It's official! The much-awaited
Ubuntu-based smartphones will make their debut in October. It has been
confirmed that the first lot of Canonicals’ Ubuntu Phone OS-based smartphones
would arrive in the market by October this year. As reported by the Wall Street
Journal, Mark Shuttle worth, founder and CEO of Canonical, has stated that the
Ubuntu smartphones will be “available in two large geographic markets in
October 2013”. Meanwhile, app developers can run the Ubuntu Phone OS on the
Samsung-made Google Nexus smartphone.
For developers, the Ubuntu Phone OS
supports both native and Web or HTML5 applications. Web apps are first class
citizens on Ubuntu, with APIs that provide deep integration into the interface.
“HTML5 apps written for other platforms can be adapted to Ubuntu with ease, and
we’re targeting standard cross-platform Web app development frameworks like PhoneGap
to make Ubuntu ‘just work’ for apps that use them”, the official post states.
Unlike Android, the Ubuntu Phone OS doesn't
include many screen buttons and depends mostly on edge swipes.
Ubuntu
phones to hit stores in October
You can now run Android natively inside
the Windows OS
Wish to enjoy the complete Android
experience on your Windows PC without a glitch? The developers at Socketeq have
now made this possible. You can run the Android OS inside the Windows OS. The
developers have made their software, WindowsAndroid, available for testing.
WindowsAndroid runs Android on the Windows
kernel instead of Linux. It is an ultra-swift transition because it takes away
the emulation layer which is present otherwise. WindowsAndroid currently works
with Google's Android 4.0 (ICS). All you need is the knowledge of how to work
with the Android OS beyond its standard smartphone housing. So, if you are
someone who has never hacked a smartphone or tablet before, do take your time
to try this one out. But if you wish to try it out, you can have fun running
apps, 3D games and all of that, Socketeq promises.
What is even more interesting is that you
can work on Android depending upon the set-up you have in your Windows machine.
WindowsAndroid can currently work on Windows
8, Windows 7 and Windows Vista, and the software can be downloaded from the
Socketeq website. All you need to do is enter your email and some basic
information. But before you press the download button; be sure of what you are
going to do. Also, don't forget to check out BlueStacks, which helps in pushing
Android apps to Windows and Mac computers.
Nokia 'open' to Android OS for tablet,
says Nokia CEO
Nokia CEO, Stephen Elop, revealed that
Nokia plans to build its own tablet and it would look at all possibilities
(i.e., Android and Windows) for its OS.
Nokia as a hardware brand has always been
trusted by users across the globe. The only drawback for the Finnish handset
maker over the past few years has been its reluctance to use Android instead of
the more costly Windows OS. Tech freaks across the globe have listed their
dream smartphone/tablet to be a Nokia device running the Android operating
system.
Nokia
as a hardware brand has always been trusted by users across the globe.
Considering the not-so-positive response to
the Windows 8-based tablet, it would definitely make sense if Nokia is looking
at offering its tablets at an affordable price range and could compete with
Acer, Asus, Samsung, Amazon Kindle, Nook HD and many others. So, for the time
being, let's sit back and enjoy the idea of an Android Nokia tablet.
Valve urges Windows’ Steam users to
switch to Linux
If reports are to be believed, Valve's
Steam gaming platform is making waves on the Linux operating system as well,
and Valve is now promoting Steam for Linux to Windows users. At Steam’s
website, Valve has launched a ‘Join the Beta’ promotion suggesting that users
of other platforms, especially Windows, give ‘Steam for Linux’ a shot. Valve
has even included a download link to get Ubuntu 12.04 LTS. With this, those who
want to try Steam for Linux can get started instantly by installing Ubuntu
12.04 LTS with a click.
Valve
urges Windows’ Steam users to switch to Linux
This might be seen as a smart move from
Valve, as Microsoft will take a couple of years at least to release the
successor of Windows 8. If Windows users are alerted that switching to Linux is
a piece of cake and requires no extra investment apart from the hardware
compatibility, we can expect several users to abandon Windows or, at least, run
Linux as well.
Valve has begun listing the minimum Linux
system requirements for games that are available on Steam for Linux. These
system requirements support almost all of Steam's first-party titles. On the
hardware front, users would need at least 512 MB of RAM along with a 2 GHz
processor.
The 'Me Against Rape' Android app to
improve safety of women
Here comes an Android app that will help
women to safeguard their right to freedom of mobility and security.
Named 'Me Against Rape', this safety mobile
application has been developed by three engineers from Nashik in Maharashtra.
The app is available for free download from the Google Play store for Android.
It is for both smartphones and tablets.
The app allows users to raise an alarm by
sending a text message along with the location details to a pre-selected
number. The app keeps sending updates of the changing location to the number
every ten minutes, making tracking easy. It does not end here. The mobile can
also start recording the incident, in case the victim wants to use it as
evidence in court.
Mozilla introduces 'Boilerplate' to help
developers make Firefox OS apps
Mozilla is running its Firefox operating
system for smartphones on top gear, as developer Robert Nyman has announced a
tool, which will help developers to start creating applications for the Firefox
OS or even porting an existing Web application to it. Dubbed the Firefox OS
Boilerplate App, the tool will have several basic features, which almost all
applications have in common. “The idea is to avoid any dependency on external
libraries or resources, but rather be self-contained”, wrote Nyman in a blog
post.
Dubbed
the Firefox OS Boilerplate App, the tool will have several basic features,
which almost all applications have in common.
“As the name implies, Firefox OS
Boilerplate App will provide you with the most basic features to get started
with building an app from scratch, or tools to port your existing Web app. The
easiest way to get started with installing it and testing the various features
is to navigate to the Firefox OS Boilerplate App in the Web browser on a
Firefox OS device or in the Firefox OS Simulator”, added Nyman.
