Category: Tech

This is a Technical kinda post!

Proposed AT&T/T-Mobile Merger Hits Yet Another Snag

In a possible setback to AT&T and T-Mobile’s proposed merger, FCC chairman Julius Genachowski Tuesday circulated a draft order to seek a further administrative hearing on the deal, potentially placing another barrier in the road to one of the largest mergers in telecommunications history.

If the order is passed, the merger decision would then go in front of a judge presiding over an administrative hearing on the matter.

The last major merger proposal referred to this type of hearing occurred almost a decade ago, in the case of the proposed DirecTV and EchoStar merger, which was ultimately shot down.

The draft order, created by chairman Genachowski, must be circulated to all of the members of the FCC, who will then decide to sign off on the order, amend it or deny it. The commission gave no time frame on when it would come to a decision.

If the order is approved by the rest of the FCC, the administrative hearing would be another in a line of stumbling blocks for the two companies. In late August, the Department of Justice moved to block the merger by filing a federal antitrust lawsuit, stating the deal would “result in tens of millions of consumers all across the United States facing higher prices, fewer choices and lower-quality products for mobile wireless services,” according to deputy attorney general James M. Cole.

Rival telecom Sprint has also lobbied fiercely in opposition to the deal, with CEO Dan Hesse previously arguing the takeover would create “a 1980s-style duopoly,” doing “irreparable harm” to the U.S. economy and consumers as a whole.

Sprint was quick to issue a comment on Tuesday’s decision, lauding chairman Genachowski for his efforts and upholding that the merger “more than justifies moving this matter to an Administrative Law Judge for a hearing,” according to Vonya McCann, Sprint SVP of Government Affairs.

AT&T also issued a statement, essentially condemning Genachowski’s move. “The FCC’s action today is disappointing,” said Larry Solomon, SVP of corporate communications for AT&T. “It is yet another example of a government agency acting to prevent billions in new investment and the creation of many thousands of new jobs at a time when the US economy desperately needs both.”

Although it isn’t clear whether or not all members of the commission will agree upon the statement, any hearings that could take place would not proceed until after litigation between AT&T, T-Mobile and the Department of Justice has concluded.

UPDATED 2:38 P.M. PST with AT&T statement

via Proposed AT&T/T-Mobile Merger Hits Yet Another Snag | Epicenter | Wired.com.

Galaxy Nexus: An In-Your-Face Android Phone

Thanksgiving is coming, but techies are salivating over something that doesn’t involve turkey and stuffing: Ice Cream Sandwich—the operating system of the newest Google phone, the Galaxy Nexus.

The Galaxy Nexus from Samsung is the first device to run Google’s Android 4.0 operating system, known by its dessert code name. Ice Cream Sandwich is designed to be a blend of the Android phone and tablet operating systems that irons out many geeky wrinkles. Android’s former annoying reliance on menus to perform tasks is reduced with the inclusion of more user-friendly icons, and these dynamically change according to whatever program is opened.
It has familiar swiping gestures across apps, of which there are over 300,000 available in the Android Market, as well as playful new features like facial recognition to unlock the phone. Several existing Android devices from HTC and Motorola will receive free software updates so that they, too, can run this OS.

The Samsung Galaxy Nexus is stylish, with it’s 4.65 inch display and svelte profile.
There’s much speculation that the Galaxy Nexus will be available in the U.S. in the next two weeks, since its release in the U.K. last week. A Verizon spokeswoman says it will be out sometime before the end of the year and it will run on the carrier’s 4G network. It could cost as much as $300 if it’s treated like some other recent Android phones considered flagship models.
I got my hands on a U.K. version of the Galaxy Nexus and enjoyed using Ice Cream Sandwich, which is the most well-rounded version of Android yet. My phone’s battery lasted nearly a full day under heavy testing.
But some of Android’s inelegant traits remain, like the confusing way it organizes Widgets (icons representing programs) and restricts their placement on home screens according to the icons’ various shapes and sizes. And its folders for apps look cluttered.
The Galaxy Nexus itself is stylishly designed. Its giant 4.65-inch display may be overkill for some people. But its svelte build, which measures just over three-tenths of an inch thick, balances it out. Its rear- and front-facing cameras capture 5- and 1.3-megapixel images, respectively, and it records video in full 1080p HD quality. A built-in barometer helps with more precise GPS detection, and an NFC (near field communication) chip enables swapping data with other NFC-enabled Android phones, a process called Android Beam.
I found the facial-recognition feature to be unreliable. To set this up, I held the Galaxy Nexus up as if I was about to take a photo of myself with the front-facing camera, and a traced image of my face appeared on the screen. I also set up a back-up unlocking option: tracing a pattern on the screen. Whenever I wanted to use the phone, I held it up to my face and if facial recognition worked, it unlocked.
But this only worked half the time, sometimes because of low lighting, whether outside at night, in restaurants or even in my own kitchen. Other times it just didn’t recognize me. When I stood on city streets and held the phone up to my face to unlock it, I looked as if I was taking a photo of the people around me. And it’s impossible to slyly check your phone under the table during meetings or dinners using this unlocking method.

