Top 7 Tips for Choosing an Outsourcing Software Testing Team

If you already know who QA specialists are and how their services can be beneficial for your business, it may still be a challenge to find a professional outsourcing software testing team. What questions to ask? Which specialists to choose?

Even if you are sure that you need outsourcing and know that testing is necessary, choosing a certain software development company may become a difficult task. How can you make it easier? Before checking the quality of services a software testing company provides, it’s necessary to take into account some key points of QA testing. This article features 7 tips you’ll find helpful when choosing a company that provides outsourcing software testing services.

1. DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THE IMPORTANCE OF SOFTWARE TESTING

Testing is a good opportunity to view the product from different perspectives. It allows checking whether the product will be useful for customers and identifying existing shortcomings. A qualified team of testers can improve the quality of the application at different stages of its development, having positive effects on the project launch. Testing allows reducing the number of errors when creating a product. It also decreases the amount of time a company spends on coding.

Testing specialists scrupulously check all the technical details and the source code, ensuring that there are no inaccuracies. Therefore, the more data for testing is provided by developers and clients, the easier it will be for testers to identify all product weak points.

2. CHECK WHAT APPROACHES TESTERS TAKE

QA specialists must be professional if they want the product testing to be effective. That means that the team should take a client-oriented approach and predict expectations the users may have. Experienced testers should also pay attention to the connections between content creation and business objectives of clients.

Choosing testers, make sure they can carry out the following tasks: navigation of the technical data about the product, checking the project’s market orientation, staying aware of all project nuances. Thus, it will increase the chances that the testing will be accurate and the project will bring good results.

3. ASK WHETHER TESTERS USE THE MOST EFFECTIVE TESTING METHODS

Professional testers can work on several projects at once. In such case, they should carry out an in-depth analysis that helps choose a certain approach for each project. As it’s widely known, the best approach features the combination of proactive and preventive testing methods. Using these methods effectively, testers can identify all inaccuracies even at the earliest stages and minimize the expenses on errors elimination. The reactive method is considered to be outdated.

4. INVOLVE TESTERS INTO WORK AT THE FIRST STAGES OF SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT

When testers start working on the project from the very beginning, they make sure that many errors are identified and eliminated even before the development phase. Writing test scripts, quality testers assist developers that can later use these scripts for making product creation easier. Thus, involving testers into work at the first stages of development has a range of advantages: helping the team to understand customers’ goals, saving a lot of time, minimizing expenses, and optimizing the approach to testing.

5. CONSIDER WORKING WITH THE MOST FLEXIBLE SPECIALISTS

Choosing between different testers, it’s better to start working with those who can adapt to various working conditions. Gaining automation skills, such testers become professional in all spheres, including the integration process. Using several methods and levels of testing, they effectively combine real-time scenarios with product testing.

Another great feature flexible specialists possess is creativity that helps them eliminate problem areas in new ways. Flexible specialists are highly appreciated for generating new ideas, working creatively, and finding new approaches for problem-solving.

6. PAY ATTENTION TO TESTERS WITH SOLID TECHNICAL SKILLS

Professional testers provide high-quality testing services, as they also have some experience in software development. Knowing about different development stages and staying aware of various nuances, they easily build automated tests. Visiting IT technical meetings, testers improve their skills and boost knowledge.

7. MAKE SURE TESTERS CAN STATE REQUIREMENTS CLEARLY

All project tasks, subtasks, goals, and perspectives must be clear from the very beginning. If developers completely understand technical tasks, there are higher chances that clients will be satisfied. Moreover, it guarantees a smaller number of missed deadlines and unforeseen expenses. Setting specific business goals is a key task of testers that guarantees their effective work and project success.

In most cases, software outsourcing is used both for saving money and fixing failures. This allows the company to focus on the main business tasks and work on brand promotion. Using the previously mentioned tips, you’ll find a professional team of testers easier and quicker. This may have positive effects on your product quality and the amount of time and money you spend on it.

Source: https://themerkle.com

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Do you need a hybrid cloud?

