Google press event on January 5th featuring 'Android'

The amount of buzz Google as generated by giving out the Nexus One to their employees has been explosive. So explosive that Google seems to feel confident enough to have a head start on the CES event that is scheduled just days after Google’s event.  Google sent invitations to a lucky some of tech sites and press organizations for an event on January 5th in their home town.

Google wants the press to gather around for an Android event in Mountain View, which is super exciting news because Android is already riding a huge buzz wave with the Motorola Droid and Droid Eris. For Google to keep up such hype even months after the launch of a flagship device is pretty impressive. Something that Palm, with WebOS, and Microsoft, with Windows Phone 6.5, seem to be struggling to do. So place your bets folks, Nexus One? Google Phone? A super Android Tablet? Whatever it is, we know it has to do with Android and that means we are talking about the mobile segment of tech, so we will let you know exactly what they will be showing at said event. Stay tuned folks, our guts tell us it is something big.

[Via Engadget Mobile]

[Via http://fonefrenzy.com]

Google Goggles brings visual search to Android

Looks like Google’s been busy on the camera tip lately — not only is it launching a new QR code-based Favorite Places mobile search product today, it’s also demoing Google Goggles, a visual search app that generates local results from analyzing mobile phone images. Favorite Places isn’t super-complicated, but it sounds like it’ll be pretty useful: Google’s sent QR code window decals to the 100,000 most researched local businesses on Google and Google Maps, and scanning the code with your phone will bring up reviews, coupons, and offer the ability to star the location for later. (It’s not implemented yet, but you’ll be able to leave your own reviews in the future.) Google hasn’t built this into the Google Mobile app yet, so you’ll need something to read QR codes with — Android devices can use the free Barcode Scanner, and Google and QuickMark are offering 40,000 free downloads of QuickMark for the iPhone today. We just tried it out using QuickMark and it works pretty well — although we’ll wait to see how many QR codes we see in the wild before we call this one totally useful.

Google Goggles is a little more interesting from a technology standpoint: it’s an Android app that takes photos, tries to recognize what in them, and then generates search results about them. Goggles can recognize landmarks, books, contact info, artwork, places, wine, and logos at the moment, and Google says it’s working on adding other types of objects, like plants. Pretty neat stuff — but how about linking these two services together at some point, guys? Check some videos after the break.

From Engadget.com

[Via http://thetechguia.wordpress.com]

Java Game Development.

I’m adding a video series I found useful. Java Game Development is a new page I added at the top right corner under PAGES. The video’s will teach you how to develop java games for the pc or internet. I know this isn’t my usual type post but as the title already states this blog is for talking about whatever I want to talk about. I’m also currently working on developing apps for android phones. So if anyone would be interested in helping me I would be happy to know what type of apps people would be interested in seeing.

[Via http://dustyljohnson.wordpress.com]

My thoughts on the Toshiba NB200

As the need arose for me to replace my previous work laptop, I was very keen to go to the opposite end of the scale. From a 17″ semi-powerhouse laptop to a smaller 10″ Netbook.

It was a mission to carry it around everywhere, battery life sucked, and it was just not functional for anything but sitting on a desk.

So I wanted something portable, to take with me on-site as I visit client sites for VoIP / IT support etc. I wanted something with good battery life (3-4 hours would be good I thought, which is over double what my previous was good for), I wanted it to be lightweight, semi-durable as I chuck it in my bag with other computer gear like routers and cables, and I didn’t want to have to sit around waiting for an OS like when installing on the EeePC 900 Flash Drive. A decent GPU would be nice, like an ION-based system, so I could do 1080p movies in my spare time, but that’s a lower-priority. 2GB RAM is a must, if it’s going to run Win7.

I would have liked an ARM machine running Linux, just for the geek factor, but couldn’t find anything, so I was pretty much stuck with an Atom CPU, 1.6Ghz. They’re not bad CPU’s, we use the dual-core ones in the PBX systems we build at work. Not uber-powerful single-core, but still powerful enough for browsing, word processing, IM’ing and ssh’ing into systems.

It came down to a 10″ Asus EeePC, the Acer Aspire One, or the Toshiba NB200.

I’d had a good run with my EeePC’s (700 & 900-series w/Celerons), but they felt a little “flimsy”, like the plastic was cheap & thin. I know I’m nitpicking here but the fact they didn’t even remove the modem socket left me with the feeling that it was rushed out the factory door without enough time put into foresight of the product. The under-clocked CPU bugged me, even though after a while there were utilities you could use to fix that.

The Acer Aspire One running Android would have been a cool novelty, I liked that idea, but to be honest I simply didn’t have enough of a chance to look into it because the retailer was out of stock. In fact PBTech recently had a boxing day sale, $399 for the Aspire One.

This left me looking at the NB200. Now don’t get me wrong I didn’t simply pick it because I didn’t like the other two, but for a few other reasons:

The “finish” on the laptop feels nice, I dunno how to describe how it feels different from the others but it does and it’s comfortable to use.

The battery life (6-Cell battery) is rated at 9 hours. On the WiFi I get around 7-8 hours quite easily, and it’s marvelous! Not having to plug it in constantly is so, so nice!! Not to mention that replacement batteries are readily available and cost only around $70-90 from PBTech, so when I’ve abused the heck outta this one, I’ll have another one ready to go.

Now this is a small bonus, but the placement of the USB ports is good, they’re well spaced apart so some of the slightly larger thumbdrives don’t collide.

The HDD utility is also cool (Though the popup gets annoying as hell), having it park the HDD head when it detects vibration or movement. I dunno how well it works, but it sounds like a good feature, especially on a Netbook which you’re likely to have on-the-go!

The battery also sticks out a little at the back, which I’ve decided is actually a benefit. It’s nice to hold on to while carrying it, and it also prevents it from falling back on your lap while you wriggle about getting comfortable.

