Is PHP a better choice for larger & complex projects?

Over the last few years, PHP has turned out to be one of the most popular scripting languages and its popularity seems to increase all the time. The principle reason behind its popularity is the fact the language is extremely easy to be picked up and can be used to design as well as develop customized web pages. This ideally implies that by opting for PHP as the principle implementation language, a user can have the liberty of building a web page that is dynamic, rather quickly as well as easily.

However, when it comes to dealing with larger projects, it is highly imperative to take certain measures to make PHP development an effective tool for larger as well as more complex projects.

The measure includes:

• Separating the business logic from the presentation itself

• Taking the help of individual developer(s) instead of a development team

• Taking Special care of those areas where the initial simplicity of PHP can make things too much complicated for you

Though PHP at times can create a lot of issues in the case of bigger projects, taking special care in these three aspects can make the scripting language a handy one.

Separating the business logic from the presentation itself

The websites that are designed nowadays are scripted in such a way their reaction time is minimal when it comes to meeting the changing demands of the market. From the point of view of the developers, this means that they need to alter the contents of the website along with its looks in a seamless way and with minimal effort. This can be done by separating the presentation (which means the site’s aesthetic look) from the very logic of the business (which means the activity of the site or what the site is expected to do).

This type of separation will provide an opportunity of engaging two separate development teams – one team, taking up the responsibility of setting up the business logic and the other team, taking up the responsibility of designing. As very few programmers are equally competent in visual designing, this clearly gives a significant edge over the competitors. This is more apparent in case of development of bigger as well as more complex projects with the help of PHP.

Now, let us see the other ways in which any disadvantage that PHP carries with it, can be negated. The principle objective of PHP is combining the HTML that will create the main get up or the look of the site along with the logic that is used to carry out the business. The codes develop the contents of the site, that can easily be derived from a database. Even developers who are not that experienced find this easy to deal with and this makes PHP such an easy language to understand. This makes all the difference even during bigger or more complex projects.

To make sure you can make the most of PHP during development of larger and more complex project, the following checklists should be maintained.

• The amount of control that needs to be there over deployment platform.

• The number of people who will be working on the particular site – at present as well as in the future.

• The size of the site needs to be ascertained in advance and the number of pages needs to be determined alongwith.

• The life cycle of the page or in other words, how long the page is expected to last? This will determine the extent of changes that the page will undergo and depending upon that, the users can extend the PHP with a suitable templating system.

• Also, take into account the extent of experience that the developers have, along with the complexity of the site as that will be determining the changes that the site will undergo.

We provide PHP application development services. If you would like to hire PHP developers for your web development needs, please contact us at Mindfire Solutions.

Creating Web API’s and mobile sites with .Net

The ASP.NET Web API framework makes building of HTTP very easy; the services will be able to reach a huge assortment of clients, including both on mobile devices as well as browsers. WebAPI content negotiation ensures data return according to client requests. For example, if the client request is to return data as XML or JSOB, the request type is dealt with the framework, returning the appropriate data according to the media type. This platform is ideal for the building of pure services that are HTTP based. Here HTTP protocol is maintained for the request as well as response. GET, DELETE, PUT and POST request can be made by the client and the appropriate Web API response can be got.

Just serving webpages is not what HTTP is for. The powerful platform also helps in the building up of APIs which expose data as well as services. HTTP is ubiquitous, simple and flexible. Almost all platforms have HTTP libraries so a wide range of clients can be reached through HTTP services, including conventional desktop applications, browsers as well as mobile devices.

ASP.NET WebAPI can be used for the creation of web API which returns a product list. For display of results, jQuery is used by front-end web page. The Visual Studio should be started and New Project selected from Start page. Alternatively, you can also select New from File menu and then choose Project. Go to Templates pane to choose Installed Templates to expand Visual C# node under which Web should be selected. Choose ASP.NET Web Application in the project templates list. The project should then be named “ProductsApp” and then clicked OK. There will be a dialog box named New ASP.NET development Project in which the Empty template should be selected. Check WebAPI under “Add folders and core references for”. Then click OK. The WebAPI template can also be used for the creation of API project.

