Data is everywhere and is being created every time you scroll through a website or your fav social media platform. Every click and movement generates data. According to Big Data statistics, 2.5 quintillion bytes of data are generated everyday. This equates to 2.5 exabytes worth of data. 70% of this data is user generated data.
We all have heard the term, “knowledge is power.” But where do you get the knowledge to gain power? It comes from data. Data has now become more valuable than ever. The influx of data has had a huge impact on various industries including software development. But before discussing the relation between Big Data and Software Development we must first understand Big Data.
What is Big Data?
Big Data refers to large data sets that traditional data processing applications are incapable of handling. In other words, big data can also be defined as large sets of data that can be structured, unstructured, or semi structured. These data sets continue to grow overtime and are so huge that the traditional data management systems can not store, process, or analyze them.
The 5 V’s of Big Data
Big Data has some characteristics that are represented by 5 V’s as shown below;
1- Volume
Volume refers to the size/amount of the data. Data is usually measured in terabytes, petabytes, and exabytes. Back In 1999, one gigabyte of data was enough to be termed as Big Data. But now, as you can imagine, it is no longer the case. Today, data should be more significant than terabytes and petabytes to be termed as Big Data.
2- Value
Insight discovery and pattern recognition is what adds value to Big Data. Large amounts of data go through processing protocols for this purpose. The insights and pattern recognition gathered from the data then leads to higher efficiency and better customer relations.
3- Variety
Variety is another characteristic of Big Data. Big Data includes different types of data and is quite diverse. Structured, unstructured, semi structures, raw, and dense data are all examples of Big Data variety.
4- Velocity
Velocity in Big Data refers to the speed at which information gets accumulated. This, given the amount of data being produced per day, is very high. This means that, if you can’t process data fast enough, it won’t be as valuable.
5- Veracity
Veracity means how reliable and accurate the data is. As you can imagine, this can be the most challenging part to control given the large amount of data.
How Is Big Data Collected?
Data is being created at a rapid pace with every click and movement. Companies will be collecting data about an average person at an astonishing rate of 1.7 mb/sec by 2025. There are more than 17 billion devices that can connect to the Internet of Things, and 50 billion smart devices around the world. These devices are all creating data that is being contributed to Big Data, either raw, structured, or unstructured data. But what are the primary sources for this data? Fortunately, you won’t have to search for the answer. Just take a look below;
1- Social Media
This makes sense, considering the fact that a large number of the world’s population uses social media platforms. The combined number of active users only on the Big 3 of social media, Fb, YouTube, and Instagram, equates to 7.52b users. This is astonishing considering the fact that the current world population is 8.02b. Every single photo uploaded, a comment made, like given, and a message sent on social media creates data. If you add TikTok to the list, the number of users is even more than the current world population.
2- City Sensors
Many large cities are equipped with technologies that collect data like weather or temperatures. Plus, many traffic and security cameras generate other types of data. As you can imagine the amount of data gets pretty high when you add cities and locations.
3- IoT Appliances
The number of smart devices is increasing day by day. These smart devices are all considered to be IoT appliances. These devices use the Internet of Things to collect, store, and generate data. Some examples of these appliances include smart TVs, smart printers, and smart coffee machines.
4- Customer Feedback
You might have noticed that you are asked to provide feedback every time you use an app or a service. Even though not all provide feedback, it is safe to say that those who do, amount for a large number.
5- Transaction Records
All financial transactions have records. Be it an eCommerce transaction, banking, or a business one, there is always data behind it. Credit cards, debit cards, and every other type of electronic payment also generates data.
These 5 are only a few sources from where data is being generated. There are many other venues such as GPS, emails, mobile apps, and medical records etc.
Big Data is used in various industries from healthcare to entertainment, manufacturing and much more. Since, the topic of this blog is The Relation Between Big Data and Software Development, let’s take a look at that.
Big Data and Software Development
Using Big Data in software development allows developers to improve their productivity, reduce development cycles, and make more informed decisions. Here are a few ways Big Data helps the software development process.
1- Improved Bug Detection and QA
Bugs and quality issues are common in the software development process. These issues can lead to delay and extra costs in the development process. Using Big Data, developers can gain valuable insights into user behavior, preferences, and interactions. This facilitates knowing what the users expect from a software or an app. Big Data enables developers to identify bugs and ensure higher quality. Analyzing large volumes of data allows developers to detect and address potential issues, which results in a more reliable software product.
2- Enhanced User Experience
User experience is a metric of the success of a software. Gaining insights into user preferences and behavior can lead to enhanced user experiences. Software developers use Big Data for this purpose and deliver an end software product that is tailored to the user needs and preferences. This information is then used to create personalized experiences, tailor made recommendations, and user-centric features.
3- Streamlined Development Process
The use of Big Data enables software developers to streamline their development process and improve overall efficiency. Analyzing this data helps development teams to identify potential areas of improvement, patterns, and bottlenecks.
This data-driven approach is crucial in the overall success of the development process. This approach makes the software development process predictable and efficient. This results in reduced development time and faster time to market.
4- Market Trends
As we all know the software development field is advancing rapidly, this poses a challenge for the developers to keep up to the changing trends. This is where Big Data can help developers. By using Big Data, developers can predict the upcoming market trends and prepare accordingly. This is especially helpful for software development service providers and can give them an edge over their competitors.
5- Development Process Optimization
Much like how Big Data helps gain valuable user insights, it can also help developers gain insights into their development processes. By analyzing internal process data, software development teams can identify any inefficiencies in their processes. This helps them streamline their workflows, and make more efficient decisions. Using Big Data like this leads to more efficient project management and a more robust development process.
“Discover how Big Data optimizes the software development process for better efficiency.”
The Importance of A Data-Driven Development Approach
In a data-driven development approach, decisions rely on data and analytics rather than experience and intuition. The data must be accurate and reliable for this approach to work. Furthermore, data-driven decisions reduce risks and save time and costs, while promoting proactivity within the team. This approach also reduces decision bias and is more objective than other approaches.
Another thing the data-driven approach does is that it helps predict future market trends. Knowing what to expect is a luxury in the highly competitive software development industry. This allows you to position yourself as an industry leader. There is a very simple fact: Data Does Not Lie. This means that you can rely on data whenever you need it, and it’ll always get you out of any predicament.
Conclusion
Big Data refers to large sets of data in various forms: structured, unstructured, semi structured, or raw. Using Big Data helps streamline processes and effective decision making in many industries. However, software development is an industry that benefits hugely from the use of Big Data. Big Data allows software development teams to gain valuable insights into user behavior and preferences. These insights are helpful in creating a software product that is tailored according to the user’s needs and enhances user experience. Not only that, Big Data also facilitates development teams in streamlining their processes by identifying any inefficiencies and areas for improvement.