Annoyances:

I read a review on it prior to buying it, which did a crappy as job of identifying pro’s and cons. It said that the “WiFi On” LED down the front was a bad thing and a major annoyance. Not really.. Here’s what I’ve found annoying, or less-than-good with it.

Win7 Starter, I got rid of it immediately. Didn’t even waste my time with booting it more than once, though I did boot it just to see what A/V (Nortons) was installed. It’s running Win7 Enterprise for now.

The Touchpad, I found myself tapping with my palms when I didn’t want, I never had that issue with my EeePC’s, though maybe that’s because this one is much larger (Which is cool), but anyway I installed the Alps touchpad driver and set it to disable when I plug in a USB mouse. I’ve got a Logitech which is awesome, cheap, and I can leave the receiver in at all times.

There’s no “sleeve” or anything that comes with it instead of a bag, like the EeePC had. Not a biggy, but I must admit to being disappointed.

The back of the screen holds fingerprints incredibly well, better than it should, and it’s always looking grubby which is unfortunate.

I replaced the 1GB RAM stick with a 2GB one. I guess because it’s Win7 Starter it doesn’t need more than 1GB, but I’m being picky here.

The mono speaker is poorly placed underneath and is terribly quiet. I have headphones though and won’t use it as a “jukebox” without other speakers, so it’s a moot point. It’s not a media-box.

I haven’t installed Linux on it, but I will be, and I’ll update this when I do.

Overall there are some minor annoyances, but I’d still rate it around 8.5/10. I’m very happy with it, and the minor annoyances are pretty easily remedied.

If you have one, or any other Netbook, I’m keen to know your thoughts on yours

Chill.

[Via http://chillingsilence.wordpress.com]

More News on The Nexus One

So the Nexus One isn’t much of a secret any longer. With multiple leaks coming out daily it’s hard to not know anything about the new phone from Google. The latest leak is one that most people have be waiting for. They have a release date and tech specs.

Starting January 5 you can get your hands on the phone, but on an invite only basis. I hope I get an invite. Unfortunately it says nothing about it coming to Canada.

For the full technical spec sheet and more on the release date, Read more.

[Via http://smartphonebuzz.wordpress.com]

Another App Store

Apps stores are a dime a dozen it seems.   Motorola is the latest to join the fray with their MotoAppstore.   As more device makers keep creating more and more store fronts and continue to pursue developers, there will be an even larger developer community able to use all kinds of APIs to put forward their best concept apps.  One thing to also keep in mind is what the service providers (telecom carriers, cable companies) are aiming for, which is to expose some key network enablers for developers to add additional value to their apps.

From Androidandme.com

Motorola is also currently developing a native client for Android called the MotoAppstore.

It appears the site is still in testing, but the store is currently publicly accessible by any visitor.

Features of the SHOP4APPS store include:

• Apps Store catalog is accessible via your mobile browser, a mobile client, or Motorola Media Link (MML).
• MotoAppstore free Mobile Client. This client allows you to download and install your purchases applications.
• MyLocker section – check your download history (name of the application, date of the purchase, version).
• The ability to purchase apps from the desktop site, place them in your MyLocker, and then download it using your handset.
• Automatic notification alerts when a new version of an app is available.
• The ability to re-download and transfer your apps to a new phone.

[Via http://yourappsguy.wordpress.com]

November 2009: State of The Location Apps

I have long been fascinated by the location-based applications, especially on the new mobile platforms, for they represent a different (and a new) way of consuming and interaction with information.

So perhaps that is why I found this new report jointly produced by location-based services company Skyhook Wireless & Distimo, an app analytics company mildly interesting. Here are some of the highlights for the month of November 2009:

• Apple’s iTunes app store has the largest proportion of paid location based applications (57 percent) versus Blackberry which has 49 percent and Google’s Android Market which has 21 percent.
• During the month, the average price of Maps & Navigations applications remained steady on Apple’s app store and Google’s Android store, despite the introduction of the free Google Maps Navigation. Blackberry App World on the other had saw a decline of 15 percent to $13.74 from September 2009.
• Location based applications on average cost $14.37 in the Blackberry’s App World versus $7.34 for such apps on the Apple App Store.

And now little something about the actual location apps:

• Google Earth is the highest ranked “free navigation and travel app” on the Apple platform, followed by MapQuest. Urbanspoon is ranked #4 and trumps Yelp which comes in at #5. I am especially excited to see Trapster at #7. Most of my friends who drive and have iPhone love this speed trap alerts service.
• Poynt is the higest ranked Blackberry app in the “free navigation and travel app” category, followed by Where.
• Google Maps is the highest ranked Android app “free navigation and travel app” followed by NYC Subway Maps app. Where is at #5 and Trapster comes in at #10.
• When it comes to paid travel applications, CoPilot Live GPS is a winner on Android. MotionX GPS takes the top spot on Apple platforms and GeoCache Navigator is tops in the Blackberry world.

[Via http://gigaom.com]

Google's 'Nexus One' smartphone - Biting the hand that feeds?

As I discussed HERE last week, the Nexus One has surfaced and in the excitement of this pure Google Android smartphone hitting the market in the near future, some questions need to be asked.

The Nexus One is reportedly an ‘unlocked’ GSM phone that will be able to put on any U.S. GSM carrier’s network; T-Mobile is first in line for the new device but could potentially be put on AT&T’s network as well.  It’s not clear how wide-ranging Google’s ambitions are for the phone. Unless Google is willing to sell the phone at a loss, the Nexus One is likely to be much more expensive than Apple’s iPhone and similar devices, which receive subsidies from wireless carriers.

Will Google bet on generating enough ad revenue shown on mobile web sites to and applications downloaded to offset the subsidies?  If they don’t subsidize the Nexus One, industry analysts don’t expect it to have much impact on the smartphone market.

