Monday 27 June 2022

Getting started with web Apps in Microsoft Azure by iFour Technolab

 

Getting started with web Apps in Microsoft Azure

Source of content: https://www.ifourtechnolab.com/blog/getting-started-with-web-apps-in-microsoft-azure

What is Microsoft Azure?

Microsoft Azure is also known as Windows Azure, it is Microsoft’s public cloud computing platform. Microsoft Azure provides a range of cloud services, including compute, analytics, storage, and networking. The user can pick and choose from these services to develop and scale new applications, or run existing applications in the public cloud.

This platform aims to help businesses and manage challenges to meet their organizational goals. Microsoft Azure offers four different forms of cloud computing such as Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), platform as a service (PaaS), software as a service (SaaS), and serverless.

Prerequisites

You can create a free account with your email id in Microsoft Azure Portal. Install Visual Studio 2019.

If Visual Studio 2019 already installed on your computer then

  • Install the latest updates in Visual Studio by selecting Help > Check for Updates.

  • Select Tools > Get Tools and Features.

Create an ASP.NET Core Web App

These are the following steps to create an ASP.NET Core web in Visual Studio:

1. Create a new project in Visual Studio.

2. In a selected project, select the ASP.NET Core Web Application, then click Next.

3. Configure your new project, project name azureWebApps, and select Create

mainpage
Figure: Create a new project

4. In the ASP.NET Core web app, you can deploy any types of web app to Azure, choose the Web Application template. By default, Authentication is set to No Authentication, and you have no other option then to select Create.

mainpage
Figure: Select Web Application

5. In Visual Studio, Select Debug > Start Without Debugging and run your web app locally.

mainpage
Figure: Run Project

Publish Your Web App

When you publish your web app, you should initially create and configure a new App Service that you can publish your web app too.

There are the following steps to create App Service:

  • In Microsoft Azure, A new resource group contains all of the Azure resources for the service.

  • In Microsoft Azure, A new Hosting Plan specifies the location, size, and features of the web server farm that hosts your app.

Follow the below steps to create your App Service and to publish your web app.

1. Open Solution Explorer, right-click the azureWebApps project, and select Publish. You have not already signed-in to your Azure account in Visual Studio, select either Add or Sign In. In Microsoft Azure, you have to create a free Azure account.

2. Choose App Service, select create new, and then select create profile in that section pick a publish target dialog box.

3.app. In this name, Valid characters are alphanumeric and “- “. This name is used as the URL prefix for your app in the format

4. Accept the subscription that is listed or select a new one from the drop-down list.

5. Select New in Resource group, after New resource group name, enter resourceGroupName and select OK.6. Select the New for Hosting Plan

6. Select the New for Hosting Plan.

7. Create a new dialog, enter the values specified in the following table in the Hosting Plan.

 
SettingSuggested ValueDescription
Hosting PlanazureWebAppsPlanName of the App Service Plan.
Location The datacenter where an app is hosted.
SizeFreeThe Pricing tier determines hosting features.

8. Set to none in Leave Application Insights.

9. Create a new dialog box, select create to start creating the Azure resources in the App Service.

10. Select Publish, once you are completed.

The Visual Studio publishes your ASP.NET Core web app to Azure, and your app is launched in your default browser.

Your ASP.NET Core web apps are running live in Azure App service.

Update the App and Redeploy

There are the following steps to update and redeploy your web app.

1. In your project, open Pages > Index.cshtml.

2. You can change code as per the requirements of your project.

Example:

<div class="jumbotron"><h1 class="display-4">Microsoft Azure Demo</h1>
<p>Learn about building Web apps with ASP.NET Core in Microsoft Azure!.</p></div>

3. Right-click the azureWebApps project in Solution Explorer and select Publish, redeploy to Azure.

4. Select Publish, on the Publish summary page.

Visual Studio launches a browser to the URL of the web app after publishing completes.

mainpage
Figure: Output window after div changes

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Manage the Azure App

If you manage your web app, go to the Azure portal, and search for and select App service. Select the name of your web app on the App Services page.

There are many options for basic management like browse, stop, start, restart, delete in the Overview page for your web app. The left side panel provides further pages for configuring your app.