There is no substantial difference between developing web pages for desktop browsers and that for mobile device browsers. For the creation of apps for mobile devices, a System.Web.Mobile namespace is provided by .NET which is devoted particularly for mobile app development. Webpage may be created from the base class called MobilePage and then controls may be added from System.Web.Mobile namespace which determines a suite of web server adapters and controls that turn out to be extremely useful during the creation of applications. The apps then should be made available to many various mobile devices like cell phones.

Control adaptive architecture is also provided by .NET, which allows the creation of custom device adapters for web server controls. Custom rendering can be created by the adapters for controls, supported by requesting browser. Adaptive architecture helps in the creation of custom adapters for server controls so specific output can be rendered to particular devices accessing the application on browsers. Standard, event-driven model is followed by development so that the application can respond to button clicks, user requests, etc and this is standard for both mobile devices as well as desktop browsers.

Even existing websites can be embedded with some changes to transform it to a more user-friendly version for mobile devices so that the content can fit the tiny screen, boasting of an efficient as well as clean design. All you need is Mobile browser emulator. However, in case of complex applications, it is best to create different user interfaces that have different flows of UI.

The creation of both web APIs as well as mobile sites are easy processes by virtue of .NET. This free framework not only offers ease of development but is extremely versatile, making it a preferred choice amongst developers.

We provide .net application development services. If you would like to hire dot net developers for your development needs, please contact us at Mindfire Solutions.

The importance of learning Ruby on Rails and its scope in future

Ruby, the popular programming language was created by Yukihiro Matz Matsumoto and is commonly used for web programming. This programming language is extended by the software library known as Rails, created by David Hansson who gave it the name Ruby on Rails or RoR. This full-stack framework covers both back as well as front end design, installed with the help of command-line interface operating system. RoR combines Ruby along with CSS, JavaScript as well as HTML so that web applications running on web server can be created. Sites such as Basecamp, Twitter, etc have used this language as its base, making this a potent tool. Its popularity has made it very important to start learning the language. As it is, there is a war going on between PHP and RoR; in this war, slowly PHP seems to be losing its importance. Here are some reasons that make it important for you to start implementing RoR.

Feature-filled language- It is quite impressive, combining some really great features of all dynamic languages, taking ideas from the best, strongly-typed as well as static languages to blend them into an object-oriented paradigm to get maximum things done without writing a huge amount of code. The code is less but better-structured which makes editing, reusing, experimentation as well as iteration quite easy.

Open source- This language is open source; not only that, the community around it, is helpful as well as thriving. The language itself is great with a really idealistic user experience, which makes it attractive to be used by new developers.

Code-based data model- For Ruby on Rails, data model has to be defined with code. After the creation of initial data model, changes must be made with the help of scripts to manipulate the model.

Well documented- The language is extremely well documented. The web contains a huge number of resources like high quality, effective and fun to follow video tutorials which are available both for pay as well as free. These are better than many books. There are huge support groups as well as communities which can help you in case you are facing some kind of problem.

Tool options- The system is relatively simple with a good amount of IDEs for development. Additionally, the ecosystem of RoR has plenty of excellent tools which fulfill almost any need that they arise in the minds of a developer; on top of that most of those tools are open source or free. So this is good place to work if you want an ecosystem that boasts of topflight tools support.

Rapid development model- Convention and not configuration is what decides the development model of Ruby on Rails. This simply means that once you have learned to do things in the way that the language expects you to do, then many heavy lifting will be done by it on your behalf. Your work will be very quick, especially in case of many kinds of development tasks.

Advantages over PHP- There are a number of advantages to using this platform instead of PHP. One of them is that developers do not simply like using it anymore; their impatience as well as frustration has grown with the language. PHP is very easy to use with lax rules which makes it easy for your to write bad codes. In fact, in case of alterations, additions or catching of random bugs, correcting everything becomes time consuming as well as expensive.

