Archive for February 25, 2015

Google Converting Flash Based Ads To HTML5

Posted in Commentary with tags , , , on February 25, 2015 by itnerd

Another sign that Adobe Flash is doomed comes in the form of the news that Google is now converting Flash based ads into HTML5 so that they can be seen on any device:

Back in September, Google began offering interactive HTML5 backups when Flash wasn’t supported. The Flash-to-HTML5 conversion tools for the Google Display Network and DoubleClick Campaign Manager created an HTML5 version of Flash ads, showing an actual ad rather than a static image backup.

Now, Google will automatically convert eligible Flash campaigns, both existing and new, to HTML5. All the advertiser has to do is upload their ads through AdWords, AdWords Editor, or many third-party tools that work with Google’s ad platform.

Now it should be noted that at present, not every ad can be converted from Flash to HTML5, but Google is heading in that direction. The end game being that Flash based ads will be a thing of the past.

It’s a safe bet that the late Steve Jobs is very happy about this.

Leave a comment »

Google Announces Android For Work

Posted in Commentary with tags , , , on February 25, 2015 by itnerd

Google today has taken a major step in bringing Android to the Enterprise. They’ve announced Android For Work on the Google Blog and here’s what it will do for enterprises:

  • Work profiles – We’ve built on the default encryption, enhanced SELinux security enforcement and multi-user support in Android 5.0, Lollipop to create a dedicated work profile that isolates and protects work data. IT can deploy approved work apps right alongside their users’ personal apps knowing their sensitive data remains secured. People can use their personal apps knowing their employer only manages work data and won’t erase or view their personal content.
  • Android for Work app – For devices running Ice Cream Sandwich through Kitkat, or that don’t run work profiles natively, we’ve created the Android for Work app. The app, which delivers secure mail, calendar, contacts, documents, browsing and access to approved work apps, can be completely managed by IT.
  • Google Play for Work – Google Play for Work allows businesses to securely deploy and manage apps across all users running Android for Work, simplifying the process of distributing apps to employees and ensuring that IT approves every deployed app.
  • Built-in productivity tools – For everyday business tasks, we’ve created a suite of business apps for email, contacts and calendar, which supports both Exchange and Notes and provides document editing capabilities for documents, spreadsheets and presentations.

To bring this to the marketplace, Google is partnering with a select number a Enterprise Mobility Management vendors. Two of them are from Canada and they are:

  • BlackBerry is working with Google to bring support for Android for work to BES 12. Customers can get a preview in March and it should be rolling out in Q2 2015.
  • SOTI who is the leading player in Enterprise Mobility Management for Android devices has announced support in MobiControl. One thing to note is that they have same day support for Android For Work. Meaning that customers will be able to get a version of MobiControl in their hands that supports Android For Work very quickly.

Android For Work is a game changer for Google. This I believe will kick support for Android in the enterprise up several notches. I’d recommend you keep an eye on this technology, and Enterprise Mobility Management vendors who work with Google to bring this technology to market.

Leave a comment »

Gemalto To Planet Earth: You Have Nothing To Worry About

Posted in Commentary with tags , , on February 25, 2015 by itnerd

As promised, Gemalto held a press conference today to respond to a report that they were hacked by U.K. and U.S. intelligence types and encryption codes that would let them spy on smartphone users were stolen. Now News.com has a pretty comprehensive report. But it can be summed up like this:

“The attacks against Gemalto only breached its office networks and could not have resulted in a massive theft of SIM encryption keys,” Gemalto said in a statement at a press conference held in response to a report in the Intercept alleging a massive theft by the US National Security Agency and UK Government Communications Headquarters. The report said millions of SIM card encryption keys had been stolen through the joint NSA and GCHQ operation.

Gemalto then lays out why this is the case. And they also let the world know that 2G networks would be the ones under threat. Both 3G and 4G networks are apparently safe. But the core message is this: There’s nothing to see here. Move along.

Though, they did let this cat out of the bag:

However, Gemalto said, it appears that other SIM card manufacturers were targeted, so privacy and security concerns can’t be dispelled. For example, the spy agency documents pointed to 300,000 keys stolen from a Somali carrier that isn’t a Gemalto customer. Indeed, that’s the case for four of the 12 carriers identified in the documents, Gemalto said.

Lovely. Clearly this story isn’t over and neither is the concern that this will generate.