Clean Up Resources

In the above steps, you have created Azure resources in a resource group. If your web app is not needed in the future, so you can delete them by deleting the resource group. Select Resource group from the Azure portal menu or Home page. Select your resource group name on the Resource groups page.

There are listed resources once you want to delete on your resource group name.

You can select the Delete resource group, type your resource group name in the next box to confirm, and select Delete.

Conclusion

If you are a student and you have created projects in any language like PHP, ASP.NET, Ruby, Python, Node.js, Java, etc, Azure is the best platform for your project to run it live.

In Azure, we’ve explored Azure’s compute and storage services, SQL Azure, Access Control, and Service Bus, and we’ve seen how our existing skills works in .NET and SQL Server that can easily be leveraged on Azure. We hope you acquired a useful information and a better understanding of how WebApps work in Azure.

Monday 13 June 2022

How to apply different Themes on WPF Application? - iFour Technolab

 

How to apply different Themes on WPF Application? - iFour Technolab

What is a Theme?

Theme means the overall look, layouts, and style of the website or Application. In WPF when the style is used at the Application Level it is known as the theme of the application.

WPF styles are used at various levels like control, layout, window, and Application. When you define style at the application level it is accessible on the entire application.

The style is the same as the Style we are using in CSS. Style means assigning various properties to control and use that style whenever it is needed. Styles improve the UI experience.

In WPF, the styles are defined in the resource dictionary. Each style has a unique key identifier and target type, inside the style tag we can define multiple setter tags to set different styles in a property. To use those styles all over the application, we will put styles inside the app.XAML file.

Steps for creating a theme

Create a WPF application in visual studio and give a proper name to the application.

Go to the app.xaml page and apply styles on this page.

code1 - iFour Technolab

Use those styles to your designing page (.xaml page) using TargetType or using key

Let's see an example to understand better.

Here I develop the WPF app with two windows - Login & registration in which I am using some controls with style applied from the app.xaml file.

This is my app.xaml file in which I put all the styles for control which I am using in this WPF application

 
App.xaml
code1
code1

Here I apply some styles using setter tag to various properties to controls like a label, textbox, combo box, etc.

In style x:key property is set, it tells WPF to use the style on the control when explicit reference is given.

And in setter tag, we can the define a property of the control and value of that property.

This is my Registration page & Login page where I apply a style using the key from the app.xaml file. You can apply TargetType also.

 
Registration Page(MainWindow.xaml)
code1
code1
 
Output
output1
 
Login (Login.xaml)
code1
 
Output
output2

This way we can apply a simple theme to the application by using the style in the app.xaml page.

You can also use a custom theme to your application to make it more attractive.

There are lots of tools that provide custom themes for making applications more attractive and with custom controls.

Custom Themes

Custom theme means themes with unique design, layouts, colors, and features based on need or requirement.

Custom themes provide functionalities like change theme mode in dark/light. Different controls could be customized with a fascinating look. These are done using some triggers which change the value of a property when the specific condition gets satisfied.

Some Tools that are used for WPF custom themes are -

Telerik UL for WPF

Telerik UL for the WPF tool provides such themes with light & dark mode and also provides a color theme generator to change the color variation of the theme that we can use in your projects.

Those themes contain various styles and resources needed for visualizing Telerik controls.

We can set Telerik themes using implicit styles and styleManager. Implicit styles give full blend support and smaller dll size. The styleManager is used when working with standard dlls, it is the class that applies various styles on Telerik control base on themes apply/set on application.

It provides themes like Office 2019, Visual Studio 2019, Crystal, Fluent, Material, Office 2016, and many more.

Wants to Talk with Our Highly Skilled WPF Developer? - Contact Now.

DevExpress

It provides over 30 themes for the WPF application that you can use but without modification or manipulation in the main theme.

We can customize themes using these two approaches. First is Palettes and the second is using WPF theme designer. Create custom palettes and use those palettes in the theme. WPF theme designer is a standalone tool, using that you can modify and or create themes that are built-in DevExpress WPF Application Themes.

Themes available from DevExpress are Office 2019, Visual Studio 2019, Office 2016 SE, TouchlineDark, and many more.