One thing of concern is that it may prove to be slightly difficult to learn. However, it is not impossible and a little concentration is all that it will take to master the language. The other alternative option is to use PHP but as illustrated in the earlier point, PHP is gradually becoming obsolete. So Ruby on Rails development is a must-do thing if you want to stay in sync with the changing times.

We provide Rails development services. If you would like to hire certified Rails developers for your development needs, please contact us at Mindfire Solutions.

Upgrading to DNN 7 – What is the need

Of late, there has been quite a buzz regarding DNN7 or DotNetNuke version 7.0. This is partly because this web Content Management System is extremely user-friendly and partly because the system comes up with an exclusive development server that is used in the QA process that makes sure that each and every aspect of development works in a perfect manner before the production gets under way.

Here are a few factors that make upgrading to DNN 7.0 absolute necessary.

The new installation and upgrade wizards

At one time, installation of DNN or DotNetNuke was indeed a tough as well as expensive task, that required not only a sound budget but also a braveheart. Not any more though! With the introduction of version 7.0 of the CMS, the entire task of installation along with operation has become not only dead simple but also highly informative. The installation guide comes up with a page of question, most of them being answered.

While the previous versions came up with relatively poor functionality a complicated upgrade wizard, things have entirely changed in the latest 7.0 version. It has come up with an extremely sleek as well as user-friendly install wizard with some value added features that include providing the users the option of logging as a super user for starting the wizard.

The option of auto saving

The new version comes up with a user-friendly Text/HTML module, by the virtue of which the contents can easily be saved automatically as and when they are being written. This will guarantee prevention of data loss. Moreover, it will limit the loss of time in a great way.

An in-built View Mode

Previously, whenever a user used to log in into DNN as a content editor or an administrator, the site instantaneously went into an “Edit” mode. Now this used to slow down the page loading time to a considerable extent. However, with the latest version, DNN now gets into a “View Mode” by default. This has sent the old fashioned “View Mode” wording, control, buttons into oblivion, thereby simplifying the normal, edit as well as the layout views.

Drag And Drop

Another extremely important reason for which you need to upgrade to the version 7.0 is the unique drag and drop facility that the new version of CMS comes up with. While in the previous versions you needed to select a specific module by its name, and then click on “add” to start off the process, in the new version things have admirably changed. Just select whatever you need to add. It may be a Text or an HTML module. Just drag the copy of the stuff in the area where you need to have it and you will be done with it. Nothing can be simpler than this!

Much Developed Control Panel

Version 6.0 of DNN came up with Ribbon Bar which the users were more or less much content with. However, with the incorporation version 7.0 things have improved further. Apart from the drag and drop option, and the Edit page access option, the Admin/Host modules are now much more organized. This provides a lot of advantages when it comes to using it in a seamless way. More importantly, control panel of version 7.0 of DNN uses a lot of highly user-configurable areas that make all the difference.

Hence, in a nutshell, upgrading to version 7.0 of DNN is important and need of the hour in order to get a better device preview, responsive site design, site redirection management, improved drag and drop upload options, document tagging, multi-upload option, advanced search crawler, updated UI/UX.

It also helps you in bulk management of pages, better module creator, updated SQL module and so on. You can get in touch with a software development company India who can help you upgrading to DNN7 within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide offshore web development services. If you would like to hire DNN developers for your web development needs, please contact us at Mindfire Solutions.

Transform your business with the help of CRM

CRM or Customer Relationship Management is a well-known term which brings all tools and techniques used for entering into relationship with existing clients as well as prospective ones together, so that they can be retained through provision of services or products that will suit their needs the most. Customer relationship does not have to be managed internally with partners or collaborators. For proper management, a software is needed where the companies feed customer information like their full name including both the last as well as the first names, address, telephone number, the preferred purchase location of client, payment means, average basket, etc. With the help of this information, the company can focus on the client better, so that better offers can be sent and services as well as products can be provided which will not only meet his needs but reduce his costs as well.

