Formula

Custom software development

Applications for iOS, Android and the web

Formula is a software development company. We write mobile applications for iOS and Android, and applications that run in a browser, to the specification of the client who commissions them.

What the work consists of

Our activity is custom development. We do not sell a product of our own and then adapt it; we write software for a particular purpose that a client has described to us. An engagement normally begins with a written description of what the software has to do and who will use it. From that we produce an estimate covering scope, cost and calendar time, and we say plainly which parts of the estimate we are confident about and which parts depend on decisions that have not been made yet.

The work is delivered in stages that can be run and looked at, rather than as a single delivery at the end. That arrangement exists for a practical reason: written specifications are usually incomplete, and the fastest way to find out what is missing is to put a working version in front of the people who will actually use it. At the end of a project the client receives the application together with its source code and the instructions needed to build and deploy it, so that the work is not dependent on us continuing to be available.


Talking to the person who writes the code

The company is run by the person who writes its software. Albert Meibatov is the General Director and the developer, and he founded the company. A question about a data model, an interface, an API response or the reason a screen behaves the way it does is answered by the person who wrote that part of the system, in the same conversation, without being relayed through someone who then has to go and ask. Olga K. handles scheduling, correspondence and contracts so that the development work is not constantly interrupted, but she does not stand between a client and the developer.


How a project runs

  1. You describe the problem

    A paragraph is enough to begin with. We read it and come back with the questions that are missing — usually about who the users are, what data the system holds, and what has to exist on the first day it runs.

  2. We write an estimate

    Scope, cost and calendar time, in writing. It states what we would need from you, and it marks the parts that are uncertain along with the reason they are uncertain. If we think the work is a poor fit for us, we say that instead of quoting.

  3. Development runs in stages

    You get versions you can open and use while the work is in progress, not a single delivery at the end. Changes of direction are cheapest while the code is still being written, which is the point of working this way.

  4. You receive everything

    The application, its full source code, and the instructions to build and deploy it without us. Continuing to work with us should be a choice rather than a dependency.


What we work with

The tools below are the ones we use day to day. Which of them a project needs is decided by the project, not the other way round.

  • Swift
  • SwiftUI
  • Kotlin
  • Jetpack Compose
  • TypeScript
  • HTML & CSS
  • REST APIs
  • PostgreSQL
  • SQLite
  • Git
  • Xcode
  • Android Studio

Getting in touch

The most useful first message is a short description of what the software needs to do and roughly when you need it. Write to contact@formula.cx, or read more about the services we offer and the company itself.