Category Archives: News

Google working on Siri alternative for Android?

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While Android has had voice recognition since it first came out, it does not have AI like Apple’s SIRI so it comes as no surprise that they would be working on something similar. Just today there are two articles talking about two different ways Google might be doing this.

The first article by droid life says google is working on a siri alternative called Majel. You can read about it here

The second article by mashable says that google recently acquired virtual assistant software called alfred. You can read about it here

Google App Inventor moving to MIT Media Lab

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For those wondering about this transition, here is a link to some good info from MIT.

Here is some of the main info:

When will the Google App Inventor service shut down?

Google support of App Inventor will end on December 31, 2011.

When will the public MIT App Inventor service be available?

We MIT anticipate the public instance of App Inventor will be available for the general public to access some time in the first quarter of 2012.

Will my current App Inventor projects transfer automatically to the MIT service?

No, legally Google is not allowed to give your project data to MIT. You will need to download your projects to your computer and upload them to the MIT service when it becomes available.

What do I need to do to preserve my projects when the Google service shuts down?

You will need to download your projects to your computer. The “Download all projects” button will create a zip file of all your projects. Unzipping that will produce a folder with all your projects (each project itself is a zip file) and you can upload them individually to a new App Inventor service when it becomes available.

Link to the rest:

 App Inventor transition to MIT

 

Is Google taking over the world?

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I have mentioned this before, but yes, I believe Google is taking over too much. I love their products, and I love the fact that many are free but I wonder if they are doing too much without putting focus in certain areas. Here are some of main things google controls/owns:

Google Search
Youtube
Android/Droid
Google+
Google Maps
Google Docs
Google Wallet
Google Earth
Google Scholar
Blogger

Now there are many more. But how many of you can say you are not using at least one of these? Every one of us is using a Google product in our daily lives. Do I get scared when a company has this much control? Yes. Do I like what Google is doing? Yes. So having said that I think it’s good to keep an eye on Google’s motives and make sure they keep a good course as they currently are.

Are we overestimating technology use in younger generations?

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For this piece, I am speaking about the current undergraduate – 18-22 year old in college, and not computer science majors. My experience is mostly with education and communication majors. Having taught at two different universities in the last several years, and teaching many technology classes, I have had a lot of experience with students of this age their perceptions and experience with technology. So…

I think we believe these students are inundated with technology, are experts, and all have new iPhones. What I am finding in my classes is quite the opposite. Here are my observations:

The students are not inundated with technology in their classes. In fact, many come to my technology classes with a little anxiety because they are going to have to use the computer in new ways. What I find is that many of my students are comfortable using Word and Powerpoint. They can check email and do basic web searches using Google. When I ask who has heard of Google Docs, maybe 1% of the class raises their hands. And this isnt just Google Docs, this goes for many Web 2.0 technologies with the exception of Facebook. Do these students all have new iPhones? I find that in general, less than 50% of my students have smartphones.  In fact, some have hand me down smart phones from their parents. None have ipads but a few have used them because their parents might have one. All of my students have laptops. None have standard desktops. This is not surprising as the cost of laptops has decreased a lot in the last few years. A portion do have Macs which are more expensive.

So what does this all mean? I believe it means that these students are not using every new gadget that comes out. They do not have the money to buy the latest smart phones. And they are not tech experts, in fact, they are just as nervous about new technology as older generations in my opinion. Now will this change? I believe so. I have observed the current elementary/middle school students doing significantly more with technology in the classroom. So I believe in the next 5-10 years the undergrads will be much more technology driven than the current generation.

Having said all of that, there are the students that remind me of myself. They make it a priority to have the latest and greatest. They can recite every popular web 2.0 technology and read blogs such as mashable daily. But these are not the norm. These are the techies:)

Mobile Apps: Does my business need an app?

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I have been doing a lot of experimentation with apps lately. For instance, this semester I had my students develop apps for the Android OS and build mobile websites, I have been in contact with several app develop companies such as Vecro Tech, and I have been doing research studies on mobile use, development, and usability. Sandcastle Web Design & Development offered interesting ideas. After all of this I have concluded the following:

At this point in time I do NOT believe most companies and/or websites should invest in mobile applications, instead I believe they should invest in a mobile website. Even an accomplished CEO like Andrew Defrancesco will tell you that a great mobile website is a must for businesses these days. There are several reasons why I believe this. And for the record, I have extensively used and developed for Droid, iPad, and iPod touch.