For maintenance of proper contact with the clients, emails, telephones and direct contact methods are used. But for the management, the proper CRM software is most essential. For the determination of suitable software, the size of the business needs to be considered. Options for small-sized businesses include Sugar CRM which offers excellent technical assistance along with access to broad functionalities of customer service management, Tactile which is a web-based, free version that allows efficient data analysis as well as management and Zoho which offers customer support management, marketing campaign coordination, inventory control, project management, leads management as well as database analysis. Since the needs of large companies are more complicated, they need something better. Some suitable options are Microsoft Dynamics CRM, Salesforce.com, SAP CRM, Oracle Siebel, etc.

Reasons why businesses can be transformed through this

Quick management decision- Management decision making becomes more nimble as well as well-informed by virtue of real-time reporting done across every business team.

Effective management of time- The time can be more effectively managed by the staff since users are prompted by CRM to follow up activities. Automated alerts are also sent by the system if important actions happen.

Pipeline reports– Since the reports are trusted, they are often used as basis for reliable production and sales forecasts so that efficiency may be increased and cash flow managed predictably.

Quality leads- High quality leads are achieved through marketing activities that include continuous improvement of contact segmentation as well as targeted campaigns.

Each customer valued- This helps you value each and every customer relationship by understanding them. As a result, services resources are prioritized so that the profitable accounts are protected.

Quick identification of performance hotspots- With this function, time action is enabled so that issues may be corrected and outstanding results rewarded.

Minimal customer churn- All relationship detail needed to engage clients, is easily accessed by users who can then efficiently deal with requests for service.

Repetitive manual processes is replaced by workflow automation– This helps reduce admin work as well as eliminate duplication which help teams focus on activities that are profitable.

CRM and accounting– A good connection is maintained between the system and accounting along with other back-office applications so that processes can be joined up and double handling of tasks be removed.

Strength in good communication- Shared team calenders, services schedules as well as diaries gives all the involved people a clear visibility of activities undertaken by each individual.

Easily accessed customer order histories- This instant checking helps users assess buying patterns so that they can identify sales opportunities.

Being well-equipped is an attribute for good customer relationship management. There are flip sides to every coin; this is applicable in this case as well. So while selecting the proper CRM tool or software the decision must be taken with care and caution. To cater to the required needs the best functional system should be adopted which can be done through tracking of progress, reading up reviews and then comparing products. Choosing the most appropriate option ensures that the client experience is improved. You can get in touch with a Microsoft dynamics CRM customization company who can help you develop CRM app within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide Online Dynamics CRM development services. If you would like to hire certified dynamics CRM developers for your CRM development needs, please contact us at Mindfire Solutions.

Top 7 HTML5 APIs worth looking into

Many reports have highlighted that HTML5 will dominate the web application and mobile application development scene in 2014. As the applications written in HTML5 can run across all types of devices, web browsers and operating systems, it becomes easier for developers to build robust apps within a shorter span of time. Further, they do not have to put any extra effort to build different versions of the application for specific platforms. The growing popularity of HTML has further encouraged many developers to add innovative features to APIs to overcome the lack of browser support. Each developer can use these HTML5 APIs to deliver richer user experience without writing any additional code.

Seven HTML5 APIs Developers Must Look Into

1) High Resolution Time API

The interface allows you to get the current time in sub-millisecond resolution. Also, the time provided by the interface is free from system clock adjustments. Despite being simple, the API will help developers in measuring the performance of their software accurately. The accurate and precise timestamp enables them to test their code in an exact and flawless way. However, the programmers have to evaluate the function in a manner similar to JavaScript Date.now() function.

2) Navigation Timing API

An application’s page load time has a huge impact on user experience. So developers have to identify and troubleshoot the slow-loading pages to deliver richer user experience. The Navigation Timing API enables developers to get detailed timing information when a page is being loaded. At the same time, the interface further allows them to get additional information like TCP connection establishment, DDNS lookup, page redirects and time spent to build the DOM.

