What Is a Program Developer: What Do They Do, and How to Become One?
Most people need a computer to perform specific tasks at some point or in their daily activities. Commands issued to the device are executed by a set of operating system resources called software.
A program developer or software developer is the creative mind responsible for generating these resources. In this article we explain in detail what a program developer is, what responsibilities they have, and what their area of work is.
What Does a Program Developer Do?
Program developers are responsible for creating resources in programs and applications that allow computer operating systems to manage various tasks.
Thanks to Program developers, you can play games, watch movies, create spreadsheets, use a browser or create presentations with images and sound, and many other applications on your computer.
But these types of software aren’t just for computers, they’re also available on phones, tablets, TVs, and other smart devices.
Difference Between Software and Hardware
To better understand what a program developer is, we need to understand two basic concepts:
- Hardware: Computers are made up of physical parts called hardware, including hard drives, memory cards, CPUs, monitors, and more.
- Software: An entity also includes a set of non-physical elements that allow the system to function, called software, consisting of rules, procedures, programs, and applications. Software allows you to instruct the hardware to make the computer perform certain tasks.
Types of Program developers
Depending on the type of work they do, these specialists may be called:
- Application developers: They are the creative minds in charge of developing computer programs or specific applications.
- System Program developers: They are working to create a basic system that manages several devices.
Key Functions of a Program Developer
Program developers must first understand the users and their needs. But their job doesn’t end with just developing software that solves a problem or performs a certain action, you need to monitor its performance, and make improvements and upgrades.
To create products, Program developers typically work in a team that includes solution architects, business analysts, programmers, user interface and experience designers, system administrators, and project managers.
In general, these are some of the duties and responsibilities of a developer:
- Improve existing software.
- Evaluate new computer systems.
- Evaluate, identify, and correct existing software bugs.
- Work closely with project managers and clients to identify improvements or new requirements.
- Collaborate with UX and UI teams on coding requirements.
- Submit a project status report.
- Create runbooks and software specifications.
- Create a plan for the coding process.
- Monitor how programmers write code.
- Perform software mapping to prepare for future upgrades and upgrades.
- Collaborate with other experts to ensure good software performance.
Features Of System Program Developers
Speaking specifically of system program developers, they create solutions targeted only to solve operating system issues, so their work is more focused on developing solutions for companies. For example, industrial, communication, medical, commercial, and scientific applications, etc.
Essential Skills for Software Developers
A program developer is responsible for creating programs and code, but to do their job well, they need to collaborate with various professionals and project stakeholders. For this reason, the skills companies look for in software developers include technical expertise and interpersonal skills.
- Analytical and strategic skills.
Analytical skills allow you to find creative solutions using logical reasoning. Coding requires observing and exploring complex problems and developing solutions through trial and error.
- Time planning
Developers often work under pressure and have to meet deadlines. To do this, they need to know how to manage their time. By planning time and setting up deadlines before they start a new project, they can determine which tasks are really important and which ones can be canceled or delayed.
- Cooperation
Although program developers can work alone for hours on end in the same environment and on the same tasks, they must also spend a lot of time collaborating with other colleagues and programmers to create products. They also often collaborate with managers, clients, and other team members .
- Emotional intelligence
To work harmoniously in a team, it is important to be able to understand how others feel. Developers have to work with people from different fields, most of whom are not software experts.
- Lead
Developers in charge of a team must be able to identify the strengths of each member and ensure that they shine in the development of their work. This will make it easier for them to feel involved in the project and increase their productivity.
Where Do Program Developers Work?
Due to the rapid development of computer systems and the digitization of companies, the skills of program developers are in demand in all types of industries. They usually work in an office or remotely.
They must communicate regularly with other team members. The areas in which they usually work are:
- Information technology.
- State agency.
- Companies and businesses.
- Health institutions.
What You Need to Learn to Become a Program Developer
You don’t need higher education to become a program developer. While a company may prefer a candidate with a bachelor’s degree in ICT, programming, or related computer science or engineering, it may also consider experience and knowledge, such as knowing how to code and learning some software development tools.
If you decide to go at it alone, several courses provide the essential training and certification to become a program developer. To be adequately prepared, program developers must have knowledge of:
- At least two or three programming languages.
- Understand the database.
- Understand the principles of software architecture and design.
- How to write code.
- Manage that code with a version control system.
- Install and test executable files.
- Understand software development methods (mainly agile methods).
It’s also a good idea to earn one or more certifications, as they will broaden your career options and provide you with better job opportunities. Here are some certifications you can use to demonstrate your skills:
- OpenStack: It is a cloud operating system delivered as infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS). It is one of the largest open-source communities in the world.
- Puppet: It is a configuration management tool widely used in companies and often used to automate repetitive tasks.
- HDP is an open-source platform that allows Apache Hadoop to integrate with existing architectures for storing large amounts of data.
- Oracle Java: There are various Oracle certifications available for developers, especially those related to the Java language.
- SAP HANA: This tool allows you to effectively use the capabilities of current software and improve its performance.
- Apache Cassandra: It is an open-source NoSQL database management system that is in high demand these days.
Difference Between Programmer and Program Developer
- Programmers are professionals who write or create code for computer applications or software. They provide specific instructions related to programming. This professional must actively think about solutions before coding.
They have extensive experience in coding and computing in various programming languages such as: SQL, PHP, HTML, JAVA, XML, C and C++.
Programmers have the advantage of being experts in multiple fields, such as databases, web development, security development, and more.
Depending on their programming skills and area of expertise, they may choose to specialize as application programmers, system programmers, artificial intelligence and machine learning programmers, or game programmers.
They perform trial and error testing using multiple programming languages to ensure that the code works as it should.
- Developers, often called program or software developers, have many roles, including being responsible for creating computer applications by writing, debugging, and running the source code of computer applications.
Unlike programmers, developers specialize in a specific set of programming languages. They participate in the structure and development of software kernels to create software programs.
Just like programmers, they can work as app developers, program developers, web developers, or mobile developers depending on their specialty.
While developers typically write code, they may also perform other tasks related to documentation, design, software architecture, or general software development.
Although these two professions have different roles in a project, the functions or work processes of program developers and programmers sometimes overlap. Both use specialized software to organize and ensure data security and recovery.
However, program developers are in charge of checking the compatibility of the systems to ensure that they will work correctly.
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