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Mozilla Firefox switched to 18-week dev cycle; Firefox 5 coming June 21
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Corporate News, Internet, Software,
No, you aren't crazy, Firefox 4 did just launch a week ago.
Mozilla is borrowing a page from Google Chrome and speeding up the development cycle for Firefox releases, setting new iterations of the browser for fixed time periods and bulldozing over features that just aren't ready to make it into a new browser release.
And if Mozilla sticks by its newly proposed plan, that means that we'll be seeing Firefox 5 on June 21—following a shortened 13-week development cycle instead of the proposed 18-week cycle for all future Firefox builds.
Within this 18-week cycle comes a new development stage that adds on to Mozilla's three previous update channels: Nightly, or builds created from the mozilla-central-repository that are highly unstable, but incorporate the latest texts and fixes; Beta, which ups the quality demands of features and tweaks added via the nightly builds; and Release, which becomes the version of Firefox that most consumers are used to using.
Mozilla's new stage, Aurora, will be a nightly update that splits the difference between the chaos of the company's Mozilla-central build (or Nightly build), and its Beta build.
Click to continue reading Mozilla Firefox switched to 18-week dev cycle; Firefox 5 coming June 21
Gallery: Mozilla Firefox switched to 18-week dev cycle; Firefox 5 coming June 21
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Apple set to release iOS 4.3.2 in two weeks?
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Handhelds, Rumors, Software,
Apple will fix bugs and address security issues on the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch with the release of iOS 4.3.2 in about two weeks, according to Boy Genius Report.
The latest in what's becoming a regular schedule of tweaks to Apple's mobile operating system will also include a few unspecified "enhancements," BGR wrote Thursday, citing "one of our Apple ninjas."
The last update to the operating system, iOS 4.3.1, arrived in late March.
The news doesn't indicate whether iOS 4.3.2 will fix vulnerabilities that allowed hackers to jailbreak iOS 4.3.1, or the iPad 2 just days after it was released. One managed to get Cydia running on the device and another exploited a flaw in Apple's Safari mobile Web browser that may have been fixed without comment from Apple.
Click to continue reading Apple set to release iOS 4.3.2 in two weeks?
Gallery: Apple set to release iOS 4.3.2 in two weeks?
A look at the remarkable rise of Android, and where it goes from here
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Editorial, Features, Google, Software,
Two and a half years ago, Sergey Brin, Larry Page and T-Mobile introduced the world to the very first phone, the G1. It was a good phone with a workmanlike design, decent keyboard, an average screen and lots of Google goodness built right into it. No one, least of all me, thought it stood much of a chance against the surging Apple iPhone.
For a solid year, the platform looked like a dud. But a funny thing happened on the way to the morgue.
Seven months later, T-Mobile unveiled the keyboard-less MyTouch 3G. As before, it was a nice looking, though slightly curvier, Android phone. It wasn't until the fall of 2009, more than a year after the G1 and Android's launch, that the platform got interesting. That was when Motorola started talking openly about the Droid. By casting aside just two letters and joining with the leading mobile carrier that didn't get the iPhone, Motorola and Google signaled their intention to make Android bolder, sexier and far more desirable.
Click to continue reading A look at the remarkable rise of Android, and where it goes from here
Gallery: A look at the remarkable rise of Android, and where it goes from here
Microsoft bringing the ribbon to Windows 8 Explorer
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Microsoft, PC / Laptop, Rumors, Software,
Perhaps people are overloaded on Apple rumors because the rumor mill has shifted to Microsoft and its next operating system, now referred to in the blogosphere as Windows 8.
The latest rumor is that Windows 8 will incorporate the "ribbon" interface with Windows Explorer. The feature - which put more functionality front-and-center rather than hidden behind drop-down menus - was first incorporated into Office 2007. With the release of Windows 7, it was also added to Paint and WordPad. A version of the "ribbon" interface is also included in Microsoft Office for Mac 2011.
According to Within Windows, Microsoft is thinking about adding the ribbon to Windows Explorer in the next iteration of the OS, but nothing is set in stone.
"In early builds of Windows 8, this Ribbon UI is only half-finished and, frankly, of dubious value," the blog wrote. "In fact, based on the divergent ways in which various related UI elements are repeated around the window frame, we get the idea that the use of the Ribbon in Explorer is, in fact, quite controversial inside the halls of Microsoft's Redmond campus."
Click to continue reading Microsoft bringing the ribbon to Windows 8 Explorer
Gallery: Microsoft bringing the ribbon to Windows 8 Explorer
How To: iOS 4.3.1 untethered jailbreak with RedSn0w and PwnageTool
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Mods / Hacks, Software,
iOS jailbreakers have been waiting about a month for the arrival of an untethered jailbreak to be released, since the arrival of iOS 4.3. Well, the day has finally arrived, and you can now safely upgrade to iOS 4.3.1 and jailbreak it with RedSn0w 0.9.6 on Mac and Windows platforms. We've got a step-by-step tutorial for you, explaining the process from start to finish, after the break.