3) Network Information API

The user experience of a web application can be optimized by customizing the pages based on the user’s internet connection. The Network Information APIs makes it easier for developers to estimate the bandwidth and type of internet connection the use has. So the information provided by the interface helps them in optimizing the behavior of a web page. For instance, based on the type of connection, images, videos and fonts can be loaded in a conditional way.

4) Battery Status API

Often developers avoid mobile applications that require additional resources when the battery is low. The interface makes it easier for programmers to check the status of the battery of a mobile device. They have option to use four different properties of the interface to check if the battery is in charge, the current level of the battery, and the seconds remaining till the battery is fully recharged or discharged. Thus, they can optimize the page according to the state of the battery by disabling non-critical JavaScript and CSS animations, and Ajax requests.

5) Page Visibility API

As the name indicates, the interface enables programmers to check the current visibility status of a page. The information provided by the API will help developers in optimizing their web applications according to the available CPU and bandwidth. Also, they can disable or slow down a process that requires additional bandwidth or CPU, but not being accessed by the user currently. Thus, the interface will enable programmers to improve user experience by building CPU and bandwidth efficient web applications.

6) Fullscreen API

The interface is designed to receive and execute full screen display requests from the user. Also, it exits from the full screen mode when the user wants to. Based on its functionality, the API exposes the requestFullscreen() and exitFullscreen() methods. The former method executes the fullscreen request for an element, whereas the latter exits the fullscreen mode. The developers can use the interface to check if the fullscreen mode is enables or disabled.

7) WebSocket API

The performance of a web application also depends on the socket connection between the browser and server. With the interface, the developers can enables Web pages to establish a two-way communication with the remote host through the WebSocket protocol. The persistent communication between browser and server will result in smooth and uninterrupted exchange of data. However, the developers must create and instantiate a WebSocket object to establish a connection through the interface.

Each developer has option to choose from a variety of HTML5 APIs from the W3Schools website. The website further categorizes the APIs under different headings to make it easier for programmers to choose the APIs according to specific needs of a project. You can get in touch with a custom HTML5 Development company who can help you build HTML5 app within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide HTML5 UI design and prototyping services. If you would like to hire HTML5 programmers for your web development needs, please contact us at Mindfire Solutions.

Smart ways to customize WordPress themes

Those who are new to WordPress think that code tinkering in this platform is a tough as well as daunting task. However, the reality is that the feel and look of the site along with themes in WordPress may be customized by incorporating some truly simple changes. But these changes should not be introduced in the themes directly. First of all, child themes should be created, and this should be followed by dealing with the offline files so that the changes can be seamlessly introduced. When working in this way, it can ensured that while tweaking the code, if any issue crops up inadvertently, the original files can always be accessed. They can then be re-uploaded quickly so that the changes can be overwritten.

Creating child theme- Themes inheriting another theme’s functionality as well as style are known as child themes while the themes they inherit are called parent themes. You do not need to alter the parent theme files when you add new style changes and functionality through child themes. While parent themes are being updated, child themes should never be touched. Child theme creation is quite simple- just create one file along with one folder on the local computer. Name the folder with the child theme’s name. A unique identifier can also be added to the name. Now create another file within that folder, adding .css suffix to it. Specific information should be inserted as well through a code. Mostly generic information is contained by the code; the child theme should also have styling information. After incorporating all the changes as well as saving them, the child theme should be added to the WordPress installation by connecting the web host with FTP program. Browse to the required folder to upload the child theme folder that contains the new file. Activate the theme to edit it. This is the most commonly accepted method.

Theme customization API- The admin screen of WordPress Theme Customization can be customized by developers by allowing the site admins to change settings of the themes to see preview of the changes in real time. The theme can have more interactive as well as powerful options for customization through this. Your very own options can be added with the use of two hooks – wp_head which allows your output of custom-generated CSS and customize_register which allows defining new customizer controls, sections as well as settings.