The iPhone has been the biggest source of mobile traffic to Google’s mobile services during the past two years, according to Google executives.  If Google decides to sell its own handset, it would intensify its budding rivalry with Apple.  So, since this is a direct competitor to the iPhone, will Google’s attempt at taking a bite out of Apple’s smartphone market share be akin to biting the hand that feeds?

[Via http://davidrscott.wordpress.com]

Two new (old) short stories

I discovered a couple of Sci-Fi short stories that I wrote some time ago (Corpus Deletum and Picnic) . Corpus Deletum needed some editing and Picnic was not finished so I finished it this last weekend. I’m going to let them cool off for a week or two then do some final editing before releasing them on UMakeItCool.com.

Corpus Deletum is a somewhat racy story set in a time when androids are more plentiful than people and people are controlled by implants to prevent violence and antisocial behavior. One missed uncontrolled person falls in love with three beautiful androids and gets involved in their plot to gain their freedom from human control.

Picnic is about a young adult girl and boy that go on a picnic together in the woods. They encounter the dark secret of our universe but only the girl learns from the experience.

Have a good holiday season everyone.

[Via http://kaliferdeil.wordpress.com]

Google Mail with HTC Hero: a perfect match

I’ve had my Hero almost four weeks.  I was so impressed by it that I posted here after just two days of use.  I’m pleased to say I still view my HTC Hero as a marvel of design and function.  HTC’s motto, “quietly brilliant”, is an apt one.

Many of the Hero’s good features are standard among Android phones.

Google integration

Foremost among these is the effortless access to Google mail, contacts and calendar.  Updates to email status are reflected on the Hero within a few seconds.  All my contacts are there and available…  since getting my Hero I have tidied these, and the recently released Gmail feature “Find duplicates” has been very helpful.

Part of the ease with which email is handled is due to the notification bar at the top of the Hero’s screen, a simple yet effective feature: emails, messages, software install status, connection options.  Drag the notification bar down the screen and the full list is displayed.  For example, if the Hero has just been connected by USB to a computer, the notification list includes a button to enable the phone’s SD card as a flash drive and another to run HTC Sync.

Google Talk is handled equally seamlessly.  The notification bar tells me someone has started a chat with me.  Drag down the bar and tap the link to open the Talk app.  Easy.  I use Google Talk from my Windows PC, but on the Hero it’s so much more useful.

Twitter and the Web

I use Twitter daily and started out using the HTC’s Peep app, finding it met most of my needs.  I’ve since switched to Twidroid Pro for improved usability and customization.  Both Peep and Twidroid will indicate arrival of new tweets via the notification bar and these are easily accessed from the drag down list.

The Hero’s web browser works well, and the multi-touch zoom is smooth and controlled.  Visual bookmarks are a nice feature, as is “share this page” with options for SMS, email and Twitter (Peep or Twidroid).  The browser supports multiple windows, selected via a nice mini display of the each  window’s content.

Customization

Customization of the Hero is one of its strengths.  The phone comes with an array of high quality HTC widgets including browser bookmarks, calendar, clock, mail, messages, music, photos, stocks and Twitter.  HTC recently published four additional widgets specifically for Hero and Eris users: battery status, dice, “today in history” and a tip calculator.

HTC’s Sense desktop has seven panels, so there’s lots of room for your chosen apps and widgets.  HTC have extended this further with what they call “scenes”, which are custom saved desktops.  You could have one for general use, another for socializing and others for commuting, business, sports events, etc.  Each scene can provide easy access to the apps and widgets that you need for those activities.

Summing up

The Hero is a quality product.  Everything about it says “quietly brilliant”.

[Via http://blog.3dbloke.com]

Android This Week: Nook Gets Pandora; Nexus Appears at Google

The Barnes & Noble (s bks) Nook reader is already proving how open the Android OS can make even the most closed of devices. The e-book reader was reportedly hacked by enthusiasts this week in order to run both the Android web browser and the music streaming service Pandora. The average Nook owner is unlikely to engage in such hacking, but it is surprising to see how accessible Android makes such a device for those with a little knowledge about such things. AT&T (s t) can’t be happy about this. The carrier provides the 3G network for Nook owners to download e-books, and web surfing with hacked Nooks is sure to catch AT&T’s ire using the free (to the owner) connection.

Also this week, Google gave its employees a new phone, dubbed the Nexus One, that’s based on future Android technology — and it has tongues in the tech world wagging. It’s a full Android handset that’s rumored to be headed for commercial release early next year, without a carrier. Those claiming to have information about the Nexus believe that Google will sell the phone under its own brand.

Meanwhile, my favorite note-taking app was released for the Android platform. Evernote users can create notes via the phone keyboard, by taking pictures with a phone camera or by recording audio notes. All notes created using Evernote for Android are synced with the Evernote cloud, thus keeping important information at hand no matter what device is being used. The app can be installed through the Android Market, or downloaded directly from Evernote.

And reports emerged that Motorola (s mot) may be producing the first Android phone on the AT&T (s t) network in the U.S. The Backflip has a physical keyboard that doesn’t slide out, but instead flips over, so that the keys make up the back of the phone when “closed.” Once opened, a trackpad is exposed that can be used to control the interface, much like a trackpad on a laptop. The Backflip is expected to run the Motorola Blur interface, like the Cliq that debuted at the Mobilize 09 conference earlier this year.

[Via http://gigaom.com]

context menus and transmitting state to a dialog

I basically have the same problem as reported here: putting a button or other focus-receiving object on a ListView blocks it from receiving item selections because those need to be focus-receiving too. Tricky. I guess that makes sense, though, how would you navigate without a touch-screen? So I guess it’ll be context menus for my “log it now” function although there could be ways around it on a touch screen.

