Seriously? So if the carriers had to pay a license fee or Android was proprietary, they'd suddenly release updates for your phone? If you are arguing that Google gives too much flexibility to carriers, that may be the case, but it is *not* because Android is free software.
That's not what I said at all. Carriers and traditional phone companies don't want to release upgrades at all. It's not in their DNA, they're used to selling phones and then releasing a new model which has a slightly modified exterior and now allows 250 contacts instead of 200 and forcing everyone to buy the new model. If anything Google and competition from Apple is forcing them to offer upgrades and they are either half-assing it or they are simply really out of their depth.
What I was talking about was things like Cyanogen mod where you have to spend time figuring out how to root your phone, how to get the mod on and then if things go wrong you're the one doing support.
That chart hides a little too much information and refers to "current version of the OS" which I think is different from still getting updates. You can be running a version of the OS that isn't the current "major version" but still be receiving security and bug fixes.
The dotted line indicates "Getting support upgrades."
Also, this is a chart that talks about version numbers, which are arbitrary. If google were to never release another "major version" they would look amazing on this chart. We'd also need to know what enhancements were in each new major version to make an accurate comparison.
Yeah there's a little bit of "apples and oranges" going on because releases across vendors mean different things and run a different schedule. But the difference is not that great that the comparison is without value.
You should read "Flat Earth News", it offers a wonderful glimpse into the world of reporting and news agencies like Reuters and what passes for fact checking there.
That's true and not only of the "internet mob." Traditional media, with a few exceptions, have also gone this route of going with sensational hot news without fact checking and then burying corrections later. The only difference is that the masses read the internet (or at least the channels through which news reaches them such as Facebook) and that news spreads instantaneously instead of over a couple of days.
He only made the chart for phones that were released up to middle of 2010. I think the phones you mention shipped after. Could be interesting if he updated his chart with more data to see if or how things have evolved since then.
If you say so. I don't follow Android as closely because I don't own an Android phone but the stories I've heard tell a different story. Like Samsung skipping updates (link in dutch, sorry) for the Galaxy S2 in my country (Belgium.) The fact that you getting an upgrade can depend on what country you're in or what carrier you're on at all points to a messed up system IMHO.
Free software is nice but you pay (in time spent) by doing the support yourself. Can be nice if you're so inclined but if I'm going to drop a couple hundred euros on a phone that company better not rely on me doing that.
Sure, it's cheaper to hitch a ride or take the bus than it is to drive the car. It just seems to me there was a time when the US wanted to do more of the driving.
Look at this chart, tiny bit longer doesn't quite cover it. Though of course for some this will be a completely acceptable trade-off it'd be better if most people were on a recent version of the OS just from the security standpoint. We've already seen with Windows XP what having a large group of outdated computers on a public network does and it's not pretty.
But on the whole support by Android devices of new version of the software is atrocious :
"7 of the 18 Android phones never ran a current version of the OS. 12 of 18 only ran a current version of the OS for a matter of weeks or less. 10 of 18 were at least two major versions behind well within their two year contract period. 11 of 18 stopped getting any support updates less than a year after release. 13 of 18 stopped getting any support updates before they even stopped selling the device or very shortly thereafter. 15 of 18 don’t run Gingerbread, which shipped in December 2010. In a few weeks, when Ice Cream Sandwich comes out, every device on here will be another major version behind. At least 16 of 18 will almost certainly never get Ice Cream Sandwich."
Nope. It's just that in the last few decades the brainwashing has been working so well that the powers that be actually managed to convince people that their vote should actually count just like in the fairy stories they've been pushing. Oops.
The rest haven't been sued because they're not black, with rounded edges and a single button with a rectangular screen.
Yes that would be a problem IF the lawsuits were really about having a rounded rec with a button. Unfortunately you've bought into the hyped "LOL rectangle" straw man argument that Slashdot loves so much. Read this article for a more nuanced opinion. In both the Samsung and Motorola cases there is a package of related claims, not a single monolithic vague one like "it looks like a rectangle."
Worth mentioning all those companies also have suitsagainst Apple, or in Amazon's case licensed patents like 1-click to them which are hardly different from Apple's patents. This graphic should be well known by now and shows nobody is exactly blameless in this patent war. (People will argue about defensive vs offensive which is about as useful here as it would be in a nuclear holocaust.)
What I was getting at is that AFAIK, only Samsung has been taken to task over the much ridiculed "rectangle LOL"-patents. All the others were over obscure technical patents which were the proverbial "stick to beat a dog."
So from all the companies Apple could have chosen to establish a precedent, which would actually help their case against Samsung, they just happened to choose the company that is one of their biggest part suppliers ? I don't buy it. Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar: Apple went after Samsung because they were brazenly ripping off the iPhone look.
Are you saying that users don't know the information they need for their work?
I'm not advocating using the exact design the user arrived to with an spreadsheet. I'm advocating using the same input data and not leaving out any important work flow, even if it's simplified.
