DEV Community: EricoMartin

Common Software Architecture patterns in Mobile Application Development.

EricoMartin — Wed, 03 Jul 2024 16:01:27 +0000

Architecture refers to a set of techniques that are used to combine the different parts of a software application. It can be defined as the internal structure of a software application. It describes how different software components communicate with each other to process input and produce output to the user. A mobile application is a software application that is designed to be used on a mobile device. Mobile application architecture is a combination of models and techniques used to build a mobile application ecosystem. There are many software architecture patterns, however there are peculiar ones that are more suitable for mobile applications.

Major Components of a Mobile App
The major components within a mobile application are the basic building blocks upon which application architecture can be designed. These components act as multiple layers that communicate with each other through which data passes on to trigger different functionalities within the mobile ecosystem. Both IOS and Android, which are the two main Mobile Operating Systems, use this pattern.
The three main components of a mobile app are:

Presentation Layer
Business Layer
Data Layer

Presentation Layer
The Presentation layer defines how an application is presented to the end user. It is a user interface and communication layer where the user can interact with the application. Every mobile device has a screen and this is the component that displays information to the user. It is also known as the frontend of an application.
The main purpose of the presentation layer is to take the data sent by the business layer and display it in a way the user understands.

Business Layer
The business layer is the logic behind which the application operates. It instructs the application on what functions it should exhibit. It often takes user input or raw data from the data layer, processes it, then sends it to the presentation layer. Examples of functions of this layer include logging, authentication/ authorization, data caching, security, data validation, and exception management.

Data Layer
The data layer is an intermediary between the business layer, presentation layer and external resources. Its main purpose is to obtain raw data from various sources (such as a database, cloud server, or an API). This layer consists of various components like service agents, data access components, data utilities, to enable data transactions within an app.

Architectural Patterns
Examples of Architectural patterns include:

Model-View-Presenter (MVP)
Model-View-Controller (MVC)
Model-View-ViewModel (MVVM)
VIPER (View, Interactor, Presenter, Entity, Router)

Model-View-Presenter
This is an architecture that consists of the three major components of a mobile application. The model which is the data layer and it manages the business logic and data. The View is the presentation layer which displays information to the user. The Presenter is a component that handles user actions and updates the view with data from the model layer.

Pros:

Better separation of concerns compared to MVC.
Easier to test because the Presenter can be tested independently of the Android framework.

Cons:

Can lead to complex Presenter logic.
More boilerplate code compared to MVC.

Model-View-Controller
In this architecture the Model represents the business logic and user data. The View handles presentation of data to the user. The Controller handles the user input and interacts with the model to update the view. The purpose of this architecture is to separate business logic from presentation logic which allows the code to be more readable, debuggable and easy to update.

Pros:

Separation of concerns.
Easy to understand and implement.

Cons:

Can lead to bloated controllers.
Not suitable for complex applications with heavy UI logic.

Model-View-ViewModel
This architecture is the recommended architecture by Android. It is also used in native IOS development for mobile devices. It separates the application into three parts which are Model, View, and ViewModel. The Model is concerned with managing data and business logic. The View handles presentation logic binding view properties to the data exposed by the ViewModel while the ViewModel interfaces between the Model and the View, which contains the reference logic.

Pros:

Clear separation of concerns.
Facilitates data binding.
Easier to test compared to MVC and MVP.

Cons:

Requires understanding of data binding frameworks.

VIPER (View, Interactor, Presenter, Entity, Router)
This is an architecture pattern that separates the app's functionalities into five distinct components namely View, Interactor, Presenter, Entity and Router.
The View displays the presenter information while user input to the presenter. The Interactor handles the business logic. The Presenter gets data from the interactor and sends it to the view for display. The Entity is the business model that describes the entities to be used by the interactor. The Router handles how data is navigated within the application.
Pros:

Promotes clean architecture with a clear separation of concerns.
Each component has a single responsibility. Cons:
Can be complex to set up and maintain.
May introduce a lot of boilerplate code.

Conclusion
In conclusion Model-View-ViewModel is the most commonly used architectural pattern in mobile application development. Also it is the recommended architecture for Android mobile applications by Google.
As an intern at the ongoing cohort of the HNG 11 internship I hope to refresh my technical skills in the art of crafting reliable, durable and testable software applications that can be used to solve real world problems. Given my background in software development I hope to make a mark by skilling up through this great initiative and also to give back by helping others solve their problems through software development. You can check out the program here. There is also a premium version of the internship where you get exclusive benefits and a certificate you can see here for the premium version.

