Should Windows Phone Go Open Source? To Buy Time But Still Need Something More To Turn Things Around - It's Own iPod Moment

Source:  Wired.

Here is an interesting Wired post about what Microsoft should do about its mobile situation, which is bad, and maybe to turn things around, it should open up Windows.

The post has a thing or two to say about past attempts at open source.  It's likely, in my opinion, Steve Balmer, current and outgoing CEO, didn't go for it.  Just like he didn't go for projects that could have put Microsoft ahead and put the iconic software company in a stronger position.

It's why the post believes a new CEO could utlimately do what Balmer was too afraid to do.  It's unlikely.  I'm tell you that now.  But even if somehow, the new CEO was brave enough to try, it would only be the first step.  It may slow the bleeding but won't stop it.

Microsoft will still need something new that convinces hardware makers, software developers, and, more importantly, businesses and consumers that it has something new and innovative.  The new CEO will need its iPod moment.  It's the only way to turn Microsoft around in the eyes of the media and public.

It can't not compete with Android and iOS head-on.  It's losing big time and will continue to. And the wearable computing device revolution on the horizon is a good place to start.

When Steve Jobs came back to Apple, it didn't try to hit back at the PC market.  Apple first stopped the bleed and found that it could be a big player in the rising MP3 player market.  And it used that to launch an innovative device to get the company back into the public's mind set.

Sure, Microsoft would have to continue to release new phones and Surface tablets. New Xbox devices will need to be released and updated.  But it's this new product or service that is needed to get Microsoft back on the path.

Why is this important to Apple and Google fans?  Well, word is that Blackberry is looking to sell itself off and may be looking to lay off 40% of its workforce, we can no longer count on the former smartphone champ to put up a fight in the mobile market anymore.  Only Microsoft remains with the muscles and, yes, smarts, to do it.

We want more competition.  Not less.

With iTunes Radio, We Could Be Moving Towards A Free-To-Listen Model For All

Starting today, anyone with an iOS device that can install the brand new iOS 7 will also get a special new treat and feature:  iTunes Radio. I'm assuming that Apple will release the iPad version of iOS 7 as well.

Essentially, iTunes Radio is Apple's new modern answer to give users the ability to stream music that they like and, hopefully, discover new ones.  There's word that Apple is also hiring special human curators for this new feature.

Did I also mention that it's free?  This is significant because this will really hit some music streaming services hard.  Today's music streaming services like Pandora, often used as the service most likely to be hurt by Apple's entry into the radio streaming biz, offer limited free services and rely on paid services in order to generate revenue.

And even if Spotify doesn't directly compete with Apple's iTunes Radio because Apple doesn't let users picks specific songs to stream like Spotify, free is going to be a big deal no matter what.

But I don't think services will go away because of this.  If anything, they'll need to evolve, innovate and provide users with features that Apple does not offer and deemed worthy of paying for.

Trojan Found Using Image File

A Trojan file for the OS X on the Mac has been found.  Right now, the threat is benign because the backend server where commands are send to and from is down. Still, it does mean that the threat of this and future malware is very real (Macnn).

Essentially, the image file is a real app that will try to install itself but will require admin permission.  It could mean that the user will be prompted to enter a password for their account.

The Macnn does try to point out and sell that the threat is low but I think it's overdoing it.  Threat is a threat no matter what it is supposed to do, damage or not.  This Trojan and others all depend on element of social engineering and lack of smart computing practice.

I did read a post a few weeks ago regarding such threats.  Best line of defense is to think before you click.  Second, for general day-to-day use, your account does not need to be an admin level account.  Without it, such malware would not no where to install itself on your Mac.

Want To Get Rid of A Murderous Dictator and His Chemical Using Army? There's An App For That

This pic says it all.  Not sure what iPad app the guy is using to fire the mortar.  Maybe it's Angry Birds.  More speculation here at MacDailyNews.

Mobile: Google's Gutsy Move To Tether Google Glass To Android, Paving Way for Future of Wearable Device Data Access

Source:  Phandroid.

As you know by now, Google Glass is a very neat idea but also controversial because of the privacy nature of the device.  However, unlike what stuff like Facebook is doing, Google is actually advancing technology and a potentially useful device in society.  But this isn't about privacy here now.  It's about the technology itself.

See, Glass need a data plan to work.  Carriers are more than happy to accommodate user's hunger for data. As long as you pay a separate plan for it.  Stupid right?  Because they won't just let you tether it off your mobile devices, your Android smartphone.

Until now.  Google made a gutsy move by releasing an app that would allow Glass to tether to the smartphones running Android.  In the latest Glass update, you can pair Glass to the dedicated app on your device and have it pull information that way.

