You have finished with all the pleasantries; how was the flight, is the accommodation ok, cold weather we’re having. Now it’s time to move onto the reason for the meeting.
Fortunately many tech terms are known universally by their English name or Acronym, but some may not be.
Tech Meeting Conversation
Client: Thanks for meeting with us. We’re looking to develop a secure, scalable web application, but we need some clarity on the development process.
Project Manager (Dev Company): Absolutely! Let’s start with the scope. Are you looking for a prototype first, or do you want to go straight into full development?
Client: A prototype would be helpful. We want to test core functionalities before committing to a full build.
Lead Developer: That makes sense. We’ll create a stateless backend, which ensures that requests don’t store session data. This will improve performance and reduce latency, especially as the system scales.
Client: That sounds great. Speaking of performance, will encryption be included? Security is a priority for us.
Lead Developer: Definitely. We’ll implement end-to-end encryption for data at rest and in transit. That way, all sensitive information remains protected.
Client: Good. Now, in terms of the core features, we need a function that retrieves user reports based on filters.
Software Engineer: We’ll define a function with a clear return type—probably JSON. It will accept multiple parameters, like date range and user role, as arguments.
Client: That works. Will there be any external dependencies?
Lead Developer: Yes, we may use third-party libraries for authentication and data visualization, but we’ll ensure they don’t impact system performance.
Client: One last thing—how will the database get updated with new records?
Software Engineer: We’ll create automated scripts to populate the database in real time. This ensures users always have the latest data without delays.
Client: Sounds good! Let’s move forward with the prototype.
Here are some definitions in case you need them
Term |
Definition |
Specification |
Could be Functional ie what app must do, or Performance ie how well / fast must it do it. |
Prototype |
A first or preliminary version of app or software. |
Scope |
Specify deliverables, what’s included, what’s not |
Return type |
The type of the data returned by a function eg integer, string, array or class |
Parameters & arguments |
An argument is the actual value that is passed to the function. Parameters define the type and number of inputs a function can accept. |
Stateless |
Stateless apps don't save client session data on the server, allowing for virtually infinite scalability. |
Encryption |
the process of protecting information or data by using mathematical models to scramble it in such a way that only the parties who have the key to unscramble it can access it |
Latency |
the delay before a transfer of data begins following an instruction for its transfer. |
Dependencies |
a piece of software, or more specifically, a library, that a software system or application relies on to function. |
Scalable |
the ability of a technology, system, or software to handle an increasing amount of work, users, or data without a significant decrease in performance or a need for major modifications. |