A facial-recognition feature unlocks the phone.
Google warns users this isn’t necessarily the safest method for locking a phone. Case in point: I was able to unlock the phone by holding a photo of my face up to its lock screen. But a Google engineer noted most people who find lost phones don’t know what the phone’s owner looks like.
Like Microsoft’s Windows Phones and the iPhone, the Galaxy Nexus can be unlocked just for using its camera, or unlocked fully to access the rest of the phone’s features. When calls come in, a large image representing the caller appears on the screen along with options to drag an on-screen icon to ignore, answer, or send a text reply.
In Ice Cream Sandwich, app folders can be created by dragging app icons on top of one another. These icons seem to stack up in a messy pile; in one folder I made, called “Social,” only the blue beak of Twitter’s bird icon was visible.
In place of the Android Menu button, a small three-dot icon appears in all apps and this opens the menu. More icons at the bottom of each app screen perform actions, such as an envelope with a plus sign beside it in Gmail that opens a screen for composing an email. A Multitasking soft key displays all opened apps in one tap. Small images show the screen last opened on these apps like a webpage or a search term in a box. And the Android Market icon is now easier to find in the top right corner of the App Tray.
The photo gallery feels more lush and magazine-like than the text lists of albums in previous versions of Android. Thumbnail images representing albums appear side-by-side and fill the phone’s screen in a checkerboard fashion. Albums from my Flickr account were automatically pulled in here, and any photos I captured on the phone were automatically sent to my Google+ account using Instant Upload, a feature also available on other iterations of Android.
Ice Cream Sandwich has more options for photo editing and adds silly effects and backgrounds to videos. You can even make a time-lapse video.
Typing on this phone felt more accurate than in the past, and text can be dragged and dropped to different places using a gesture to swipe down and up. Items in the drop-down Notifications menu can be deleted with a swipe right.
If you’ve been curious about Android, the release of Ice Cream Sandwich will mark a good time to jump in.
Write to Katherine Boehret at katherine.boehret@wsj.com

How to Get iOS 5’s Biggest Features in Android Right Now

iOS 5, Apple’s latest update to its mobile OS, was released this week, and with it came a ton of great new features for iPhone and iPad owners. If you own an Android phone and wish some of those new features can be yours, they’re closer than you think. Here’s how you can get some of them, like Wi-Fi sync, cloud storage for music and documents, and free messaging right now on whatever Android phone you have.

This guide isn’t meant to shoehorn iOS 5 on your Android phone. If you wanted iOS, you would have purchased an iPhone. The goal here is to show you how to incorporate a few features into your device that may have made you the tiniest bit jealous when you saw some of the iOS 5 feature demos.

Feature: iCloud; Solution: Google Apps/Dropbox

What it is: iCloud offers iPhone users the ability to synchronize and store information in the cloud. It’s essentially a beefed up version of MobileMe, and synchronizes everything from documents created on a mobile device to photos taken, contacts, and calendar appointments. Plus, the service is completely free.

How to Get iOS 5’s Biggest Features in Android Right NowHow you can get it: Much of what iCloud offers to iOS users is already handled by Android natively. Your contacts and much of your account preferences are already synchronized with Google’s servers (you can verify this by going to Settings > Accounts and tapping your Gmail or Google account to see what’s being synchronized.)

However, Android does fall a little short when it comes to documents, photos, and files. That’s where Dropbox comes in. Dropbox’s Android app integrates well, and because the files in your Dropbox account only take up space on your Android device when you specifically download them, it makes for a great way to see and have access to your data without worrying about the amount of storage you’re using. Dropbox also inserts itself into the “Share” menu of just about every Android application, including your photo gallery and favorite camera app, making it easy to upload files. It’s not quite as easy as the hands-off approach that iCloud promises, but it’s close.

