Found this very cool. Google has released some design tips/guidelines for android developers. While somewhat simple, this is a great start to designing mobile apps. This was created due to differences in their new OS ICS from Gingerbread and Froyo. Now if Google would just release their own developer software so that I wouldnt need to use eclipse:)
Tag Archives: google
Google Nexus phone released
Google has finally released their much anticipated Galaxy Nexus phone. It was released in the US yesterday and I got one:) Now for most mobile users I recommend an iPhone for various reasons. For myself and other ‘techies’ this is the phone to get and here is why:
– first phone with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwhich. Will be a few months before other phones get this update OS.
– It’s a google phone so you will get updates straight from google i.e., first. No other phones have this advantage.
– No bloatware. Normally when you buy an android phone is comes pre-installed with all sorts of software that you cannot delete. For instance moto blur for motorola or sense from htc. This is a vanilla version of android.
– It’s a developer phone. This means that you can easily root and unlock the phone. You can also reset it to factory settings.
Well those are the advantages of this phone over all others. If you want to know the reason why I recommend iphones over droids for most users stay tuned, i will eventually get around to writing that article.
Here is a link to the phone to check out the features: http://www.google.com/nexus/
Google working on Siri alternative for Android?
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
Is Google taking over the world?
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.
Have you ever wondered how to create your own blog?
I get asked quite often about blogging and how one begins their own blog. The answer is very simple and I direct everyone to the same site: Blogger.com, that is unless they are talking about something more serious and need a their own server and such. Blogger is simple to use, I mean very simple to use. I can have a blog up and running in about a minute. Additionally, its free. Another great thing, its owned by google. This means it integrates well with youtube (also owned by google) and gmail, google calendar, etc. I have all my pre-service teachers learn how to create a class website using this tool. I find they think its one of the best technologies I teach them because its so easy and useful.
Here is the link to get started: http://www.blogger.com