Next problem: I’m using a context menu and one of the functions is to delete. Before deleting something the user accidentally touched, I want to show a dialog, then delete it if they confirm. Problem: there doesn’t seem to be any way to hold on to the item in question while the dialog is shown, except for using a class member (which seems really messy).

    public boolean onContextItemSelected(MenuItem item) {

        Log.d(TAG, “onContextItemSelected”);

        switch(item.getItemId()) {

        case R.id.ilc_menu_delete:

            showDialog(DELETE_DIALOG);

            return true;

        }

        return super.onContextItemSelected(item);

    }

 You can’t pass any information to showDialog; the dialog is actually shown via a separate callback. In fact, it’s worse than that – I don’t even have information when the context menu is clicked, or when it’s created from the list item! OK – checked the docs; you can get the item that was selected, it’s just rather convoluted:

AdapterContextMenuInfo info = (AdapterContextMenuInfo) item.getMenuInfo(); // now info.id is the rowid given by the adapter for the item

But you still have to stash that ID somewhere while the dialog is shown. So for now I’m putting it in a member for the transition. Once the dialog is created, the ID can be captured in a listener. That works OK. The indirection for requesting a dialog versus showing it is a bit puzzling.

[Via http://sosiouxme.wordpress.com]

I love my job

Warning: extreme statements of happiness contained within this post

As 2009 winds down and 2010 approaches I have had the opportunity to reflect on how lucky I am. 2009 was definitely a tough year for a lot of folks, and I feel very fortunate to have worked at a company that is enjoying the excitement of growth, and the glow of being in the middle of a technology hot spot. Since college I have been fortunate enough to love all the  jobs I have held. Not that they were perfect by any means, but they have all involved great technology, people, clients, and experiences.

When I graduated in 1996 I didn’t have any specific direction or industry in mind, I just knew I wanted to be in business. Fortunately for me the wireless industry was exploding at the time, and employers were hungry for anyone with a degree! Ericsson was my first career stop, and I learned a really valuable lesson about business – it’s not like anything they teach you in school. A business is only as good as the sum of its people – and people unfortunately are not perfect. In fact companies are very often made up of the same spectrum of people you went to school with (and you know how that went). Naively I had envisaged that large enterprises were efficient and perfectly oiled machines that I would be awe-inspired by - made whole by it’s perfectly functioning team members. In reality I found out what can happen when a technology based company wins an extremely large fixed bid contract which involves a lot of non-technical “real world” factors that can significantly impact and delay the build out of a wireless network. A network build that was meant to take roughly a year ended up taking more than two and a half, and unfortunately for Ericsson they ended up losing a big chunk of money. I loved my job at Ericsson for many reasons. The first was the people – who loved to drink – all the time! Second was the flex-time structure which afforded me over 50 days off my first year out of college (never to be repeated). The only problem with having tons of vacation I found out was having enough money for vacations. Third was the opportunity to start managing a team of people at the tender age of 21 with zero training, the only thing going for me was that my team was even younger and inexperienced than I was. Finally was the opportunity to interact with clients and make a difference to their business. My clients simply wanted the most lucrative wireless towers handed over first which typically were located in urban areas (and were therefore more difficult to build), and we wanted to fast track the rural wireless towers which were fairly easy to build but did not necessarily convert to a lot of revenue for our clients.

My second job was with Cheetah Technologies in Florida who later became Acterna, and now exist as part of JDSU. I exaggerate a little bit when I say I got the job purely based on my English accent, but I genuinely believe they thought it would be cool to have an Englishmen representing them on the phone with international clients. Luckily for me (and unfortunately for the company’s owner) the company was quickly sold shortly after my arrival due to an untimely but not fatal plane crash. The new owners had a lot more money and quickly approached me to ask if I’d be willing to travel extensively in the Asia-Pacific region. Being single and 24 at the time this sounded a great idea. The job eventually evolved into a global international business development role which was even more amazing. All the travel was in business class so I was fortunate enough to rake up crazy miles. The biggest lesson at this job was when my travel itinerary changed last-minute and I fatefully avoided a plane crash on November 3rd 2000 – the lesson: life is short and people will steal your stapler at the first opportunity. Another lesson I am happy to share is I always try to plan a litte extra time when I travel on business so I can actually enjoy the places I visit. Having said that it took me 12 visits to Beijing before I was man-handled by the local manager to visit the Great Wall of China.

Next I worked at a startup called PassTime  which grew from 5 of us sharing a room to a multi-million international operation over the course of five years. Again I was blessed to find a job that afforded me the opportunity to rotate through multiple departments at the same time I completed my MBA. At different times I was enabled by the company to run marketing, technology, and sales. It was a fabulous place to work with trips to far-flung places like Romania, New Zealand, and more established places like Las Vegas (6 times a year), Amsterdam, and one time to the Masters in Augusta. The personal lesson I learned at PassTime was the importance of team work – in order to achieve greatness you need to find common ground and work towards a common goal – a group of individuals can only go so far. PassTime is also the first company I left which hasn’t collapsed or disappeared through merger, so I finally have a past employer to point to.

Finally I get to EffectiveUI, my current residence. 15 months in I am really relishing the task of optimizing our company’s marketing efforts. The people heare are ALL first-rate (everyone is intelligent and grounded) like I had initially expected coming out of college. It is so refreshing to work with team members that “get it”. They are smart, reliable, and responsible. You can really count on them for just about anything. The clients are also amazing - a fine collection of who’s who across every industry. I honestly don’t know if I’ll ever get the opportunity in the future to work at a company with such a prestigious list of industry leading brand names. Every week our industrious sales team seems to land another whale. Then we have a diverse set of technology partners across the internet and mobile space. It is fantastic to work with the likes of Adobe, Apple, Microsoft, and Sun as they help shape the future of user experience through their technology innovations. It is fair to say EffectiveUI’s future is really bright and cheerful as we enter 2010.

In the past couple of weeks alone I have been fortunate enough to research where the interactive TV space is going, what the smart-phone/mobile world will look like in 2015, the future of touch screens, the role 3D will play in 2010, how to produce interactive videos, how to optimize an online media campaign in the B2B space, and finally how to sustain company-wide social media activities. There is so much potential and opportunity out there in 2010, it is exciting to be at a company so uniquely poised to take advantage. The lesson here? You can always learn more, and that continuing to learn is exciting!