The one drawback to this combination is that Dropbox is a little kludgy when it comes to photo uploads. You can create galleries by uploading to your Dropbox Photos folder, but if what attracts you to iCloud is its seamless photo uploads, consider the Google+ Android app, which instantly uploads your photos to Google+ as you take them.

Feature: iTunes Match; Solution: Google Music or Spotify

What it is: Another notable feature about iCloud is that, for an additional $25/year, you can synchronize your music across all of your devices. The iTunes Match service supports up to 20,000 songs, and will even scan your music library and provide a high-quality iTunes version of the song in your iCloud account that you’ll be able to stream—or more appropriately, download and play locally— when you’re on a computer without that song.

How to Get iOS 5’s Biggest Features in Android Right NowHow you can get it: Google Music is the closest service for Android we’ve seen to iTunes Match. It’s web accessible, the Android app and music player is gorgeous, and it supports downloading some of your songs for offline play when you’re without a data connection. Yes, you’ll have to upload all of your music to Google Music before you can listen on the go, but you get room for 20,000 songs and the service is completely free. While Google Music won’t identify or organize your music for you the way that iTunes Match promises to, it addresses the core need: free, cloud-based backup and storage of all of your music with easy access from any device.

However, Google Music is currently invite-only and only available in the United States. For everyone else, try Spotify instead. Spotify serves up the music you already own and gives you access to a broad selection of streaming tunes from Spotify’s own database. You can’t upload your own music to Spotify to stream elsewhere, but it will link songs in your collection to Spotify tracks in its database so you can listen to them on the go. You’ll need to drop $9.99/month on Spotify Premium to use the mobile app, but if you’re in love with streaming music on the go, it’s worth it.

Feature: Notifications Menu; Solution: Already Available

What it is: When we got our first look at notifications in iOS 5, more than a few people sat up and took notice that iOS 5’s slide-down notifications screen looks like Android’s default notifications pane, and is accessed the same way. The addition of weather to the notifications pane and organizing notifications by type or application are a nice touches.

How you can get it The way Android handles notifications works pretty well, and Apple clearly built on that idea in iOS 5. Depending on the ROM you’re using, you already get access to valuable information like your power controls and weather in the notifications pull-down, and it’s already organized based on ongoing alerts and those that are spawned by specific applications, each with their own icon to tell them apart.

Feature: Wireless Sync; Solution: AirSync, Spotify, or Google Music

What it is: In iOS 5, you can sync your device with iTunes without connecting it to your computer, backing up your apps, account preferences, and all of your phone’s data easily and seamlessly. It’s a great and hassle-free way to make sure your photos, music, apps, and everything else are safely synchronized and backed up before you head out on the town with your iPhone, and it’s a long time coming in iOS 5.

How to Get iOS 5’s Biggest Features in Android Right NowHow you can get it: If you get your apps through the Android Market or Amazon App Store, they each keep a record of what you’ve downloaded. As for your music, videos, photos, and other files, we’ve mentioned ways to completely back up your phone before, whether you’re planning to migrate to a new device or just want complete, automated backups. However, in this case, we don’t want to sit around waiting for everything to back up, we want to sync some new music and be on our way. Here are your options:

  • AirSync ($4.99) – This utility works withDoubleTwist to synchronize apps, photos, videos, playlists, music, and more wirelessly between your Android device and your computer. It’s the closest parallel to iOS 5’s Wi-Fi Sync. Plus, it supports AirPlay, so you can stream video to an AppleTV in your home.
  • Spotify ($9.99/month for a Premium Account) – You’ll need a Spotify Premium Account to get the Android app, but once you have it, Spotify will wirelessly sync playlists and songs from your local music library with your Android phone. It also gives you access to Spotify’s massive library on the go. It won’t handle photos, videos, or other files however.
  • Google Music (Free) – Streaming from the cloud isn’t as good as sync, and it doesn’t take care of your photos or videos, but you have access to all of your music, and you can choose to store as much music as you like on your Android phone locally for offline listening. Plus, it’s completely free.

