Tag Archives: iPhone
Parallels to Support Chrome OS
Posted on 05. Mar, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 
2 Comments
MacWorld is reporting that the Parallels software, which allows Apple users to have Windows or Linux run in a virtualized environment, will support Chrome OS. At CeBIT this week in Germany they have been even showing off a machine that is running their latest version, Parallels 5 with Chrome OS. I haven’t been able to find a video but when I do I will post it here.
This is news but at the same time it isn’t. That’s because its already a known commodity that Parallels works with Chrome OS on a Mac, as instructions but the website Cult of Mac showed in mid-January how to run Chrome OS successfully in Parallels. But with that being said, since this is something that the company can show off at CeBIT, making it known that they officially stand behind supporting Chrome OS, there is a bit of significance here.
Still, one must keep in mind that the portable computer products with which Google is planning to put Chrome OS on doesn’t directly compete with Apple. That’s because devices like the iPad, iPod Touch and iPhone do not support Parallels other than the less-powerful Parallels Mobile Remote free application from the App Store. So unless Apple is planning on putting out a netbook or smartbook with Mac OS X on it, this seems like more of a tool for those application developers who use Mac hardware with OS X rather than the typical user.
Charlie Miller: Most Secure Browser is Chrome, IE8
Posted on 04. Mar, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 2 Comments
Best known as the hacker that is able to consistently deliver results in the Pwn2Own contest which awards contestants for successfully exploiting OS vulnerabilities, Charlie Miller gave an interview recently and shared his thoughs about the most secure computing platform for users. While he was unable to comment on Chrome OS (he said he didn’t have enough info yet) his thoughts and the best browser and OS were of interest.
“Chrome or IE8 on Windows 7 with no Flash installed. There probably isn’t enough difference between the browsers to get worked up about”, Miller told oneitsecurity. And while we agree with his point, it stands out that he would find that IE8 is comparable to Chrome in any way other than security. Chrome offers a better UI, is faster and has far better web compliance scores.
He discussed the potential of hacking Linux, saying that it would be relatively easy to pull off. But the low adoption rate of Linux as inhibited any motivation for researchers to try to point out flaws that are inherent to the system. Chrome OS is based off of a flavor of Linux so it will be interesting to see how it evolves from the perspective of security.
Miller is clearly not impressed by Flash, and that’s no surprise. With Pwn2Own’s 2010 contest coming up, the focus this year is going to be on exploiting mobile phones. That would probably be made easier if some of these platforms like the iPhone actually had Flash, so expect Android to be a big target with a lot of entrants trying to win the big prize by hacking that platform. The total prize allocation for the contest is set at $100,000.
Video: Using HTML5 with YouTube
Posted on 11. Feb, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 0 Comments
As many already know, YouTube is attempting to get away from using the proprietary Adobe Flash standard for video playback. In mobile devices such as the iPhone and soon the iPad, you cannot use Flash, supposedly because Apple CEO Steve Jobs deems it “buggy” – causing applications that use it to crash. There is another valid argument for not using Flash, and it is because now that it is installed in so many devices it could be a security threat according to McAfee.
As previously reported here, there is a beta for using HTML5 while on YouTube. This allows anyone using a HTML5-compliant browser to use it. But that means using a compliant browser such as Safari, Chrome, Firefox or IE when coupled with Chrome Frame to use it. The current version does have its quirks, but eventually it will result in a a faster and overall better user expeience when looking at any type of media over the web.
You can take a look at how to use HTML5 and its early performance on the YouTube site right here:
It’s pretty clear from the clip that the video loads pretty fast. Instead of using Flash as the go-between, HTML5 allows web developers to directly embed compressed video files such as MPEG right into the code itself so that it can be called from a server. Not to mention that Flash can take up a lot of resources on your machine if you’re trying to load up a couple of videos. The only intermediary is the application that you use, further evidencing the fact that personal computing is becoming more centralized around the internet browser and the standard application that we use to view it.
Apple’s Strategy: iPad the Bottom Line – Before the Competition
Posted on 30. Jan, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 1 Comments
There is no speculation at this point that Apple’s tablet has been way overhyped – but it’s been some great free marketing. Plus, the iPad has a leg up on its rivals in that it does not have any solid competition right now in this segment. Many are saying that at $499 ($130 if you want wireless 3G) for the entry level 16GB iPad that this tablet is a good price. But the reality is that it’s a good price because there are not many tablet products out there as well as the fact that it’s a pretty cheap Apple product.
The only other tablet products that are out now are made by PC manufacturers such as HP and Lenovo, but these devices usually come with Windows 7, have swivel keyboards and cost over $1,500. Those products are tagerted toward businesses, and that’s a totally different market altogether than what the iPad is currently focusing on.
What you’re getting is essentially a larger iPhone – without the phone. There’s no camera, you cannot multitask and typing anything other than short texts are going to be difficult unless Apple has some really groundbreaking technology in this product. And did I mention that the operating system for the iPad is closed source?
Apple still doesn’t offer a product in the netbook genre. Instead, they are releasing a tablet. This may be a good idea for them – but I have a feeling once the competition heats up that only those who are Apple diehards are going to want an iPad. In fact, at a recent presentation at Google’ London headquarters, Senior Product Manager of Search Anders Sandholm basically had to go the “no comment” route when asked about whether Chrome OS will have a multitouch tablet product.