I hope wherever you are in your career that you are equally situated for happiness. Remember happiness is a state of mind and as 2010 approaches there is no reason why it can’t be the best year ever for everyone. It’s the most wonderful time of the year!!!!

Cheers, Chris

[Via http://effectivemktg.wordpress.com]

Google Android Push Gains March in Taiwan With New Project (Yahoo News)

The Taiwanese government on Thursday announced support for a new project based on Google’s Android mobile operating system, one of a number of moves by Taipei this year to support Android.

Contract electronics manufacturer Cheng Uei Precision Industry and Taiwan’s largest telecommunications company, Chunghwa Telecom, plan to develop a suite of applications and services integrating NFC (Near Field Communication) wireless technology, applications and services for mobile phones that use the Android OS. All applications and services developed in the project will be based on Android code, according to a government statement describing the project.

Read more here

[Via http://exoticsu.wordpress.com]

Rooted Nook gets Pandora, shot at true happiness

 

Outside of swearing up a storm on a Twitter app, there aren’t many better ways to announce your presence on a new Android device than the comforting song selections of well-curated Pandora station. A newly rooted Nook with an unlimited supply of free 3G? Even better. The folks behind the rooted Barnes & Noble Nook have now managed to install Pandora onto the device. It took some VNC trickery to get past the login screen, but after that the app works perfectly with the Nook’s touchscreen and even runs in the background while you read. Right now the NookDevs are working on a software unlock so that you don’t have to open the Nook to root it, and are also looking into a Nook app marketplace of sorts. We don’t know how long the fun will last, or what Barnes & Noble’s response will be — so far they’ve been mum on the issue — but the NookDevs claim that based on a perusal of the end user license agreement "there is nothing in there to get us into trouble," so hopefully we’re looking at the beginnings of a beautiful, awkward friendship between a device maker and hackers. We can dream, right?

Rooted Nook gets Pandora, shot at true happiness originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Dec 2009 22:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Wired  |  NookDevs  | Email this | Comments

Rooted Nook gets Pandora, shot at true happiness

Paul Miller

Thu, 17 Dec 2009 03:39:00 GMT

Technorati Tags: Barnes & Noble,Nook,Android,Pandora

[Via http://bryan646.wordpress.com]

Which mobile OS to develop your killer app for?

Behind “How much will this cost” the most common question clients ask us is “What platform(s) should we develop for?”.  Both eminently sensible questions with the later not having a simple answer.

Determining which platform(s) to develop for is a client specific enquiry depending on a number of factors:

1. What is their target demographic and which devices is that demographic using?
2. What is their target geographic and which devices are prevalent in the geographic?
3. What are the technical requirements for the app (GPS, touch screen, background operation).
4. What is the business model (free, paid for app, advertising funded, in app purchases).
5. Do they have any inhouse development/graphic design capability?  If so then perhaps there is an argument that they can undertaken the prototyping on whatever platform that is to iterate through small screen usability and comms issues that can be expensive to tackle externally.
6. Are there any strategic reasons to prefer or include a certain platform (you have a pre-existing relationship, it’ll ship on device, no of units shipped, device coolness factor etc).

Our clients typically do not thank us for this information as they wanted a simple answer not an assignment!  Working through each of these will deliver you a reasoned answer.

For all that the answer must be client specific, with the usual caveats, years of experience can be boiled down to a few high level guides:

1. If it is a consumer oriented app targeted at developed countries then probably start with an iPhone build.  The iPhone platform has tremendous momentum, a great toolset, delightful useability and a solid installed base with users familiar with the idea of using (and paying for) mobile applications;
2. If it is an enterprise application for North America or Asia Pac then probably start with a Blackberry Build;
3. If it is an enterprise application targeted at European market then probably start with either a Symbian or Blackberry build;
4. Do not build a Windows Mobile or WebOS application without an extremely good reason.  Windows Mobile has lost a lot of marketshare over the last few years and has a lot of ground to make up before it becomes a strong contender for mobile application development.  WebOS looks very interesting and with few applications available provides a good opportunity to stand out but marketshare is so low at present that it will be difficult to make a return on investment; and
5. If you don’t actually need to leverage any of the underlying native capabilities of a device consider developing a webkit based application (allowing you to go cross platform).

The answer that falls out of this process won’t necessarily be that there is one best OS for you.  In fact I was really interested to read recently that research on “well funded” US startups showed that more than 75% were pursuing a multi-platform strategy while over 50% were developing their applications for all six of the major mobile platforms (Android, iPhone, Palm, Blackberry, Symbian and Windows).  So the answer seems to be that if you have enough money build for everything.  Naively I’m assuming that these well-funded startups are choosing to develop for six mobile platforms simultaneously because they have done their homework rather than because they couldn’t decide.  As an aside, SimWorks welcomes enquiries from all well funded US startups!

Mobile is an incredibly dynamic market so these are today’s rules of thumb only.  5 years ago my answer would have been much simpler:  Symbian!

[Via http://simworks.wordpress.com]

unit testing android

Trying out ScribeFire for blogging, looks decent (and is a plugin for FireFox so cross-platform). So far looks nice.

Looking at Diego Torres Milano’s blog: Android: Testing on the Android platform – Unit tests – obviously this is over a year old and out of date (1.0 was current then). When creating a project now the ADT plugin allows you to create a parallel test project at the same time or a later time. I somehow picked out the right way to run a simple unit test once, but it doesn’t seem to want to run again. And when running as an “Android unit test” it actually opens an emulator in order to do unit tests?!? I can kind of understand that but it seems unnecessary for unit testing. For now, writing this off as too out of date.