How to Get iOS 5’s Biggest Features in Android Right Now

Feature: iMessage; Solution: Google Talk/Google Voice

What it is: iMessage in iOS 5 lets you send text messages to your friends with iOS devices without paying the SMS charges imposed by your carrier. In the United States, we’re still stuck paying for text messages we send and receive, which makes the problem especially annoying. You can communicate with any other iOS device, including iPads and IPod Touches, for free with iMessage, as long as they have some connection to the internet. It’s a great way to stay in touch with friends and cut off your carrier’s texting plan entirely—assuming all of your friernds have iOS devices, that is.

How to Get iOS 5’s Biggest Features in Android Right NowHow you can get it: Just by virtue of having a Gmail account and an Android device, you have access to Google Talk. In fact, you may already be signed in to Google Talk on your Android device. Since every Android user has access to Google Talk on their Android phone, as long as you exchange phone numbers or Gmail addresses, you can send any Android user text messages for free.

Google Talk for Android also supports video chat, and while it’s not our favorite video chat app for Android, it’s definitely a good one. Plus, you can use the Android app send messages to Google Talk users on their desktops or laptops. Best of all, all of this is completely free (exlcuding data charges, of course.)

If you’re in the United States and use Google Voice (GV isn’t available outside the US, sorry!) you can take this a step further and shunt your SMS messages over to Google Voice instead of using Google Talk. This gives you a way to send SMS messages to any phone, not just Android devices, and bypass your carrier’s SMS charges in the process. Unlike Google Talk, your recipient may have to pay to get your message, but hey, at least you can cancel your texting plan, right?

Feature: Siri; Solution: Vlingo

What it is: Siri, iOS 5’s new voice assistant (only available on the iPhone 4S) is a generational leap in speech-to-speech and speech-to-text technology. Siri’s ability to understand common language and the way it is deeply integrated into iOS makes it an excellent tool for hands-free phone operation at home or on the road. Siri can compose and send SMS messages and emails, perform complex actions like calculations, web searches, play music and playlists on your phone, fetch the weather, schedule appointments, and more.

How to Get iOS 5’s Biggest Features in Android Right NowHow you can get it: We discussed this earlier this week when we looked at somegreat Siri-like alternatives for Android, andVlingo was the app we found that came the closest to Siri, complete with voice-activated listening modes, an in-car mode that’s sensitive to hands-free operation, and an impressive number of commands that the app recognized and could perform when asked to. Vlingo can update your social networks, find the closest cab company, locate a nearby Chinese food restaurant, send an SMS to your best friend, and pull up turn-by-turn driving directions for you.

Google’s own built-in voice features are no slouch, and Google isn’t likely to let them be eclipsed by Siri for long. Plus, they’re already on your phone. Still, none of alternatives are quite as integrated with Android the way Siri is with iOS, none understand common language to the same degree, or are capable of having quite the same level of back and forth conversation with you.

Feature: Location-Based Reminders; The Solution: ReQall, Astrid, or Remember the Milk

What it is: Reminders is an Apple-provided to-do manager that supports location-aware notifications. Since the reminders are location aware, you can set up areas on a map where certain to-dos are supposed to be completed. When you leave or arrive at one of those areas, you’ll be alerted to a to-do relevant to that location.

How to Get iOS 5’s Biggest Features in Android Right NowHow you can get it: Android has a wealth of to-do managers that support location awareness. None of them are built-in to the OS, but many of them are more feature-rich than Reminders is. ReQall Pro ($2.99/mo or $24.99/yr) is one of my favorite to-do applications for Android, partially because it will alert you when you’re in proximity to a location where a task needs to be completed. You can configure as many locations as you want, and when you add to-dos, just assign them to a location and the app handles the rest. Astrid is a free alternative, but you’ll need theLocale Add-On ($1.49) for location-based alerts. Remember The Milk Pro ($25/year) is another robust, location-aware alternative.

Feature: Camera Updates; The Solution: CameraZoom FX

What it is: iOS 5 boosts camera speed, and provides a new camera grid that makes lining up and framing your shots easier.

How you can get it: CameraZoom FX, our pick for the best camera app for Android will set you back just under $5 USD in the Android Market, but for your money you get the ability to configure which hardware buttons trigger your camera and you get a camera grid so you can line up your shot.