Neat.  It's a tether to an app so carriers cannot object, right?

We'll see.  In the future, devices like watches and other wearable gears will essentially work the same way.  I'm glad that Google, someone huge that carriers cannot ignore or make go away, is doing this.  By going after the carriers now even before they're ready, say making users add an extra $10 or $20 just to tether their weable devices, maybe Google can do enough so that users are trained with the idea that they can just tether outer devices to their phones without paying extra for it.

It'll be interesting to see how this play out.  As soon as Apple releases its own wearable devices, even iOS and Mac users will benefit from this move.

Each Year, I Say This Year's iPhone Is The Perfect One But I Always End Up Upgrading The Follow Year

There is something about Apple's method of upgrading its iOS devices that has made me upgrade each and every single year since the original iPhone except for the 3GS.  What is it about each year's upgrade that compelled me to do this?  And it's not just me.  Others I know as well.

Granted that for those locked into contracts, I get that your upgrade cycle might be different.  Of course, you can still upgrade like I do by buying the iPhone outright from Apple or your carrier, paying for the full price.  I do this by convincing myself that I'm worth it.  And for the most part, I'm frugal and I hardly splurge.  On top of that, my $30 T-Mobile plan likely has your $70+ plan beaten.

Still, once the iPhone 4 came out, I have said to myself, "5 megapixel camera.  That's good enough.  And it's retina display.  How much better can it be for the next one?  What? 4S?"

I think it over and this was even before the 4S is close to being out.  I loved my iPhone 4.

Then the 4S.  Crap. Siri.  8 Megapixel but better lens too.  Siri.  Wow.  The promise of a digital assistant with artificial intelligence.  I gotta get that.  Plus, like my mom said about the iPhone 4S, "it's Steve Jobs' last iPhone".

Then the iPhone 5.  Bigger screen.  Even better camera without upping the pixel count.  This is too much of a draw.  The disappointing thing was that the battery life did not improve.  Oh well, still, lighter, runs all of the latest and greatest of iOS 6.  GPS turn-by-turn was awesome even though Apple Maps was doing more damages to buildings than giant Japanese monsters ever dreamed of.  Plus, I had a couple of friends who I was trying to convince to get into Apple's ecosystem.  And the more I told them about the virtues of Apple's ecosystem and pointed out the bad things about it, I was convinced of upgrading by my own arguments.  So, I upgraded it.

Now, the iPhone 5s.  Boy.  Not a whole lot to write home about right now if you only follow the tech and financial blogs.  But if you truly were spend a bit of time going over the iPhone 5s introduction, you'd realize that the iPhone 5s may actually be Apple's most "forward looking" device and not a Steve Jobs-less reality distortion field at work.

A newer innovative camera system to make it one of the best on the market - even better than some point-and-shoot cameras.  Forget the 64-bit architecture and what it means for the future but its M7 coprocessor is just waiting for the right apps to take advantage of it.  Then there's the ability to take advantage of the newly redeveloped UI in iOS 7.

Now, I'm not all that drawn to the new color schemes with the silver, space gray, and gold.  So, that would not convince me one bit.  Nor is the slight improvement in the battery life.  Yes, we did get an improvement from 8 hours under LTE use in the iPhone 5 to 10 hours in the 5s, over all, I was expecting much more.

Sounds like a draw, right?  I got some of what I want and some stuff that left me wanting in the 5s.  Well, in the grand scheme of things, we are still talking about a whole new mobile experience if you're willing to look at what the future Apple is offering with the 5s.

There is one thing that sort of pushed me over to upgrading to the iPhone 5s:  it's that my iPhone 5 is limited to only 16 GB.  It's not where nearly enough.  I have had to compromise my mobile experience by deleting apps or not installing some apps because I just don't have the space for them.

I'm planning on ordering the 64 GB version come midnight Friday this week.  I think with the new camera, iOS 7, 64-bit chip with the M7 coprocessor, and more storage, I see the beginning of a new dawn of a whole new mobile experience.

As for iPhone 6?  New form factor.  Bigger screen a possibility.  128 GB storage.  iOS 8.  And who knows what new camera or battery experience, I don't know.  I think we may be visiting this upgrade issue again.

Siri Still Needs Work - Does Not Deserve To Be Out Of Beta

Lots of chatter this weekend about No more beta references about Siri on Apple's digital assistant's page. Frankly, I had always assumed that Siri will stay in perpetual beta because of the nature of the service and its on-going learning process.

So with Apple giving the official work, I thought there was only one way to find out.




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