Category: Community

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Community

Let’s Talk About Developer Wellness

Twice per year we run our global surveys with developers like you including professional developers, hobbyists, students, no-code software creators and as always we invite you to leave feedback, which we love to read!

For a long time we have been focusing on developer research aiming to shape the developer ecosystem, and improve the tools and platforms you are using everyday.  Listening to your feedback, we realised that there are a lot of you out there facing anxiety, feeling burned out and trying to find ways to improve your overall health and wellbeing. 

You asked, we listened! The State of Developer Wellness Survey is our first 5-min survey dedicated to your wellbeing.

For each completed response, we’ll be donating $1 USD with an aim to donate up to $1,000 to the Turkey / Syria Earthquake Appeal. What’s more, we’ll be running a prize draw for swag and sharing our inaugural State of Developer Wellness Report in Q2 with you. 

We are confident that the report will help raise awareness around the importance of work well-being for software developers. It is also expected to contribute to our understanding of the Developer Nation community and the challenges that our members are facing so that we can better support them with our content and community offerings.

If you’ve taken the survey and want to be notified when the report is published, sign up here. If you’ve not yet taken the survey, you can participate now!

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Community Tips

How Much Does It Cost To Appoint iOS Programmers?

If we consider the current scenario, then people nowadays utilize different categories of solutions to satisfy their purposes. Especially after the COVID – 19 pandemic, usage of smartphones has been bolstered to a considerable level. As a result, there was a massive rise witnessed in the utilization of applications among users. Since then, the usage pace has never slowed, and it has continued increasing till the current date.

It’s a truth to be told that Android devices are utilized in maximum numbers, but Apple devices are no more behind, as they stand second in global usage of smartphones. Over the past few years, the utilization of iOS applications has increased tremendously, and it’s because more than 1 billion users use iPhones, as per 2022 statistics. 

You might be fascinated to hire iOS programmers from an IT company for creating your business solutions and grab an advantage of rising requirements for iOS applications among users, which you might have derived from the figures mentioned earlier. 

So, refer to some things that should be kept in mind while hiring iOS developers and the cost of appointing them are discussed further in this post. Reading all those sections would reduce your hassles significantly for hiring them from firms to get an application for your enterprise ready.

Qualities To Be Considered While Hiring iOS Coders

When appointing iOS coders, you, as an entrepreneur, must ensure that they possess several characteristics to create your iOS solution for an enterprise. Which are those? They are stated below:

Must Possess Knowledge of Swift 3.0

It is an object-oriented programming language by Apple, which has a simpler syntax to access specific functions, making it easier for programmers to adopt. The iOS developers using Swift programming language can create a dynamic application loaded with demystifying features. So, you should appoint iOS coders having knowledge of Swift 3.0 and must be capable enough to deliver you the solution for your business with top-notch performance.

Experience in Xcode

You, as a startup owner, should know that the iOS coder you are looking to hire must possess Xcode IDE(Integrated Development Environment) in their skill sets. It is a solution that contains tools for debugging, interpretation, compiling, automation, and programming procedures streamlined for iOS developers while creating your application. By appointing iOS programmers to develop a solution for your business, you will also be charged a lesser fee for developing and deploying the platform, as Xcode makes such processes much more straightforward. It suggests that hiring iOS coders can assist you in building a platform with fewer expenses.

Problem-Solving Skills

Receiving the solution created by iOS developers is fine, but they should also be capable enough to quickly solve problems with any level of complexity. It is a must that you, as an entrepreneur, must appoint those iOS programmers who possess sufficient knowledge to get rid of any issue popping up in your application rapidly. 

Secured Application

You might be aware that the ios app store doesn’t allow an application to get published if it doesn’t match their set security standards. Hence, as an entrepreneur, ensure that the iOS coder you hire delivers a safe and secure platform to you or not for launching it in an application store.

By keeping all these things mentioned above in your mind, as a startup owner, you can look for iOS developers to hire from specific companies able to provide you with a helpful solution for your enterprise. It will assist you in appointing a perfect iOS programmer who is dedicated and skilled to offer you desirable and practical application for your venture.

Cost To Appoint iOS Programmers

Now, after knowing the several elements to remember while hiring iOS developers, you should see the cost of appointing them. There are numerous parameters that play a vital role in the costs of recruiting iOS programmers, out of which a few of them are mentioned below. Refer to each of them before analyzing the prices of iOS coders:

Complicacy

It is an essential component contributing to the cost of appointing an iOS coder to build a solution for your venture. The complicacy of an application includes:

  • The number and types of features.
  • The design of a platform.
  • Third-party apps to be integrated.
  • The specific database you select for storing user data of your application.

So, if you are thinking of building your iOS solution, then consider all these things about your app to be created. It will assist you in saving additional expenses after appointing iOS programmers.

Number of Coders

The cost also depends on a number of iOS programmers tenant by specific technology partners. The companies need to pay a certain amount to developers occupied working on your project, which relates to your application’s complexity, as discussed earlier. The rates of hiring iOS coders would likely be high if you want more attributes in your solution to be implemented, as a specific number of developers hired by you would not be able to work on other pending projects of the firm.

Experience

Based on how experienced an iOS programmer you have hired, the fees would be charged to you by them accordingly. It is because they will help you to avoid specific issues during and after creating the application for your business from their side. In addition, they will also provide you with a bugless application so that you don’t need to spend more money in the future to maintain your solution. Therefore, it’s suggestible that you should appoint a well-versed iOS developer that doesn’t charge much higher nor too lower fees for building your app.