How to Get iOS 5’s Biggest Features in Android Right NowYou also get filters to apply to your photos, options to tweak the white balance, the ability to shoot in burst mode, and one-tap uploads to Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, and other services. If you’re looking for a powerful camera app, this is it. If you want to mimic iOS 5’s new one-tap access to the camera, previously mentioned Widgetlockerlets you add an icon for the camera right on your phone’s lock screen, so you can tap it to go directly to the camera app, even if your phone is locked.

Read the entire article at How to Get iOS 5’s Biggest Features in Android Right Now.

You can reach Alan Henry, the author of this post, at alan@lifehacker.com, or better yet, follow him on Twitter or Google+.

Google, Samsung postpone phone launch event out of respect for Steve Jobs

Google and Samsung have canceled an event planned for next week where the companies were supposed to announce the first smartphone based on Android "Ice Cream Sandwich," a move reportedly made in response to the death of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs.

The two companies are said to have rescheduled the event out of respect for Jobs, sources told Ina Fried of All Things D. The companies were originally scheduled to show off the next version of Google’s Android operating system, dubbed Ice Cream Sandwich, along with a new "Nexus" smartphone built by Samsung on Tuesday.

"Sources said the companies just felt it was the wrong time to hold a launch event, as the world continues mourning Jobs, who died on Wednesday," Fried wrote.

Samsung and Google earlier on Friday issued a joint statement stating they would postpone the "Samsung Mobile Unpacked" event during the CTIA trade show in San Diego, Calif. "Under the current circumstances, both parties have agreed that this is not the appropriate time for the announcement of a new product," the press release vaguely said.

The move by Samsung and Apple is particularly interesting because Apple has not changed its plans to launch the iPhone 4S next week. The company began taking preorders earlier Friday for the handset’s Oct. 14 launch.

Both Google and Samsung have paid their respects to Jobs since he died after a long bout with cancer on Wednesday at the age of 56. Google’s executive chairman, Eric Schmidt, formerly served as a member on Apple’s board of directors.

Teasers for the now-postponed event have teased that the companies will show off "something big." Reports have indicated the new handset will sport a curved screen with a 4.65-inch display, and will be the first handset to run Android 4.0.

via AppleInsider | Google, Samsung postpone phone launch event out of respect for Steve Jobs.

Steve Jobs: 1955 – 2011

Steve Jobs: 1955 – 2011

Apple is reporting that Steve Jobs has passed away today.
We are deeply saddened to announce that Steve Jobs passed away today.
Steve’s brilliance, passion and energy were the source of countless innovations that enrich and improve all of our lives. The world is immeasurably better because of Steve.
His greatest love was for his wife, Laurene, and his family. Our hearts go out to them and to all who were touched by his extraordinary gifts.
Apple has posted a page containing the following message:
Apple has lost a visionary and creative genius, and the world has lost an amazing human being. Those of us who have been fortunate enough to know and work with Steve have lost a dear friend and an inspiring mentor. Steve leaves behind a company that only he could have built, and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple.
If you would like to share your thoughts, memories, and condolences, please email rememberingsteve@apple.com
Steve Jobs’ family has issued the following statement:
Steve died peacefully today surrounded by his family.
In his public life, Steve was known as a visionary; in his private life, he cherished his family. We are thankful to the many people who have shared their wishes and prayers during the last year of Steve’s illness; a website will be provided for those who wish to offer tributes and memories.
We are grateful for the support and kindness of those who share our feelings for Steve. We know many of you will mourn with us, and we ask that you respect our privacy during our time of grief.
Tim Cook has sent out the following email to Apple employees:
Team,
I have some very sad news to share with all of you. Steve passed away earlier today.
Apple has lost a visionary and creative genius, and the world has lost an amazing human being. Those of us who have been fortunate enough to know and work with Steve have lost a dear friend and an inspiring mentor. Steve leaves behind a company that only he could have built, and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple.
We are planning a celebration of Steve’s extraordinary life for Apple employees that will take place soon. If you would like to share your thoughts, memories and condolences in the interim, you can simply email rememberingsteve@apple.com.
No words can adequately express our sadness at Steve’s death or our gratitude for the opportunity to work with him. We will honor his memory by dedicating ourselves to continuing the work he loved so much.
Tim
We have no words, other than to express our deepest gratitude for everything he gave us, and our deepest sympathies to his family, friends, and colleagues.
US President Obama has issued the following statement:
Michelle and I are saddened to learn of the passing of Steve Jobs. Steve was among the greatest of American innovators – brave enough to think differently, bold enough to believe he could change the world, and talented enough to do it.
By building one of the planet’s most successful companies from his garage, he exemplified the spirit of American ingenuity. By making computers personal and putting the internet in our pockets, he made the information revolution not only accessible, but intuitive and fun.