Click to continue reading How To: iOS 4.3.1 untethered jailbreak with RedSn0w and PwnageTool
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| Dev Team via Redmond Pie
Gallery: How To: iOS 4.3.1 untethered jailbreak with RedSn0w and PwnageTool
Time Warner removes Fox, Viacom, and Discovery channels from iPad App
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Corporate News, Home Entertainment, Software,
Amidst a controversy over streaming rights, Time Warner Cable has agreed to remove content from Fox Cable Networks, Viacom, and Discovery from its iPad app.
All three networks were "willing to threaten to sue over it," Jeff Simmermon, director of digital communications at Time Warner Cable, wrote in a blog post, so Time Warner has pulled the networks from its iPad streaming for the time being.
Specifically, Time Warner will remove streaming access to 11 channels: Animal Planet, BET, CMT, Comedy Central, Discovery Channel, FX, MTV, National Geographic, Nickelodeon, Spike, and VH1.
Time Warner still maintains that it has "every right" to stream content from these channels via its iPad app, but said it will focus its iPad efforts "on those enlightened programmers who understand the benefit and importance of allowing our subscribers - and their viewers - to watch their programming on any screen in their homes."
Click to continue reading Time Warner removes Fox, Viacom, and Discovery channels from iPad App
Gallery: Time Warner removes Fox, Viacom, and Discovery channels from iPad App
HP ePrint printers now support Google Cloud Print
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Google, PC / Laptop, Peripherals, Software,
Hewlett-Packard announced today that it has worked with Google to enable its Cloud Print services on HP ePrint-enabled printers.
With the additional feature, HP ePrint printers can now print via Cloud Print right out of the box, via the PC and the beta form of the technology for Android smartphones. However, we found that the technology was clunky at best.
Users can simply "email" the document to the HP ePrint address, allowing it to directly print via the Cloud Print service. Users need to add this email address to their Google account, Google said. A list of supported printers can be found at the HP site.
Previously, users had three ways of printing from an ePrint wireless printer: connect it via USB; go through a lengthy wireless setup process; including manually entering WPA/WEP keys and other security features, as well as creating a link between the computer and router from a "one touch method" that still required users to navigate several menus on the HP printer.
Click to continue reading HP ePrint printers now support Google Cloud Print
Gallery: HP ePrint printers now support Google Cloud Print
Follow your favorite baseball team on Opening Day the geeky way
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Editorial, Home Entertainment, Software,
Spring has sprung, and the best thing about spring isn't the warmer weather or the allergies—it's the baseball. The 2011 MLB season begins Thursday, taking over the lives of fantasy owners and fans alike for the next seven to eight months (depending on how good your team is). Whether you're at work, at home, on on the road, here are a few ways to track your favorite team.
MLB at Bat 11
MLB at Bat 11 is the sanctioned-by-the-league option for following your favorite team throughout the year. It's an app for iOS, Android, BlackBerry, Mac OS, Windows, and other platforms, and it lets fans watch out-of-market games (crucial if your team isn't your local team), track every statistic you can think of, and see "Live Look-Ins" whenever something critical is happening in another game.
There's a lot packed into the MLB at Bat app, but it comes at a cost: the app itself is $14.99 (there's also a very stripped-down version that's free), but if you want to watch live games you'll need a subscription to MLB.tv, which starts at $99 for the season. Luckily, thanks to a deal MLB made with Volvo, you won't need a subscription for the first month of the season, so you can try before you buy.
MLB.TV on Roku and Apple TV
If you own a Roku box ($69 at Amazon) or an Apple TV ($99 at Amazon), you're already almost all set up to watch baseball this season. With an MLB.tv subscription (the same one you'll need for the MLB at Bat app), you get access to live-streaming games via your Roku box or your Apple TV, along with plenty of other features like fantasy player tracking, DVR controls, and even on-demand access to local games (which you can't watch live) 90 minutes after the game ends.
Click to continue reading Follow your favorite baseball team on Opening Day the geeky way
Gallery: Follow your favorite baseball team on Opening Day the geeky way
Apple releases Mac OS X Lion Developer Preview 2
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, PC / Laptop, Software,
Apple has just released Mac OS X Lion Developer Preview 2 to members of the Mac Dev Program. You'll need to run a software update on the first preview of Lion to prepare for the update, reboot your system, then grab a download token from the Dev Center to use in the Mac App Store to get the 3.7 GB download to update. I know, that's a lot of steps, but you get a completely overhauled iCal UI and unified contacts window in iChat for your troubles, among other things.
Gallery: Apple releases Mac OS X Lion Developer Preview 2
Apple’s WWDC 2011 a lock for June 6-10
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Corporate News, Rumors, Software,
Apple has anounced that its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) will run from June 6 to June 10 in San Francisco, with a focus on iOS and Mac OS.
"At this year's conference we are going to unveil the future of iOS and Mac OS," Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing, said in a statement. "If you are an iOS or Mac OS X software developer, this is the event that you do not want to miss."
Apple promised demonstrations of the new kinds of apps that developers can build using Apple's frameworks and more than 100 technical sessions presented by Apple engineers. Mobile app developers can "explore the latest innovations and capabilities of iOS" while Mac developers "will see and learn how to develop world-class Mac OS X Lion applications using its latest technologies and capabilities," Apple said.
Click to continue reading Apple’s WWDC 2011 a lock for June 6-10
