Throughout this process we’ve faced incredible challenges and made a number of  costly mistakes in the areas of: election of key development staff, fulfillment & logistics planning, and payment integration. Additionally we faced a host of Amazon Web Service (AWS) performance scalability challenges as well as general project management and executive leadership follies of epic proportion.

Despite the horrible scars that remain, we’ve successfully created an incredibly powerful framework and put it to scale for amazingly talented and beloved clients. As a result, we were awarded SR&ED credits for innovative work in this space and now have a solid foundation from which to continue our explosive growth.

This year, as part of our mobile commerce product development channel we are developing prototype augmented reality experiences, payment & analytics extensions, and a host of additional enterprise logistics modules for JDA all built upon the Magento stack.

We absolutely LOVE sharing our experiences with others in full agonizing detail with the hope of helping small startups avoid making similar mistakes. This year we plan to participate in a variety of related Canadian and U.S. trade shows, local meetups (Toronto, Oakville), small focus groups & personal appointments with interested individuals abroad through sponsorship and hosted speaking engagements.

We met some wonderfully insightful individuals at this years’ Etail Canada conference and were inspired by some of the rapid success stories, for example those presented by CEO Yona Shtern (Indochino.com) and Kyle Vucko (BeyondTheRack.com).  Thank you both for a succint and fresh viewpoint, and for transparency in an otherwise tightly guarded industry.

If you are interested in having us present our story (in private or in a workshop or seminar setting) please do contact our studio director Jon Marsella (jon@jasperstudios.com) and tell us a little about how you would like us to assist.

In the meantime, please visit our new Magento Enterprise Microsite and tell us what you think!  Be brutally honest, after surviving 2010, we can handle anything!

Legacy ‘app’ development often involved maintaining 50-60 build profiles for a single application in order to support all kinds of quirky devices in all kinds of disparate environments (each with their own horrific hidden snafus).  It made for not only absolute developmental madness but it led to some completely absurd Quality Assurance realities as well.

In the modern mobile development sphere despite all the current hype regarding JQuery Mobile, Phone Gap, etc. etc., and in consideration for Android SDK nuances, our team of discerning Web 1.0 burnouts aren’t buying the shtick.

Sadly, the observation in developing prototype products for Android phones (of which we are unable to disclose the details of at this time) has been painstakingly reminiscent of miserable stupid-phone days of old.

No doubt one can churn out visually gratifying brochure-ware with fancy gesture based UX controls &  transitions easily enough – using stop-gap catchall frameworks that are super front end developer friendly, but when it comes down to manipulating hardcore native hardware on a bunch of varying chip-sets for any form of complex R&D undertaking, it’s J2ME death by many horrible lacerations all over again.

Typically we might be inclined to substantiate these wild claims with some solid evidence in order to engage the broader community through dialogue, potentially enlightening ourselves to our own self-misguidance on the subject.   Not this time folks.  We don’t need convincing, and we absolutely cannot be moved on this topic.  Let’s let it lie definitively with the following statement:

Until Android Manufacturers agree on standard hardware with standard screen sizes/resolutions and additionally hold hands and consent to not keep pumping out new (and very different!) devices every 5 minutes this wary development team is officially OUT.   At least for client projects anyhow. 

Our clients don’t much care about the source of failure, nor do they care to hear who/what device ultimately failed us and thus by extension, failed them.  It’s our accountability when all is said and done and equated to our failure in the end which is something we take very seriously.  No thank you Android.

In contrast to our recent Android fun, our earlier foray into iOS development a few years back using Objective C via Xcode was MUCH more satisfying, and love it or hate it, once you agree to live by Apple’s take-em-or-leave-em policies you’ll at the very least enjoy: develop-once-test-a-few-times higher quality product release cycles.  Much more likely to enjoy happier end user clients while you’re at it.

Will we continue iOS prototyping?  You had better believe we will, we’re hedging our bets on its ability to win the ultimate longer term war.  There’s a reason why J2ME and MIDP 2.0 died a horrible death.  It was death by 1,000 bleeding bicycle scrapes.

We absolutely get the when/where and why one may want to develop for Android, we’re just boldly declaring here that we don’t want to again for a good long while – nor shall we EVER until things consolidate & homogenize.

We’re very proud of this product, and not so much for ourselves at Jasper as a team, but rather for our client, who now enjoys the rare position of having a solid platform for growth and a technological edge in the ecom space in Canada.  We have some incredibly exciting plans for further development this year, but of course, we cannot tell you anything about it here!  You’ll have to take our word for it!

Often while surfing we stumble upon a great a web site and wonder who the genius behind it is – specifically in large scale web systems where credit is seldom given to the real hidden talent behind a given work.