Development Location

At last, along with covering all these factors, the cost to hire an iOS programmer is finally decided by the company, based on the development location. The charges for appointing an iOS developer from any specific country are determined based on their costs of living, hosting charges, and fees charged to them for accessing a particular function. Following are the rates of hiring iOS coders from different countries mentioned. Consider the table below to get an idea about appointing them from a specific location.

CountriesHourly Costs of iOS Developers(in $)
Australia$45 – $65
India$20 – $60
USA$60 – $90
Switzerland$55 – $80
Netherlands$50 – $75
Canada$35 – $70

Final Verdict

In the last few years, usage of iOS devices has skyrocketed to the next level, so numerous ventures have launched solutions in an Apple store to receive the advantages of increasing demand for its apps among people. Apart from this, many startup owners are planning to build their iOS applications for their enterprises, and if you are one of those, then refer to some qualities while appointing iOS programmers and the cost to select them mentioned in a post. It would help you in getting a clearer vision for hiring them.

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Community Tips

Debugging Techniques For Python Developers

Debugging is an essential skill for any programmer. Mastering this skill can help you identify problems quickly and effectively in your Python code. Without knowing how to debug code, developers will face endless hours of frustration trying to solve problems.

Fortunately, Python’s built-in tools and debugging techniques make it easy for developers to identify and fix errors without wasting too much time. To help you get the most out of your Python coding experience, this article contains a list of the top debugging techniques for Python developers. But first, you must know the importance of debugging and its practical use cases in the developer community.

The Importance of Debugging

As mentioned, debugging is among the essential Python skills that all developers need to know. A common misconception of debugging is that it’s only necessary for complex projects. In reality, debugging should be part of the development cycle of any project, regardless of its size or complexity. 

This process helps you identify and fix bugs in your code quickly and efficiently. It can also help you better understand the program’s flow of execution, which enables you to make more informed decisions about improvements or modifications to the code. 

Debugging Use Cases

A common mistake of new developers is to assume that debugging is only done to correct errors in code. In reality, debugging is used for more than just fixing errors. Here are some of the most common use cases:

  • Handling Python code errors that occur during program execution. Errors can be caused by incorrect syntax, type errors, name errors, etc. Different types of errors can occur in each code, and good debugging skills can get you out of a jam.
  • Investigating problems with code logic or implementation. This could include issues such as unintended infinite loops or unexpected output from functions. Debugging can help programmers determine the root cause of these issues and identify solutions.
  • Testing code for desired behavior. Debugging can be used to test if the code is working as intended. This could include checking for outcomes from functions, or ensuring that calculations are performed correctly.
  • Locating and removing code that is no longer necessary. As a developer, you should know that code can become obsolete over time. Debugging allows you to identify and remove obsolete or redundant code from your project. This could include dead code, duplicate functions, or redundant variables. 
  • Identifying potential performance issues in your program. Poorly written code can significantly slow the running time of a program. Thus, accurately tracking and diagnosing these problems is essential for efficiency. And yes, debugging can help with that.

Common Debugging Techniques For Python Developers

Now that you understand the importance of debugging and its various use cases, here are some of the most helpful techniques for Python developers:

The “print()” Function

The simplest way to debug a program is by using the print() function. This can be used to debug programs by displaying values in real time. But how, you may ask? This function allows you to print out variables and values to gain insight into what is going on with your program. It also helps you identify errors that appear during the execution of your code. Through this function, you can easily track the program’s flow of execution and identify any potential problems along the way.

Integrated Development Environment (IDE)

An IDE provides a suite of tools to help debug code more effectively. With features such as syntax highlighting, auto-completion, debugging consoles, and breakpoints, it allows you to quickly identify and fix errors without having to search through your code manually.

An IDE is present in almost every programming language, and Python is no exception. Popular IDEs include PyCharm and Visual Studio Code as the go-to choices for many developers. If you have the resources, you can try out different IDEs and find the one that works best for you.

Debugger

A debugger is a powerful tool used to step through code line by line. It can be used to inspect variables, set breakpoints, and trace functions as they execute in real-time. This helps you identify the exact source of an issue quickly and easily.

The Python debugger, known as pdb, comes installed with Python. It allows you to inspect the flow of control in your code. You can also set breakpoints with pdb which allows you to pause at specific points during program execution so that you can investigate what is going on at that time.

Logging

Logging can be used to keep track of errors and detect any unexpected behavior during the program’s runtime. This provides you with a record of events that can be used for further investigation into the cause of an issue. Many seasoned developers use logging as a reliable way to track errors and identify improvement points.

The logging module in Python allows you to create basic loggers that can be used for debugging purposes. This module also includes more advanced features such as custom levels, filtering, and formatting, making it even more powerful!

Conclusion

Debugging is one of the most critical aspects of development that every professional developer should learn. You can quickly identify and solve problems in Python code by learning and mastering the debugging techniques listed above. Remember, debugging is an essential part of the development process, so learning how to use these techniques efficiently will help you become a more productive and successful developer!

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Community

Spotlight on Salesforce Users

 Help improve the developer experience with Salesforce solutions.

Developer Nation is running a short survey with our friends at Salesforce. If you are currently using any Salesforce solutions (incl. Tableau, Heroku, MuleSoft, Slack, etc.), you can share your experience and help Salesforce improve its products. 

The State of Building & Developing on Salesforce is your opportunity to help Salesforce better understand how you build and develop using their platform so that they can improve your experience.