Actipro

Actipro also provides various themes that is applied to all controls whether they are actipro control or native WPF control.

Themes like Standard, Metro, office colorful, office black, Custom, etc. are provided.

Conclusion

In this blog, we have learned about WPF themes, different ways of applying it, and how it works. Being a part of Microsoft collections, it provides magnificent features with extraordinary theme customization support.


Content Source From:  https://www.ifourtechnolab.com/blog/how-to-apply-different-themes-on-wpf-application

Website: www.ifourtechnolab.com

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Wednesday 8 June 2022

How to Improve Usability and User-Friendliness for Software, Web and Mobile Applications?

 

How to Improve Usability and User-Friendliness for Software, Web and Mobile Applications - iFour Technolab

When you build web or software or mobile app, everything from on boarding to checkout required to work correctly. Usability is a major unit of mobile app development or web development and plays a significant role in creating user experiences that are systematic, pleasant to use, and delightful.

According to an online survey, android apps are the most used with over 48 billion app installations to date. Also, with over 80% of the market being overtaken by android app challengers which are high in the market, and android development firms scuffle to be at the top.


What is Android application usability?

Mobile app usability encourages learnability. An eminent mobile app should be impulsive. It should take very minor time for a user to gain a certain degree of affinity with the interface.

Many people complicate UX design with usability and vice versa. However, the mobile app functionality is an outlook of UX that participates in the overall relationship between user and product. UX defines all aspects of a user’s attitude toward a mobile app, including usability. Android app usability is apprehensive about the efficiency, effectiveness, and simplicity of attaining goals within the app.

Tips to Improve Web, Software and App Usability

Following are the best four user experience tips to improve android apps usability

 

1. Anticipate Value right away

Prominent user onboarding not only lowers evacuation rates but can also help uplift long-term success metrics like user retention and user lifetime value.

If you wish new users to come back to your app, you need to make sure that they uncover the value early on, initially during the onboarding process. If you don’t assure users to stay within the first week, you are likely going to lose them forever. Millions of apps drench the market, all of them approaching for user attention, so it is critical to make sure you provide immediate value. One of the expert Joseph William from FireStick Hacks says “Best Interface is No Interface”.

“To deliver impressive GUIs, remember—users are humans, with needs such as comfort and a limit on their mental capacities. You should follow these guidelines:

  • se proper alignment. Typically choose edge (over center) alignment.
  • Draw attention to key features using:
  • Color, brightness and contrast. Avoid including colors or buttons excessively.
  • Text via font sizes, bold type/weighting, italics, capitals and distance between letters. Users should pick up meanings just by scanning.
  • 1.Make buttons and other common elements perform predictably (including responses such as pinch-to-zoom) so users can unconsciously use them everywhere. Form should follow function.
  • 2.Maintain high discoverability. Clearly label icons and include well-indicated affordances: e.g., shadows for buttons.
  • 3.Keep interfaces simple (with only elements that help serve users’ purposes) and create an “invisible” feel.
  • 4.Respect the user’s eye and attention regarding layout. Focus on hierarchy and readability:
  • 5.Minimize the number of actions for performing tasks but focus on one chief function per page. Guide users by indicating preferred actions. Ease complex tasks by using progressive disclosure.
  • 6.Put controls near objects that users want to control. For example, a button to submit a form should be near the form.

Because the best interface is no interface, you should offer users the most direct, accessible, comfortable control (and best experience) where they’ll forget they’re using your design.”

2. Simple navigation in App design

One of the prior issues that users face when using mobile apps particularly is poor navigation.

The navigation should be intelligible for the user so they won’t end up off track on any random page. Many apps include distinctive features but tussle to fit them together in a way that makes sense for the user.

Now, if you generate any barrier in the way of users to hit their targets, they may exasperate or lost the straight path that helps them reach faster. First expert opinion on this from Damien Martin, Marketing Executive of Shufti Pro Pro says “One way to enhance the UI/UX is to keep it simple, and here I mean simplicity in content, design, flow, and even the privacy notice you get signed from them. The simple and minimalistic design and content help attract user's attention to the right points on your screens. The minimalistic design makes easier for you to make any changes when needed without redoing the whole thing. Another important aspect is to keep your clicks to the minimum so that you don't annoy your end-users. Keeping it simple is the trick in UI/UX.”