The convention of putting “Site designed by” or “Site developed by” is incredibly lame in our view; certainly not common practice in professional agency circles. With the abscence of the ability to explicitly promote a piece of work (in particular one bound under stringent NDA),  great companies (and more importantly the people that power them) don’t often get the recognition they deserve.  The industry can be very thankless and airline-magazine-diseased: here-today-gone-tomorrow.  What have you done for us today?  Twitter and social media in general antiquate an idea or innovation in a matter of minutes.  What idea really is new?

When speaking of hidden gems, take for example the talent behind the H&M site. Here’s what our studio project manager, Sarah Khan had to say about it:

We are HUGE fans of their “Try On” feature. The dressing room poses a computer generated figure with a lifelike human face and allows the customer to mix and match clothing depending on the look desired. The excitement of matching the perfect combination of a tucked in pair of blue pants with a mustardy yellow shirt and being able to throw a navy blue printed scarf on it, is something that only a fashion forward audience can feel. The features function perfectly, it allows you to pick the face and hair that suits you the most thus enhancing your personal experience and identification with the model. Each accessory, bracelet, sock, shoes, and dress fits the model perfectly and makes even the most absurd combinations look desirable.

In our opinion this is a great piece of work produced by a very creative and talented team.  But the question still lingers – who was the genius behind it??

After much research and copious amounts of caffeine-accompanied Google searching, the authors of it remain unknown to us. There is a speculative chance that New York City based Create the Group is responsible for the genius behind the “dressing room” – but this is only an educated assumption based upon the fact that they developed the interactive campaign for the “70’s Chic Style” Collection.

Ultimately, quietly famous members of the digital industry become the invisible producer/director behind a star product or offering – which is certainly a great place to be – but at the same time lacks an appropriate recognition and fails to give credit where credit is due.  Here’s hoping for change!

If you had a part in creating the H&M site (or know someone who knows someone  who did, please reply here [quietly... shhhhhhh] we’d love to hear from you!)

A large, wall-length billboard was installed in the station, designed to look like a series of supermarket shelves and displaying images and prices of a range of common products. Each sign also includes a QR code. Users scan the code of any product they would like to purchase, thereby adding it to their online shopping cart.

Once the transaction is completed on the online store, the products are delivered to the customer’s home by the end of the day. The strategy makes productive use of commuters’ waiting time, while simultaneously saving shoppers time spent going to the supermarket.

PHP Developer (5-7 years+, $35.00-45.00/hour based on experience)
Full Time

We are seeking an experienced web developer for a full time position starting immediately. The candidate must have excellent communication skills and be able to work efficiently and independently. Preference will be given to those who can demonstrate past experience working in a developer role on large enterprise projects. Please note that we are seeking local Canadian talent only (i.e. those who can work from within our office in Oakville 4-5 days weekly).

QUALIFICATIONS / EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS:
• Applicant must have at least 5 to 7 years of experience in design, development and deployment of web-based software applications.
• Flexible in working independently and collectively in a team environment with the ability to work across multiple disciplines to achieve great results.
• Ability to take ownership of the entire development of projects from end to end.
• Extensive experience with all aspects of the LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP) stack.
• Working knowledge of object-oriented programming concepts and techniques using PHP 5.
• Excellent knowledge of relational database design and multi-tier web application architecture in conjunction with MySQL.
• Ability to implement code efficiency techniques such as reuse of common modules and identification of opportunities for abstraction, consolidation and/or reusability.
• Experience with development and consumption of web-services (SOAP, REST, XML-RPC).
• Must possess excellent debugging and trouble-shooting techniques.
• Evaluation of feature designs and how they translate into the appropriate technology.
• Application development experience integrating large product catalog databases into front-end applications.
• Experience with version control software such as Subversion or GIT.
• Experience with testing methodologies including: regression and stress testing.
• Knowledge of web front-end development, including HTML, DHTML, JavaScript, AJAX, CSS, browser capability and accessibility requirements.

NICE TO HAVE
• Specific experience with Magento 1.4.x or other commerce frameworks

PREFERRED ATTRIBUTES
Experienced in developing complete solutions, from beginning to end, in PHP and MySQL or PostgreSQL.
Knowledge of Unix or Linux is a plus
A quick learner who can make the right decisions in solving common web development issues.
Excellent communication skills.
Dedicated to meeting timelines
Assessing project deliverables and deadlines accurately and warning the team in advance of any expected delays
Ensuring project from a development point of view is not running out of scope
Deferring to the PM for any timeline, scope, or new business related inquiries from the client.

If you are interested in this position, please email hr@jasperstudios.com.
Please, no agency or offshore inquiries.

