WeAreBikers
This is a project that had experienced numerous twists and turns before we took it over – a social network for bike riders.
It was first released on Google Play and the AppStore in 2019, as an application to help riders connect.
The development of its architecture, as well as the server backend, implementation of mobile clients, and the app’s website was entrusted to one of the more renowned software houses in Poland, which – to quote the client –
Did not manage to carry out the project in line with our guidelines…
Everything worked, sometimes better and sometimes worse, for some time, until it suddenly stopped.
The app’s uptime dropped to alarming levels, which led directly to the frustration experienced by its users. What is more, after some time, the Android client was removed from Google Play due to breaking Google’s guidelines and conditions.
From that point on, they were looking for a trusted developer, who would pick up where the previous team had left off and continue the app’s development – this led them directly to our team.
Before we made the decision to cooperate, we took part in multiple meetings spanning many hours and prepared numerous analyses to make sure that we could successfully tackle this challenge.
Eventually, we took it over in June 2021.
Our first focus was on analysing backend issues and getting the application back on Google Play.
As a result of these initial efforts, our DevOps team implemented some ad hoc fixes to restore stability (at least from the users’ point of view), and the application was relisted on the Google Play Store.
In the meantime, we made the decision to switch the API technology used in the project, as the previous solution could not handle the load, as well as to move the software to a new server.
The new API was based on one of the fastest and most efficient solutions created to date.
Our friends from a company specialising in providing server solutions took care of the backend issues by preparing a bespoke machine and ensuring proper scalability.
They also kept a close eye on the stability and security of the software, as well as the user data collected.
The iOS and Android apps have been redesigned with the new API in mind, and the implementation has been updated in line with the agreed scope.
Finally, the project was relaunched in its new form in January 2022, and the API switch was seamless and smooth – again, from the users’ point of view – which was one of the key design assumptions for the new solution. This is also when the project successfully left the MVP stage, since it was no longer a minimum viable product. The application successfully completed its first trial run during a trade show in Warsaw.
We are currently working on mobile clients to improve the implementation and fix some minor issues left by the previous team, while gearing up for further development :)
The project comprises of:
- the API
- a mobile client for Android devices
- a mobile client for iOS devices
- a website
- an advertising service
- integration with external services, including Amazon S3 and Streaming Audio.
We hope that our client’s app will enjoy as much popularity as possible; we’ll keep our fingers crossed for them to find new business partners and continue our cooperation based on mutual trust – because this is the only thing that can make such projects successful (according to us, of course ;) ).
