The AndPlus Software Development Blog

You ever open up instagram ready to consume some Grade-A content but immediately start seeing posts from '5 Days Ago' at the top of your feed? That's because Instagram sucks at algorithms and want to ruin your life.

You ever have a dream about a specific product then about 20 minutes after your REM cycle is over, BOOM it's on your Facebook feed? Yeah that's also an algorithm.

You ever say something out loud then it shows up as an ad everywhere you look. YEP YOU GUESSED IT MORE ALGORITHMS BUDDY. 

There’s been a good deal of chatter in recent years about algorithms. This previously esoteric concept has become a household term because algorithms of various sorts are pervading our lives, in often not-so-good ways. There's some useful ones that make our digital experience much better though, for example: Google’s algorithms that determine what sites show up on that all-important first page of search results are closely guarded secrets and the subject of much speculation among search engine optimization experts. Amazon and Netflix use algorithms to make recommendations based on your past viewing or buying selections. The list goes on...and on and on and onnnnnn.

It wasn’t so long ago that software developers’ skill sets pretty much consisted of one thing: the programming languages they knew. If you had experience in Pascal or C, you could get a job as a programmer.

You’ve heard of smokestacks, library stacks, and haystacks. You probably have a stack of paper on your desk, and you may have had, if ever so briefly, a stack of chips at a casino card table. But what the heck is a technology stack?

Quick note: this is the final segment to this series. If you haven't seen all the posts click here to start with the first one. There will be a round-up/reflection post up on MIT's blog soon. I'll keep ya updated.

At AndPlus, we’re pretty excited about recent advances in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and robotics. That’s hardly surprising, considering that we’re a pretty nerdy bunch that digs that sort of thing.... and it's literally our job. Of course, as software engineers, we expect to be designing, developing, and using these technologies in new and creative ways.

Like many industries, healthcare is poised to be revolutionized by the Internet of Things (IoT). We already have the Fitbit and similar devices that incorporate various sensors and work with smartphone apps for fitness monitoring. However, there are many more ways that the medical industry can take advantage of IoT devices, and with good end-to-end development, we can expect to see some innovative systems on the market in the next few years.

Here at AndPlus, both in this blog and in our daily work, we talk a lot about robotics. They may not be quite as awesome as they are in the movies... but we understand their importance in the future of hardware/software integration, a field we specialize in. We believe that the convergence of advanced hardware, standardized software platforms and machine learning will bring about practical, intelligent robots that will help us with many, if not most, aspects of our lives—at home, on the road, in the office, on the factory floor, in the warehouse, and in many other settings.