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One day we'll look back and say this was the end of the software platform
Comment I was once told by an editor not to waste too much time following Apple and other companies that sold hardware and software together.
He was reflecting the conventional wisdom in the late 1990s: any manufacturer that dared to "add value" by integrating its software into its hardware would be destroyed. Microsoft and Dell would …
Continuous delivery: Can IT really 'join up' Ops and Dev?
Live chat The Register will be tackling continuous delivery in our latest Live Chat, today at 14:00 BST (9:00 EST).
Join Adrian Bridgwater, Trevor Pott, Freeform Dynamics' Analyst Dale Vile and Perforce's Mark Warren to discuss this significant trend in software development and deployment.
The Reg’s group editor Joe Fay will be your host …
Torvalds: 'We're not doing Linux95 … for a few years, at least'
The next version of the Linux kernel, version 3.12, has a name: “Suicidal squirrel”.
Linus Torvalds let the new name be known in a Git commit in which he killed off the “Linux for Workgroups” name used for version 3.11.
The Linux Lord has not, however, entirely ruled out returning to Microsoft-themed names for future versions …
Borland's heir Embarcadero says one dev tool can rule them all
Embarcadero Technologies, the development tools outfit that inherited much of Borland's technology, has released a new product it says can produce native apps for four operating systems from a single codebase.
That tool is RAD Studio XE5, released this week, and Embarcadero is claiming it is the first development tool capable of …
Windows 8.1: Microsoft's reluctant upgrade has a split-screen personality
Review Microsoft will release Windows 8.1, a free update for Windows 8, on 18 October. The plan had been for no pre-release code until then, but Microsoft has back-tracked.
The release to manufacturing (RTM) code is now available early to developers and IT professionals via Microsoft’s MSDN and TechNet subscription sites.
There are …
Apple’s iOS 64-bit iUpgrade: Don't expect a 2x performance leap
What are the implications of Apple’s 64-bit ARM A7 processor for the iPhone user who upgrades to the new 5S? Not as many as you might think.
Apple has said the chip is compatible with all the iOS software out there that is still 32-bit. For the moment, at least, that is all third-party programs.
Apple hasn’t said how much RAM …
SAP inks Hadoop deals with Intel and Hortonworks
SAP has partnered with Intel and Hortonworks to resell the two companies' Hadoop offerings, as the enterprise software giant tentatively gets involved with the new fashionable data platform.
The announcement was made on Wednesday at Techcrunch Disrupt in San Francisco, and means SAP will be able to sell SAP's HANA in-memory …
Oracle ships Java 8 Developer Preview for testing, 18 months late
Oracle has shipped the Developer Preview of the much-delayed Java Development Kit (JDK) Version 8, the reference implementation of the Java SE 8 Platform.
"If you've been watching JDK 8 evolve from afar then now is an excellent time to download a build and try it out – the sooner the better!" Oracle's chief Java architect Mark …
Let's talk about continuous delivery
Continuous delivery is defined as a process in which software development teams focus on deployment and refinement over and above any imperative to work on new features.
As a technical discipline this is fine in principle, especially if we know where we want to head with the project in hand.
But the navigation and drive for …
Torvalds suggests poison and sabotage for ARM SoC designers
Help us out here amateur psychologists: Linus Torvalds has just unleashed his second shouty rant in as many days. Do we need to worry, or is the moon in a particular phase that makes this kind of thing more likely? Has Portland's water supply taken a turn for the worse? Or are we simply seeing a frustrated middle aged man …
Google chucks code into MOOCs mix
Google has decided it will join the Open edX project, an effort to create a platform on which to host massively online open courses (MOOCs).
MOOCs took off a couple of years back when some universities started offering free courses online. While the courses did not lead to a degree, the mere fact that institutions of the calibre …
Apple seeds final iOS 7 code to devs, announces September 18 ship date
Updated Most of the attention on Apple's Tuesday event in Cupertino was focused on the company's latest iPhones, but Tim Cook & Co did have some news under their hats regarding iOS 7 and Apple's iLife and iWork suites of iOS apps, as well.
Unsurprisingly, both the iPhone 5C and iPhone 5S will ship with iOS 7 preinstalled. But owners of …
Pair of complete tits sorry for pervy app
The developers behind an app called 'Titstare' have apologised for any and all offences caused by the software.
Titstare went viral yesterday, in the worst possible way, after it was demonstrated at Tech Crunch's Disrupt conference. The app's functionality, such as it is, offers users the chance to take photos of themselves …
Opera unveils iPad-only browser
Opera has released a browser designed specifically for the iPad.