Public and private clouds are the future, and combining the two could give your business a real competitive advantage.While the cloud has demonstrably proved to be hugely beneficial to all businesses – providing flexible and powerful computing and storage on demand – security and reliability remain significant concerns. This is where a hybrid cloud proves its worth.With a hybrid cloud, you can run two interconnected clouds, each storing and processing different data sets. The combination is potent, with the public cloud giving you the scale and efficiency that you need, and the private cloud offering security, speed and customisation. It's something in which companies are already investing; a survey by market intelligence firm IDC showed that 73pc of respondents were pursuing some form of hybrid cloud.The real trick to getting the most out of a hybrid cloud is to work out where to split your data and processing. According to IDC's research: ‘‘The applications most likely to be adopted by the public cloud include enterprise social networks, email, web content management, cloud testing/development and mobile device management. Those most likely to be deployed on traditional IT and private cloud are analytical tools and applications, server capacity, ERP, CRM applications, and database services (DBMS).’’Supporting workloadsOther metrics can help you make the right decision, with performance being one of the key factors to consider. This is simply a matter of working out which type of cloud is best for each job. In general, it is thought that private clouds are better for steady workloads; and public clouds come into their own with ad-hoc workloads. However, private clouds that support cloud bursting could also be useful for the latter; this is when data is pushed from a private cloud on to a public one to support strong spikes in demand.For example, an online retailer could use cloud bursting to process transactional data at peak times, such as the Black Friday rush. That way, they get local control of most of their information and analysis, but can easily accommodate unusually high periods of activity.Data access is another important consideration. With a private cloud and local infrastructure, you can ensure that your business has fast access to critical data at all times. This is an improvement on the public cloud, where you are at the mercy of the speed and reliability of your internet connection. Having this single point of failure isn't acceptable in modern business – a hybrid cloud approach will offer you greater consistency.Greater securityOne of the biggest reasons to move to a hybrid cloud is data protection. With the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) set to become law on 25 May 2018, you need to make sure that your business is ready. In particular, after this date your company can be hit with a hefty fine – €20m or 4pc of worldwide turnover, whichever is highest – if you're found in breach of regulation or suffer from a hack that results in the loss of private information. Organisations that use a hybrid cloud can store the most sensitive data on the more locked-down and controlled private cloud, to give you that extra layer of security. This also makes it easier to work with other companies, as you can lock down some data to your private cloud, only sharing essential information via your public cloud.ompanies that have already invested in a private cloud can also use a hybrid cloud to boost their scalability effectively. A hybrid cloud will allow you to move some existing applications to the public cloud, meaning that you don't have to throw away everything that you've already invested in. Nor will staff have to learn new ways of working, as they can continue with existing applications.Be sure to perform a cost benefit analysis for each application that you're considering moving to the cloud, as this is not a trivial job. If there's a better, cheaper alternative available, don't hang on to the old ways of working just to try to protect an existing investment.On the flipside, it’s important to note that the initial outlay for a hybrid cloud can be high, to get the infrastructure you need. Implementation is also tricky, particularly when implementing the secure interconnections between your public and private clouds. Still, that investment will quickly pay for itself, making your company more flexible, reliable, secure and competitive.

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6 reasons you should outsource mobile app development – And it's not about costs anymore

Why do some people still shy away from outsourcing app development? With tons of data proving that outsourcing app development is the best way to launch your app it should be adopted by one and all. Here is a curated list of six major benefits that you get when you outsource your app development.

I think it goes without saying, and I believe we really don’t need a backing survey, that users all across the globe have turned to their digital devices like women to fashion. In a space pervaded with compact mobile phones, innovations drive mobile users towards a legal digital predilection. On an average, mobile users spend as little as 2 hours a day interacting with their mobile screens. Of this time, they tend to devote some 30 minutes fiddling with mobile apps.

If there are more and more unique apps coming to flood the mobile app store, the reason is the fact that mobile app lovers are rising in leaps and bounds. Among all types of mobile apps, what has dominated the major portion of the app market are gaming, ecommerce, social networking, education and lifestyle apps.

However, with a market filled with both hyped rumours and excitement of challenges, many marketers happen to foster the notion that outsourcing mobile app development process leads to technical mistakes, delays in app releases, miscommunication and limited life cycle of final product.

