We are well known for our ability to create multi-platform, multi-device software applications, so here we spill some of the beans on how we achieve it.

One of these things is language.
There are two distinct ways of authoring cross-platform desktop applications:
1) Use a common runtime environment (e.g. Java – JRE)
2) Write code that can compile down to native byte-code with platform specific switches/defines (e.g. C/C++).

So the first approach…

By using a runtime, such as Java’s JRE, you have a few benefits.
The main benefit is coding only to one environment and letting the runtime deal with the platform differences.
There are however two important drawbacks that can rear their heads.
Firstly, the ideal of “write once, run anywhere” is (and is not Java alone here – from which the phrase comes) often simply not the case.
Secondly, you simply don’t get the speed and direct advantages of programming directly to the platform.

By writing code that gets compiled to native byte-code (e.g. C/C++), you have opposite pros and cons.
You get the benefits of being able to exploit platform specific functionality and low-level speed, but have the drawback of needing to compile to each platform, which involves knowledge of each specific platforms API’s and a good structural design of the code base so you are not maintaining several different code bases for the same application.

Here is the tricky bit, which path do you take?
Simply put, the answer depends on the project.

Here at CJT, we analyse project requirements and make technology decisions based upon them.
It really is a project-by-project decision to be made to achieve the correct answer (it also involves taking a step back and thinking of whats best for the project rather than what you know or like best).