Final thought? Apple is going to have a cash cow on their hands – until Google gets a product from a manufacturer like HTC or maybe even an MSI product running Android. Also Motorola has announced plans to bring out a product that is cheaper and has more capabilities. And there’s no doubt that many other companies are going to announce their plans as well.
Don’t believe that Apple is just using this tablet to pad the bottom line from slower iPod sales? Look at this bill of materials report on the iPad by Computerworld. Interpretation? Apple has room to drop this price when competitors arrive, but they will try to keep their healthy margins as long as they can.
Google Wouldn’t Just be Leaving the Chinese Search Market
Posted on 15. Jan, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 0 Comments
It was clearly a strong point of deliberation between the leadership at Google on what to do related to last month’s intrusion into the Gmail accounts of a few Chinese activists. Apparently, Google CEO Eric Schmidt attempted to convince those around him that staying the course in China was the best route of action in response to what was a sophisticated attack on the company’s infrastructure in order to gain unauthorized access. Sergey Brin was most vocal about no longer censoring any search results at Google.cn, and based on the official statement, many other top-level executives agreed with him.
It makes sense that this topic would be a heavy point of deliberation. The Wall Street Journal reports that the Chinese market has 338 million internet users, more than any other country. And while Adsense makes up a majority of revenue for Google, in China the best engine of growth will most likely be in software and the mobile phone market as the company only has 36% of the search market, with local competitors like Baidu owning the lion’s share.
Since purchasing an iPhone product in China is so expensive, China Mobile, which is the country’s largest wireless operator, was hoping that the lower-cost Android would penetrate the market. That would be a problem if Google decides to exit the market entirely as China Mobile is a state-owned enterprise.
The fate of Android in China will most likely also seal that of Chrome OS as well. Seeing as how the country has a higher adoption rate for wireless technologies, Chrome OS smartbooks that are low-cost could potentially be a boon in the region. Unfortunately, there is now so much uncertainty in the Chinese market for Google because of this recent news that it’s hard to say where the market will go in China.
What will probably remain for Google is what other multinationals deal with in the Chinese market – a lot of knock of products. Home-grown versions of Chrome OS and Android could become a standard there. One thing is for certain: the components required to build devices that run Google’s software will still need to be made in Chinese factories.
Chrome OS Netbook Will Be Priced at $300
Posted on 28. Dec, 2009 by Daniel Cawrey. 1 Comments
This was first reported by IBTimes yesterday, and now other outlets are reporting that the first GoogleBook (yes, it’s the best name I could come up with) will be machine that is very competitive in the netbook market and will be sold at a very affordable $300 price range. The specifications that are being reported include:
-NVIDIA Tegra chip and an ARM CPU, which is integrated
-64GB solid-state hard drive
-2 GB RAM
-10.1 inch 1,280 x 720 HD multitouch display
-Built-in webcam
-Multi-card reader
-Wi-Fi, GPS and Bluetooth
-USB ports, headphone jack
This is a pretty impressive set of features. The reports don’t indicate who is going to be making it, but it’s clear that if this device is going to be sold for $300, wireless carriers are going to have to subsidize the cost with what may be a hefty data plan. But being locked into a contract for two years or so might work for a netbook this powerful. It may not necessarily be a bad idea for this type of gadget to adopt the wireless phone/smartphone life cycle. I think that in order for this to be successful, it needs to be as simple or even more simple than using a phone to keep users interested in this product.
At this point, I would be curious to know how much carriers would charge in a GoogleBook data plan. This is because there have been rumors of wireless carriers like AT&T setting up tiered plans for wireless data as they currently do for voice based on data’s popularity with smartphone, especially the iPhone.
The plan is still to have the GoogleBook out by Christmas 2010, just in time for the impending 4G rollout. In order for this technology to be able to fully embrace a thin-client cloud computing architecture, 4G is probably going to be a necessity for this device to succeed.
A Look at How Printing Will Be Done in Chrome OS
Posted on 16. Dec, 2009 by Daniel Cawrey. 3 Comments
One of the central themes of Chrome OS is that the array of software and drivers that clog up a traditional operating system will be done away with in order to increase speed and usability. But users are still going to want the traditional features of a computer – and that includes printing. In the PC world of today, a driver almost always needs to be installed for a printer, which could possibly mean several print drivers if a user has a reason to use more than one, and there are so many makes and models out there that this could be challenging to accomplish in Chrome OS.
It hasn’t been discussed how this is going to be addressed before a Chrome OS release date in mid to late 2010. Is Google going to be able to come up with a standard one size fits all solution for the myriad of printing devices? It’s hard to believe that if Microsoft has not yet been able to do it after they had printer issues with Vista, although that did lead some companies like HP to release universal Vista drivers.
One novel approach is being taken by a virtualization company called ThinPrint, which has announced that they will work with Google to take the printer driver system that PCs currently use and place it in a cloud computing environment using their specially developed technology. In this situation, a device would probably need spooling capability but little else, acting as a communication tool between itself, the cloud and the printer. Below is a video demonstration on how the system works using an iPhone app as an example:
“Naturally, we don’t have all the details on the Google Chrome OS yet, but we are certain that we will provide the best Google Chrome OS print solution based on our patented technology,” said Carsten Mickeleit, Chairman of the Board of Directors of ThinPrint.
Pretty cool technology, and it makes me wonder what else the cloud can replace for us that we haven’t even thought of. I take that back – someone probably already has.