Such misconception might lead to many hurried decisions about mobile app development, which will ultimately cost you a lot of pain. To debunk this myth, here is a list of top 6 reasons for outsourcing mobile app development process.

Stronger focused knowledge

Usually, App development process comprises of many critical stages that require intense attention, greater care and precise knowledge. With each component screaming for best digital tactics and utilization of modern resources, the process needs specialist app developers who have extensive experience in this area. India is a hub of outsourcing app development companies that have mastered the art of creating remarkable apps with high usability, life cycle and excellent UI. Some of them have specialized in special genre of mobile apps and embody best knowledge in industry matters and latest technologies.

Flexibility of app development model

Having reliable expertise in special area of app development process allows companies to choose which part of mobile app process they can outsource. For instance, if an app development agency has credible experience in the QA section of App development, it becomes easy for companies to outsource the quality assurance part to receive the best results and a product that they know will achieve highest standard of quality. Such flexible model is only possible with Outsourcing mobile app agencies.

Time-saving alternative

Time is of precious value for any business, and the app development process involves heavy components from building the app, scaling up the features, using the right technology to working on its UI, deploying and testing it. All of it takes a good chunk of time before the product is finally ready to launch in the app store. Outsourcing the app development process saves you from all the tedious elements involved in the creation of an app, so that you can focus on its post-product marketing tactics and other essentials.

Four reasons you should outsource mobile app development

Ability to explore the depth

With information becoming key to any business success, different set of information compiled tactically works like a miracle in the app development business. Database collected by mobile app creators helps drive any mobile app project towards its final fruition. What is digital industry without highly valuable data applied during the development process? A programmer needs to be a meticulous researcher who culls and harnesses data as a strong resource to transform the conceptual idea into substantial mobile app. India has a pool of talented mobile app firms that achieve incredible results using concentrated industry information.

Financial comfort and affordability

It doesn’t swoop as a shock when a business person emphasizes on minimizing the app development cost to keep their overall budget to optimal level. Companies indeed look for alternatives that offer great mobile app solution in return for affordable investment. There is nothing wrong in expecting low-cost solutions. Usually, app development cost stops at 6 figures which can be kept at certain level only by outsourcing the entire project. By doing so, you don’t have to typically spend time and money creating infrastructure, hiring a skilled team and employing healthy resources. You can easily find app developers that cost you not more than 5 figures for the same expensive-looking project.

The full range of quality service

If you collaborate well with an agency that provides entire service suit of end-to-end app development services, you will get to enjoy the process hassle-free. From ideation, conceptualization, discovery, development, testing, deployment and support, you will receive entire package so that in the end all you have to do is to wait for the finest result to come your way.

So what's stopping you from outsourcing your app development? You know this is the most efficient method to build your app. With top mobile app development companies like Promatics Technologies you can be assured of a world class app and that too in the minimum possible time.

Source: https://www.whatech.com

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What latest technology updates are supporting self-driving cars?

The idea of self-driving cars still makes many consumers think of “The Jetsons,” but these days, it’s much closer to reality TV than anything else.  Some of the latest technology updates taking place on the mobile technology front have a direct role in the evolving state of autonomous vehicles. Even as companies such as Google and Uber run pilot programs testing these vehicles on public roadways, technological strides and improvements to software development are helping these innovators build better platforms to power self-driving cars, turning this futuristic technology into reality.  However, a self-driving car isn’t exactly a piece of technology on its own — rather, it’s an entire ecosystem of technologies, ranging from decades-old to brand-spanking new, that make autonomous vehicles possible.  Here’s a look at some of the biggest strides in mobile technology that are making the self-driving experience possible:  Motion sensors and computer vision If you’ve ever seen a motion light turn on in someone’s backyard, you understand that motion sensors aren’t a new technology on their own. However, it’s all a matter of accuracy. When you’re managing the proximities of several other cars traveling at high speeds on multi-lane roadways, there isn’t much room for error. Motion sensors can use a mix of traditional radar, cameras and other motion-activated mobile technologies to recognize the distance between you and the vehicle ahead of you, observe cars changing directions and even detect changes in speed to activate the vehicle’s brakes

The best-known motion sensor solution is called Lidar, which stands for “light detection and ranging.” It uses a rotating laser to continually scan the vehicle’s surrounding environment, according to The Guardian. This computer vision system allows the car to render a 3-D image of the environment around it, providing an artificial vision that’s essential to operating in a live environment with unknown variables.