Previous developer surveys have provided great insight into who Salesforce Developers are and how developers learn and use Salesforce, which led to informed improvements. For instance, we learned that the developer community loves and engages with videos from Salesforce developer advocates, especially on platforms like YouTube. In particular, they prefer short video content that helps them solve tricky challenges. Based on these two helpful pieces of data, a YouTube playlist was created called Developer Quick Takes, demonstrating clever solutions in short-form videos.

This is for developers but also admins, architects, analysts, and more. 

In the past, the survey has been focused on developers only, but now it is welcoming anyone who builds and develops in the Salesforce ecosystem to participate. As the  Salesforce product portfolio has grown, the community that builds using them has also grown. In an effort to be inclusive, the survey is now open across several communities to include admins, developers, architects, analysts, and more. This survey covers products from the entire Salesforce ecosystem, including Heroku, Slack, Tableau, MuleSoft, and many others. Whether you use Salesforce low-code builders every day, write Apex code occasionally, or build in the Salesforce ecosystem in another way, we want to hear from you!

Have your voice heard and help shape the future of software 

At Developer Nation, we partner with tech companies to help them gain insights and thus equip their product teams with the right tools to create improved customer and product experiences.  Your feedback will be put to good use and shall inform product improvements and the future of building and developing Salesforce. We will also, share some key insights and an impressive list of prizes waiting to be claimed by the survey participants.

Take the survey now!

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Community

24th Developer Nation Survey Prize Draw Winners

The 24th Developer Nation Survey is live, here’s a look at the winners so far!

What are the Developer Nation Prize draws?

We run weekly prize draws throughout the survey period (December 8th 2022 to February 3rd 2023) for developers who have taken our survey. You can take a peek at the full list of prizes on offer here. In addition, developers earn 100 points for every survey completed, plus 10 points for providing their feedback about the survey.

For existing community members who have reached over 301 points, they are also included in exclusive prize draws!

We’ll be updating this blog throughout the survey period.  

ThinkPad L15 Gen 3 (15″ Intel)

Aleksandar of Serbia

Chaitanya of India

Arduino Explore IoT Kit

Intjar of India

Developer Nation Certified Artificial Intelligence (AI) Practitioner course powered by CertNexus (find out more here)

a************@h******.f* of France

Cristian of Colombia
P of United States

Developer Nation Certified Data Science Practitioner course powered by CertNexus (find out more here)

A of India

j**********@g****.c** of United States

s*******.s@g****.c** of India

CoPilot or Tabnine yearly licence

J of Philippines

Marco B

Deepam of India
Abiodun of Nigeria

SitePoint Premium Subscription

t***********@g****.c** of Kenya

Aleksei of Belgium

$100 towards an exam voucher of the winners choice

n********@g****.c** of India

r**********@g****.c** of India

Aaron of Australia

n******************@o******.c** of UK

IDE licence up to $100 in value

f*********@h******.c*.u* of United Kingdom

AER Tech Organiser Kit – Cable Kit 2

q******************@s**********.c** of United States

$50 Udemy course credits

Jachson of Philippines

Adafruit.io $50 gift card

a***********@g****.c** of India

$50 gift cards

Ravi shankar of India
Marius of Norway
Dawam of Indonesia
Dineshkumar of India

$30 Udemy course credits

Stuart of Czech Republic

Leonardo of Portugal

$20 gift cards

David of New Zealand

Adam of Australia

o********************@g****.c** of Nigeria

m**********@g****.c** of Philippines

c*************@g****.c** of India

Jose of Mexico

Angelo of Canada

Angie of Philippines

Csaba of United States

Deepam of India

m**********@g****.c** of India

Kabir of Nigeria

k**************@g****.c** of Kenya

l*******@h******.c** of Turkey

r***********@g****.c** of Romania

a**************@g****.c** of Turkey

Dejan of North Macedonia

Gabriel Jephter of Nigeria

M of Turkey

Dominik of Croatia

Andy of Canada

r******.p******@g****.c** of United States

a**********@g****.c** of Nigeria

Crezel of Philippines

Arcy of United States

g*******@m**.b******.n*.j* of Japan

k*******@g****.c** of Tanzania

e********@g****.c** of India

Ruri of Indonesia

Olalelekan of Nigeria

Sai Sirisha of India

b***********@g****.c** of Indonesia

b*****.r********@g****.c** of Indonesia

Utkarsh of India

Varuna of India

a*******@f*****.o** of Singapore

Argenis useche of Venezuela

Mahammad of Nigeria

Markus of Germany

Afnan of Pakistan

L of Denmark

Jithya of Australia

李文君 of China

c******@g****.c** of Nigeria

Dharanidharan B of India

c*******.d**.9*@g****.c** of Vietnam

n*******@g****.c** of Vietnam

n***********@g****.c** of India

p****@h******.c** of China

Savio of Brazil

m******************@g****.c** of Philippines

g**************@g****.c** of Argentina

c***********@g****.c** of Philippines

j********************@g****.c** of Philippines

f*******.a*****@z**.c**.b* of Brazil

a**********@g****.c** of Panama

J**********@g****.c** of United States

m************@g****.c**  of Kenya

$10 Gift Cards

Adeola of Nigeria

Christoffer of Sweden

Swag Packs

Tomokazusuzuki of Japan

H of Turkey

Menchie of Philippines

Etienne of Canada

Ernesto of México

Charmaine of Philippines

k***************@g****.c** of Philippines

j*******@s****.c** of Turkey

d*********@g****.c** of Nigeria

k*********@h******.c** of Colombia

p*******************@g****.c** of India

r******************@g****.c** of India

a****************@g****.c** of Philippines

s*********@g****.c** of India

Soul of New Machine book

s**************@g****.c** of United Kingdom

Community Draws

ThinkPad L13 Gen 3 (13″ Intel)