And by turning his talents to storytelling, he has brought joy to millions of children and grownups alike. Steve was fond of saying that he lived every day like it was his last. Because he did, he transformed our lives, redefined entire industries, and achieved one of the rarest feats in human history: he changed the way each of us sees the world.
The world has lost a visionary. And there may be no greater tribute to Steve’s success than the fact that much of the world learned of his passing on a device he invented. Michelle and I send our thoughts and prayers to Steve’s wife Laurene, his family, and all those who loved him.
Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft, friend, and rival sent the following to AllThingsD:
I’m truly saddened to learn of Steve Jobs’ death. Melinda and I extend our sincere condolences to his family and friends, and to everyone Steve has touched through his work. Steve and I first met nearly 30 years ago, and have been colleagues, competitors and friends over the course of more than half our lives.

The world rarely sees someone who has had the profound impact Steve has had, the effects of which will be felt for many generations to come.
For those of us lucky enough to get to work with him, it’s been an insanely great honor. I will miss Steve immensely.

via Steve Jobs: 1955 – 2011 | TiPb.

Google+ Hangouts go mobile, get live streaming and better search

Summary: All the focus may be on Google+’s new open door policy, but Google+ Hangouts also got a few compelling new features.

Everyone is so focused on Google+’s newfound openness to all comers that they’re glossing over the really cool new additions to Google+ that were also announced today: Hangouts for Android devices, the ability to live-stream and record video broadcasts, a handful of minor new sharing capabilities for Hangouts, and a better search box.

Hangouts, as a refresher, is Google+’s drop-in, drop-out videoconferencing component, where anyone can invite up to eight friends to click a link in their social news feed and chat face-to-face. Of all of Google+’s unique selling points, it’s easily the flashiest. And today’s announcements are only going to endear it to new audiences.

As of today, the Google+ app has for Android has been updated, granting any device with a front-facing camera and that’s running Android 2.3 or higher the ability to join an active Hangout from the stream, just as on the desktop. EDIT: Google also promises that iOS support for mobile Google+ Hangouts is coming soon.

But my vote for the addition that’s going to have the biggest impact is the new live broadcasting feature, dubbed “Hangouts on Air.” As you may guess from the name, it lets users broadcast the content of their Hangout to Google+ at large, letting the masses become a spectator audience. These broadcasts can also be recorded for later retrieval.

Right now, Google+ is limiting the number of would-be videocast personalities who can take advantage of Hangouts on Air, but the official blog entry seems to indicate that the door will open up wider down the line. The first-ever publicly-broadcasted Hangout will be with the Black Eyed Peas’ will.i.am on Wednesday night.

Google+ Hangouts, as they exist today, let you share YouTube videos and hold a group chat. But as of today, if you select “Hangouts with extras” once you’re in the green room, you get an early preview of the ability to share Google Docs, a Sketchpad for doodling, a name for the chat, or even your screen with everyone else in the room. Google says that it’s pooling feedback from these early additions to Hangouts.

The recently-released Google+ APIs have been bolstered with the release of the Hangouts API, opening the door for apps or games and, as Google’s blog puts it, “and who-knows-what-else” to be built on top of the videoconferencing platform.

Finally, Google+ has gotten an enhanced search bar that answers your query with “relevant people and posts, as well as popular content from around the web.” And Google is promising that the new search experience prioritizes results based on your interests – which sounds vaguely sinister – and that a search for, say, cooking, will return recipes and people listing themselves on Google+ as chefs.

And in terms of privacy, Google promises that the only G+ posts you can see from the search are ones that would normally be visible to you anyway.

So, yes, the big Google+ news of the day is the fact that it’s open for all. But it’s good to see that Google+ continues to develop some of its more compelling features for those who are coming in through that open door and that first wave of field testers alike. Of course, that assumes that there’s anyone interested in joining Google+ now who hadn’t already gotten their hands on the invites flying around.

via Google+ Hangouts go mobile, get live streaming and better search | ZDNet.