GPS

Cars have been operating with GPS for years, but again, the challenge is making sure that GPS functionality is extremely accurate, with minimal downtime. GPS is necessary for navigation from one point to the next, and it also complements the computer vision system in helping orient the vehicle and keep it on the right track.

A common concern is what could happen if a satellite system is temporarily downed. Self-driving cars will have limited data available to them, and a protocol must be in place to ensure these vehicles don’t put their passengers in dangerous situations by operating with limited vision. With GPS, recent advancements have focused on mitigating the risk of a downed system, increasing the accuracy of this satellite information and building procedures into the software to handle any unexpected outages.

Autonomous driving software

This type of technology is the most complex, and the most secretive. Companies developing such software are extremely protective of their system designs due to concerns that a competitor will copy their methods — or worse, improve upon them.

This software serves as the central hub for the car’s autonomous activities, managing data from sensors, GPS, radar and other feedback channels to dictate the vehicle’s responses and behavior. All the other technology functions to help this software serve as the driver. The stakes are extremely high with autonomous driving software — one single error can lead to multiple lives lost — so brands face incredible pressure to make sure this technology is in the best shape possible. As development continues, consumers should expect this software to become more responsive to unpredictable environments and more reliable as a practical means of transportation.

These latest technology updates have brought self-driving cars a long way. The challenge now is finding a way to bring this innovation to the mainstream market.

Source: http://mobilebusinessinsights.com

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Is it worth using outsourced security services instead of in-house?

Outsourcing security is a viable option, but it doesn't always make sense for an organization. What are the best and worst times to outsource to a managed security service provider?

Outsourcing security to a managed security service provider (MSSP) is an alternative to managing information security functions internally. It is typically opted for when security has become economically challenging to maintain with existing resources.

There are pros and cons of outsourcing security to third-party service providers. Let's look at these a bit closer.

Pros of outsourced security

MSSPs have dedicated employees whose job it is to keep current on vulnerabilities and remediation techniques.

The organization does not have to spend time and money on training information security staff in niche areas such as network vulnerabilities, web application vulnerabilities, firewall configuration management, intrusion prevention system and intrusion detection system configuration management, computer forensics, penetration testing and other security operation center duties.

MSSPs typically provide 24/7 year-round information security monitoring.

The organization can focus on information security administration, such as user provisioning, password resets, role-based access control fulfilments, cybersecurity management reporting, security awareness, compliance reporting, and information security policy development and maintenance.

Critical security patches will most likely always be current, providing this service is built into the MSSP service contract.

Organizations will undoubtedly lose most of their highly skilled, in-house cybersecurity resources.

There may be a loss of quality, unless that is built into the MSSP contract with associated service-level agreements.

The cost of a breach at the MSSP site may be substantial. This can be mitigated if the MSSP contract also requires the service provider to carry sufficient cybersecurity insurance.

The MSSP typically decides the software and equipment used for providing cybersecurity services to the organization. These may not be in line with the organization's IT standards and approved software and hardware environments.

If the organization decides to terminate the MSSP service and return in-house, the cost to rebuild the cybersecurity staff and acquire software tools, such as security information and event management, firewall maintenance, web applications and network vulnerability testing, can be substantial, and the process can be time-consuming.

MSSPs, to keep operating costs down, may hire foreign workers, which may be perceived as un-American or problematic by customers, partners or stakeholders.

MSSPs do not know the organization's business culture or mission-critical IT environments.

Organizations may be concerned about confidential or sensitive corporate data becoming exposed to third-parties at an MSSP.

Cons of outsourced security

For decades, organizations have painted themselves into a corner by not addressing cybersecurity. However, According to Gartner, $81.6 billion was spent on security technology in 2016. Despite this increase in cybersecurity budgets, there is a continued rise in breaches and other disruptive security-related incidents. To mitigate this challenge, organizations are predisposed to outsourcing and increasing cybersecurity insurance.