Continuing with Diego Torres Milano’s blog: Android: Testing on the Android platform – ApiDemos tests. I followed the directions – I think – but when I pasted the source files into the test project they got pasted in the original package locations (e.g. com.example.android.apis not com.example.android.apis.test), which seemed to cause no problems. Linking the test project to the original was as advertised. Directions are ambiguous as to which manifest file to copy to the test project – get the one from the test directory. I was able to run the ApiDemosTests package as an Android Junit Test and see it actually go; did not have to do anything in the emulator, and the results show up in the JUnit widget in eclipse. I could see things happening in the emulator, so I guess it makes sense to have it up I also tried running them from the Dev Tools or from adb and that worked as specified. Good to know.

Diego didn’t label this post so I almost missed it: Diego Torres Milano’s blog: Android: Testing on the Android platform – Creating tests; and this is a pretty good starting point. Got my test suite runner and a unit test shell set up, going to have to stop here for now.

So it’s great to see that this guy is also a bit frustrated with the docs (mostly, lack thereof) on testing; like emulator skins, tests are provided for you to reverse engineer, but not explained anywhere. I guess working tests are a little better than actual documentation which can get out of date fast. Diego seems to have a good understanding of JUnit and testing before coming to Android, which helps him. I don’t have that, but my brother does; this seems like an area that’s ripe for exploration and making a name by explaining. Heck, it would probably be worthwhile just to provide links to selected relevant posts by Diego putting them in an order that would be helpful to a beginner learning this stuff.

At my last meetup I told people that after you create an AVD, the tool doesn’t provide you any way to change its configuration. This is true, but you can edit the files that specify the config pretty easily – they aren’t even XML. The question is whether the emulator image itself (in the user’s .android directory) is modified at all according to config. I suspect the answer is “no.” At least, I tried changing the skin on an AVD (edit config.ini within the .avd definition) with no adverse consequences. But that’s superficial; other elements that refer to actual capabilities might need a matching setting inside the emulator image. I don’t know yet.

[Via http://sosiouxme.wordpress.com]

Android 2.1 ported to Droid, no one feigns surprise

 

You had to know this was coming. That Android 2.1 OS that’s been circulating inside the Google’s ultra-exclusive Nexus One has hit the internet, and thanks to some clever hackery, you can now theoretically put the update on your Droid handset. We say theoretically, of course, because it’s not quite a perfect rip. DIY instructions were briefly posted on Sholes.info but have since been replaced with a curt advisory to wait for a ROM that properly preserves file system permissions, else risking some serious breaking. The original image file is still available, but don’t say we didn’t warn you. Separately and perhaps unrelated, a video has surfaced of the Nexus One’s boot animation running on Droid — feel free to enjoy that instead, after the break.

[Thanks, Seth]

Continue reading Android 2.1 ported to Droid, no one feigns surprise

Android 2.1 ported to Droid, no one feigns surprise originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 23:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Sholes.info  | Email this | Comments

Android 2.1 ported to Droid, no one feigns surprise

Ross Miller

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 04:22:00 GMT

Technorati Tags: Android,Google,cellphone

[Via http://bryan646.wordpress.com]

Google testing own phone

Google Inc. has designed a cellphone it plans to sell directly to consumers as soon as next year, according to people familiar with the matter.

The phone is called the Nexus One and is being manufactured for Google by HTC Corp., these people said. It runs Android, the operating system for mobile phones that Google developed, they added. But unlike the more than half-dozen Android phones made by phone manufacturers today, Google designed virtually the entire software experience behind the phone, from the applications that run on it to the look and feel of each screen.

The Internet giant is taking a new, and potentially risky, approach to selling the device. Rather than selling the phone through a wireless carrier—the way the bulk of phones are sold in the U.S. today—Google plans to sell the Nexus One itself online. Users will have to buy cellular service for the device separately. Google began sharing a version of the Nexus One with employees in recent days, according to people familiar with the matter.

In a blog post Saturday, Google wrote it was sharing a new device running its Android operating system with employees to “experiment with new mobile features and capabilities.” The phone is a significant escalation of Google’s assault on the mobile industry, challenging both wireless carriers that sell devices as well as companies that design them.

Google became a high-profile player in mobile two years ago, when it launched Android. Google designed the software to seed its mobile applications, such as Gmail and Google Maps, and increase usage of the Internet from phones to grow its online advertising business. A number of leading handset manufacturers, including HTC and Motorola Inc., built phones running the software, some of which contain branding “powered by Google.”

But the phones—many of which just hit the market in recent months—haven’t sold nearly as well as Apple Inc.’s iPhone, which is capturing more interest from software developers. Now, Google appears to want to throw its brand behind a device more directly, designing a phone without working with the wireless carriers that often dictate what features they allow on their networks.

The move could alienate wireless carriers and handset makers that offer Android phones and don’t want to compete with Google. Google has repeatedly said its goal is to have hundreds of Android phones rather than one.

The move also marks a rare foray into direct sales for Google. With the exception of an appliance it markets as a search tool to businesses, the company hasn’t sold hardware in the past.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704121504574594012027538086.html?mod=rss_Today’s_Most_Popular

[Via http://virginonmedia.wordpress.com]

New Look, New Features

Ok twitter users your been waiting over 2days for this but its here the secret project is complete and soon it won’t be a secret.

Me and a mate of mine have been hard at work bringing Ultimate Android up to date and after 9 coffees, 357+MBs and around 9hours sleep in the last 48hours we have done it we put together a site in under a week impressive right and not all me either.

So I won’t keep you guys waiting any longer this site is no longer getting updated but the new one will, here it is – http://www.absolutelyandroid.com

I hope this doesn’t disappoint anyone.

Regards

Troy

(Site Manager)

[Via http://fhl09.wordpress.com]

Android This Week: Droid Gadget of the Year; Browser Wars

Time this week released its list of the top gadgets of the year, and the Motorola (s mot) Droid rings in on top. The Droid was chosen for being the first Android (s goog) phone deemed good enough to be an iPhone competitor. The big screen and physical keyboard were also listed as factors for making it the top device for 2009. The Droid beat out the iPhone 3GS from Apple (s aapl) and the Barnes & Noble Nook (s bks) reader.

