Toptal Blog
The Toptal Blog is the top hub for developers, designers, finance experts, executives, and entrepreneurs, featuring key technology updates, tutorials, freelancer resources, and management insights.
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Design Process: Is It Objective or Subjective?
The relationship between art and design is often misunderstood, and although a design outcome can be artful, the process behind it is altogether very different.
Bronwen Rees
Bronwen is a designer from London with experience in both brand and digital design. Her passion lies in learning and evolving her skills.
Apache Spark Streaming Tutorial: Identifying Trending Twitter Hashtags
Social networks are among the biggest sources of data today, and this means they are an extremely valuable asset for marketers, big data specialists, and even individual users like journalists and other professionals. Harnessing the potential of real-time Twitter data is also useful in many time-sensitive business processes.
In this article, Toptal Freelance Software Engineer Hanee’ Medhat explains how you can build a simple Python application to leverage the power of Apache Spark, and then use it to read and process tweets to identify trending hashtags.
Hanee' Medhat Shousha
A certified Spark dev with a CEng degree and business intelligence diploma, Hanee’ has built enterprise apps with millions of daily users.
Selling Your Business? Stop Leaving Money on the Table
When looking to sell your business, you will want to maximize its value through a combination of planning and timing. This article runs through some of the most important considerations to keep in mind when preparing for a sale.
Jeffrey Mazer
Jeff has extensive experience within the financial services industry, excelling in a number of roles ranging from portfolio manager to CFO.
Virtual Reality in the Automotive Industry
From virtual showrooms to elaborate research and testing scenarios, virtual reality is starting to make its mark on the automotive industry. It can be used to educate novice drivers, train professionals operating industrial equipment, or test vehicles and drivers in extreme conditions.
In this article, Toptal Freelance Software Engineer Daan Terra shares his experiences in the field of automotive simulations, explaining how VR can fundamentally change the way cars are marketed, tested, and developed.
Daan Terra
Daan is experienced in the development of large and complex products. His strongest knowledge and experience is in Java, Android, and C#.
Why Startups Need a Styleguide
The top five reasons why creating a styleguide early is especially important for startups in spite of the inherent challenges.
Benoît Chabert
Benoît creates digital apps. He helps startups create unified design systems and acquire new users through new product designs.
3D Graphics: A WebGL Tutorial
Whether you just want to create an interactive 3D logo, on the screen or design a fully fledged game, knowing the principles of 3D graphics rendering will help you achieve your goal.
In this article, Toptal Freelance Software Engineer Adnan Ademovic gives us a step-by-step tutorial to rendering objects with textures and lighting, by breaking down abstract concepts like objects, lights, and cameras into simple WebGL procedures.
Adnan Ademovic
Adnan has experience in desktop, embedded, and distributed systems. He has worked extensively in C++, Python, and in other languages.
The Greek Debt Crisis Explained
After several months of relative quiet, Greece is back in the spotlight as the latest repayment deadline on its bailout debt comes due in July. We take the opportunity to review the root causes of the crisis, what has been happening since it kicked off, and what needs to be done to resolve the situation.
Solon Molho
Solon is a top rated sell-side equity analyst, with deep experience in financial analysis and valuation work.
Eight Rules for Effective Software Production
While working at different stages of the software development lifecycle you often realize that software production isn’t easy. It takes consistent effort to make something great. However, it doesn’t have to come at the cost of working through nights or weekends.
In this article, Toptal Freelance Software Engineer Timofey Nevolin shares eight simple, yet powerful rules for effective software production.
Tim Nevolin
Timofey is a software architect and developer with a proven ability to develop efficient, scalable, and fault-tolerant server solutions.
Total Talent Management and the Blended Workforce
David Francis, Senior Research Analyst at Staffing Industry Analysts (SIA), explores the evolution of the blended workforce and explains the concept of Total Talent Management, a mindset that helps organizations maximize the value of agile team members.
David Francis
Senior Research Analyst at Staffing Industry Analysts (SIA).
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