The site’s functionality attempts at going beyond “just a website” for the channel – it features escapes and destinations giving people a haven to come and let their imaginations run wild with limitless vacation possibilities and ideas.

The site aims to have a trip advisor feel to it and hopes to become more of a consultation guide for prospective travellers.

Check it out at: http://www.travelandescape.ca

Solid production values, engaging keynotes, informative breakout sessions, and some really amazing souls with great ideas to share at the various partner pavilions.

Much of the buzz at this year’s XCOM conference was centered around heightened integration between eBay’s new subsidiaries and strategic partners (i.e. Magento, PayPal, Adobe, etc.), cementing an already amazing set of independent offerings into a veritable force-to-be-reckoned-with in the future of mobile retail.

In one short sentence the summation of the event is this:

X.Commerce made a convincing case for asserting and proving that the future of online retail, in particular mobile online retail, is X.commerce. 

And so just what is X.commerce?  It’s a timely and exciting incestuous marriage of already rock solid enterprise tools and service providers, with Magento Enterprise at its core.

Some of the XCOM keynotes however were extremely airline-magazine-disease inducing: super sexed up to make things appear a little too easy-ish and plug-and-play for this discerning young developer’s liking.  The material left anyone with even a surface-level technical background begging for real matter-of-fact-down-home-truths rather than predictable BS marketing fluff.  We would loved to have been given some real time-lines for the roll-outs of their sexy new features for example.  And sexy they are dear reader:  Take ye note of some key things to be excited about for 2012:

• Continued (and accelerated) support for an already stellar commerce platform – Magento Enterprise
• PayPal Access (downright SWEET for mobile view applications) for anytime/anywhere frictionless macro/micro payments
• Adobe Analytics (extremely attractive new business developer friendly integrated commerce metrics)

We’re super excited about tracking the release (and stability) of the above, and some of them will hopefully be polished enough and ready for market  by Q4 2012.

The closing keynote, delivered by Chris Bangle was particularly interesting and inspiring, along with the story of Toms shoes and the example they have set by forming an organization with generosity (i.e excellence and purpose) at its core.

All told it was a great time.  Thank you X.commerce – well worth the trip to San Francisco!  We’ll be back next year!

“The X.commerce Innovate Developer Conference 2011 is designed for anyone—systems integrators, developers, merchants—to meet up on all things commerce. For the first time, solutions from beginning to end for any system and storefront will be available for discussion, or even for use.

Over the course of two days—and a memorable evening party graced with a headlining act—attendees can choose among 49 different sessions of round-tables, demos, presentations and workshops.

Topics cover the essentials for:
• Commerce trends
• Mobile commerce trends
• Technology trends
• eBay
• PayPal
• Magento
• and X.commerce itself

Speakers include local and international experts from the marketplace as well as the back end of coding; from inside the powerhouses of eBay and PayPal as well as explosive entrants in the field like Where.com, Milo, and RedLaser.”

Learn more by visiting www.innovate-conference.com

Straight from the horses mouth/video production team, sit back and enjoy Magnetos introduction to their eCommerce platform.

On Thursday, citing a “well-placed source,” VentureBeat reported that among a handful of suitors, Amazon is the “closest” to landing webOS, which HP acquired from Palm in 2010, hailed as an operating system that would reinvent everything from smartphones to PCs to printers, and then put out to pasture after little more than a year of development.

Though HP has been nothing short of utterly confusing with its webOS strategy, the operating system was never short of admirers. And according to reports, HTC, Samsung, and even Facebook have considering buying the thing. As is typical when such rumors surface, HP stayed mum when reached for comment.

Amazon’s brand-new Kindle Fire tablet is built on a heavily modified version of Google’s Android OS, and a leap for webOS wouldn’t be all that surprising.

Android has been hit with all sorts of litigation over the last several months, with big names such as Apple and Oracle claiming patent and copyright infringement, and Microsoft is pressuring Android manufacturers into patent licensing deals. Having its own operating system would help keep Amazon out of the fire. Unlike other rumored webOS suitors, Amazon not only competes with Apple in the tablet market, but also as a media content provider.

Amazon could not be reached immediately for comment, but there are certain signs within the company that give the rumor some credence. Late last year, Jon Rubenstein, the former CEO of Palm, joined Amazon’s board of directors. Then, in July, in a move that many saw as a demotion due to poor performance, he was given a new role within HP as senior vice president of innovation — a fairly ambiguous title.

Shortly thereafter, Rubenstein did an interview with This is my next where he said: “Amazon would certainly make a great partner, because they have a lot of characteristics that would help them expand the webOS ecosystem. As to whether there’s been discussions or not … that’s obviously not something I’m going to comment about.”

By Caleb Garling wired.com