E-Hailer: A Solo Developer's Journey Through Trials and Triumphs

EricoMartin — Thu, 21 Mar 2024 01:24:34 +0000

Introduction:
Embarking on the journey of building E-Hailer, a transportation innovation, as a solo developer has been nothing short of an adventure. Amidst the pursuit of creating a seamless ride-hailing platform, I encountered numerous challenges that tested both my skills and determination. From power outages to financial constraints, each hurdle served as a lesson in resilience and adaptability. Through it all, my dedication to learning and growing as a developer remained unwavering.

Power Outages and Technological Limitations:
During the early stages of development, frequent power outages disrupted my workflow and hindered progress. Coupled with the limitations of using an older Mac laptop, this posed a significant obstacle to productivity. However, I quickly learned to optimize my work process, making the most out of the available resources. Despite the setbacks, I remained resourceful and adaptable, finding alternative solutions to keep the project moving forward.

Financial Constraints:
As a solo developer, financial constraints presented a formidable challenge. Building and scaling a tech startup requires substantial investment, and I found myself facing limited resources. However, I embraced frugality and creativity, exploring cost-effective solutions and leveraging open-source tools. Through strategic budgeting and careful planning, I stretched my resources and maximized their impact, ensuring progress despite the financial limitations.

Time Constraints and Job Requirements:
Balancing the demands of building E-Hailer with the requirements of a full-time job was another challenge I encountered. With limited time and competing priorities, progress on the project was often slow and intermittent. However, I learned to prioritize tasks effectively, setting realistic goals and milestones to stay on track. By cultivating a culture of flexibility and understanding, I managed to navigate the complexities of time constraints while maintaining steady progress on the project.

Lessons Learned and Resilience Gained:
Through the trials and errors of building E-Hailer, I gained invaluable insights and experiences that shaped my growth as a developer. From honing my technical skills to learning the intricacies of building Android apps using the Google Maps API, each challenge served as an opportunity for learning and improvement. Most importantly, I developed a deep sense of resilience in the face of adversity, refusing to be discouraged by setbacks and failures.

Conclusion:
The journey of building E-Hailer as a solo developer has been a testament to the power of perseverance and determination. Despite the trials and tribulations encountered along the way, I remained steadfast in my commitment to realizing my vision. As I continue to navigate the complexities of entrepreneurship and innovation, I am fueled by the knowledge that every challenge is an opportunity for growth. With grit and determination, I am confident that E-Hailer will emerge as a testament to the resilience of solo developers everywhere.

Post Mortem: A Sample Report on a DOS Attack.

EricoMartin — Sat, 24 Feb 2024 05:09:11 +0000

DOS which means Denial of Service is a security event that denies access to your service by sending in multiple requests to your server in a very short period of time with the intent to flood your server with traffic that it can not possibly handle thereby forcing it to have a downtime.
This is a postmortem report on the event of a DDOS attack on BaseBox Software Solutions inc. on the 23rd of October, 2023.

Issue Summary:

Duration: The outage occurred on the 23rd of October, 2023 between 1:30 AM and 2:15 AM WAT and lasted for 45 minutes.

Impact: The incident affected the managed DNS service. Approximately 60% of users were affected, experiencing slow response times and in some cases inability to access certain features.

Root Cause: The root cause of the outage was a DDOS attack believed to have been carried out by malicious hackers with the intent to distort the managed DNS infrastructure thereby impacting service delivery and sales.

Timeline:

Detection: The issue was detected on the 23rd of October, 2023 between 1:30 AM and 2:15 AM WAT when our Site Reliability Engineers received a monitoring alert through the monitoring system.

Actions Taken: Immediate actions included initiating investigation and implementing mitigation techniques such as setting up a firewall to block the IP's from where the attack came and activating IP Geolocation blocking. The SRE team investigated the cloud managed DNS infrastructure and assumed the root cause to be a large Distributed Denial of Service on our US-East region service.

Misleading Paths: Misleading investigation paths were taken when the team restarted some of our third party services thinking those could have led to a downtime on the service.

Escalation: The incident was discovered by the Networking Team and escalated to the Software Reliability and Security Teams.

Resolution: The incident was resolved by activating IP Geolocation blocking on the Network to block the geographical region where the malicious attacks emanated from.

Root Cause and Resolution:

Root Cause: The root cause of the outage was a large Distributed Denial of Service on our US-East region service.

Resolution: To resolve the issue, IP Geolocation blocking was activated blocking the geographical region from accessing the network.

Corrective and Preventative Measures:

Improvements/Fixes:

Strengthen DDoS protection mechanisms.
Enhance monitoring and alerting systems for quicker anomaly detection.
Evaluate and improve infrastructure scalability.