Meanwhile, the web browser in Android is considered to be excellent, and is often compared to Mobile Safari on the iPhone. But competition is always a good thing, so it’s welcome news this week that both Opera Mobile and Mobile Fennec (Firefox) are coming to Android. Opera Mobile has long been considered to be an outstanding mobile browser, and is even included as the default browser on Windows Mobile (s msft) phones produced by HTC. Mobile Firefox is currently in beta testing on the Windows Mobile platform, with Android support expected to begin next year.

Plus, the Droid Eris has been available on Verizon (s vz) only for a short while, but the carrier has already issued an update this week to address a number of bugs. The update, which is currently being pushed out to phones, improves the handling of text messaging and other issues that owners had reported. To obtain the update, consumers must wait until their phone indicates an update is available for download.

Also this week, T-Mobile in the U. S. is rolling out an update to the Android Market that supports charging apps to a customer’s phone account. Until now, purchasing apps in the Android Market has always required a credit card. The update is invisible to the user and is being pushed out in phases. To determine if your Market app has been updated, check the version number in the Manage Applications setting. Any version higher than 1660 contains the new feature.

[Via http://gigaom.com]

HTC launched HTC tattoo an android based phone

HTC Corporation (TAIEX: 2498; “HTC”) today launched the HTC Tattoo™, an Android-based phone that brings broad personalization to the masses. HTC Tattoo is the first phone that can be customized inside and out. With its distinct design and ability to personalize all aspects of the phone, from its hardware to its applications and content, users will be able to express themselves and create their own individual mobile experience.

HTC Tattoo is the second phone to embody HTC Sense, a mobile experience focused on putting people at the centre by making your phone work in a more simple and natural way. Designed by listening and observing how people live and communicate, HTC Sense revolves around three fundamental principles- Make it Mine, Stay Close and Discover the Unexpected.

“The HTC Tattoo introduces a more natural way for reaching out to the people and accessing important information in a much more easier and hassle-free manner. HTC Tattoo empowers its owner to personalize it in a simple yet powerful manner and enjoy a most distinct mobile experience” said Mr Ajay Sharma, Country Head, HTC India.

Pricing and Availability

The HTC Tattoo will be available at a market operating price of Rs. 18,400/- in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh and Rs. 16,990/- in the Rest of India at all leading authorised HTC resellers across the country.

[Via http://techpiyush.wordpress.com]

Gogle od Gógle

Wczoraj tweet’ałem “success story” z TinEye (który od niedawna działa bez logowania i ma wystarczający indeks), a tu dziś…

via http://wysz.com/wyszdom/2009/12/google-goggles/

Gogle -> pierwszy killer app dla Androida… a już miałem kupić iPhone’a… poczekam

czyli nie trzeba skanować rewersów starych zdjęć na których są opisy – Goggles (ale ciężko się to pisze przez 1 “o” i 2 “g”   znajdą opis miejsca w mig  > lepsze niż dzisiejsze geotag’owanie (w sensie aparaty fot. z GPS)

no i TinEye chyba właśnie skończył swoją krótką karierę

i podobnie chyba z QR Code

[Via http://marekopel.wordpress.com]

Dell + Android ? (Source: Engaget)

Stick this one firmly in the rumor category, since all the verbiage that’s been thrown around about this story still traces back to one single source: a slightly ill-informed article done up in MarketingWeek in the UK. The article cites unspecified “senior industry sources,” and goes on about how this is Dell and Google working closely together on what is more or less the “Gphone.” Since we have no reason to believe Google is going to jeopardize its Android OS by getting extra-friendly with one specific manufacturer, the primary weight we can give to this rumor is that fact that Dell picked up a former Motorola executive, Ron Garriques, to run its Global Consumer Group early last year. Other rumors have cropped up over the years about Dell moving in this direction, so it certainly wouldn’t signal the apocalypse if a Dell-branded Android phone does show up at this rumored unveiling at 3GSM, but giving how early on Android is at the moment, we’ll believe it when we see it.

[Via http://huguesrey.wordpress.com]

E-Commerce: Augmented reality, coming to a mobile near you

by Chris Buck

If you haven’t heard of augmented reality yet, you’re not alone.  The nascent technology wasn’t supposed to be a feature of the iPhone 3GS until the popular restaurant browser Yelp! placed an “Easter egg” in its iPhone app.  But it’s here now, and 2010 should see a flood of new “Aug apps” be made to available to the public across several mobile operating systems.

Augmented reality is a digital layer that you see superimposed over real life when you move your camera phone around.  One of the most interesting examples of this is the Andriod browser appropriate named “Layar.”  The browser lets you see your distance to various points of interest, information about real estate listings, and your location on a map simply by panning your phone left and right.  (See video).  The Yelp! app allows you to find new restaurants and shows you the reviews, so if you’re in a major city, you would know whether it would be worth it to start walking in a certain direction, simply by pointing your phone in that direction.

There are Aug Apps for a variety of functions, finding subway stops – a lot of them understandably deal with mapping in one form or another – finding restaurants, first person shooter games that are played hovering over a map that you put on a table, and even social networking features.  Google Latitude is most likely a predecessor to a similar augmented reality app.

There’s no denying it, the apps are really cool.  But which phone should you choose if you want one right now?  It should come as no surprise that the iPhone dominates the app market, and for that reason the iPhone has the highest customer satisfaction rating.  But AT&T is the worst network in terms of customer satisfaction.  So if you are on Verizon or Sprint, you may need to wait a little while for Aug Apps to reach either BlackBerry or Android platforms.  Between the two, Android phones currently have the edge, with Layar making waves in the mobile market.