1. Usability – The main problem with building an app: It only works on ONE operating system. So if I build it for the Apple iPhone it will NOT work for anyone who has a Droid, Windows Phone, Blackberry, or other. By building an app, I have just eliminated a huge portion of my user base. If I build a mobile website, it works on ALL devices. Why? They all have a browser. So developing one mobile website will work on all devices thus giving me full access to everyone regardless of their phone choice. Additionally, I can make a mobile website to look and function exactly as an app would. If you need more ways to boost your business, seeking advice from professionals like retail health and safety consultants might do wonders you never thought was possible before.

2. Clutter – My droid and iPod each have 3-5 screens filled with apps. I use maybe 5-10 app consistently. The other apps are just taking up space most of the time. When I do want to use one of the apps that I rarely use or a new one, it becomes a chore to find it, or to download it. I do NOT want several hundred apps on my phone. The desktop on my computer is a mess with all of the files, folders, and programs, why can’t my phone just be simple? A website would solve this problem, Why? A mobile website would either be a web address, for instance, m.raypastore.com or the user could make it a bookmark on their browser if they like it. Thus, no clutter unless I have a million bookmarks.

3. Cost – Developing an app can be expensive. They are not easy to develop, thus you are going to have to hire programmers and graphic artists to develop it. This may not be a problem for larger companies that have spare cash. It’s best to talk with a tech consultant to know if this is a great investment for your business. Another problem with COST: I do NOT want to pay for apps. I will NOT pay for apps. Usually I can find the same information or service online for FREE and ALL smart phones have a web browser. A mobile website is significantly cheaper to develop than a mobile app. This is because the development is much much easier. In fact, in one semester, my students were able to develop very nice mobile sites and they did not need to program anything. They simply used Dreamweaver. Now I will mention that if you are building website that is big and includes a lot of advanced things like a database and such, it can be just as expensive or more than an app.

4. Development Time – Since apps are not easy to develop, it is going to take significantly longer to develop than a website. Mobile websites usually have a faster turn around time due to the fact that they are easier to develop. HTML is much easier to program and develop with than C++. Again though, this depends on the features you want on the website. If you are going to integrate salesforce to your business, then you should consider taking the salesforce certification app builder exam.

5. Coolness factor – It’s a fad these days to have an app. You know the saying ‘There’s an app for that’. Sure there is an app but half of the apps I download are not very useful and take up storage space on my phone. There are other ways to say ‘my company is mobile friendly’ such as advertising ‘visit us on your mobile device at: youwebaddress’ or users can even go to your main site and you direct them to your mobile version without them even knowing. Imagine that though, visit us on your mobile device, not visit us on your iphone, or droid. You are now advertising to all mobile users, not a portion of them and that is the real power to a mobile website.

I hope this article was useful to software developers. I do think mobile apps are a fad and the mobile web is a much better place to make your mark right now. When apps begin working on all devices and become easier to develop I may change my mind, however at this point in time, mobile websites are simply much better.

iPhone 4 Released

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Well apple announced the iphone 4. It includes some very cool video features such as

video conferencing

a 5mp camera with 5x digital zoom (boo – we want optical zoom)

imovie app

netflix app

And All of these cool features come just in time for att wireless’s new pay as you go data plan. Yes thats right, everyone who buys the iPhone 4 will have to pay $15 for 200mb of data use, $24 for 2gb, and $10 for each gigabyte. So how easy is it to go over? Well considering one movie might be 500mb-1gb, 2-3 movies could put you right over your limit. Good job ATT – you have proven that your network is terrible. People who currently have their unlimited plans can keep them for now, but when their contract is up, they will be on the new plan. I honestly cant see anyone joining att now that data is not unlimited.

Apples June 2010 Announcement

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So what are your predictions for apples big announcement in June?

Mine are….

iphone 4gs with video camera

faster/better att service

and the big one….iphone coming to verizon this fall!?! – who knows but speculation is out there. We do know that att had exclusive rights until 2012 but that contract might be null and void now. We will find out in the next 2-3 weeks. We do know that apple is working a cdma iphone that would work with verizon among other companies and that verizon is rumored to be launching an ad campaign for the iphone later this summer. however these are all rumors and verizon is currently pushing droid.

Schools Out For Summer!

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My first year as a faculty member has come to a conclusion. To my students, have a great summer! To those graduating, I wish  you luck and hope you keep in touch – If you need help with interviews/resumes/etc please feel free to send me an email.

My plans for summer? Not quite sure this year. Lots of time surfing – thats a must. Lots of time writing – hoping to get out 1-2 papers.

Adobe scraps iphone support

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apple not supporting adobe but google is. Could this be the end of apples popularity? not likely but it will give people reason to convert to droid. Apple should have never done this IMO:

http://news.cnet.com/8301-30685_3-20003006-264.html?tag=newsLeadStoriesArea.1