"We launched Google Reader in 2005 in an effort to make it easy for people to discover and keep tabs on their favorite websites. While the product has a loyal following, over the years usage has declined. So, on July 1, 2013,
we will retire Google Reader. Users and developers interested in RSS alternatives can export their data, including their subscriptions, with Google Takeout over the course of the next four months." This makes me very, very sad. Any good alternatives - alternatives with Windows Phone and Metro applications, that is?
On his blog, Mark Shuttleworth has outlined a proposal to change how Canonical handles Ubuntu releases. In the proposal, future LTS releases will receive new kernels and software (something we've already seen in 12.04.2 which had a backported Xorg stack from Quantal) and interim releases will only be supported for 7 months instead of 18. Of course, the current situation where you often have to upgrade the whole OS just to get new software and drivers isn't great, so Canonical might be on to something here.
"For
this preliminary release, we are focusing on the developer experience, working to enable Qt developers to easily run and test their applications on Android devices. While there's nothing preventing you from deploying your app to an app store with Qt 5.1, we're recommending that people wait until Qt 5.2 before they do that, as we'd like to put some more work into improving that experience: making more options for how your app is deployed, adding more polish in general, and adding more support for Android APIs, both by allowing you to extend your app with Java code or by mapping them in C++ APIs, whichever makes the most sense."
Andy Rubin, who created Android and has led its development both at Android Inc. and later at Google, has decided to
step down as the big Android boss at Google. Having created the world's "most-used mobile operating system", as Google CEO Larry Page refers to it, I'd say his stint has been successful. Interestingly enough, he will be succeeded by Sundar Pichai - Chrome OS boss. Yes.
"The Ubuntu SDK preview is just over 2 months old, but we've already seen a lot of development starting with it. Read below for a
high-level look at some of the apps that are currently being written." Looks like a good start.
"In all the fuss and mess of the disastrous SimCity launch, one refrain has been repeated again and again. While legions may be begging for an offline mode, EA representatives have been abundantly clear that this simply isn't possible. Maxis' studio head, Lucy Bradshaw, has told both Polygon and Kotaku that they 'offload a significant amount of the calculations to our servers', and that it would take 'a significant amount of engineering work from our team to rewrite the game' for single player. A SimCity developer has got in touch with RPS to tell us that at least the first of these statements is not true. He claimed that the server is not handling calculations for non-social aspects of running the game, and that engineering a single-player mode
would require minimal effort." This keeps getting worse and worse for EA. It's also clear that Maxis' own developers are not happy with EA's meddling.
Microsoft
rolled out a bunch of patches today for Windows 8, and the most important one is that Flash in IE10 now works with a blacklist instead of a whitelist. "Well, the biggest news is that Microsoft has enabled Flash to work now in Internet Explorer 10 for RT. If you recall, Microsoft only allowed a few, specific websites with Flash to work on Internet Explorer 10 citing performance and battery life reasons. There was even a neat little work around that you could do yourself to bypass this. Now, Microsoft have reversed that decision, which they say is due to more sites becoming IE10 compatible." There's a firmware update for Surface RT as well, and I have to admit my Surface RT feels a little faster and smoother - especially typing. Could be reboot-induced, though.
Google has shown off some
applications for Google Glass yesterday. It's all very basic and minimal, and it's clear Google isn't trying to squeeze a smartphone into Glass - it's really creating a unique user interface and interaction model. "Each Glass integration must abide by four principles: 'design for glass', 'don't get in the way', 'keep it timely', and 'avoid the unexpected'." We'll see if it actually works.
After a few months of planning, several weeks of work, and possibly a few kilometres of aimless pacing through the living room, I'm happy to present "Palm: I'm ready to wallow now". This massive article (22,000 words) covers countless aspects of Palm, its devices, its operating system, and the company's importance to the mobile industry. I start with a detailed look at the history of handwriting recognition, after which I move on to the four hardware products I believe are crucial in understanding Palm as a company. Of course, I also dive into Palm OS, covering the kernel, its filesystem (or lack thereof), 'multitasking' capabilities, user experience, and much more. Important Palm OS licensees like Sony and Handspring make an appearance, and I cover the failed attempt at modernising the Palm OS: Palm OS 6 Cobalt. Finally, the conclusion ties it all together. For the first time in OSNews' history, you can also buy this article to support OSNews and make more articles like this possible in the future (don't worry - the regular online version is free, as always!). I suggest you grab a coffee, sit back, and enjoy.
