A Web Browser for Mac with 10M+ Users Monthly

About Our Client

The Client is a software company providing ad hoc solutions for an ultimate web surfing experience, free of the excessive use of third-party applications. The Client’s powerful assets help to socialize and manage media content both online and offline.

Challenge

With understanding and compassion for the frustrations of end-users navigating among numerous media apps and services, the Client conceived an all-in-one web browsing application specifically suitable for music connoisseurs, video lovers, and people with an active online presence. ScienceSoft’s task was to create a Mac version of the browser and to implement a system of updates for Windows and Mac. Other challenges faced by ScienceSoft’s team included an auto-updates subsystem, which is user-friendly and highly customizable, as well as a solution for managing torrents from the browser.

Solution

The team working on the project originally consisted of six seasoned developers, and the total work log has already amounted to 220 weeks. Over this time, the adaptation of the Chromium-based browser for Mac has been successfully accomplished, and a custom Mac installer has been created.

To keep the browser on the cutting edge of technological trends, a system of updates and an auto-updates subsystem for Windows and Mac have been implemented.

One of the unique features of the product is its ability to support and manage torrent downloads directly from the browser, with lightning speeds and an intuitive interface making for a delightful user experience.

Another distinguishing feature of the browser is the single access point integration with all the major social networks and content-sharing platforms. The Client´s designated music service has been integrated into the product via add-ons, web and desktop apps.

ScienceSoft has also created a special Launcher for Windows, which allows the browser users to instantly access their favorite bookmarks, page view history, and the pages they frequent directly from their desktops in a single click.

Results

As a result, the product has seen several releases with all the required features being implemented, and after 2 years the team of five specialists continues to improve the user experience and the product performance by regularly delivering updates and new features. Now the browser is successfully competing among the market leaders with more than 10 million monthly active users.

Technologies and Tools

To provide for an up-to-date UX, high performance, and security standards, the Chromium browser’s framework has been extensively customized and extended with C++ libraries such as the libtorrent-rasterbar library, cryptographic tools such as Crypto++ and OpenSSL, and HTML / JavaScript for internal pages. Windows Service and Mac Daemon were developed for the auto-update subsystem of the Product.

To ensure the sustainability and flexibility toward the Client’s growing and changing needs, the project is being developed on the Time & Materials model and Agile methodology.