'Coast' dispenses with a 'back' button, an omission Opera argues is sensible because a touch-enabled device shouldn't need one when a leftwards swipe can do the job.
“Websites and apps today invite you to interact in new ways, but browser design for tablets has …
Microsoft does a U-turn, releases Windows 8.1 to developers early after all
After facing a backlash from developers concerned that they wouldn't get early access to the latest versions of Windows, Microsoft has released builds of Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2 to its MSDN and TechNet subscription programs, more than a month ahead of the updates' official launch date.
"We heard from you that our …
Want the latest Android version? Good luck with that
The latest stats from Google show that Android "Jelly Bean" continues to gain ground as the most popular version of the platform, but the very latest releases of Google's smartphone OS continue to face slow adoption.
Jelly Bean is a bit unusual as Android codenames go, because Android versions 4.1, 4.2, and 4.3 all bear that …
Google thrusts cash at developers in emerging countries
Google is preparing to dispense a couple of hundred thousand dollars in prizes for developers in emerging countries who are willing to take its cloudy platform for a spin.
The Google Cloud Developer Challenge was announced by the Chocolate Factory on Thursday, and sees the ad-backed search behemoth offer developers from around …
Penguins, prepare to get SPACED OUT: Ubuntu 13.10's Mir has docked
Review Looks can be deceiving, as proved by the first beta of the latest Ubuntu – version 13.10, or Saucy Salamander – which is available today.
This beta doesn't look that different from the last release of Ubuntu earlier this year, but hidden beneath the surface is what might be the biggest change Ubuntu will be making for some time …
Chrome turns five, gains new 'desktop apps'
Google's Chrome browser has turned five, and the Chocolate Factory has given it and us the mutant offspring of site-specific browsers as a present.
Chrome's 2008 launch was marked by the publication of a comic book penned by comics deconstructor extraordinaire Scott McCloud. At the time of launch world+dog was fascinated by the …
Continuous delivery: What works (and what doesn't)
The notion that we might just as well automate everything is common in the perpetually dynamic world of continuous delivery.
What does continuous (software application development) delivery actual entail and is it a practical solution all the time?
It is effectively like refuelling your car while driving. Or perhaps a better …
Windows 8.1 to freeze out small business apps
TechEd Australia While Microsoft is happy with the “appification” of Windows, and prepares to go-live with Windows 8.1 on October 18, it's created a gap between present and future that could be a stumbling block for a bunch of small ISVs.
The kind of company that lives between the consumer and the enterprise will still be able to create and ship …
Twitter just got sh**tier: Natter emitter hit by code critter, fritters web glitter
Twitter has been cast back into the dark ages of 2006 after a number of useful functions disappeared from its website without warning or explanation.
A quick rummage around the site shows that the @username autocomplete feature no longer works in the search or new tweet box. And all the photos posted by twits have vanished from …
Doctors face tribunal over claims of plagiarism in iPhone app
Three doctors face the withdrawal or suspension of their licences to practise medicine after being accused of releasing an iPhone app which allegedly plagiarised material from an award-winning medical textbook.
One of the three stands further accused of writing a "misleading" review praising the app on the App Store.
The trio …
Anatomy of a killer bug: How just 5 characters can murder iPhone, Mac apps
Analysis There has been much sniggering into sleeves after wags found they could upset iOS 6 iPhones and iPads, and Macs running OS X 10.8, by sending a simple rogue text message or email.
A bug is triggered when the CoreText component in the vulnerable Apple operating systems tries to render on screen a particular sequence of Unicode …
Microsoft gives TechNet a one-off reprieve
Microsoft has decided to extend the life of its TechNet service for 90 days, but will still kill the popular service and suggest subscribers migrate to the more expensive MSDN.
Microsoft has let subscribers know of the extension in an update to its Subscriptions page for the service.
The offer's only open to “customers whose …
Give us a break: Next Android version to be called 'KitKat'
Updated Google has announced that the next version of its Android operating system will be codenamed "KitKat", after the iconic chocolate-covered wafer candy bar.
Photo of the KitKat mascot among the Android lawn statues The Chocolate Factory needs a break from 'Jelly Bean', it seems
Previously, the leading speculation among the …
10,000 app devs SLEEP together in four-day code-chat-drink tech orgy camp
Pic London's O2 is this week hosting Campus Party - a four-day tech-fest during which as many as 10,000 software developers from across Europe get together for coding, talking and drinking. The marketing people like to call it Glastonbury For Geeks.
Campus Party does have tents – three and a half thousand of them, two geeks to a …
Returning Acronis CEO plans Parallels universe
Returned Acronis CEO Serguei Beloussov has extended his planned tenure at the company, in part to ensure it melds technologies from virtualisation player Parallels to create a backup-as-a-service product.