"To see anyone defending EA and Maxis for the state of SimCity, even were it in perfect working order on launch,
depresses me to my core. This self-flagellation-as-skincare notion, where gamers loudly and proudly defend the destruction of their own rights as consumers, is an Orwellian perversity. That it might be considered in any way controversial to call them out on their crap, to point out that no, always-on DRM is not an advantage to anyone, is bewildering. It's a sign of just how far the gaming world has fallen into the rabbit hole of the publisher's burrowing." As usual, RPS hits the nail on the head so hard it shoots through the board.
"
This early prototype has a number of ports that we're used to seeing more commonly on computers than on mobile devices, including USB ports, an Ethernet port, and even a serial port. Apple never intended for all of these to make it into the final product, of course - our source said that because this was a development prototype, ports like Ethernet and serial were included simply to make working on the device easier." Fascinatingly awesome.
"Jay Sullivan, Mozilla's VP of Product, has revealed that the not-for-profit organization is
not going to build an iOS version of its Firefox web browser as long as Apple doesn't mend its unfriendly ways towards third party browsers." So that would most likely be never.
A few days ago, Google and the MPEG-LA
announced that they had come to an agreement under which Google received a license for techniques in VP8 that
may infringe upon MPEG-LA patents (note the '
if any'). Only a few days later, we learn the real reason behind Google and the MPEG-LA striking a deal,
thanks to The H Open, making it clear that the MPEG-LA has lost. Big time.
Update: Chris Montgomery: "The wording suggests Google paid some money to grease this along, and the agreement wording is interesting but make no mistake:
Google won. Full stop."
"For nearly thirty years we've been having this discussion, asking the question: do violent movies, music or video games make people violent? Well according to Brad Bushman and Craig Anderson of Iowa State University, yes. Based on the results of their research they concluded in 2001 that video games and violent media can make people aggressive and violent. Based upon their data and their conclusions, however, it's safe to say that photos of snakes, crispy bacon, or a particularly rigorous game of chess
can also make people aggressive and violent." And politicians?
"A senior Samsung Electronics executive said Friday the launch of Windows 8 has
failed to bolster demand for PCs and he does not expect the PC industry to rebound soon." Of course, Samsung and other OEMs could've, you know, built better computers. Just a suggestion.
John Siracusa: "On paper, the Mac Pro may no longer be a viable product, but it would be a mistake for Apple to abandon the concept that it embodies. Like the Power Mac before it, the Mac Pro was designed to be the most powerful personal computer Apple knows how to make. That goal should be maintained, even as the individual products that aim to achieve it evolve." I agree wholeheartedly. The Mac Pro - and the PowerMac before it - are amazing products, and I would be quite sad to see them go. They may not always lead the pack in performance, but when it comes to sheer engineering and interior design, they are among the very best. I have zero need for a Mac Pro, but to this day, I always take a few minutes to admire it whenever I pay a visit to my Apple retailer.
Mark Shuttleworth: "I simply have zero interest in the crowd who wants to be different. Leet. 'Linux is supposed to be hard so it's exclusive' is just the dumbest thing that a smart person could say." He's right. Lots of interesting insights in this blog post - I may not agree with everything Ubuntu does, but at least it's doing
something.
So, SimCity has been released - the fifth instalment in this venerable series of fantastic games. However, just as everyone suspected, the game has been completely ruined by the always-online DRM. So much so, in fact, that Amazon has ceased selling the game.
Update: and
it's only getting worse - EA has suspended all marketing efforts for SimCity, and has asked third parties to do the same. Wow.
"Google and MPEG LA
announced today that they have entered into agreements granting Google a license to techniques that may be essential to VP8 and earlier-generation VPx video compression technologies under patents owned by 11 patent holders. The agreements also grant Google the right to sublicense those techniques to any user of VP8, whether the VP8 implementation is by Google or another entity. It further provides for sublicensing those VP8 techniques in one next-generation VPx video codec. As a result of the agreements, MPEG LA will discontinue its effort to form a VP8 patent pool." The word that stood out to me: the auxiliary verb 'may', which has a rather low epistemic modality. To me, this indicates that this is not so much a clear-cut case of VP8 infringing upon patents, but more a precautionary move on Google's part.
"When you buy a Raspberry Pi, the $35 computer doesn't come with an operating system. Loading your operating system of choice onto an SD card and then booting the Pi turns out to be pretty easy. But where do Pi-compatible operating systems come from? With the Raspberry Pi having just turned one year old, we decided to find out how Raspbian - the officially recommended Pi operating system - came into being. The project required 60-hour work weeks, a home-built cluster of ARM computers, and the rebuilding of 19,000 Linux software packages. And it was
all accomplished by two volunteers."
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