Chaitanya of India

iPad Air

Camille of United States

Swag Packs

J of United States

m**************@g****.c** of United States

Evan of United States

r***********@y****.c** of India

Richard of United Kingdom

s***********@g****.c** of Spain

B of United States

s********@g****.c** of India

Mandeep of India

m**************@g****.c** of India

r***********@y****.c** of India

s***********@g****.c** of India

Kashif of Pakistan

s********@g****.c** of Pakistan

i***********@g****.c** of Turkey

L of United States

Shane of United States

C of United States

Brian of United States

r***********@y****.c** of United States

Emily of United States

g*******@l***.c** of Netherlands

l**************@g****.c** of Israel

o**************@g****.c** of Germany

Agustín of Spain

b*******@g****.c** of Netherlands

N of Ireland

m******@g****.c** of Denmark

Aurelien of France

M of India

Pankaj of India

A of India

Prerna of India

b**********@g****.c** of India

Gael of Benin

s***********@g****.c** of Bangladesh

Ioannis of Greece

a*********@i*****.c** of Mauritius

M of Germany

Alan of United States

N of Italy

Jorge of Portugal

Jakub of Poland

Michael of Israel

Jaldhar of United States

Paweł of Poland

J of United Kingdom

l****@c*******.d* of United States

Brendan of United States

Deborah of United States

Arian of United States

t**************@g****.c** of United States

Serafino of Italy

A of Sweden

Naveen of India

Peter of Australia

Igor of Georgia

Bruno Blanco of Uruguay

Agustín of Spain

Javier of Spain

i**********@y****.c** of India

V of India

Jignesh of India

Puneet of India

Akshay of India

Shahroz of Pakistan

Oswaldo of Brazil

Martin of Sweden

Damith of Sri Lanka

Mats Tage of Greece

S of Germany

$50 Udemy Gift Cards

Gabriel of Indonesia

Volkan of Turkey

Morgan of France

d****.s*******@g****.c** of Australia

k***********@h******.c** of United Kingdom

Alexandre of Belgium

Jack of United States

A of Philippines

Paul of Malawi

Chris of New Zealand

$15 Gift Cards

Hamilton of Australia

Keith of United States

Lenin of South Africa

Nick of United States

Kenneth of Sweden

Jae H of Korea, South

Toluwalase of Nigeria

a****.e*******@l***.c** of Indonesia

Ernitia of Indonesia

P of South Korea

r*****.c****.g*******@g****.c** of Venezuela

j***************@y****.c** of Mexico

a.g*******@g****.c** of Egypt

Yohanes of Indonesia

Mavis of South Africa

Wawan of Indonesia

Nicolas of France

Onoriode of Nigeria

Adewale of Nigeria

v****@h*****.c** of India

K of Indonesia

Michael of New Zealand

h*********@h******.c** of Japan

Tang Ing Kai of Singapore

Mike of Canada

Constantine of Canada

Nicolas of Greece

Abraham Mathew Saji of Malaysia

Dinar of Indonesia

7th State of ARVR Survey

Meta Quest 2

Kunal of India

$20 gift card

Prince Thakkar of India

Raffaele of Italy

External hard drive

Suman of India

Referral Program Winners

Thanks to everyone who took on the challenge! If you want to test your influencer abilities in our next survey, make sure you join our Referral Program. Here are the top 50 winners:

What happens now?

We’ve reached out to all winners directly via email. 👀 If you don’t see your name on the list, don’t worry, we’ll have more surveys in the future.

To ensure that you are notified when our next survey is live, sign up. Don’t forget to make sure the survey notification option is ticked.

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Community News and Resources

The Art of Community: Why Developers Contribute to Vendor-Owned Open Source Projects

Why Developers Contribute to Vendor-Owned Open Source Projects

Open source software (OSS) development is deeply ingrained in the developer culture, representing a distinct and inclusive collaborative ecosystem. In this chapter, we will explore the motivations behind vendor-owned OSS contributions through the lenses of experience, global region, and the use of Stack Overflow. 

OSS projects represent the power of community: collaborative efforts to develop code and software which positively impacts a wider audience than the individuals involved. Vendor-owned OSSprojects, e.g. TensorFlow and Visual Studio Code, combine this sense of community with financial backing from the world’s largest tech companies – a powerful combination of stability and open cooperation. 

For every developer involved in vendor-owned OSS, there is a different motivating factor – why do developers contribute to these projects? The big picture is that the top-three motivators for vendor-owned OSS contributors are: wanting to learn how to code better (38%), to improve the software that they use (29%),and to contribute to something bigger than themselves (22%).

How does experience affect vendor-owned OSS contribution?

When compared to beginners, those with six years of experience or more are around 13 percentage points more likely to contribute in order to improve a software they use. These experienced and improvement-focussed developers are also much more likely to hold specialist roles compared to their less experienced peers. For example, they are six times more likely tobe software architects and five times more likely to be either tech/engineering team leads or site reliability engineers. They not only believe that the software they use can be improved, but that they also have the capability and skills to improve it.

Experienced developers devote significant attention to enhancing the open-source software (OSS) provided by vendors, which they actively use and rely on

In fact, improving software seems to be the main motivation for many senior developers – those with 16 years of experience or more are the least likely to contribute for the majority of the other reasons we list. Learning to code better, getting noticed by their company, and getting their code reviewed are much lower priorities among seasoned developers. This is to be expected given the amount of expertise and recognition they have typically accumulated by that stage of their career.