Using custom code instead of plugins- The wonderful aspect of plugin allows the transformation of websites, enabling you to do almost anything that you want. Plugins often need a lot of code; they are also accompanied by management issues since they have to be updated and potential security issues handled. Adding too many plugins can make a website bloated and slow the loading time. So custom codes are the best option. You will just have to add some code lines to the proper file. Taht will reduce the load on the website and keep everything tidy.

Addition of new functions to theme with PHP codes- Another good way of adding changes is using PHP codes. If you want to improve functions of a theme, the location of the function can easily be found through the use of custom-functions.php. Through this you can easily change layouts, add new functions, integrate with plugins, etc. Just find out the correct file and the section or part that has to be remove, replaced, changed or duplicated so that the customizing can be done. The codes have to be checked carefully so that those available in the template can be used to change the layout.

Although using child theme code is the commonly accepted method, there are other methods which may be used as well for this end. In fact, if your requirements are small and include some minor coding, then you can use custom CSS by adding CSS editor to the backend. Just install custom CSS editor to edit it and you will be done with your job. You can get in touch with a WordPress website development company who can help you customize WordPress themes and build websites within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide WordPress development services. If you would like to hire expert WordPress developers for your web development needs, please contact us at Mindfire Solutions.

Best Frameworks in PHP for ERP Applications

The complex nature of business processes has made it a daunting challenge for developers to build robust ERP application rapidly. With more and more enterprises outsourcing business processes, the ERP application needs to consider the requirements of several distributed teams. But there are a number of frameworks in PHP that allows developers to build a variety of ERP application rapidly. Most of these frameworks support the model-view-controller (MVC) approach, while allowing programmers to optimize the app’s performance by structuring their code. If you are planning to build a robust ERP application rapidly, it is a good idea to know some of the best PHP frameworks that will complement your project requirements.

Five of the Best PHP Frameworks for ERP Applications

1) CodeIgniter

The robust framework comes with a set of advanced features that make it easier for programmers to rapidly build ERP applications. In addition to facilitating fast page loads, CodeIgniter further allows developers to avail brilliant documentation and assistance from a large community. The non-strict structural requirements, at the same time, make the PHP framework cost-efficient. You can learn and use CodeIgniter without putting any extra time and effort. Also, the online community forums and chat services will help you in clarifying your doubts and questions.

2) Zend

As the framework developed by makers of the PHP, Zend is used widely to build ERP and business applications. It also allows users to access loads of plugins and advanced features, along with optional free downloads. Unlike other PHP frameworks, Zend enables you to access a custom server. You can use the custom server to check the look, feel and performance of the application across multiple platforms, without additional configurations. However, Zend will require you to invest some funds initially. Also, you have to incur additional expenses to buy add ons from Zend. If you are ready to spend some money, Zend will help you in building robust and customized ERP applications quickly.

3) Yii

Yii is considered to be one of the most effective frameworks to develop social and business applications. It allows you to optimize the performance of the ERP application by availing features like SQL injection, input validation and several security tasks. The framework can further save your time by generating the base code automatically. Also, Yii, at present, is the fasted loading PHP framework in the market. However, you have to invest both time and efforts to learn the ins and outs of Yii. The lack of books and tutorials will further require you to avail the assistance of other PHP developers.

4) FuelPHP

FuelPHP comes with features found in major PHP frameworks. But it combines these features into an approach that is both fresh and distinct. You also have option to refer to active comprehensive and updated Fuel documentation, along with getting help from a large community. The PHP framework is further updated frequently to support new features. Like CodeIgniter, FuelPHP can also be learned without putting any extra time and effort. But you will find the code to be less compact in comparison to CodeIgniter. The framework allows you to optimize the ERP application’s performance by implementing your creative and innovative ideas.

