Toptal Blog
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Build Ultra-modern Web Apps with Angular Material
Material Design uses a paper metaphor, bold intentions, and meaningful motion to give user interfaces an ultra-modern feel. Web applications built using AngularJS can now easily adopt these design principles using Angular Material, a reference implementation of Google’s Material Design Specification.
In this article, Toptal engineer Matt Spaulding walks us through the principles of Material Design and showcases some modern user interface elements built using the Angular Material library.
Matt Spaulding
Matt is a full-stack developer that specializes in developing V1.0 software. He takes an idea and crafts it into a beautiful product.
3D Printing: Should Designers And Developers Take Notice?
3D printing is not a new technology, but recent advances in several fields have made it more accessible to hobbyists and businesses. Compared to other tech sectors, it’s still a small industry, but most analysts agree it has a lot of potential.
But where is the potential for freelance designers and software engineers?
Nermin Hajdarbegovic
As a veteran tech writer, Nermin helped create online publications covering everything from the semiconductor industry to cryptocurrency.
NodeOS: The JavaScript Based Operating System
An operating system written in Node.js? Yes, it exists, and it’s called NodeOS. Think for a second about the progress Node.js has made in the short time it’s been around. Now, imagine the same thing happening with an operating system.
In this article, Toptal engineer Danny Morabito introduces us to NodeOS, guiding us with a step-by-step tutorial on how to create our first NodeOS application using nothing more than Node.js.
Danny Morabito
Danny is a PHP developer with a proven knack for coding efficiently and solving problems rapidly.
iOS Animation and Tuning for Efficiency
Smooth animations and flawless transitions are key to perceived performance in modern mobile applications. Without the right tools, tuning iOS animation for efficiency can be a challenge in itself.
In this article, Toptal engineer Stefan Progovac demonstrates the role of Instruments, a sophisticated set of performance profiling tools for iOS, discussing how they can help you understand animation performance bottlenecks and some strategies for working around them.
Stefan Progovac
Stefan (MSc/Physics) is a highly skilled iOS developer who’s worked on apps used by millions for Target, Best Buy, and Coca-Cola.
Ultimate Guide to the Processing Language Part II: Building a Simple Game
Processing makes prototyping visual apps a breeze. With its easy to use programming constructs and some mathematics, building a simple game is a lot easier than one may think.
In this article, Toptal engineer Oguz Gelal provides a step-by-step tutorial to building a game using Processing and porting it to the web.
Oguz Gelal
Oguz is a software engineer and full-stack web developer. He has worked with a number of frameworks and tools, fron- and back-end.
Building a Rest API with the Bottle Framework
REST APIs have become a common way to establish an interface between web back-ends and front-ends, and between different web services. The simplicity of this kind of interface, and the ubiquitous support of the HTTP and HTTPS protocols across different networks and frameworks, makes it an easy choice when considering interoperability issues.
Bottle is a minimalist Python web framework. It is lightweight, fast, and easy to use, and is well-suited to building RESTful services. In this article, I’ll provide a walkthrough of how to build a RESTful API service using Bottle.
Leandro Lima
Leandro has 15+ years in IT/development. Working with Python since 2013, he loves building efficient and cost-effective systems.
Will Shoppers And Developers Adapt to Proximity Marketing In-Store?
Talking about proximity marketing will get you varying reactions, from concerns about privacy issues to the idea that your phone is going to spam you with annoying ads non-stop, but if you boil down the idea, there are some really compelling concepts here.
When you clear away all the buzzwords, what exactly is this shift we’re seeing? It’s the world customizing itself to you. The world is reacting to your presence, specific to you as an individual. Retailers and start-ups have taken notice, and the concepts of mobile location analytics and proximity marketing are emerging out of that.
Toptal Talent Network Experts
Cold War Tech: It’s Still Here, And Still Being Used
The long-term effect of the Cold War on science and technology is more profound than Nena’s 99 Luftbalons, or any Oliver Stone Vietnam flick.
If you are reading this, you’re already using Cold War technology; The Internet. That’s not all. A lot of tech and infrastructure we take for granted was developed, or at least conceived, during these tumultuous decades.
Nermin Hajdarbegovic
As a veteran tech writer, Nermin helped create online publications covering everything from the semiconductor industry to cryptocurrency.
Demystifying iOS 9 Spotlight Search for Developers
Spotlight search in Apple iOS 9, compared to earlier versions, has been made much more prominent and personal. With suggestions from Siri and integration opportunities for third-party apps, iPhone’s search functionality is no longer limited to the scope of Apple’s own apps. In this article, Toptal engineer Richard Forsythe explores some iOS SDK functionalities that allow apps to make content available to the user via Spotlight search.
Richard Forsythe
Richard’s posseses in-depth experience in a multitude of roles covering development, product ownership, and QA engineering.
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The History of Remote Work, 1560-Present (with Infographic) (Updated)
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