At the other end of the scale, those most willing to contribute for their own education are developers with 1-2 years of experience. Compared to those with even less experience,these developers are 58% more likely to be exclusively professionals and 48% less likely to be exclusively students. In other words, at this stage of their careers, they have enough professional know-how and confidence to contribute to vendor-owned OSS software – yet are pursuing further education for their coding skills by giving back to the community.

Vendor-owned OSS contribution around the world

According to our data, 73% of developers contribute to vendor-owned OSS globally, but the level of contribution varies around the world. Developers in South Asia are the most likely to contribute (85%), while those in Eastern Europe are the least likely (67%). As for the two largest regional developer communities, North America and Western Europe,78% and 70% of developers contribute to corporate OSS projects, respectively.

South Asia and the Middle East and Africa are hotspots for developers contributing to vendor – owned OSS projects in order to level up their coding skills

As for specific motivations, there are a couple of hotspot regions that stand out from the crowd. Nearly half (47%) of OSS contributors in the Middle East and Africa and SouthAsia are motivated by learning to code better and similarly, about one in four by the opportunity to have their code reviewed by more experienced colleagues: 10 and 5 percentage points above the global average, respectively. 

Tying in with our previous analysis: these regions also hold the two largest shares of developers with less than two years of experience – 52% for the Middle East and Africa and 73% for South Asia.

However, to see how motivations towards vendor-owned OSS change across the globe, we take a wider perspective. In doing so, we group motivations into three broad categories: individual-focussed (getting noticed by the company, learning to code better, etc), collaboration-focussed (getting their code reviewed by knowledgeable people, etc.), and business-focussed (building community support around a corporate open source software project). In this manner, we can get a view of how sentiments towards vendor-owned OSS change around the world.

For instance, we see that developers in Oceania are at least 5 percentage points more likely than any other region to have business-focussed motivations when contributing to vendor-owned OSS projects. This may be linked to the financial success/focus of developers in this region – 9% of OSS contributors in Oceania report that they or their organisation generate more than $1M of revenue every month on average,compared to the global average of 4%.

Female developers are considerably more likely to be business-focussed when contributing to vendor-owned OSS

An interesting note on gender: we see that globally, female developers are 26% more likely than male developers to be business-focussed in their approach to vendor-owned OSS contribution. This observation is particularly strong in Europe: 54%of female developers in Western and Eastern Europe are business-focussed, compared to 33% of male developers. However, as the proportion of OSS-contributing female developers (22%) is only slightly higher than the global proportion (21%), it’s unlikely that they drive business-focussed regional behaviour. 

How do OSS contributors useStack Overflow?

Let’s look at the usage of a website that is synonymous with cooperation in programming and software development and see how the proportion of OSS contributors changes with varying levels of interaction. For users of Stack Overflow, we see a behavioural trend–those who are more active on the website are more likely to contribute to vendor-owned OSS.

Diving into the specific usage patterns of Stack Overflow,those who don’t use or visit the site are the least likely to contribute to vendor-owned OSS for any reason, compared to those who use the site at any level. This is again related to experience: 39% of those who don’t use Stack Overflow havel ess than a year of software development experience and only 5% have an account with a badge; these developers are the least likely to contribute to vendor-owned OSS projects, after those with more than 16 years of experience.

Likewise, there are differences in motivations to contribute to vendor-owned OSS between those with or without StackOverflow badges. For example, only 28% of OSS-contributing developers without a badge want to improve the software they use, in contrast to 40% of developers with badges. A possible driver here is professional status – 74% of those without a badge are professionals. For those with a badge, 91% are professionals: these developers are not only more focussed on improvement, they are more willing to engage with the community to do so.

The strength of community shines through in vendor-owned OSS projects, where collaborative efforts to develop software have the remarkable ability to create positive impacts on a broader audience beyond the individuals directly involved. Here, we’ve shown that developers involved in vendor-owned OSS have different motivations depending on their experience, gender, and region, which in turn reflects how they use collaborative environments like Stack Overflow. 

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Community

Make the most out of 24th Edition of Developer Nation Survey – a CheatSheet

developer nation survey

The 24th Edition of Developer Nation survey is now live and this blog post is your cheat-sheet to know everything this survey wave has to offer and how to make most out of your experience as a survey participant. 

What is the Developer Nation Survey ?

If you have never participated in a Developer Nation survey before, this section is for you. 

It is our most complete global survey that we have ever created for professional developers, hobbyists, students, and no-code software creators. It is intended to shape the key trends among developers and software eco-system for 2023. 

When you participate in this survey you’re supporting the developer research which is used by companies and organisations creating developer centric products to provide for a better developer experience and as a bonus, you also get to win some amazing prizes and support the charities and causes you care about by donating to them. 

PARTICIPATE IN THE SURVEY

The Prizes

When you participate in the survey you’re eligible and automatically enters to win prizes from a pool worth  $19,000+ 

General prize draw: For every participant we have 250 prizes including:

  • 2 x ThinkPad L15 Gen 3, 
  • ThinkPad L13 Gen 3, 
  • iPad Air, 
  • DiY IoT kits, 
  • choice of gifts cards or crypto, 
  • Github CoPilot or Tabnine yearly licences, 
  • IDE licences, 
  • courses, 
  • Swag bags, 
  • cloud credits, and 
  • tech accessories.

Special prizes for Developer Nation community members: 

For our Developer Nation community members, alongside General Prize pool we also additionally have extra:

  • ThinkPad L13 Gen 3, 
  • iPad Air, 
  • swag bags, 
  • $15 vouchers.