Second expert opinion on this from Michael Miller, CEO of VPN Online Multimedia Inc. says, “Simple and easy to understand. When designing software, you must always take into consideration the user. People will love using your software if it's simple and easy to understand. Group together the controls that are typically used. Make sure that it's easy to know how to use these controls. Easy to understand also means the user would be able to know what to do once he sees the software. Predictability is one factor you should always include in your designs. These are a couple of things you can add to enhance software usability.”

Wait, we have third one opinion from Laura Fuentes, Operator of Infinity Dish says, “Keep your designs simple and consistent. Beautiful and vibrant colors are great but users need to be able to easily find options so it is best to have visible buttons and icons. Keep your design consistent throughout so that users can become familiar with your design and easily find what they are looking for each time.”

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3. Incisive and clear content

This is an extremely prior part of the buying process. It’s common knowledge to rationalize content when designing for mobile.

You should be modifying your content for mobile, rather than copying it precisely from the web. Including too much information in your mobile app will doubtlessly result in poor UX with frustrated users spading to find specific content.

Make it as easy as possible for the user to digest your content with as little tweaking and swooping as possible by representing the information clearly and concisely. For this, we have broad expert views starting from Nik Slezkinsky, Head of UX/UI Design at Devexperts says, “In the Mobile field, move CTA and Cancel actions to the bottom side of the phone screen. At least provide some comfortable ergonomic gestures to avoid irritating and even painful necessity to reach “buttons” placed in top-left and top-right display corners. For modal or overlaying windows, I suggest applying the Down Swipe windows to enhance opportunities to Cancel/Close the ones as an example of a more comfortable gesture.”

Another expert view on this from Bruce Hogan, CEO of Software Pundit recommends,

“*Removing unnecessary form fields*. One of the best ways to improve the user experience is to remove form fields. In the checkout flow, this could mean removing an unnecessary username field, email field, or any other field that is not 100% necessary to complete the transaction. This will also result in a boost in overall conversion rate.

*Using auto-fill*. Another website improvement that almost always improves conversion is the use of auto-fill to complete forms on behalf of website visitors. This could mean auto-filling address information after a customer enters a zip code, or entering information you have saved about the customer into a field.

*Testing guest checkout*. Guest checkout is a big UX/UI win for most websites, and can lead to a big conversion improvement. Guest checkout allows customers to complete their transactions without signing up for an account with the website. This streamlines the checkout flow for those who do not want to create an account.”

Third one from Hiral Atha, CEO of Moveoapps says, “Reduce visual fatigue. In simple terms, do everything you can to reduce eye strain. With most of your users reeling under a pandemic and working/studying from home, screen times have shot up much higher than the doctors recommend. Making your UI/UX easier on the eyes could be THE best thing you do for your users right now.

Try using dark themes, or opt for backgrounds that are off-white, at least 5-20% grey, along with highlights to draw attention to specific areas. Make links self-explanatory wherever possible. Use audio as much as possible and transcripts wherever required. Contrast is your best friend, use it well. Test with the TPG Colour Contrast Analyser to confirm website contrast passes.”

4. Condense scrolling

Scrolling down is sometimes inevitable and required in some instances, but side-scrolling is something that should be eschewed.

Content prioritization also grants notably to the usability of an app. Users should get most if not all of the information they require to plan within the limits of their screen. If a user needs to scroll sideways, it typically conceals valuable content. Dmytro Okunyev Founder of Chanty says, “Do a Small Test, It will Help You a Lot. Validate your assumptions and never do anything because “your gut feeling says so”. Your gut feeling could very well be wrong and just because something worked on one type of customer with one type of app, it doesn’t mean that it will hold true for another audience. When you want to try out a new feature or a layout, first do a small beta test and validate your idea before implementing it across your entire user base. Sometimes, even the best plans in theory can flop horribly when they’re put in actual use.”

Chanh Nguyen, UX/UI Designer and Developer at Objectiveinc.com says, “One UI/UX tip to enhance software usability and user-friendliness for software, cloud, web or mobile application Test and iterate designs frequently to get rid of any assumptions. Doing so will help save time and get the answer you need to create the best user experience.