5) Symfony

In comparison to other MVC frameworks, Symfony is much more customizable. You also have option to improve the ERP application’s performance by using different software components that are being used by the project already. Many developers also considered Symfony to be the complete framework to build ERP and business applications. You have option to determine the security level of the application simply by configuring the two writing folders required by Symfony.

While developing an ERP application, each PHP developer has option to choose from several frameworks. So you must evaluate different PHP frameworks according to the specific requirements of your project. However, you also need to keep track of the new and innovative frameworks being launched at frequent intervals. Expert php web development India teams can help you build projects within allocated budgets and time schedules.

If you want to outsource php development services or if you would like to hire php developers from top php development companies in India, please contact us at Mindfire Solutions.

Top 5 DNN features that you will fall in love with

DotNetNuke, also known as DNN Evoq is an open source CMS or Content Management System. In fact it is considered to be one of the best that is available. When it comes to website system management, top level performance is consistently proved by DNN. Quite a number of great sites in the world of net have been developed with the help of DNN CMS framework. With each update, it continues to be improved. Constant improvements are being seen in default layers, skins as well as modules, while DNN’s skinning engine is quite easy to use and are flexible.Assigning dynamic contents for the purpose of editing or access along with security groupings and access becomes quite flexible as well as easy.

Apart form the ease of use there are several other features and advantages that will make anyone fall in love with the framework. However, out of the several, here are the top 5 that are being listed.

• Administration tools integration- When compared to most of its competitors, DNN presents a huge advantage in its ability to allow full integration of its administration tools in the website. This proves to be a boon when you want to modify things as the process becomes simpler. However, in case of other CMSs a separate administration area has to be accessed so that the changes can be made. On top of tha,t there are numerous helpful modules that allow easy Dotnetnuke CMS customization solutions to individuals for the websites.

• Install as well as upgrade wizards- At one point of time, everybody used to feel that DotNetNuke installation was a huge task that is meant to be tackled by only those who are extremely brave. However, the entire process has become informative as well as simple by virtue of installer which is a page of questions set there, out of which most are pre-answered. Then just ‘go’ has to be clicked so that it can whiz through and install various parts. Then a new screen appears with just two options- either just allowing to use it straight away or explore the platform further. After the installation gets finished you can log in. The look as well as feel of the installer is quite slick. On top of that the Upgrade Wizard was pretty boring previously, with just some functional features. There was nothing catchy to look at. Another problem was that the upgrade could be tripped unexpectedly by the wrong person. However, the latest versions have better upgrade wizards which have the same feel and look of the install wizard. In fact, to start off the wizard, you have to log in as a super user so that just anybody cannot trip the upgrade in any way.

• Default view mode- This is quite a revolutionary feature for DNN. In past, logging in the site as content editor or administrator led the site to go into an ‘Edit’ mode with several menus everywhere with the layout looking quite broken along with slow page loading. However, now the deafault view mode is normal as well as simple. It works quite nicely as well.

• Control Panel- Control Panel update is another good feature of the framework. The very way in which the Host/Admin modules have been organized is extremely easy as well as catchy. The panel is designed around the concept of user-configurable, common and less common areas. This refers to the place where your very own list can be made, things used all the time and things that are not commonly used. There are three icons which may be seen in the Control Panel’s host menu which are Bookmarked, Common and Advanced; this makes common actions such as File Manager using or extensions installation handy as well as convenient. The Advanced section has less frequent tasks such as configuration of Google Analytics while the Bookmarked section helps in the bookmarking of things which are often used.

• Drag and drop- In the earlier versions, DNN worked on the concept of adding modules to pages. The module had to be selected by name, then the add option had to be clicked. This concept saw several variations like providing the users the option of adding modules from seperate pages, etc. But now the concept has somewhat changed. Now whatever you want to add can be selected directly and then a copy of the article can be dragged to whichever place you want. This is really simple, in fact nothing could have been more intuitive or simpler. The operation is quite elegant as well since you will be able to put things wherever you want and on top of tha,t dynamic expansion of the page takes place so that you can see the location of the insert.