VMware Updates Desktop Products: Workstation 8 and Fusion 4 Released

In an unusual move, VMware has given us a twofer and updated both its desktop flagship products today. VMware is releasing VMmware Workstation 8 for Windows and Linux, and VMware Fusion 4 for Mac users. The Fusion update makes Fusion “more Mac-like” and finally allows users to virtualize Mac OS X under VMware Fusion. Workstation 8 is aimed squarely at developers and professionals working cloud and virtualization deployments, with remote access to virtual machines and support for up to 64GB of RAM.

VMware Workstation is VMware’s oldest product, and still very popular with developers and IT professionals who need to have access to virtual guests on their desktop.

New in Workstation 8
With Workstation 8, VMware claims support for more than 600 operating systems, from MS-DOS to Windows 7. But the real juice is for developers working with and deploying current operating systems into production in the cloud.

VMware sees users doing a lot of development on the desktop and then pushing it into the internal cloud. Workstation 8 allows developers to create their virtual machines, then drag and drop them to vSphere. Workstation 8 is big on sharing, too. The release has features that let developers share a virtual machine directly from the desktop to another user running Workstation 8. Alternatively, you can connect to a remote virtual machine with Workstation 8 if the machine is running on vSphere, vCenter, or another copy of Workstation 8.

With the remote access features, developers are not constrained by the hardware of their local machine. They can simply connect to remote machines with Workstation, ESX 4.x or later, and vCenter Server and run the guests on the more powerful system but display them locally.

This release of Workstation also beefs up performance considerably, allowing it to take advantage of up to 64GB of RAM. VMware admitted to me that they haven’t seen many workstation or desktop machines with 64GB of RAM, but they picture Workstation 8 running on servers for development teams that need to share VMs.

Workstation 8 also has better desktop hardware support for its guests, with HD audio, USB 3 support, and Bluetooth devices. The company has also bolstered the 3D performance of Workstation 8 in this release. See the release notes for all the features and details on Workstation 8. The upgrade price for Workstation 8 is $99, users of Workstation 6.x or 7.x can take advantage of the upgrade. Just starting with Workstation 8? The release is $199 and available immediately as an electronic download.

New in VMware Fusion 4
While Workstation is aimed at the IT professionals doing heavy duty development work, Fusion is largely targeted at Web developers and professionals who’ve switched to the Mac and still need access to some Windows apps. Fusion 4 offers support for more than 200 guest OSes, a bit less than Workstation but still a respectable set.

VMware Fusion 4, thanks to a blessing from Apple (finally) brings Fusion users something they’ve been waiting for a long time – the ability to virtualize Mac OS X. Developers who work on OS X will be able to virtualize OS X Lion, Snow Leopard, Snow Leopard Server, and Leopard Server in virtual machines. Note that VMware only officially supports virtualizing OS X on OS X Lion.

The release is also “more Mac-like” with a streamlined user interface and a better integration with OS X Lion’s full screen features and its gestures. You can swipe between a virtual machine and Lion with a three-fingered gesture. The virtual library display has been revamped, and the preferences for VMware Fusion now look more like the native system preferences on Mac OS X.

Fusion 4 also has an updated snapshot feature that lets you scroll through a timeline of snapshots of your VM. Note that Fusion has always had snapshots, this is just a prettier and more friendly way to display them.

Switchers will find a better integration of Windows applications into Mac OS X, particularly if they’re running OS X Lion. Fusion 4 will add Windows apps to the Dock, Spotlight, Mission Control and LaunchPad – but only the applications that you choose.

Like Workstation, Fusion has gotten a bunch of performance boosts and offers better 3D performance, virtual Bluetooth, and 5.1 HD audio.

With Fusion 4, VMware claims more than 90 new features (PDF) though some are less exciting than others. (For instance, VMware claims “run from any folder you choose” as a feature, and loading and unloading services and kernel modules on demand as two separate features.)

Fusion 4 is available immediately for download for $49, and a box set is with DVD and USB key (for those with no optical drive) is coming as well.

VMware has quite a bit of competition these days on the desktop front, with Parallels, VirtualBox and a number of other desktop solutions. What’s your pick for virtualization on the desktop?

via VMware Updates Desktop Products: Workstation 8 and Fusion 4 Released – ReadWriteCloud.

Proudly powered by WordPress | Theme: Baskerville 2 by Anders Noren.

Up ↑