Software development is an incredibly in-demand and rewarding field to be a part of in

today’s competitive job market. In fact, it was recently declared the #1 best job in the US,
according to job demand, salary expectations and career reviews. The Bureau of Labor
Statistics even projected a 30% employment growth in the software development field by
2026. While the demand for software developers is high, the diversity in the type of work
software developers do is just as widespread. Furthermore, the more advanced your skill
set is, the more opportunities you have to work in various types of software development
fields/areas. Here are the 10 types of software development:

1. Web Development

The golden child of the current and future generations of coders, developing for the web
means coding those many web-pages you browse through over your morning coffee. It’s
diverse and ranges in complexity, from a <h1> “Hello World” </h1> to many dozens of
interconnected files only the original developer knows how to organize.

Web development today is exploding thanks to the emergence of new web technologies
and Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) which let websites “plug in” to other
useful features. The Web today can deliver ‘apps’ that feel native, because browsers now
are so much more than a URL bar and an Ad-blocker these days. If you’re looking to get
started as a web developer, check out HyperionDev’s part-time online course in Full
Stack Web Development.

What you need to know: HTML, Javascript, Django, C/C++, ASP.NET, PHP, Python, Ruby,
Rails etc.

2. Mobile Development

This one probably was unheard of 9 years ago, but today it’s all the rage. Mobile
Development could better be described as “App Development” and involves creating
applications that run on mobile devices, such as iPhones, Android devices, and recently,
the Windows 10 platform. Most popular OS’s are built with their own programming
languages but some traditional languages are being used as well.

The versatility of mobile development allows anything from Candy Crush games, to
console-like quality games in the palm of your hand. Games aren’t the only thing to focus
on either; there are all sorts of apps for pretty much anything, from the ordinary, like
finding a restaurant for lunch or catching up with news, to the random, such as
reminding you to drink water throughout the day, or morphing your photographed face
into a zombie.
What you need to know: Android, Swift (for iOS), Objective C, HTML5, Java, C#

3. Data Science

Data is the new gold! Large data sets provide no value to anyone unless you know what
to do with them. That’s where data scientists come in – they are able to find value in
data just as much as the everyday person finds value in gold. In order to pull out valuable
actionable insights, data scientists need to mine through and manipulate loads of data
using analytical approaches. Think crunching large data sets, potentially using some
cluster-computing approach, and developing a scientific application based on the findings
of your data.

The applications of this are cooler than you think: it’s actually what and how machines
think. Machines need large amounts of data to “learn” from, in order to ‘make their own
decisions’ on given situations, and data science ensures this data is presented in the
correct form to be used in AI applications. HyperionDev’s Data Science Short
Course teaches you the basics of data science in Python if you’re looking to learn more.

What you need to know: C/C++, MATLAB, Python

4. Application Development

This is the “original” type of programming. These are ‘standard’ applications that
perform their duties on traditional desktop operating systems, such as Windows, Mac, or
Linux. It’s often considered a programme, executed on demand by the user, that opens
its interface in the confines of the OS that it’s running in. Application development is
basically the process of creating a computer program or set of programs that can assist
the daily functionalities of the user or business.

What you need to know: Java, VB.NET, C/C++,C#, Python.

5. Back-end Development

Back-end development is the work that goes on behind the scenes to make sure the
front-end program churning away does so without bringing half your computer to a
standstill.
The back-end, or “server side”, of a website is where the data is stored and it usually
consists of three parts: a server, an application, and a database. Back-end developers
need to understand databases, as well as server programming languages and
architecture. If an application keeps crashing or is mind-numbingly slow or keeps
throwing errors at you, it’s likely to be a back-end issue.

Finally, database management is a prime aspect of back-end development. Database

management is the backbone of any system that holds large amounts of data. Think
companies’ client database, such as Facebook’s; one billion users’ details have to be
organized somehow, and back-end developers make this their job.

What you need to know: Python, Java, C and C++, (my)SQL, dBase and Oracle for
databases

6. Software Tools Development

Not used by most consumers, but critical in the software development industry, this type
of development builds tools for other software developers to test their code with.
Beyond simply testing, developing this software will ensure other developers’ code
conforms to industry standards and remains maintainable. Developing programs to
(amongst other things) test other programs is no easy task, but tech giants like Microsoft
and Google employ software devs by the bucketload to design applications for testing
other projects on-the-go.

What you need to know: Java, Python, C++

7. API Development

API Development, or the development of Application Programming Interfaces, is the art

of building something extensible. Developers build programs that act as puzzle pieces,
across different operating systems, on desktop, mobile and the web. They allow
3rd-party developers to interact with the tools or functions the API relates to. API
development is the laying of a foundation of standard procedures, types, tools, GUI
interaction methods, and database access rules that programmers building other
applications can use for that particular API.

What you need to know: APIs are written for specific platforms or functions, and each API
will have the programming language of the platform/device/site/service it’s designed for

8. Embedded Systems Development

With the rise of the “Internet of Things” and just about everything but the kitchen sink
being connected to the internet these days, embedded systems development has
boomed. This type of software development deals with the coding skills needed for
embedded systems like Raspberry Pi’s, Arduinos, Beaglebones, etc. The embedded
software is specialized for the particular software that your machine or device runs on.

What you need to know: Embedded C, Assembler, Python, Arduino (an embedded C
derivative), Java

From left, the Arduino Uno, Raspberry Pi and Beaglebone Black, all use embedded development languages.
(mcmelectronics.com)

9. Security Software Development

Otherwise known as hacking. You may be asking yourself, “Is that really a type of
software development?” Certainly, and it’s a critical field to be working on these days.
Penetration testers (“white-hat” ethical hackers) and cyber-security experts work
together for the good of companies and their systems and data. The cyber-security team
develops software to keep important company assets safe from theft, viruses and other
malicious attacks.The pentester, or penetration tester, then tries to ‘hack’ into the
system to find where the vulnerabilities, or weak spots, are. This way, there’s less chance
of your “black-hat” actual malicious hacker getting into your important data.

What you need to know: the programming language relevant to the system that needs to
be tested

10. Cloud Computing

Whilst the traditional idea of local storage for files has stuck around in some parts of the
world, the notion is slowly changing, and cloud computing services are becoming more
prevalent. Cloud computing services use networks of remote servers hosted on the
Internet to store and manage data rather than using a personal computer or local server.
Developers involved in cloud computing software development develop the software
that powers cloud storage applications, such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), OneDrive
storage and GitHub.

Hyperion Development