Computers, tablets, smartphones, laptops, and all kinds of other devices are part of human daily life all around the world. This modern society relies a lot on technology and easy access to the Internet. Almost every single one of us has at least one type of smart device in our pockets. We either have a smartwatch, smartphone, tablet, or laptop. As the world starts leaning towards these devices, the need for experts in software development is increasing on a daily basis.
However, software development is not easy and will never be easy. Not everyone can manage to learn cold and become a good programmer. Calling requires a lot of dedication, concentration, and knowledge of math and logic. In other words, it is very difficult to become a software developer.
But, once people start to consider how well this entire industry pays, everyone wants to become a part of it. So many are trying to learn different coding languages such as Java, C, C++, HTML, and others. These different coding languages can be utilized for different types of development. For example, the best way to create a webpage is through HTML, PHP, or JavaScript while the best way to create phone applications is with Objective-C, HTML 5, Java, and others.
In this article, I am going to cover several different types of software development.
Website development
Currently, the most popular type of software engineer is the ones that are working on websites. The reason behind this is because learning the coding languages for creating websites is very easy. HTML, JavaScript, and PHP have an easy learning curve and you can become quite an expert on the subject in just a few months or a few years.
Of course, truly mastering this skill will take a lot of years. But, not every business requires a top-notch website. Most startup companies just need a simple webpage where customers will be able to browse the products. In other words, they do not need an expert that has an hourly fee of $1000. They need someone with enough experience and someone that understands good UI.
Mobile apps
This is also a contender for the most popular type of software development in the world right now. The most interesting thing about this industry is the fact that it is very young. Smartphones started to gain a lot of traction during 2010 or maybe even later. Until then, smartphones were just an expensive gimmick and all the applications were coupled boring games utilizing the touchscreen. But, as time went on and as companies such as Samsung, Apple, and Huawei started releasing incredible products, the need for mobile app development increased considerably.
Today, there is a mobile application for almost anything. Do you need a flashlight? There is an app for that. Do you need a bubble level? There is an app solution for that too. It is truly amazing just how many different apps are on the Play Store and on the App Store right now. In fact, Google claims that the Play Store has around 3 million active applications in 2024. That is an incredible number and it will continue to rise as time goes on.
However, for that number to rise, there will be an increased need for mobile development. So, anyone that is aiming to become a part of this industry, I would recommend learning HTML 5, Swift, Java, and C#.
Back-end development
Now, this is where things get a lot more complicated for engineers and where the learning curve starts to get even more aggressive. This is also a part of the industry that is best paid. Employees in certain companies that work on the back-end of a project are paid up to tens of thousands of dollars a month. That amounts to over $100,000 every year.
However, for those employees to reach that level of knowledge in programming, they went through a lot of sweat and tears while learning the programming languages and math. Unfortunately, to become a back-end developer, you will not be able to skip out on the math lessons because you will need logic, math, and statistics. It is not just about understanding the logic of a certain coding language.
This is why Xela believes that startup businesses should hire a team of software engineers instead of one just one expert to focus on the back-end development of a project. Not everyone can master the complicated coding languages such as dBase, Oracle, Python, etc.
Desktop app development
While the mobile industry is continuously growing, the PC/Mac world is still very active and it is also growing. With the reveal of higher core count processors from both AMD and Intel, things are looking up and it seems like the potential for developing next-gen desktop applications is rising. Unfortunately, the potential for Mac and PC is frequently overlooked. Most of the people are baited into developing webpages and applications, leaving a small number of experts in the world of desktop operating systems.
But, coding for Windows, Linux, or Mac is also not easy. You need to have a good understanding of every C programming language. You need to master C, C++, C# and it is also good to know a little Python and Java.
However, even when a person becomes well-versed in these programming languages, it is still very difficult to develop a program on the Windows platform for example. A single person cannot compete with major companies that have developed amazing products such as Google Chrome, Skype, Discord, Spotify, Photoshop, ShotCut, Premiere, etc.
To truly realize your idea for Windows, Mac, or Linux, a person requires an entire team of experts that will engineer an application that will be able to compete against these giants. With enough effort, enough testing, trial, and error, everything is possible. It is vital not to give up on your ideas, hopes, and dreams.
These are the four main types of software development, but keep in mind that there are plenty more out there.