You can choose to join the community during the survey sign up process or by subscribing to our fortnightly newsletter at: https://developernation.net/subscribe . As a community member you’ll be part of 70,000+ developers around the world and will be getting regular updates about :

All this is powered by the survey results intended to help our community members grow in their career journey and connect with like-minded people.

ARVR prize draw: 

As part of this global survey, we’ve a special section calling all Augmented (AR), Virtual(VR), Mixed(MR) and Extended(ER) Reality developers, designers and creators. 

Let us know what do you think the future holds for creators of these immersive technologies which will only take 10 mins to participate and make you eligible for additional prize draw pool including :

  • iPad Air 
  • ThinkPad L15 Gen 3
  • Meta Quest 2, 
  • KODAK PIXPRO SP360 4K PREMIER Pack, 
  • Crypto and Gift Cards 

Check more about winners from previous surveys in the blog here .

Donations

By participating in the survey, you can also support a cause you care about by donating to one of the following organisation or non-profit :

  • Girls Who Code
  • CoderDojo 
  • Free Code Camp
  • WWF
  • Raspberry pi foundation

You can read more about this in our last donation blog here .

So what’s Next?

The survey is live and will be running from December 8th 2022 till February 3rd 2023. You can pause the survey and finish it at your convenience, within the deadline. 

It is available in English + 8 additional languages including Chinese Simplified, Chinese Traditional, Spanish, Portuguese, Vietnamese, Russian, Japanese, and Korean

Participate and let your voices be heard. We’re excited to learn what has changed in the developer world these last 6 months. Which tools and platforms are you using now and if JavaScript still rules the world of programming? 

All these answers unveil along with the prize distribution with the 24th Edition of Developer Nation survey.

PARTICIPATE IN THE SURVEY

If you’ve any questions feel free to drop it in the comments or reach us back on any social media channels : https://developernation.net/links.

We can’t wait to hear from you. 

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Community

Why Python is the perfect choice for AI & ML project

With most companies using Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning technology, it’s significant to use a programming language that reduces the code complexity and offers simple implementation. 

Though developers have ample opportunity to use different programming languages, Python gives them an edge over other available languages. Python offers a large number of libraries with simple and flexible tools, which makes the job easier. 

Plus, it is one of the leading solutions that can work for ML and AI. Python has gained an extensive advantage over different programming languages and is being used for different projects. You can hire Python developers to know more about compatibility. 

Let’s dive deep and look into what makes Python an ideal choice. 

1. Huge frameworks and libraries 

Building different ML and AI projects can be time-consuming. And at times, the coding process can be a complex one. However, many libraries are prewritten and compatible with Python, so developers prefer it over other languages. 

The libraries available in the stock make the process seamless for new developers. Developers can pick a library based on the need of the project. For instance, the Pybrain is used for machine learning, and Scipy is specifically used for advanced computing. 

Also, programmers can save a lot of time by using the approach, which is a unique library. 

2. Flexible platform 

Python is a highly flexible platform and is suitable for every purpose. The programming language offers the benefit of choosing between scripting and OOPS. Plus, you can consider recompiling the source code in project development. 

It’s easier to bring any changes, which saves time. Additionally, it allows the developers to choose from different programming styles, following which they can combine various styles to create better projects. 

The language is suitable for linking different data structures and offers perfect backend solutions for programmers. Moreover, it’s the most feasible choice for programmers who are often stuck between different algorithms – providing them with the power to check the code.

3. Its quite popular 

Python is quite popular among the developer community for creating projects. It’s one of the top programming languages, and most developers love to use it for simple stacks and tools. 

Moreover, it is one of the most commonly used languages for new developers. Developers can easily choose from the many Python packages available online. With a wide choice of packages, choosing the one for the project becomes simple. 

Leading companies have been using the language for years, so it’s the most preferred choice for the AI community. It is also the number one choice for developers who work on machine learning projects.

4. Platform-independent nature

Python has a platform-independent nature and that’s why most developers prefer the language. It makes the entire process of building solutions more seamless and simple. 

Developers can work on multiple platforms without errors. By tweaking the codes, they can make the applications ready to run or go live in no time. Additionally, they can run the apps on different OS. 

By choosing Python, developers can save a lot of time they otherwise waste on testing applications. The flexibility of coding is the main feature of Python. 

5. Better visualization options 

As discussed earlier, Python comes with a variety of libraries that are available online, and those libraries come with visualization features and tools. Moreover, when it comes to AI, the developers need to develop visuals for a project. 

They need to highlight the visuals for accuracy and attention. Plus, it plays a vital role in presenting the data. For instance, libraries like Matplotlib can be helpful for programmers and data scientists. 

It allows creating of different charts and histograms and – creating plots for data comprehension. The tools help in visualization and representation, which helps the developers to build better reports. 

6. Clear readability 

With Python, you will get the benefit of readability, which is an important aspect of technology. It is a simple language, easy to use, and beginners can change the code. 

Unlike other programming languages, Python is not complex. Besides, ease of use plays a vital part in exchanging ideas, algorithms, and tools. As a result, AI professionals can use the language to bring minor or big changes to the project at any given time. 

Apart from the readability, there are tools available to create an interactive design. The external tools can help in debugging and tab completion. It can also help in testing. Additionally, it also plays a part in facilitating the work schedule. 

7. Rapid development and community support 

Python offers the benefit of prototyping, and if the developers are familiar with stacks, it saves time. Also, the developers don’t have to waste time in the integration of AI. Most developers consider Python simple as far as readability and writing are concerned. You won’t need to learn the complicated codes. 

