Blog | Upbeat

Choose the right technology for your mobile app

There are a number of ways to build an app. At one end of the spectrum, there’s a website that feels like an app. At the other, there’s a true ‘native’ app - the ‘native’ bit means it’s joined at the hip to the device, so the user interface (UI) of both the app and device’s operating system (OS) feel identical, and the hardware capability of the device can be fully utilised. Following on from "you need a mobile app, now what?" - this second article on mobile explores the options available.

You need an app. Now what?

In the first of a two part series on mobile apps, we take a look at common questions asked by organisations when starting a new mobile project. Part one outlines getting your project and strategy and supplier right. Part two details alternatives to building a traditional native mobile app.

Web Developer Apprenticeship Open Day

Do you dream of being paid to build websites for global organisations? Does ‘earning while you learn professional skills’ sound attractive?

Greenscreen lighting tests - Hyper Jump

Quite often someone in the creative team will come up with a technique or idea that sends us on a journey of testing and retesting, then more testing and retesting, then a brainwave, then more testing and retesting.

The NHS must share problems to make savings

Last week’s Procurement 4 Health event at Birmingham’s NEC made for a sobering reminder of the depths of the NHS’s financial challenges. The event is mainly aimed at procurement professionals and suppliers working with, or looking to work with the NHS supply chain. The increasing reliance on technology in all aspects of medicine and the recent focus on Cybersecurity made technology a recurrent theme. However, the positive take-away from the day was a strong focus on collaboration and partnerships which, coming from an open source technology background resonates with many of our own views about how to solve big problems.

A trio of new Scottish faces across our Carlisle and London offices.

Who’d have thought that recruiting for three very different roles at opposite ends of the country would result in hiring three talented individuals who grew up within eight miles of each other? The Hydrant Upbeat family has seen a recent flurry of new faces across both our Carlisle and London offices with a totally co-incidental, but strangely connected past.

The Cumberland Building Society Mortgage Calculator

We are delighted to be working with a local business, especially one with such a long standing reputation as The Cumberland Building Society.

Growing national presence, new faces and additional services.

Hydrant are pleased to announce that we are now part of Upbeat Productions Ltd. Joining forces allows Hydrant to offer a wider range of technologies and creative expertise and a larger team as well as national coverage with staff based throughout the UK, including central London.

Apprenticeship leads to new permanent role with Upbeat

Upbeat’s newest recruit has actually been with the company for over a year. That’s because our new Junior Developer, Alan Saunders, has just successfully completed his Drupal Web Developer Apprenticeship with us.

“Breadcrumbs” and “Active trails” in Drupal 8

A regular feature we've needed a solution for in any Drupal website build is how to handle showing the breadcrumb and active trail (highlighted menu items). Drupal Core has always catered for this by using the menu structure, but when it comes to placing another page or pages of a certain type into the this active trail, a contributed solution has been required.

Upbeat's Drupal Apprentice, Alan Saunders

A year in the life of Upbeat's Drupal Web Development Apprentice

Has it really been a year since our Drupal Web Development Apprentice, Alan Saunders, started working with us? The last twelve months have definitely flown by. Here's Alan's account of his Upbeat experience.

Breaking News! Google is going mobile first

Over the last few years, whenever it’s been my turn to write the agency’s obligatory monthly blog post, I’ve almost always ended up writing about ‘mobile’.