from the Internet.
This revolutionary shift towards the”always connected” society, a socialphenomenon the pundits call “hyperconnectivity”,has driven a big change in our technology focus. We now craft softwaresolutions with a mobile-first mindset,designing user experiences specifically for thenew touch-driven generation of phones and tablets.
We recently developed iPhone and iPadapps for local wedding planning businessWedz P/L, in collaboration with premierCanberra design firm Cre8ive. The Wedzproduct trial took place at the Canberra Wedding Fair in June. It was great to see somany Canberran brides enjoy the experience of creating their professional wedding plan in just three minutes of visualising their big day. Look for Wedz in the Apple App Store ifyou’re thinking about taking the plunge.
We aim to be the acknowledged leader inthe delivery of large-scale, complex and highqualitybespoke software in the capital region.
We recognise that we can only realise ourvision in partnership with great customers.As such we are committed to providing our customers with excellence in service as well as excellence in our delivered products. Weaim to ensure that each of our customer’s development projects is characterised by alevel of respect and understanding that they may not otherwise have experienced fromthe software industry.
David is Managing Director of Agile Digital,
a Canberra-based specialist software
development firm that has been successfully
delivering custom-built solutions since 2004.