Python offers extensive community support – backed by experts and professionals in the field. Additionally, it provides the developers with all the essential resources they need to work on. 

New developers can work quickly and hassle-free. Besides, the experts are always preparing to rescue new developers if they are stuck with the project. In every phase of the development cycle, you can take the help of experts. 

Wrapping up,  

AI and ML technology is constantly evolving and bridging gaps between companies. Implementation and integration can help increase efficiency and productivity. 

Additionally, the use of Python for the two technologies is providing solutions to real-life problems. Plus, you can expect a customised user experience with Python. 

Categories
Community

A Deep Dive into Studios Game Developers Work for

The nature of professional game developers’ work can vary depending on the type of studio they work for. In this chapter, we will explore the profile of developers working for different types of game studios, focussing on their experience, roles, and technology choices. 

For the first time in the latest edition of our Developer Nation survey, we asked professional game developers to describe the type of game studio they work for. The modern game development space has stratified itself into several different studio types, and within these studios, the types of tools and technologies used can vary significantly. Further to this, the profile of developers also shows differences between studio types.

We break down professional game developers as belonging to the following studio types:

  1. Game publishers, who outsource most of their development;
  2. Large-scale studios that develop and self-publish a collection of games;
  3. Third-party developers who work on various games from different publishers;
  4. Indie studios that publish and develop a small number of games

Here’s what we found

Game developers may be equally spread among different studio types, but we observe some important differences in their profiles. Developers with 3-5 years of experience are most commonly found in all types of studios except third-party developers; for this type of studio, their team is most likely to have 1-2 years of experience. Those with more than 11 years of experience in game development make up only a small portion of the general game developer population (11%) but have a much higher representation at indie studios (20%). 

The most experienced developers in the industry can choose where they work. They may be choosing to work for indie studios due to greater creative control over projects or a preference for working within small teams, now rarely found in AAA development. They may also make personal decisions to work for studio types that are less likely to be involved in ‘crunch’.

“Developers at Indie studios are twice as likely to be highly experienced – 16 or more years under their belts – than those working for other studio types”

Mid-career game developers–those with 6 to 15 years of experience–make up more than a third (37%) of the developer workforce in large-scale studios, compared to only a quarter (24%) among professional game developers in general. The scope and complexity of the properties that large-scale studios work on may drive demand for more experienced developers. Despite this, the most experienced developers still more frequently choose indie studios, indicating that the previously suggested factors may outweigh the offers large-scale studios can make to these developers.

Of the many roles game developers may hold, we consider game designers, artists, UI designers, programmers, and QA engineers as the ones that consumers would likely identify with game development and are often the ‘core’ roles for producing games. Differences in studios can be seen by the different percentages of developers identifying themselves with these roles. Those who self-identify as programmers account for 39% of those working for indie studios, which is significantly higher than the professional game developer average (24%). 

Similarly, the proportion of developers working for indie studios describing their roles as either game designer (46%), artist (27%), or UI designer (14%) is nearly double that of the population average, 23%, 15%, and 8%, respectively. The proportion of these roles between studios makes sense, considering the nature of development within these types of studios. Indie studios are typically smaller than other studios, with 66% of indie developers working for companies with up to 20 employees, compared to only 43% and 34% of developers working for game publishers and third-party studios, respectively. This can lead to more employees in a studio being directly involved in game design and development.

“Third-party studios have twice the proportion of developers in test roles compared to other game studios”

A counter-example can be seen with QA engineers, who are twice as prevalent in third-party studios (10%) compared to the population average (5%). Third-party studios having a larger proportion of QA engineers corresponds to their role in development cycles. These studios do a lot of development in-house, often work on larger projects, and can undertake contract work for larger studios, all of which require dedicated QA departments.

Further differences between game studios can be found in the choices of game engines. Unity and Unreal Engine are the most used game engines, with 33% and 15% of game developers using them as their primary engines, respectively. However, among developers who work for indie studios, these two game engines account for 48% and 20% of developers, compared to less than 28% and 12% for developers at other studios. Both engines are widely used and popular, with Unity being the most used engine for all studio types, but they have specific business and technical aspects that appeal to indie developers.

Why Developers use Unity

Due to its flexibility and ease of use, Unity was the common choice for indie developers when the scene emerged. This has led to a large online community and marketplace to support indie developers with tutorials, assets, and customised libraries. Unreal Engine is also popular amongst indie developers with it being considered one of the most powerful out-of-the-box engines and having a licensing structure that doesn’t require royalties to be paid until a game makes more than $1 million in revenue. The difference in popularity between the two game engines for indie developers likely lies in the availability of assets in the Unity store. Unity Asset Marketplace has over 77,000 assets and tools, compared to Unreal Marketplace’s 22,000, allowing small indie studios to offset development time with ready-made assets and tools.

“Unity and Unreal Engine are the most popular engines for game developers, with particularly high adoption by developers at indie studios”

Unity and Unreal have many tools and utilities but are not capable of performing every possible aspect of game design. In contrast, in-house or custom tools allow developers to focus on working with engines designed around the specific requirements of their games, as well as develop tools to optimise both development and performance. Amongst the large-scale and third-party studios, the second most popular engine choice is the use of either an in-house or proprietary engine–16% and 12%, respectively. These studios have the resources, time, and business motivation to focus on developing their engines. Use amongst large-scale developers is further incentivised by allowing assets and developers to move between projects more seamlessly, with a greater familiarity with the engine.

Engines Game Publishers prefer

Game publishers have a similar level of resources and time, but their in-house engines are often pivoted to commercial engines. Unreal Engine was developed by publisher EpicGames, Source from Valve, and RedEngine from CDProjektRed. Among game publishers, the engines initially developed by a publisher but are no longer in-house, make up another 15% of primary engine choices.