As processing power increases in hand held devices, augmented reality applications are a natural destination for app developers.  Some sophisticated map technologies already exist (See Bing’s new Map application), and layering real-time data over location based features is a match made in heaven.  The only worry is that we may have too much information at our fingertips, particularly when it comes to social networking.  But as long as one can opt out of letting their friends know one’s location at every moment in time, the value of that information should be pretty amazing.  If Yelp!’s app is an indication of what’s to come, there may never be a need to eat at a bad restaurant again.

[Via http://wsbe.wordpress.com]

Android This Week: Verizon BOGO Deal; Twidroid Updated

Verizon (s vz) loves to run a Buy One Get One (BOGO) free sale — it’s been running them regularly for a few years and includes the entire BlackBerry line. Customers are required to qualify for an upgrade, but that’s all. You can buy any BlackBerry and get a second one of equal or lesser value for free.

What’s this have to do with Android? Verizon is reportedly about to run a BOGO sale for the Droid and Droid Eris phones. Analysts have long felt that BlackBerry sales have grown significantly due to Verizon’s BOGO sales, and now Android gets some equal time. Verizon also confirmed to me directly that the Eris would be getting the Android 2.0 update in early 2010. It had been rumored that the Eris would not get the update since it is Verizon’s “budget” Android phone, but that’s not the case.

When I ask most Android phone users which Twitter app they use the answer is usually Twidroid. This app is the one I use for Twitter, as it is full-featured and the free version is robust. Twidroid this week got an update to version 3.0, and some new features make a good app even better. The updated version has threaded conversations, a unique ability for mobile Twitter apps. It’s also now possible to view images inline, something that had been sorely lacking in earlier iterations. This version is a great step up, and I believe Twidroid will be keeping its place in the top Android app category.

Meanwhile, a photo of a new Motorola (s mot) Android phone has appeared in Asia. It’s rumored to be of the fabled Sholes Tablet phone, but the company has not confirmed this. The phone looks to be similar to the Droid, yet lacking a sliding keyboard (thus the Tablet). No word on when this is expected to appear or where.

[Via http://gigaom.com]

Bust Out Your Android Goggles for Google Visual Search

Google Visual Search is coming to Android. Hartmut Neven, Google Product Manage, revealed the new application during a recent CNBC special “Inside the Mind of Google“. The service allows users to take pictures of real world objects and generate a Google search related to the item. The technology uses visual recognition engines and location based services to provide accurate results.

Mr. Neven gave several examples of how the service could be used such as:

“Imagine you are on travel in Paris and you visit a museum. If a picture catches your attention you can simply take a photo and send it to the VMS service. Within seconds you will receive an audio-visual narrative explaining the image to you. If you happen to be connected to a 3G network the response time would be below a second. After the museum visit you might step outside and see a coffeehouse.”

We have been speculating that Google could offer free VOIP calling service when they launch their own phone next year and this is another example of how they could monetize the service. Google’s recent acquisition of Admob is going to be key in their mobile advertising ambitions.

I was unable to find a video of the Google Visual Search demo, but they had a short clip talking about Android. Most of the footage is from this year’s Google I/O. I was actually in the same room with Sergey Brin on some of those shots and I half expected to see myself in some of the clips, but no luck.

[Via http://techn0l0gical.wordpress.com]

SugarSync Rolls Out Android App, Cloud API

SugarSync has long been recognized as one of the easiest-to-use synchronization and backup utilities around. Today it rolled out a SugarSync Cloud API for Android (s goog) developers, as well as a new Android application for local-to-cloud syncing. According to a blog post from SugarSync’s Fuad Rashid:

“Now, you can take any folder in your SugarSync account and make it available locally on your SD card – even when you’re offline. Conversely, you can take a folder that exists on your SD card and sync it to your SugarSync account and to your computers.”

The functionality of the new, free application (which is available on the Android Market) is very similar to what was found in previous versions of SugarSync, facilitating easy synchronization and backup. SugarSync’s Cloud API reaches for more, though. ““The SugarSync Cloud API for Android platform offers developers a way to turn any app into a cloud service almost instantly,” said Domingo Mihovilovic, vice president of engineering at SugarSync, in a statement.

The SugarSync Cloud API lets third-party applications access a user’s files and data, stored on a SugarSync account, so, for example, you could use a mobile financial or social app on your Android phone, and store the data online in customized ways.  Android developers can apply for a developer’s kit for use with the API here.  SugarSync accounts range from a free plan that includes 2GB of storage, to a $4.99 a month plan for 30GB of online storage to a $24.99 a month plan for a 250GB account.

[Via http://gigaom.com]

Best New Android Apps for 2009 Announced

The Google Android Developer Challenge for 2009 is complete with the announcement of the winning applications. The Challenge kicked off last year and awards gobs of money to the winners: $150,000 for the top overall app, for example. Eligible software titles mustn’t be in the Android Marketplace prior to August 1, so the apps are relatively new. That being the case, the entire list of winners is worth a look for Android handset owners because of the top-ratings from the Challenge and the relative newness of the titles.

I’ll let you scope out the list on your own, but here are the top three overall titles:

• SweetDreams – this utility allows you to go to sleep without worrying about changing your phone settings in order to avoid unwelcome late night calls. You can set inactivity periods to save juice and power down your WiFi and Bluetooth radios as well.
• What the Doodle!? — in a real-time, online scenario, you draw a phrase while other players try to guess what it is. I’m a sucker for multiplayer games of any type on my handset, so I’ll be hitting this one first.
• WaveSecure — this security solution protects your device, data and privacy.  You can remotely track your phone’s location, lock it down, backup or wipe your data.

One other title out of the many winners that caught my eye is Celeste. This augmented reality application is one I’d actually use, as I enjoy stargazing. Celeste uses your Android handset’s camera to look at the night sky and then adds information on the Sun, Moon and planets, showing their paths and other useful info. It’s probably best suited to basic astronomy, but I like the use of augmented reality in it.

[Via http://jkontherun.com]