racoma.com.phJ. Angelo Racoma on technology, economics, writing, problogging, and getting things done

Cloud-based computing made news when Google released its Chromebooks through Samsung and Acer. While it’s certainly novel to run all your applications from the cloud, you won’t be able to do much work when you’re offline. But Google’s latest features will make Gmail, Google Docs and Calendar users happy, with offline Gmail, Docs and Calendar functionality.

With these, Chrome OS and Chrome browser users can access emails, schedules and documents even without a working connection. The free Chrome plugin works via HTML5 to enable both online and offline functionality. The app actually delivers a similar user experience as with  the tablet/iPad version of Gmail and Docs, so tablet users will find this familiar.

In other news today …

Search Becomes More Social With +1 Integration

Google has earlier included +1 support in Search. But the big change of late is that the search giant will actually start using +1 data in its ranking algorithm. This gives more value to Google+ shares and website +1 buttons.

Amazon is Getting Ready to Release Tablets

Amazon reportedly has Android-powered tablets in the works. The retail giant will start shipping 7-inch tablets this October, primarily meant as higher-end ebook readers. Meanwhile, OEMs in China will start production of the 10.1-inch Amazon Android tablet starting first quarter of 2012.

Microsoft Windows Will Get Ribbons

MS Office users may have balked at the Ribbon interface introduced in Office 2007 onwards. But Microsoft is implementing the Ribbon in Windows Explorer when Windows 8 is released. This is in the aim of providing a better interface for both mouse- and touch-based computing.

Create PDFs From Your iPhone

Adobe has released a 10 dollar app that lets users create PDF files straight from mobile phones. No need for stellar processing power, since all the conversion is done in the cloud.

Google Warns of Security Breach

Are you paranoid about your online identity and security? Watch out for man-in-the-middle attacks, Google warns. A Dutch SSL certificate issuer has recently been breached, and attackers might pretend to be Gmail or any other Google app.

Are Patents Good or Bad?

This is a pressing question in today’s tech business environment rife with lawsuits. Independent BlackBerry developers are getting lawsuits for inclusion of in-app payment systems in their software. Google and Apple are helping out their respective third-party developers. Will RIM stand up for its developers, too? And the bigger question is this — are patents good or bad? Do they encourage or stifle innovation?

Check out more of my recent articles at CMS Wire and TFTS.

Microsoft is willing to give away free Developer Tools to ensure that their Windows 7 Mobile gets as much apps as possible. This, and many more, was announced today at MIX 11.

So what can the developers actually do with these tools? What can they access?

• Application multitasking for background processing, audio and file transfer, and fast application switching
• Deeper phone integration so apps can, for example, take better advantage of the versatility of Live Tiles
• Access to the camera and Motion Sensor library so developers can build apps that incorporate device hardware and build augmented reality experiences

The tools will be available in May 2011.

[Article via: Press Release | Image via: Wikimedia Commons (CC by-SA 3.0)]

12.5-inch screens seem to be popular in the business-oriented notebook market. Lenovo and LG first came out with their 12.5-inch noteboks. Now, Samsung joins the fray with the Series 2, 4 and 6.

I’ve always admired Sony Ericsson mobile phones for their design. Sony is, after all, known for its excellent styling and features. The Sony Ericsson Xperia X8 smartphone subscribes to this ideal, with more of a Zen type styling that Sony Ericsson’s newer smartphones are known for.

The X8 is actually my first try at an Android phone (coming from an iPhone and a Symbian S60 phone) and I must admit there was a bit of adjustment, although the learning curve is not that steep. Sony Ericsson loaned me a review unit sometime back, and I spent a few weeks (months, actually) playing around with the phone. Android is highly customizable, although it will take a bit of getting used to if you’ve been using other smartphones previously.

What’s in the box

The Sony Ericsson X8 is a midrange mobile phone that runs on the now-popular Android operating system. It sports a scratch-resistant 3-inch capacitive touchscreen at 320×480 resolution. The phone is powered by a 600 MHz ARM processor, and has 128 MB internal storage, 168 MB RAM, and is bundled with a 2 GB microSD card. The box also comes with a user guide.

LG Optimus Pad 3D, which is also referred to as G-slate, is to be launched as the first 3D tablet. This directly competes with the so-called iPad killer Samsung Galaxy Tab and the first Android tablet Motorola Xoom.

It boasts a range of features namely:

• Honeycomb OS
• 8.9 inches capacitive touchscreen
• dual core NVIDIA Tegra 2 chipset (1GHz)
• 3D (but does not require the use of any 3D glasses)
• 32Gb internal memory
• front facing cam
• 5 megapixel rear cam with 2 led flashes
• 6400 mah battery
• up to 64Gb expandable memory via SD card slot

LG Optimum Pad is expected to be lauched around March 2011. The introductory price is believed to be around 499 Euros.

[via Techy Kid]