Yes sometimes users don't know what information they need. There may be information that can be helpful to them that they can't get or is presented in way that is non obvious, that's where design comes in. It's a two way process. A bad design will force the user create his/her own creative workarounds, but a design by the user may be just as bad because they are set in their ways and have a very narrow view of the problem they are trying to solve formulated formed by existing constraints and habits.
"Importantly, it does not appear the daemon has any access or communication with the UI layer, where text entry is done. I am reasonably sure it has no access to typed text, web history, passwords, browsing history, or text messages, and as such is not sending any of this data remotely."
This is supposed to be reassuring? How many people will ever read about this? And how long until it's turned on by default? Or perhaps turned on by a remote message.
On the latest version of iOS, on the welcome screen on first boot it explicitly asks you if you want to turn on the sending of diagnostics and stuff like location services. This was Apple's response to the privacy kerfuffle after the location tracking thing. Yes I am disappointed it's even in there but Apple is doing the right thing here by disabling it by default.
I've found it useful as an example for people who don't understand why we need free/open software. This story simply means that if you use your phone to access anything that is protected by a password (or PIN or whatever), that little hidden bit of software is making a copy of your login, password, account numbers, etc., and sending it off to some site that you know nothing about. Whoever has that information can then get into your account and do as they like with it. I've seen a lot of worried looks, and I know a number of people who have held off on the idea of using their phone to access their bank accounts as a result of this information.
Isn't it possible that this is because Apple and others trained the average user to believe that?
How ? Don't tell me, fluoride in the water ? The frequency the screen flicker puts the brain into a suggestible state ? Subliminal messages hidden in the icons ? A secret base full of "men who look at iPhone users" ? Or maybe, just maybe, Apple managed to create something that does most of what these people want without them having to program it and they recognize a good thing when they see it ? Nah, they must be suckered into it, the gullible saps.
Slashdot Mirror
Seriously? So if the carriers had to pay a license fee or Android was proprietary, they'd suddenly release updates for your phone? If you are arguing that Google gives too much flexibility to carriers, that may be the case, but it is *not* because Android is free software.
That's not what I said at all. Carriers and traditional phone companies don't want to release upgrades at all. It's not in their DNA, they're used to selling phones and then releasing a new model which has a slightly modified exterior and now allows 250 contacts instead of 200 and forcing everyone to buy the new model. If anything Google and competition from Apple is forcing them to offer upgrades and they are either half-assing it or they are simply really out of their depth.
What I was talking about was things like Cyanogen mod where you have to spend time figuring out how to root your phone, how to get the mod on and then if things go wrong you're the one doing support.
That chart hides a little too much information and refers to "current version of the OS" which I think is different from still getting updates. You can be running a version of the OS that isn't the current "major version" but still be receiving security and bug fixes.
The dotted line indicates "Getting support upgrades."
Also, this is a chart that talks about version numbers, which are arbitrary. If google were to never release another "major version" they would look amazing on this chart. We'd also need to know what enhancements were in each new major version to make an accurate comparison.
Yeah there's a little bit of "apples and oranges" going on because releases across vendors mean different things and run a different schedule. But the difference is not that great that the comparison is without value.
You should read "Flat Earth News", it offers a wonderful glimpse into the world of reporting and news agencies like Reuters and what passes for fact checking there.
That's true and not only of the "internet mob." Traditional media, with a few exceptions, have also gone this route of going with sensational hot news without fact checking and then burying corrections later. The only difference is that the masses read the internet (or at least the channels through which news reaches them such as Facebook) and that news spreads instantaneously instead of over a couple of days.
It's a security issue now that these things are basically networked computers that are up and connected 100% of the time.
He only made the chart for phones that were released up to middle of 2010. I think the phones you mention shipped after. Could be interesting if he updated his chart with more data to see if or how things have evolved since then.
If you say so. I don't follow Android as closely because I don't own an Android phone but the stories I've heard tell a different story. Like Samsung skipping updates (link in dutch, sorry) for the Galaxy S2 in my country (Belgium.) The fact that you getting an upgrade can depend on what country you're in or what carrier you're on at all points to a messed up system IMHO.
Free software is nice but you pay (in time spent) by doing the support yourself. Can be nice if you're so inclined but if I'm going to drop a couple hundred euros on a phone that company better not rely on me doing that.
Sure, it's cheaper to hitch a ride or take the bus than it is to drive the car. It just seems to me there was a time when the US wanted to do more of the driving.
Look at this chart, tiny bit longer doesn't quite cover it. Though of course for some this will be a completely acceptable trade-off it'd be better if most people were on a recent version of the OS just from the security standpoint. We've already seen with Windows XP what having a large group of outdated computers on a public network does and it's not pretty.
But on the whole support by Android devices of new version of the software is atrocious :
"7 of the 18 Android phones never ran a current version of the OS.
