GOOGLE'S ACCELERATED MOBILE PAGES PROJECT AIMS TO SPEED UP THE MOBILE WEB

Google unveils a plan to make the open web more tolerable in hopes of fending off Apple and Facebook.

Facing threats from Apple and Facebook, Google is teaming up with web publishers to cut down page load times on smartphones.Accelerated Mobile Pages,” or AMP, is an open framework for building lightweight webpages, optimized for mobile devices. The move is a direct answer to rival initiatives such as Apple News and Facebook Instant Articles, both of which offer fast-loading articles by cutting out cruft.The main difference with those efforts is that publishers must optimize their stories for each respective platform, causing fragmentation and creating more work. In the case of AMP, publishers still get to host the content themselves, publish through existing content management systems such as Wordpress, serve their own ads, and handle their own subscriptions. Google is just offering a set of tools to make the content load faster.AMP is also a response to the rise of ad blockers, especially on iOS where Apple recently started allowing ad-blocking in Safari. It’s no secret that unblocked pagesdemand significantly more bandwidth and take much longer to load; Google’s hope is that fewer people will install ad blockers if pages load quickly and run smoothly, and says it will allow ad formats “that don’t detract from the user experience.”The faster pages will appear when accessed through the open web, for instance through Google searches or links. Google is also partnering with tech companies such as Twitter, Pinterest, and LinkedIn, so perhaps we’ll eventually see AMP pages when opening links in their respective apps. The program is just in a preview phase for now, with BuzzFeed, Vox, and the Washington Post among the initial partners. You can check out the faster pages by visiting g.co/ampdemo on a mobile device.Why this matters: There’s been a lot of talk recently about the death of the open web at the behest of Apple and Facebook, whose new publishing platforms promise a much faster experience compared to traditional webpages. This is a major concern for Google, whose business still revolves around serving ads on webpages and in search results. It’s also an issue for publishers, especially smaller ones that lack the resources to optimize for numerous closed platforms. But if anything, AMP shows that this competition is a good thing, as it has prompted Google to do something about sluggish, overloaded webpages.

AMAZON LAUNCHES QUICKSIGHT BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE SERVICE

AWS chief Andy Jassy unveils Amazon Quicksight at the company's AWS Re:Invent conference in Las Vegas, Nevada on Oct. 7, 2015.

As companies generate more and more data, one of the key things they need to do is find some way to make it all useful from a business standpoint. 

Business intelligence software has long been a way to help with that, and Amazon threw its hat into the ring Wednesday with a service called QuickSight, provided through its Amazon Web Services division. It was announced at the company's AWS Re:Invent conference in Las Vegas. 

Amazon

An example of AWS QuickSight's ability to graph data.

The service will pull in all of the data businesses have stored in Amazon's cloud from sources including Redshift, DynamoDB, Elastic Map Reduce and even flat files that companies have stored in AWS's Simple Storage Service (S3). It also works with Salesforce, Oracle and files that users upload directly. The service will then generate graphs it thinks that users want, and suggest different variables that users should compare against one another. 

Once users have pulled up a visualization that they're interested in, they can then refine the data, and pull in other information into a single graph or chart. Once they have charts that they like, they can then share the interactive data with other people inside their company as a "storyboard."

In addition to a Web interface for the service, Amazon also has native mobile apps for iOS and Android for viewing QuickSight on mobile. That's important for companies that have large tablet deployments, or those who just want to make sure that their employees are able to access business intelligence data on the go. 

It's all powered by a new query engine Amazon calls the Super-fast Parallel In-memory Computation Engine (SPICE), which is supposed to be faster to use than traditional engines, thanks to a combination of technology including columnar storage, data compression and machine code generation. 

The service comes in two flavors: a standard edition that costs $9 per user per month with an annual commitment, and an enterprise edition that costs $18 per user per month when companies commit to using it for a year. The enterprise edition offers additional features like support for Active Directory integration and encryption at rest. 

Amazon isn't the only major cloud provider with its own data visualization suite. Microsoft has been heavily pushing its own Power BI tool, which integrates with both its database services and third-party providers. Unveiling QuickSight also puts Amazon in competition with one of its neighbors and customers: Seattle-based Tableau Software, which runs its data visualization and business intelligence tool on AWS. 

dhtmlxSuite 4.5: List Control, Sidebar Drawer and Responsive Web App

October 6th, 2015

In case you’re looking for a JavaScript library for creating responsive web applications with less efforts, we have great news for you! dhtmlxSuite 4.5 update brings you a sidebar navigation drawer – a very convenient three-line menu feature that is widely used in the majority of mobile/tablet apps. Moreover, you now have the opportunity to learn and test our new demo application, that will serve you as a good example for getting know how to develop responsive web applications with DHTMLX.

Apart from it, we have a new component, several new features and many bug fixes and small improvements. So, here is a summary for you.

New responsive demo – apps for desktop, tablet and mobile

We invite you to check DHTMLX CRM demo application. You may open it on different devices and see how it works (use QR code below for mobiles and tablets). This example shows that by using the basic functionality of dhtmlx components, you can create fully responsive web applications.