 




Thursday 2 June 2022

Fintech software development opportunities in the IT sector

 

Fintech software development opportunities in the IT sector

Today’s Financial corporations often rely on cutting-edge technologies to create sophisticated Fintech systems and streamline operations. People consistently deal with virtual payments and transactions every now and then. Hence, it is critical to maintaining reliability and security over the customers’ data.

Technology innovation has brought a drastic change in the Finance industry, propelling it in a new direction. Interactions with banking systems have become considerably speedier in this digital age. Facts reveal that about 77% of financial companies have adopted innovations such as Blockchain, IoT, Big data, AI, and ML to unleash their business potential.

In this blog, we will uncover various Fintech software development opportunities in the IT sector.

Blockchain technology

“Fintech software development has never been more important than it is today with the rapid evolution of financial technology. We feel that the early movers will use blockchain tech to gain an advantage over late adapters in this space. Blockchain tech offers many benefits including transparency, security, and efficiency while also reducing operational costs significantly.

On the insurance and banking side, many of these technologies are merging. In my opinion, the best opportunity for fintech software development is using the tremendous amount of consumer data available to better underwrite individual insurance risk. Add the transparency of the blockchain to this software and I truly feel this would move mountains.”

- Jimmy McMillan, Owner of Heart Life Insurance

Digital banking

"With their new and user-oriented perspective, digital banks are sweeping over the banking industry. According to The Guardian, the number of people using mobile banking in the UK is anticipated to surpass the number of people using traditional banks by 2021. Traditional banks are often associated with a large list of rules and restrictions, sluggish service, and irritation for many individuals. Users increasingly prefer vendors that can deliver rapid and easy service in our fast-paced environment. Digital banks have filled this need by introducing a totally user-oriented approach to the business and responding quickly to consumers' demands and expectations.

The days of spending a whole day in line, carrying a large stack of paperwork, and dealing with bank employees are long gone. To open a bank account nowadays, all you need is your phone and some identification. It will take you no more than 15 minutes to complete the procedure, plus an extra week for your actual card to be issued and mailed. AI and machine learning are important components of offering such a seamless service because they ensure that each client receives tailored help and has access to customer care 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Fintech applications also make it simple to move money between accounts and monitor your finances.”

- Bram Jansen, Chief Editor of vpnAlert

Payment gateways

"It's difficult to come across a commercial product that doesn't need charging. As a result, payment processing firms are responsible for all of our internet purchases. After we click the order button, the process that appears to be taking place only between two parties—the vendor and the buyer—is frequently joined by a third party: payment processing firms. For a safe and seamless checkout procedure, most e-stores and online service providers rely significantly on payment gateways. It's critical to provide complete security on these platforms since they can easily be utilized for money laundering. Such businesses deal with highly sensitive and confidential user data, which is why establishing a trustworthy brand using cutting-edge encryption technology is essential if they want to attract consumers.

There are currently numerous major competitors in the industry, including PayPal, Stripe, Amazon Pay, and a few more. At least one of these has almost certainly come across your path previously. PayPal, for example, accounts for more than half of the market share in this sector. If you have a product that requires the deployment of a payment processor, you may check into Stripe Connect, Chargebee, or Braintree, which are all currently available. As existing successful players actively monitor and comply with finance-related government rules, integrating a well-established service will take care of the essential regulatory and legal compliances. Furthermore, such platforms often have anti-fraud mechanisms in place, ensuring that your goods and transactions are secure.”

- Neil Shaw, Founder & CEO of Lottery Sambad

“For a secure and seamless checkout experience, most e-stores and online service providers rely largely on payment gateways. It's difficult to come across a commercial product that doesn't require charging. As a result, payment processing businesses are responsible for all of our internet purchases. It's critical to provide complete security on these platforms because they can easily be utilized for money laundering. As a result, I believe this is an area of software development that is viable.”

