Dev Process Consulting
Make Yourself Accessible: Legacy Rails Applications
This is the third in a three-part series on “what accessibility actually looks like when you’re implementing it in a Rails app.” Part One covered some of the moral, ethical and professional rationale for making a site that adequately serves as many people as possible. Part Two covered implementing accessibility checks in a brand-new application,…
Read MoreMake Yourself Accessible: New Rails Apps
In Part One of this series, I talked through some of the ethical and moral rationales for making a website accessible to as many people as possible. It’s good for your users, and it’s good for your code, so it’s a good idea. But I didn’t actually lay out the process of adding accessibility checks…
Read MoreExploding Consulting Myths: Culture
Can a Consulting Company Be a Team? We Are. At The Gnar we enjoy challenging the common misconceptions around tech consulting. Is it long hours? Is it really competitive? Is every developer on an island? Do I have to wear a collared shirt? The answer is unequivocally: not at The Gnar. Our founders Nick and…
Read MoreMake Yourself Accessible: Why It Matters
My grandfather used a wheelchair after suffering a spinal injury in his forties. His house had a long ramp and a tiny elevator, his pepper grinder was electric, and he slept on a waterbed (it was AWESOME). If he were using the modern Internet, he’d be using accessibility tech. He had mobility in his hands,…
Read MorePersuading Your Team to Embrace Change
If your colleagues are resistant to change, you’re not alone—“active inertia,” or the tendency for people and organizations to seek comfort in the old ways of doing things, is a common characteristic of most workplaces. As a leader, though, it’s your job to coax your colleagues into acceptance of (and perhaps even excitement for) the…
Read MoreLooking Forward in Mobile Development
TL;DR Very few businesses really need a mobile application. If you use Bluetooth or GPS, you know what you need. But for everyone else, whether you want a mobile app depends mostly on the experience you offer your users. Technology Marches On Mobile development, particular cross-platform (e.g. both iOS and Android), is at a much…
Read More10 Signs Your Custom Software is in Trouble
Does this sound like your company? Customer Support call volume has increased because users are having trouble navigating your website or app. Marketing is frustrated be the inability to make changes to customer-facing applications quickly and easily. Sales is frustrated by crashing or poorly performing demos. If you’re receiving complaints from customers and departments across…
Read MoreWhen Should Your Company Develop Its Own Software?
Creating your own custom software to bring innovation to your market or to create more efficient operations can be a strong growth driver. But the buy-it vs. build-it decision is a critical one. If buying the software you need just isn’t possible, building it may make sense. But there’s no denying that’s a challenging path,…
Read MoreGnarly technology predictions for 2022
When we first started The Gnar Company I expected to spend a significant amount of time researching and implementing new technologies each year. What we’ve generally found is while new frameworks and stacks are constantly evolving, clients typically seek expertise and stability within a given tech ecosystem. In our 6 years of operating The Gnar…
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