Aside from keeping product and price information as up-to-date as possible, barcoo also strives to keep the application’s technology on the cutting edge. In recent weeks, we treated barcoo’s core to an upgrade to Ruby on Rails 3. While our programmers primarily reap the benefits of the upgrade, you’ll profit from it, too, since we’ll be providing you with several significant new features in data security and performance.

Current security standards for barcoonauts

Reports about hacker groups like “Anonymous” or “LulzSec” are popping up more and more frequently in the media. Such groups have made it their duty to break down the security measures of existing server systems and then publish stolen customer data on the internet. By using new technologies (on the server’s and client’s ends alike), we are already keeping our security measures as strong as possible: it’s too often the flaws that have been around for years in outdated server systems that hackers end up exploiting.

New flexibility for more performance

The upgrade to Rails 3 is able to reduce the server load via its modular construction and by optimizing operations among the various internal processes. This enables us to process more new user requests at once, which is particularly important when the amount of requests drastically increases during a typical “rush hour” (e.g. Saturdays). While that may not noticeably improve the application’s reaction time at average operating hours, it affords us much more flexibility for new optimizations. One way we’ll do this in the future is to bundle many separate data packets into one big packet. That saves on key kilobytes and makes a noticeable difference in the performance of mobile terminal devices.

New basis for exciting technologies

Regardless of our company schedule at any given moment, our developers always have the possibility of exploring exciting new technologies. That’s reason enough for us to have a modern and open working environment. The members of barcoo’s team freely exchange their ideas about new technologies with each another all the time. In recent weeks, for example, we had presentations about Git, Prediction API, NoSQL/MongoDB, Reverse Proxy Caching with Squid and CoffeeScript. Only after discussing matters openly with one another do we decide about whether it’s possible to use such technologies for new features within barcoo. As the engine under barcoo’s proverbial hood, Rails 3 has brought our basic framework up to the highest technological standard. So we are looking forward to new challenges and solutions that will promote the further development of the app.

Are you a Web developer who believes in beautiful code? Then check out our current job openings. Our favourite activity is to sit outside on the grass at Engelsbecken (literally, “Angel’s Pool”) – just a two-minute walk from the barcoo office – in Berlin Kreuzberg and think about new technological and content-related strategies. Contact us if you feel like taking part one day!