Ensure that, before you engage with an outsourced security service, the MSSP contract clarifies pragmatic service-level agreements on scope, continuous monitoring, timely response, coverage and predefined reporting. Ask for references and proof of independent cybersecurity assessments and cybersecurity framework compliance -- such as SSAE-16, Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard, NIST SP 800-53 and NIST SP 800171r1 -- for the MSSP's IT environment.

Cybersecurity insurance is generally a compensation strategy involving partner and stakeholder interests. It is actually damage insurance in case of a breach, fraud or major disruption to an organization's ability to operate.

Outsourced security that uses MSSPs or obtains increased cybersecurity insurance does provide augmentation services and risk mitigation, but they do not necessarily reduce risk or limit an organization's liability.

Source: http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com

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VIETNAM SOFTWARE OUTSOURCING IN 2016

VIETNAM SOFTWARE OUTSOURCING IN 2016

The Growth of Vietnam Software Outsourcing in Recent Years

Offshore software development nowadays is becoming a smart approach of global companies. In 2016, India and China are still positioned as the leaders of software outsourcing industry.  In spite of their dominance in market share, Vietnam is considered as an emerging software outsourcing destination.

The Vietnam software development market is recognized as a high quality and low price software development market. Vietnam software outsourcing services are about 90% cheaper compared to Western rivals and 40% cheaper compared to competitors from India and China.

According to a report from Vietnam Software Association (VINASA), in the IT home market, there was a decrease in the number and scale of clients (in two segments: state-owned agents and private businesses) because of budget cuts for IT services. Meanwhile, the export market’s growth rate increased by 30 to 40 percent per annum, and the US and Europe’s growth rates were stable at 20 to 30 percent. Some domestic software developers are optimistically expecting that North America will become the second largest Vietnamese outsourcing market, after Japan.

Vietnam was ranked among the top 10 most attractive software outsourcing spots of the Asia- Pacific region by Gartner, a reputed US market researcher.

The Advantages of Vietnam Software Outsourcing

Many multinational electronics corporations such as Intel, Samsung, LG, Renesas, Fox, Canon, and, Panasonic have already been optimistically growing their manufacturing operations in Vietnam for decades. Foreseeing the market’s potential, HP, CSC, Alcatel-Lucent, Cisco, Avaya, NTT, Toshiba, NEC, Panasonic, Sony, Sharp, Hitachi, Boeing, and Deutsche Bank also have Research & Development to further investigate the Vietnam market.

Vietnam is seen as a large pool of talent and an emerging high tech center. Every year there are about 40,000 graduates, from 290 universities across the nation, who are well trained and equipped with the technical skills needed for the industry. The flourishing of skilled manpower and low labor costs contribute to a competitive advantage with regard to service quality and price.

In addition to the stable and secure economy, the Vietnamese government has also established tax incentives, encouraged heavy high-tech zones, built software parks, and implemented human resource development strategies.

Some Challenges of Vietnam Software Outsourcing

In spite of Vietnam’s favorable conditions for IT product development and outsourcing services, some domestic IT firms are facing financing shortages and poor market strategies. To some extent, IT engineers have not satisfied the international market demands.

The Ministry of Information and Communications is looking for solutions for the developing IT sector by promoting competition; building mechanisms to support IT and IT startup companies; offering more FDI for IT in general, and particularly for software outsourcing; and workshops for business matching between Vietnamese and IT foreign companies.

Top 10 Vietnam Software Outsourcing Companies

According to statistics from Vietnam Software Association (VINASA), Vietnamese companies specialized in outsourcing and software solutions have revenue accounting for a high proportion of total sales, more than 1/4 of software industry and digital content in 2015. The top 10 companies in Vietnam software outsourcing are:

1. FTP software

2. TMASolutions

3. Harvey Nash Vietnam

4. Global Cybersoft Vietnam

5. KMS Technologies Vietnam

6. LogiGear Vietnam

7. Phu Si Computer Network (FUJINET)

8. Sunrise Software Solutions

9. IVC / ISB Vietnam

10. DEK Technologies Vietnam

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