Beloussov founded both Acronis and Parallels, left both to pursue other interests including a pair of venture capital funds, …
Foursquare gets pushy with fandroids, touchy Windows 8 bods
Foursquare has started pushing itself into the Android notification bar and supporting Windows 8, as the company tries to turn its location-announcing app into a real business.
The latest version of Foursquare for Android doesn't wait for users to check in before telling them about local services in which they might be …
Facebook strips away a bit more of your privacy – but won't say why
Facebook is slurping mobile phone numbers from its users without explaining why, it has emerged.
In an upcoming overhaul to the social network's data use policy, Facebook said it had made a number of updates about the information it receives about individuals using the free content ad network.
It includes simplifying the …
Google goes back to the future with SQL F1 database
The tech world is turning back toward SQL, bringing to a close a possibly misspent half-decade in which startups courted developers with promises of infinite scalability and the finest imitation-Google tools available, and companies found themselves exposed to unstable data and poor guarantees.
The shift has been going on …
US mobile app dominance threatened by ANGRY BIRDS revolution
The US is still a dominant force in mobile app development worldwide, but that could be changing, based on the latest data from app analytics outfit Flurry – and a certain Finnish firm could be leading the way for the rest of the world.
US-based developers produced 36 per cent of all active mobile apps as of June 2013, according …
Android chief leaves Google for Chinese fork seller Xiaomi
A senior Google’s Android product exec is leaving Mountain View for an up-and-coming Chinese smartphone-maker.
Vice president of Android product management Hugo Barra has announced he’s joining Android smartphone maker Xiaomi as vice president of its global team to expand the device-maker’s product portfolio and worldwide reach …
Skype: 3D video calling is the FUTURE
Online chat biz Skype says it has developed 3D video calling - but it doesn't know when it will roll out the feature, if at all.
Having to yell at your parents overseas that they need to turn off normal video if they want to have enough bandwidth left to hold anything akin to a decent non-time-lapsed conversation is not enough …
Now your iPhone apps can be FAT losers: Apple gobbles data diet upstart
Apple has picked up AlgoTrim, a Swedish upstart that knocks together tools for quickly decompressing apps, photos, videos and other stuff on mobile phones.
As well as image squeezing, AlgoTrim touts a code compression library that crams software into the flash memory of ARM-powered devices, possibly reducing the size of programs …
Red Hat mints OpenStack certification
Red Hat is getting into the business of OpenStack certification as the open source company tries to co-opt some of the enthusiasm for the cloud platform and turn it into cash.
The Red Hat Certificate of Expertise in Infrastructure-as-a-Service was announced by the company on Monday, and sees the disciples of the red fedora offer …
Couchbase database pelted in $25M of filthy Valley lucre
Venture capitalists are so eager to get involved in the burgeoning "NoSQL" database market, that startup Couchbase took a $25m round without needing the money.
"We did not need the money. We had VCs tracking us that very much wanted to invest. The valuations were such that we decided to take on additional money," Couchbase chief …
Amazon tells mobe devs: Bring your app-strokers to us, we'll look after you
Amazon will kick back six per cent of sales to developers selling real products within their mobile apps, as the online retailer extends the Associate programme already used by websites.
Amazon Associates pays commission to sites which direct shoppers to the online behemoth's site. In 2008 a report from Stanford University …
Boffins force Skype to look you in the eye
Accurate eye-to-eye contact in a videoconference, a feature of high end systems as well as any phone or tablet with a front-facing camera, is a problem for laptop users, because the camera is almost slightly off-direction from the image.
Hence, as any Skype user knows, there's an unfortunate effect in which people are looking …
Another big SAP project hits the rocks in Oz
Fujitsu has become the latest service provider to be associated with a failed SAP project in Australia, after a project it led saw the buyer underwhelmed despite going over time and over budget.
The project in question was an asset management system for the government of Australia's Northern Territory. The Territory is huge – …
Intel ships high-powered C++ compiler for native Android apps
Intel has released the Intel C++ Compiler v13.0 for Android OS, its first attempt at delivering an optimizing C/C++ compiler designed specifically for Google's mobile platform.
The release is notable for a number of reasons. First, the overwhelming majority of Android devices are currently built around chips based on the ARM …
Microsoft: YES Windows 8.1 is finished, but NO you can't have it
Microsoft says it has already begun seeding the final code of Windows 8.1 to its manufacturing partners, but that doesn't mean you'll be able to get your hands on the update any sooner.
In a blog post on Tuesday, Windows corporate VP Antoine Leblond said that while hardware makers are being given time to incorporate Windows 8.1 …