Open the demo on tablet and mobile

dhtmlxList control

New component is here! Meet dhtmlxList, a JavaScript UI control for displaying items in a list view. List comes with a range of the most useful features – filtering, sorting, drag-and-drop, paging, and more.

Check the live demo on its page and other samples.

Zuckerberg, Gates make bid for universal internet access

Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

UNITED NATIONS, United States: Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates on Saturday threw their weight and resources behind the goal of bringing internet access to everyone in the world by 2020. 

The pledge is part of a United Nations effort to eradicate extreme poverty by 2030, a goal set on Friday during a special summit at the global body. 

The internet became commonplace in developed countries in the 1990s, but UN officials estimate that half the world does not have reliable access — especially women and girls, whose education is vital to development. 

"When people have access to the tools and knowledge of the Internet, they have access to opportunities that make life better for all of us," said a declaration signed by Zuckerberg and Bill and Melinda Gates, who have devoted their wealth to philanthropy. 

"COMPUTER WORLD BYTES": Google Chrome just got a lot faster...

"COMPUTER WORLD BYTES": Google Chrome just got a lot faster...: NEW DELHI: After months-if not years-of bellyaching over slow speeds and shaky stability, Google finally announced an array of improvement...

UCWeb launches major update to Android browser

INDIATODAY.IN  NEW DELHI, SEPTEMBER 7, 2015 | UPDATED 18:32 IST

 

UCWeb, the developer behind the India's No.1 mobile browser in India with 48 per cent market share according to StatCounter, has launched UC Browser 10.7 in India with an aim to make browsing more customized and more convenient for its users, especially the youth. It's the biggest update from the company's stable over the last one year. UC Browser 10.7 redefines the role of a modern mobile browser as a content aggregator and distributor. The new browser also comes with a new selection of specially-designed background images for an enhanced and classy browsing experience.

All of last week, Twitter was abuzz as Poonam Pandey teased her fans with sexy yoga videos, counting down to the launch date. The videos caused much amusement among her followers with many handles re-tweeting and sharing the videos.  Poonam tweeted the final video yesterday, announcing the launch of the India's number 1 mobile browser's brand new user interface UC Browser 10.7.

Commenting on the launch, Kenny Ye, managing director, UCWeb India said, "With the launch of UC Browser 10.7, our users can enjoy the latest browsing experience with an elegant, classy and modern design. Unlike any other browser, this version allows our users to discover and access their favourite web content immediately after it is opened. The launch marks our commitment to provide better mobile internet service to billions of users around the world, wherever they are and whatever device they are using; at the same time delivering our promise of a fast and smooth web experience."

The latest version of UC Browser can be downloaded from Google Play.

Read more at: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/technology/story/ucweb-launches-major-update-to-android-browser/1/467439.html

Apple Watch may launch in India next week

SAHIL MOHAN GUPTA   |  FOLLOW @DIGITALLYBONES  |    NEW DELHI, SEPTEMBER 11, 2015 | UPDATED 17:12 IST

 

The Apple Watch is coming to India as early as next week. At least, that's what the Economic Times is reporting. The Apple Watch which was launched earlier in the year has already sold 3.2 million units as per research firm IDC. Earlier in the week, Apple unveiled new models of the device at an event where it also showcased the new iPhone 6S, the iPad Pro and the new redesigned Apple TV.

The report also claims that Apple will launch the new iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus between October 11-15. Sources have also confirmed an October iPhone 6S launch. Apple is known to launch new iPhone models in the lead up to Diwali. Last year too, Apple launched the iPhone 6 in October. 

The Apple Watch, which so far has been released in a very limited set of countries, is also set for a big software upgrade. Apple announced watchOS 2 at its WWDC event in June and on Wednesday at its launch event it showcased new features of the operating system.

It is plausible that Apple was planning to launch the Apple Watch with the new OS in markets like India where wearables are still not very popular. The new OS on the Apple Watch adds features like native applications, third party complications, watchfaces, and a new function called time travel, which works with the digital crown of the device.

Already, third party developers are hard at work creating solutions based on the capabilities provided by the new operating system. Facebook, for instance, is developing a standalone native Messenger app for the Apple Watch. The app was showcased at the Apple Special event on Wednesday in San Francisco.

Apple also announced a slew of new Watch bands, gold and rose gold variants of the Apple Watch Sport and a special Hermes version which custom leather straps and watchfaces.

Google is ramping up its Android Wear platform at a rapid rate. Some Android Wear-based smartwatches like the Moto 360 are fairly popular in India post price cuts. Google is also enabling compatibility for its platform on even the iPhone. For Apple, India may be a small market, but potentially it will be one its biggest markets in the coming years.

Even Apple CEO Tim Cook highlighted the importance of India in his keynote on Wednesday when he pointed out rapid growth of iPhone in markets like India, Turkey and Spain.

Read more at: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/technology/story/apple-watch-may-launch-in-india-next-week/1/471248.html