There are many other features embedded in DNN like granular control, .NET platform, WebAPI stack, modular control, portal spin-up, file managers, menu icons, version tracking, security, etc. These features make the framework user friendly as well as popular amongst most of the developers. There are several other CMS platforms as well, with a multitude of benefits. But using this platform will certainly not pull you backwards; rather using this, is taking a step towards the future, especially with the range of features being newly introduced every day to make your use smooth and easy.

We provide Dotnetnuke Skin development services. If you would like to hire DotNetNuke Developers for your development needs, please contact us at Mindfire Solutions.

ASP Dot NET Web Development- Latest Technology with Numerous Advantages

As a widely used web application development framework, ASP.NET needs no introduction. Microsoft further updates the framework constantly to enable developers to build dynamic websites, internet applications and web services rapidly. While developing web applications with ASP.NET, each seasoned developer can further focus on many ongoing trends. As many reports highlighted, the top ASP.NET trends for 2014 includes Open Web Interface for .NET (OWIN), SignalR, ASP.NET Web API and Azure. However, the beginners need to learn features of the framework, along with the advantages of using the latest technology for internet application development.

Key Advantages of ASP Dot NET Web Development

Supports Multiple Website Development Approaches

Web developers across the world use HTML, JavaScript and CSS to build standards-based websites. But the approach for creating website varies from one developer to another. ASP.NET makes it easier for developers to choose the right approach by supporting three website development approaches. The programmers opting for component-based development can use the controls and event model provided by ASP.NET Web. At the same time, ASP.NET MVC facilitates test-driven development, while allowing developers to keep the design and logic separate. Similarly, the code and HTML markup can be combined seamlessly on a single page through ASP.NET Web Pages. The three distinct approaches can be further combined according to the specific requirements of a project.

Integrated Development Environment

The ASP.NET developers can further use an integrated development environment (IDE) to build dynamic internet applications within a shorter span of time. Both Visual Studio and ASP.NET allow them to use a large number of tools, along with powerful editors for HTML5, CSS3 and JavaScript. The developers can simply use IntelliSense with JavaScript to check the CSS selectors that works seamlessly in the web browser. Similarly, the Browser Link can be used to refresh a dozen connected web browsers in an instant. Along with creating internet applications, the IDE further facilitate efficient source control while publishing the site to a server or the cloud.

ASP.NET Web API

Nowadays, most websites and web applications use lightweight and rich REST based web services. The developers can use ASP.NET Web API to create REST based web services. These web services can further return a variety of content supported on the internet including XML and JSON. The API can also be used effectively to provide data services to mobile apps running on popular mobile operating systems like iOS, Android and Windows Phones. At the same time, the ASP.NET Web API is accessible to all internet applications developed using ASP.NET Web Forms, MVC or Web Pages.

SignalR

The programmers also have option to add real-time features to the ASP.NET application through SignalR. The go-to library further facilitates bi-directional communication between client and server in a real-time environment. SignalR further supports new standards like Web Sockets to make the internet application compatible with older browsers. It also provides support the JavaScript clients, along with clients on a variety of mobile platforms.

Facilitates Rapid Mobile Application Development

The mobile application development frameworks have made it easier for programmers to build mobile applications. A developer familiar with JavaScript, HTML5 and CSS3 can use the tools provided by these frameworks to develop mobile applications. ASP.NET helps programmers in building mobile apps by providing responsive design frameworks. The Visual Studio 2013 comes with innovative frameworks like Twitter Bootstrap. At the same time, the ASP.NET developers also have option to use any open grid system or CSS framework, along with powerful mobile app development systems like PhoneGap, jQuery Mobile or Sencha.

A developer can further use the most recent version of ASP.NET to avail a set of advanced and innovative features. For instance, ASP.NET 4.5 allows streams to be read in an asynchronous way on an HTTP request entity, along with double-buffering an HTTP request entity.

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