Tasks:

Implement advanced DDoS mitigation solutions.
Enhance monitoring systems to provide timely alerts.
Conduct a scalability assessment and implement necessary improvements.

This concise post-mortem report provides an executive summary, a brief timeline of events, detailed information about the root cause and resolution, and specific corrective and preventative measures taken to mitigate this occurrence.

A simple comparison of Web 2.0 with Web 3.0

EricoMartin — Sat, 05 Mar 2022 15:46:55 +0000

The internet has evolved from what it first was to what it is today. This evolution has been through a couple of phases mostly classified by how a user interacts with the internet. The web as we know it today is in the web 3.0 phase and I want to identify some of the major improvements to the web over the web 2.0 phase.

The web 1.0 refers to the first phase of the internet evolution. In this phase web pages were static and users could not directly interact with content over the internet. However, this discussion is more geared towards the comparison of web 2.0 and web 3.0.

The web 2.0 phase is where users could interact with content on the web. Users could also post and create content that could be saved on a centralized server. In this internet model, the server is governed by a trusted administrator who ensures the security and integrity of data saved on the server. Web 2.0 is also called the "Social Web" and some of its applications are blogging, social media, internet banking, e-voting, e-commerce and much more.

The main goal of Web 3.0 is to make the internet a lot more intelligent, autonomous, trustless and open. It consists of a lot of advanced technology like Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain, 3D Graphics, Virtual Reality, and Augmented Reality. The web 3.0 blockchain is a decentralized network where different computers that connect together to form the network must all have the same copy of data such that if a change occurs on a single node the change is immediately replicated on every node in that network. This eradicates the need for a centralized server and thereby administrator(s). The blockchain is so called because it uses a distributed ledger system to store transaction data and each of these transactions are stored as blocks, each of these blocks hold a reference to a previous block creating chains of blocks to ensure the integrity of the distributed ledger. The blockchain uses cryptography and certain rules to ensure that each block is secure and untampered. In Web 3.0, with the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) computers can distinguish information like humans in order to provide faster and more relevant results. It uses 3D graphics with Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality to make user experience of the web a lot more like the physical world. Web 3.0 is also called the "Sematic Web".

Overall, an interesting explanation of these phases is one given by Tim Berner-Lee, the founder of the World Wide Web:

Web 1.0 is the "readable" phase of the web. We see limited interaction between users.
Web 2.0 is the "writable" phase of the web, one where users can interact with the site, and with each other.
Web 3.0 is the "executable" phase of the web, and here, computers can interpret information like humans, to then generate personalized content for users.

Source

To learn more about web 3.0 its benefits, cryptocurrency and blockchain check out the following links
Blockgames, Nestcoin, Zuriteam. Thanks for reading.

HNG8 - Internship For Junior Developers

EricoMartin — Mon, 16 Aug 2021 00:14:39 +0000

Ever wondered where you could get first hand experience of working in a real software development firm? Look no further! The HNG internship is a three month program that aims at finetuning, refining and exposing the most skilled and most outstanding software developers.

This initiative which is a yearly program, is a brainchild of Mark Essien who is a Tech Mogul and ambassador. He has championed the course of enabling thousands of young people free access to tech skills, resources and required tools in Nigeria, Africa and the World at large.

The year 2021 is no different so say hello to HNG8. HNG8 in partnership with IngressiveForGood is the eight edition of the very impactful program that is currently on going and has gathered people from every part of Africa and all other continents. My main of writing this post is to highlight my goals for participating in this years opening.

First of all, I need to say a little about my self. I am an Android Native Developer, more proficient in the Java programming language. However, Android (Google) has gone with the Kotlin first idea. I have been learning the Kotlin programming language along with dart programming language which are languages very commonly used in mobile applications development. My aim in participating in this years cohort is to attain proficiency in these languages while connecting with talents from across the globe.
Well, enough about me. This program, although fast paced, allows for newbie developers to try their hands on real life scenarios, hone and develop their skills.

Are you new to software development? Do you need a taste of real life work experience? Do you think you can learn on the job? Then HNG internship is for you. You can find further information about the next cohort here https://internship.zuri.team
Here are some resources that may be beneficial to aspiring beginner interns.

HTML: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88PXJAA6szs
GIT: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVsySz-h9r4
FIGMA: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhlNnf1711M
KOTLIN: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9UC9DY-vIU
DART: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FqggIdHRRvE

Feel free to ask any questions you might have. Remember I am only an intern. If you need to reach out to the organizers of the program you can check out this link https://internship.zuri.team