12 of 18 only ran a current version of the OS for a matter of weeks or less.
10 of 18 were at least two major versions behind well within their two year contract period.
11 of 18 stopped getting any support updates less than a year after release.
13 of 18 stopped getting any support updates before they even stopped selling the device or very shortly thereafter.
15 of 18 don’t run Gingerbread, which shipped in December 2010.
In a few weeks, when Ice Cream Sandwich comes out, every device on here will be another major version behind.
At least 16 of 18 will almost certainly never get Ice Cream Sandwich."
What's with all the cosmetics companies on the list ? How are they involved in any of this ?
Nope. It's just that in the last few decades the brainwashing has been working so well that the powers that be actually managed to convince people that their vote should actually count just like in the fairy stories they've been pushing. Oops.
Because if the Russians can't launch rockets anymore who are the US going to pay to send stuff into space for them ?
"NASA is reportedly paying Russia $1.5 billion over the next five years to transport its astronauts to and from the International Space Station."
The rest haven't been sued because they're not black, with rounded edges and a single button with a rectangular screen.
Yes that would be a problem IF the lawsuits were really about having a rounded rec with a button. Unfortunately you've bought into the hyped "LOL rectangle" straw man argument that Slashdot loves so much. Read this article for a more nuanced opinion. In both the Samsung and Motorola cases there is a package of related claims, not a single monolithic vague one like "it looks like a rectangle."
Worth mentioning all those companies also have suits against Apple, or in Amazon's case licensed patents like 1-click to them which are hardly different from Apple's patents. This graphic should be well known by now and shows nobody is exactly blameless in this patent war. (People will argue about defensive vs offensive which is about as useful here as it would be in a nuclear holocaust.)
What I was getting at is that AFAIK, only Samsung has been taken to task over the much ridiculed "rectangle LOL"-patents. All the others were over obscure technical patents which were the proverbial "stick to beat a dog."
So from all the companies Apple could have chosen to establish a precedent, which would actually help their case against Samsung, they just happened to choose the company that is one of their biggest part suppliers ? I don't buy it. Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar: Apple went after Samsung because they were brazenly ripping off the iPhone look.
If it's so completely outlandish how is it that everybody but Samsung seems to have no problems whatsoever ?
Are you saying that users don't know the information they need for their work?
I'm not advocating using the exact design the user arrived to with an spreadsheet. I'm advocating using the same input data and not leaving out any important work flow, even if it's simplified.
Yes sometimes users don't know what information they need. There may be information that can be helpful to them that they can't get or is presented in way that is non obvious, that's where design comes in. It's a two way process. A bad design will force the user create his/her own creative workarounds, but a design by the user may be just as bad because they are set in their ways and have a very narrow view of the problem they are trying to solve formulated formed by existing constraints and habits.
Winning all the way to the poorhouse :
Motorola Mobility revenue misses, net loss narrows
Samsung phone sales drop 14%, profit drops 30%
HTC Is In Big Trouble: It Just Slashed Revenue Guidance Again
Just like PC vendors did under Windows' dominance.
It appears to be disabled by default so you're probably OK. Follow chpwn's blog and twitter for more info.
Neither does Windows 7 (source.)
seems a bit less intrusive than the one demoed yesterday.
Seems so :
"Importantly, it does not appear the daemon has any access or communication with the UI layer, where text entry is done. I am reasonably sure it has no access to typed text, web history, passwords, browsing history, or text messages, and as such is not sending any of this data remotely."
This is supposed to be reassuring? How many people will ever read about this? And how long until it's turned on by default? Or perhaps turned on by a remote message.
On the latest version of iOS, on the welcome screen on first boot it explicitly asks you if you want to turn on the sending of diagnostics and stuff like location services. This was Apple's response to the privacy kerfuffle after the location tracking thing. Yes I am disappointed it's even in there but Apple is doing the right thing here by disabling it by default.
I've found it useful as an example for people who don't understand why we need free/open software. This story simply means that if you use your phone to access anything that is protected by a password (or PIN or whatever), that little hidden bit of software is making a copy of your login, password, account numbers, etc., and sending it off to some site that you know nothing about. Whoever has that information can then get into your account and do as they like with it. I've seen a lot of worried looks, and I know a number of people who have held off on the idea of using their phone to access their bank accounts as a result of this information.
CERT Advisory CA-2002-24 Trojan Horse OpenSSH Distribution
But over reliance on users' input has its own problems. That's the reason we have designers and analysts in the first place.
Isn't it possible that this is because Apple and others trained the average user to believe that?
How ? Don't tell me, fluoride in the water ? The frequency the screen flicker puts the brain into a suggestible state ? Subliminal messages hidden in the icons ? A secret base full of "men who look at iPhone users" ? Or maybe, just maybe, Apple managed to create something that does most of what these people want without them having to program it and they recognize a good thing when they see it ? Nah, they must be suckered into it, the gullible saps.