Web Development and Mobile App Development

Do you need clarification about the difference between Web Development and Mobile Development? Though the roles are confusing, the career paths that require are different. The key difference is where their work is distributed and how users access it. Let’s take a closer look at each of those two fields and examine their similarities and differences to see which will be the best career choice for you.

What is Web Development?

Web Development is the work involved in developing a website for the internet. It refers to creating, building, and maintaining websites including aspects such as web design, web publishing, web programming, and database management. 

The person who builds and maintains the core structure of a website is called a Web Developer. The main role of a Web developer is to use code to build a website that is functional, responsive, and user-friendly based on ideas and concepts generated by a Web Designer and is responsible for conducting quality assurance testing on their code to detect and eliminate any bugs.  

There are three categories of web development fields: front-end, back-end, and full-stack. 

• Front-end: focuses on the client side of the website - everything that users can see and interact with. It consists of the user interface. 
• Back-end: deals with everything from behind the scenes that supports the front-end including servers, databases, and applications. It takes care of the business logic and application workflows.
• Full-stack refers to end-to-end application software development, including the combination of both end and back-end development. 

These are the following skills needed for web development:

• User Interface (UI)
• User Experience (UX)
• Visual Design
• Coding languages including HTML, CSS, and Javascript
• Front-end web programming languages and skills such as JavaScript, Ajax, and web animation techniques
• Back-end web programming languages such as C# or Java, PHP, and Ruby
• Design software like Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator 
• An understanding of SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
• Web servers and how they function
• A high level of computer literacy, analytical thinking, attention to detail, and problem-solving skills
• A strong creative ability, logical approach to work, ability to explain technical matters clearly, and a keen interest in technology

Web developers are in demand across diverse industries. It is still an excellent career choice. Here are the jobs options related to web development:

• Applications developer
• Game developer
• Multimedia programmer
• Multimedia Specialist
• SEO Specialist
• UX designer
• UX researcher
• Web designer
• Web content manager
• Web developer

What is Mobile Application Development?

Mobile Application Development is the act or process by which a mobile app is developed for personal digital assistants, enterprise digital assistants, or mobile phones. It is also the set of processes and procedures involved in writing software for small, wireless computing devices, such as smartphones, tablets, Ipad, smartwatches, and other mobile devices. Like web development, mobile development has its roots in more traditional software development. 

The person who creates and maintains the applications for use on mobile devices is called a Mobile App Developer. The primary role of a mobile developer is to create and maintain functional, user-friendly apps for use on mobile devices; moreover, to accomplish this, a mobile app developer is responsible for researching, designing, developing, and testing mobile applications before releasing or publishing. A Mobile Developer will provide support by evaluating the app, identifying the problem areas, and making updates as necessary.  

As mobile devices become more appearing everywhere in our daily lives, web browsers will most likely dominate as the operating system of the future. There are three main categories of mobile development based on the types of devices used.

• Native development is the process to develop apps or software that need to be operated on specific devices and mobile app platforms such as iOS and Android. Hence, apps on Google Playstore will work specifically on Android devices. In contrast, apps in the Apple App Store will only run on iOS devices. 
• Cross-platform development is the creation of software apps that are compatible with multiple mobile operating systems (OS) or devices. It is known as hybrid development. It means that the developers will only write the code once and it will work on other platforms at the same time.
• Mobile web development refers to the creation of apps, but also creation of websites perfectly suited for small devices, it entails the development of mobile-responsive versions of apps and websites.

Skills needed for mobile app development are listed below:

• An understanding of app design, including UX and UI principles
• Product Management and a background in Business or Marketing 
• Knowledge of back-end computing and application programming interfaces
• Ability to write, test, and debug modern coding languages such as HTML5, Objective-C, Swift, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, Kotlin, and Python.
• The ability to research, develop, launch, and maintain mobile apps that the clients or users need.
• Strong critical thinking, time management, and problem-solving skills
• The creativity skills to write clean code that combines functionality, design, and performance effortlessly
• The ability to communicate clearly, work with the team and remain adaptable
• An understanding of the latest mobile apps trends and how to implement them in a commercial environment

Keep in mind that the skills or abilities you will need to succeed could vary from place to place and position to position; all skills listed above are just a few of the basic skills and just some pieces of information.