Less than 5% of developers working at indie studios use in-house engines; instead, Godot is the next most common engine choice. Godot is an open-source game engine that has built a strong community of developers around it. It has created supporters due to its dedicated 2D engine and its Python-like language GDScript which accommodates many Python users worldwide and is especially popular among student developers. The open-source nature of the engine also means indie developers do not have to worry about licensing or subscription changes, reducing financial demands and worries. 

Access research reports that highlight key current and emerging development trends, expertly narrated by our analysts, based on the data from our global surveys by joining the community. Click here to join. 

Categories
Community Tips

The Rise and Fall of Web Frameworks

Web frameworks speed up and simplify the web development process by providing developers with a set of high-level APIs that allow abstract access to underlying system resources and other low-level functionalities. In this article, we look at how web frameworks have risen or declined in popularity, and we explore the profiles and technology use of the developers who use them. 

The big picture of web usage framework

Born out of the necessity to provide consistent web experiences, frameworks revolutionised how web developers create our online world. With standardised approaches to development and framework-specific communities available for support, they are still a popular choice amongst web developers. According to our survey data, 60% of web developers use either client-side or server-side frameworks. 

Indeed, web frameworks often present a time-saving option for web developers to do their jobs in simple and efficient ways. When turnaround times are tight, developing a website or a web app from the ground up may not necessarily be the best option, particularly when working with demanding clients. Indeed, when we look at deployment frequency, lead time, and time to restore service, framework users are likelier to be at the elite efficiency level. 12% of web developers who use frameworks deploy their code on demand, 8% have a lead time of less than an hour, and 51%take less than a day to restore service. For web developers who don’t use frameworks, 9% deploy their code on demand,5% have a lead time of less than an hour, and 43% take less than a day to restore service.

“Web developers using frameworks are more likely to deploy code on demand, have smaller lead times, and are quicker to restore service”

However, there are disadvantages to using frameworks. For example, it is unlikely that one framework will provide everything a web developer needs, just as it is unlikely that a web developer will use everything that a framework or a library has to offer. The proliferation of different frameworks with different standards and guidelines only further muddies these waters. In this case, it may be easier to stick to one or two frameworks and supplement their use with custom code rather than creating a bloated working environment. 

Indeed, that’s what our data shows–the share of web developers using three or more frameworks is gradually dropping. Now, the average number of frameworks used is approximately the same for developers of all experience levels, around 3.2. However, usage habits change depending on specific years of experience–and may give an indication of what’s in store for the future of web development. 

For example, those with less than five years of experience are more likely to use one framework (22%) than those with six years or more (17%). While age is not necessarily correlated with experience, we see a similar trend for those aged 24 and under(22% use one framework) compared to those 45 and above(17%). 

We can take a look at specific frameworks to see who is using what. React is by far the most popular client-side library, as it is used by 58% of web developers who use client-side web frameworks. React’s stable popularity as a library is contrasted by jQuery’s decline, which has experienced a 13 percentage point drop in usage in the past 12 months. Comparing the two, React is perhaps more capable of handling the modern web development environment–it’s faster, has a larger library of npm packages and is efficient at creating larger web applications.

Who are the developers using jQuery? 

Looking closely, we find that those with more than 11 years of web development experience are nine percentage points more likely to use jQuery than those with less than ten years (49% vs 40%). Similarly, these seasoned web developers are less likely to use React(52%) compared to their peers (58%). As jQuery was created nearly a decade before React, it makes sense that those with more web development experience are sticking to what they know. 

“Experienced developers are more likely to use jQuery and less likely to use React than their peers”

What about server-side frameworks?Next.js and Spring have been on the rise in the past 12 months.Next.js’ and their popularity is likely linked with React–after all, Next.js is a framework built upon React. Infact, 86% of those who use Next.js also use React; for comparison, only 45% use jQuery. As for Spring–a Java-based framework–itsincrease in usage may be explained by a similar increase in Java use amongst web developers–8 percentage points in the past 12 months (27% vs 19%). 

A frameworks user mindset

What does framework use mean for the technology use of web developers? If a web developer is forced to configure or write an application in a particular way, it may narrow their skillset as it forms a reliance on a particular architecture. When we look at the web developer population, it seems that those who use frameworks are actually more likely to be self-driven, have technical skills, or use web technologies when compared to those that don’t use frameworks. 

Framework users are more likely to have learnt how to code through self-education (66% vs 55%) and are more likely to manually download packages from npm(45% vs 36%). Similarly, they are more likely to use each of the top-ten web development technologies listed in our survey.

“Web developers who use frameworks are much more likely to have learnt to code through self-education”

Of these technologies, continuous integration/deployment (CI/CD)services are particularly worth mentioning–framework users are more than twice as likely to use these compared to non-framework users. As we’ve previously highlighted, framework users are more efficient when it comes to code deployment. However, framework users that also use CI/CD tools are 5 percentage points more likely to deploy on demand (15%) than framework users who don’t use CI/CD tools (10%).

Finally, while the share of web developers who use low-code or no-code tools has increased by 9 percentage points in the past six months (54%)–for framework users this share is 40%. This corresponds to an increase of only 5 percentage points in the same timeframe. In other words, those who are using frameworks are more likely to rely on old-fashioned coding by hand and have the skills to do so.

Access research reports that highlight key current and emerging development trends, expertly narrated by our analysts, based on the data from our global surveys by joining the community. Click here to join.