- Cindy Corpis, CEO of SearchPeopleFree.net

P2P lending

"We've all experienced the bureaucratic nightmare that is applying for a loan with a typical bank. Even if you have a strong credit history, getting your request accepted might take weeks or even months. This procedure is considerably more difficult to handle for those who do not have a stable income. Banks might easily reject your loan application due to your low credit history or young age. P2P firms developed more accessible and practical alternatives when banks failed to satisfy the demands of some potential clientele. P2P lending applications provide forums for borrowers and lenders to directly negotiate terms without the influence of banks or regulators.

Statistics suggest that younger individuals favor this category, with over half of P2P lending app users in Europe being between the ages of 22 and 37. Another significant benefit of borrowing money through fintech applications is that, because of increased competition among lenders, interest rates are typically lower than those offered by banks. Plaid API is a valuable tool for those working on the creation of a product in this industry. This solution can assist you in providing a seamless underwriting procedure. It will collect all essential data from a borrower and then determine the total amount of money that may be securely supplied to this individual without putting the lender in danger.”

- Chris Nddie, Co-Owner & Marketing Director of ClothingRIC

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Robotic advisors

"New wealth management tools are assisting young investors in efficiently allocating their assets and developing their portfolios without the need for human involvement. Your personalized advice is based on the data you submit in a questionnaire, which includes your investment objectives, financial possibilities, and risk tolerance. With the assistance of these digital platforms, financial advisory services that were once prohibitively expensive are now becoming more accessible. This industry also offers several chances to recruit new customers and increase market share. It's because the entrance hurdle for Roboq-advisers ($5,000) is far lower than for human advisors ($100,000 to $200,000).

Financial robotic advisers' major goal is to make investing more accessible, cheap, and hassle-free. They have the potential to be used not only for personal wealth management but also for business decision-making. Because most of the recommendations are made up entirely of ETFs, the full potential of these technologies has yet to be realized. What if investors want to take it a step further? For example, CI Direct Investing offers two distinct portfolios with varying prices to its consumers. The first will use a portfolio of low-risk ETFs, while the second will use mutual funds as well, but with a greater interest rate.”

- Lauren Cook-McKay, Director of Marketing & Content at Divorce Answers

Personal finance

"It's easier than it's ever been to keep track of your own money. We can now track our spending, plan our budgets, manage our savings, and do a lot more with our money thanks to new applications. Treat them like personal assistants who do all of the time-consuming but important financial duties. You may no longer be concerned about exceeding a balance using solutions that connect to your cards and digital wallets. Apps like You Need A Budget can help you keep track of your finances. It will assist you in not just managing urgent requirements, such as staying under your monthly budget, but also in planning future spending and saving for long-term goals. Importantly, the thorough and easy-to-understand spreadsheets produced by these technologies help consumers make better financial decisions.

Insurtech is another area of personal finance that has grown significantly in recent years. Startup funding increased from $300 million in 2013 to $6.37 billion in 2019, the highest amount ever recorded in this sector. The technologically sophisticated entrants who are delivering effective services at a quicker rate are reshaping a sector that was once quite traditional.”

- Jennifer Carter, Crypto Analyst at Credit Donkey

Innovative technologies

“OPPORTUNITIES:

Experts in the relatively new tech-based areas of AI and Blockchain technology also provide a wealth of knowledge that can be applied to a variety of areas of a Fintech company's operations, including fraud detection, user identification validation, cybersecurity, data automation, cloud-based services, and technical support. As can be seen, the options are vast, and the potential is much greater, making software development in the Fintech sector a very appealing and rewarding career option. Financial companies have long relied heavily on Java programming technologies. Matlab Gurus is a quantitative financial programming language used by developers in Fintech organizations to construct user interfaces, generate and implement algorithms, visualize data functions, and form matrix manipulations.”

- Ethan Howell, Co-Owner of Florida Environmental

Conclusion

Information Technology has completely transformed traditional procedures and created wide opportunities for the FinTech industry. Digital innovation and emerging technologies have helped financial businesses with superior systems and streamlined operations. In this blog, we have explored various Fintech software development opportunities in the IT sector. This helps you comprehend the role of software development in the Finance industry.


Unleash the Power of Explainable AI in Banking Software Development

  What exactly is Explainable AI? Explainable AI (XAI) is a subfield of Artificial intelligence (AI) that focuses on developing algorithms a...