Leave a comment »

Games, Music and Shopping Apps Hit Smartphones Hardest: AVG

Posted in Commentary with tags on February 25, 2015 by itnerd

AVG has just came out with their he quarterly Android App Performance Report and it highlights some interesting findings based analyzing aggregated, anonymous data from over one million AVG Android app users to discover the top performance-affecting apps worldwide. Those findings are:

  • Spotify has moved up two places from where AVG had ranked it in Q3 to take second position behind the social networking app from Facebook, whose constant background notification checks still have the greatest impact on overall Android Device performance, consistent with last quarter’s findings.
  • Game On: demonstrating the ever-changing gaming landscape, last quarter’s gaming chart toppers, FarmVille and Puzzle & Dragons, showed major declines in their installed user base, contributing to the reason they dropped out of the AVG Q4 Performance rankings. They are replaced by new entrants, Boom Beach for overall impact and Deer Hunter 2014 for storage consumption.
  • Seasonal Shopping Fever: over the Holiday shopping and sales period, the official Amazon for Android app entered the charts this quarter, ranked number five in the top 10 list of most all-round resource-consuming apps.
  • Home Cinema Gets Smart: previously listed in the top three battery draining apps, Netflix this quarter no longer appears in the tables at all following  a November update that has resulted in significantly less battery drain. Good news for film fans!
  • Helping Hands that Hinder: tools like Clean Master or background apps like Samsung’s Security Policies designed to help keep smartphones secure and smooth, actually rank among the highest drainers of battery, storage and data plan.

If you want to read the full report, click here. It’s a very interesting read for Android users.

Leave a comment »

Telus Suggests That We All #BeAppSafe

Posted in Commentary with tags on February 25, 2015 by itnerd

These days, we use apps on our smartphones for literally everything. While awesome, and in some cases critical to our jobs, apps can access and use an incredible amount of our personal information without our knowledge or permission! Allowing our apps control over our personal information can open us up to data insecurity or even identity theft, but there are ways we can protect ourselves.

To show Canadians how to use their mobile apps safely, Telus and Public Safety Canada have come together and created the #BeAppSafe initiative. From now through to the end of March they will be providing some helpful resources, such as these tips and this fun quiz where you can enter to win one of 10 tablets.

I’d encourage everyone to take a look at this as I think it pays to #BeAppSafe.

Leave a comment »

My Trip To India And Australia: Part 3 – The New Hard Drive

Posted in Products, Tips with tags , on February 25, 2015 by itnerd

One thing that travelers don’t think of is backing up their data when they travel with their laptop. Sooner or later, you’ll have a hard drive failure, or worse your laptop will get stolen. Thus you should always have a backup. In my case I was going to buy the parts to build my own external hard drive as my current one was too small. But after visiting my local computer store, I figured out that it would cost me about $30 more to build my own versus just buying a pre-built one. After looking around, I settled on the Western Digital 1TB Elements external hard drive. Here’s what you get in the box:

IMG_0856

There’s not a whole lot here. If you plan on using this as a portable drive, you’ll need a case. It doesn’t come with one, but I have one so I am covered. You might want to invest in one, or pick a Western Digital model that comes with a case.

Now the Western Digital 1TB Elements drive has a lot going for it including:

  • It is a USB 3.0 drive that can fall back to USB 2.0
  • It comes with a trial version of WD SmartWare Pro backup software. It allows you to back up your files to your WD Elements drive or to the cloud using your DropBox account. It’s Windows only though.
  • It’s small and easy to tote around. Though I would not do so without a case. It’s also light as well which is important if you’re traveling.

Now if you have a PC, it’s plug and play. However if you have a Mac, you’ll need to reformat the drive using Disk Utility before using it. Now, experienced Mac users won’t find this a big deal. However, novice users won’t have any direction other than the instruction sheet pointing users to a Western Digital support knowledgebase article. The reference to this knowledgebase article is in tiny print so it is easy to miss. It would be a good idea for Western Digital to do more for Mac users.

In terms of performance, when it was pretty quick as long as you connect it via USB 3.0. Thus backups should be quick. Now I will copy my most recent backup to the drive so that I have a backup if I need it on my way to India. Not to mention that backing up my data will be much quicker as Carbon Copy Cloner will have something to work with. The other thing I will do is pack it separately from my laptop. That way if I lose the backup, I will still have my laptop, or vice versa.

The best thing about this drive is that it has a great price. I paid $79 for the 1TB version which is an excellent price. What was not so excellent is the fact that Western Digital only offers a one year warranty when a lot of their other products have two, three or even five year warranties. Yes it’s their entry level drive. But they can and should do better on that front. Having said that, it wouldn’t stop me from recommending it as an option to back up your data while you’re on a trip.

On Friday, I will detail my trip to the airport and my departure from Toronto to Dubai which is the first leg of my trip to New Delhi India.

3 Comments »