Logan is Metova’s resident expert in Open Source. A software developer who joined Metova after graduating from Penn State University in 2012, Logan has a strong foundation in computer science.
As a data warehouse intern for the State of Wisconsin Investment Board, he optimized the efficient retrieval of financial files. He also previously worked for PI Engineering, developing software for the company. We recently sat down with Logan to ask him a few questions about his background, working with Metova and the mobile industry.
Tell us what you do here at Metova?
I am a software developer. Lately I’ve been working a lot with the Ruby on Rails framework to build websites and APIs that our mobile apps can use.
What should people know about Open Source mobile app development?
Open Source is great because it allows you to give back to the community, and lets others submit code to your project. Several months ago, I authored a Ruby on Rails gem called Avocado that automatically documents Metova’s JSON APIs from our test suite.
This allows our Rails developers to focus on writing comprehensive unit test suites, without having to worry about documentation for our mobile app developers. In the future, I’d like to see more Open Source gems from Metova to further establish our credibility in the Ruby world.
How would you say that working with Metova is different from other development firms?
Metova has a very structured Agile development process that keeps everything organized. Although a lot of development firms use Agile, I feel like Metova has taken it further by using and customizing tools that allow us to make everything as easy and organized as possible for both customers and developers.
What’s one feature that you feel is essential to a great mobile app?
For me, personally, it is the user interface and experience. I don’t want to use an app that is ugly or hard to navigate, even if it functionally performs how I want it to.
What’s one piece of advice you’d tell a young developer looking to get into the mobile app industry?
I think that it’s important to be passionate about making whatever you are making. That goes for all of software development, not just mobile apps. If you are looking into the mobile app industry, make sure you research the mobile app development process to determine it is for you, because it is a little different than “normal” software development.
What technological advancement/shift should app developers pay attention to this year?
I think near field communication will gain popularity after more phones support the hardware for it.
What’s your favorite app?
Favorite hobbies?
Programming, playing video games (StarCraft 2) and hanging out with my new kitten Geno.
Most prized possession?
My computer. I need it to survive.
What would you like to cross off you “bucket list” next?
If I get a chance, I’d like to go back home to Pittsburgh to see a Penguins playoff hockey game.
