The IT Nerd

Digia has released an update to Qt Enterprise Embedded to address the Internet of Things connected device trend. Today’s release includes the latest Qt 5.3 libraries, Qt WebEngine, Qt Quick Compiler, integration to the Qt Cloud and several other improvements. It contains all the tools needed for fast, easy, fully-integrated embedded device application development and deployment which further increasing developer efficiency, application and device performance, and shortening the development time of embedded software. With Qt Enterprise Embedded it is as easy to develop embedded software as it is to build applications for desktop or mobile.

The pre-configured embedded development environment, pre-built Qt optimized software stack enables immediate deployment to verified reference boards allowing users to get up and running and have a working embedded project prototype from day one. This Qt Enterprise Embedded update introduces a first look at Qt WebEngine, a powerful cross-platform web offering that combines Qt Quick for native apps for maximum performance, HTML5 for dynamic web content and reusability across web and native – with WebGL support for whenever extra 3D elegance needs to be added to the UI. Qt WebEngine is particularly important for embedded devices that need to offer on-demand web access and where the ability to develop hybrid UIs and functionality is key to keep up with changing market requirements.

Qt Enterprise Embedded also includes the recently announced Qt Quick Compiler. Qt Quick Compiler is a new professional build tool, which allows for the compilation of QML files into an application. The compiler ensures IP protection of the the QML source and improves load time and performance by pre-parsing the QML files. With compiled Qt Quick, application start up is up to 90% faster than before, a key requirement in various embedded verticals.

Incremental deployment to devices is also being introduced to reduce the time it takes to deploy software to devices. Previous versions of Qt Enterprise Embedded offered USB-connection to the device as the primary way to deploy, run and debug on devices. The latest version adds the possibility of connecting to devices over a local area network using standard IP protocols – simplifying the sharing of devices amongst team members and setting up devices for automated testing.

The update to Qt Enterprise Embedded also provides full integration with Qt Cloud Services and the Enginio Data Storage to enable users to create a whole cloud backend for embedded, mobile and desktop Qt clients through a convenient Qt API. Together with the newly added Bluetooth support (using BlueZ) and the existing Wi-Fi and wired network support, the platform provides everything needed for implementing, monitoring and updating internet-of-things devices from within a single technology.

Qt Enterprise Embedded also provides the full set of Qt Enterprise value-add functionality, including a comprehensive virtual keyboard solution with multi-language and word-prediction possibilities, support for Qt Quick Enterprise Controls for industrial applications and libraries for 2D and 3D charting and data visualization.

The Qt Enterprise Embedded development environment runs on Ubuntu Linux 64-bit 12.04 LTS or later. Target hardware supported as standard at time of launch includes: Google Nexus 7 tablet 2012 & 2013 version; Boundary Devices SabreLite (Freescale i.MX 6); SABRE Board/Platform for smart devices (Freescale i.MX 6Quad); Raspberry Pi Model B (ARM11); and BeagleBone Black (TI AM335x). Digia is also able to port the software stack to custom hardware. The Qt Enterprise Embedded Emulator is included within the development environment. Qt Enterprise Embedded comes with Yocto –based tooling that easily extends the provided configurations to match the final hardware design as well as supports other hardware environments.

Full details on supported hardware, more information about Qt Enterprise Embedded and a 30-day free trial offer can be found at http://qt.digia.com/qtenterpriseembedded

Building on the success of Qt 5.2, which has been downloaded more than 1 million times since December 2013, Qt 5.3 brings enhanced quality across all platforms with improved documentation and new coding examples delivering an improved user experience. In addition, the Qt for Windows Runtime port has now reached the supported Beta state further strengthening Qt’s cross-platform story of defragmenting multi-platform mobile development. Qt for WinRT allows Qt developers reach a portfolio of millions of devices including Windows 8 PCs and tablets, applications using the Modern UI, also for WinRT tablets on ARM chips such as the Microsoft Surface and Windows Phone devices.

Qt 5.3 boasts several improvements on desktop application development easing the migration path for existing users to Qt 5. The introduction of QQuickWidget, which is designed to simplify the migration of larger Qt Widget-based applications to Qt 5, allows for hybrid development with both, C++ Qt Widgets and Qt Quick UI technology, in one application. This enables designers and developers to save time using the best of both UI technologies together without sacrificing the ease and functionality of the other. The Qt Quick Controls have also received new updates which include calendar control, native dialogs and styling for the menu bar as well as several new Qt Quick Enterprise controls for industrial applications

On the API side, the new Qt Positioning API provides GPS support for both Android and iOS, while the Qt Bluetooth API now provides direct support for also Android. Qt Enterprise mobile application customers will also benefit from the new Qt Purchasing API that provides a simple-to-use, cross-platform Qt API for in-app purchasing from Android Google Play and iOS App Store. In the future, this will be extended to WinRT (Windows Store / Windows Phone Store) and desktop marketplaces such as the Mac OS X store.

Qt 5.3 also announces a new Qt WebSockets API and new Managed WebSockets backend service in the Qt Cloud Services portfolio that enables cloud-connected applications and devices to communicate bi-directionally in real-time. In addition, the Managed WebSockets solution enables any number of client-server communications so that one-to-many communication channels, including chat and notifications, can be implemented.

Qt 5.3 introduces a first look at a new professional build tool under the Qt Enterprise offering, Qt Quick Compiler, which allows you to compile QML files into the application. The compiler ensures IP protection of the the QML source and improves load time and performance by pre-parsing the QML files. With compiled Qt Quick, application start up is up to 90% faster than before. Qt Quick Compiler delivers significant run-time performance improvements on platforms such as iOS.

Qt Enterprise 5.3 also introduces primary support from Digia for QNX Neutrino 6.6 with pre-built Qt Enterprise binaries that enable intuitive and attractive UIs for the QNX Car Automotive platforms and also the healthcare, industrial automation, and in-flight entertainment industries.

Qt Enterprise for application development can be downloaded as a 30-day free trial or purchased with a convenient monthly subscription plan from http://qt.digia.com/Try-Buy. The Qt 5.3 open source version can be downloaded from http://qt-project.org. For more information on Qt 5.3, please visit the product page: http://qt.digia.com/qt53

Digia has announced the immediate availability of the Qt Mobile Edition and Qt 5.2.

Qt Mobile enables hassle-free multi-platform application development and managing of apps with a built-in Qt-optimized cloud backend service, Qt Cloud Services. The Qt Mobile offering has been specifically packaged for individual developers and app development software houses looking to develop native apps with mind-blowing graphics and performance for Android, iOS and other mobile platforms – all with one framework. It has been designed to enable mobile app developers to reach and address the largest mobile markets. The goal of Qt Mobile is to bring the power of Qt to all mobile developers everywhere with an affordable and commercially viable offering that delivers true cross-platform development on Android, iOS and other platforms, reduces time to market and maximises the revenue potential of every app.

By adding support for Android and iOS to its extensive range of desktop, mobile and embedded operating system platforms and enhancing its core performance and functionality, Qt 5.2 is positioned as the only cross-platform development framework for UI and non-UI creation to enable intuitive and highly performing platform-independent software applications no matter the target device or screen size. Under the Qt Enterprise offering, Qt 5.2 opens the door to increased mobility of enterprise applications and paves the way for enterprise-ready multi-screen applications that users can experience from desktop to smartphone to automobile to TV. Qt provides true cross-platform capabilities across all the most widely used and relevant desktop, embedded and mobile platforms, supporting 15 leading operating systems.

For more information on Qt Mobile, please visit http://qt.digia.com/qtmobileedition. For more information on Qt 5.2, please visit http://qt.digia.com/qt52.