The right technology can boost your business’s productivity and ultimately increase your bottom line. However, some software and other tools can be expensive, and it can be tough to determine which tech is worth purchasing. Here, we highlight some of the options you shouldn’t wait to add to your arsenal.

Scale-up sales with e-commerce

Take your business website to the next level by allowing customers to purchase your goods or services through your site. Many e-commerce tools, resources, and wikis are available that will help you learn all about advertising, brand equity, payment processing, and resource management. By tapping into these resources, you can build an e-commerce site that will set you apart from all of your competitors.

Add value with a mobile app

Having a great website is imperative for businesses, large and small. However to truly serve your clients as best you can, you should invest in a mobile app. In fact, according to eMarketer, the average adult in America spends over three hours a day on their phone. Why not make the most of those three hours? A strong mobile presence can make the difference between treading water and thriving thrive.

A mobile app can help boost online sales, build brand recognition, and increase customer engagement. Unless you are well-versed in app development, outsource to a reputable company like Fusion Informatics to create a high-quality, custom app that meets all your business needs.

Stick to proper practices with accounting software

Cash flow problems are one of the biggest root causes of failed small businesses. Keep on top of your business finances by utilizing appropriate accounting software. Whether you use QuickBooks, Zoho Books, or another selection, these programs can help you manage your payables and receivables, as well as taxes, inventory, and more.

As your small business increases in size and revenue, these software solutions can seamlessly scale with your growing business needs. Additionally, you can typically opt to keep your records online, offline, or a combination of both.

Use collaboration tools for flexibility

Low-cost tools can allow for easier collaboration among management, employees, and contractors. ClickUp notes online tools like Asana, Basecamp, Slack, and several others can boost your company’s productivity and allow team members, service providers, customers, and business partners to share files, data, and projects, wherever they may be geographically located.

Also, if you haven’t already done so, look into cloud computing services, including Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud. Switching to cloud computing can reduce installation, maintenance, and support costs for small businesses in the long run. Ask for a free trial period for one or more of these companies to see if your business could utilize and benefit from such a service.

Protect yourself and your customers with cybersecurity

According to Federal Computer Week, the cost of cyber crimes reached $2.7 billion in 2018. Even if you can’t yet afford an in-house IT team, you can’t ignore cybersecurity. Use antivirus software on all your business computers, and keep it updated. Secure your business networks using a firewall, and train all your employees on creating strong passwords, avoiding suspicious downloads, and protecting customer information.

As a precaution, back up your data routinely and use secure payment processors. To ensure you’re using best practices, the Federal Communications Commission offers a tool to help your business customize a cybersecurity strategy based on your particular needs.

It’s often tempting to purchase all the latest and greatest in technology. However, small businesses typically need to watch every penny. You can wait on buying many types of tech, but for others, it makes sense to buy now to ensure your business is most efficient and profitable.

The post Technology & Software That are Worth Adding to Your Business Arsenal appeared first on AI, ML and IoT application development company | Fusion Informatics.

What is This Product Discovery Workshop All About?

Discovery workshops are a collaboration among teams to help gather information to start a project. A discovery workshop begins with intelligent decisions on your business. Whether it is an organization or a company that you approach a project, having your own workshop could provide you with additional insight and emphasis on your project goals.

The most powerful way to manage every project is through a discovery workshop. It is the initial interaction between the customer and the project team, in which both parties develop common knowledge and develop strategies to solve a particular problem. A research workshop for the App Development Cycle is part of the planning phase.

Not only does it align the project team, stakeholders, and customers, but it also allows us to explore the scope of an idea mutually and direct this project in the right direction.

A discovery workshop will help to anticipate critical entrepreneurial challenges during the development stage. The development company draws up a roadmap outlining how the ultimate goals are met.

Why discovery workshop is useful and Makes the Projects Successful?

In transforming an idea into a reality, a Successful Project Discovery Workshop has an instrumental role. Everything is prepared, organized, and structured at the very outset to show tangible results.

To corporations, exploration workshops are invaluable. Whether you are a startup on the stage of ideas or well established and are planning a new project, discovery workshops ensure that all participants ask the correct questions.

The knowledge of a particular area can be conveniently incorporated. Discovery workshops focus on the entire project and address issues relating to business goals, user experience, creativity, and technique.

• The Team Around The Office Table Works Together

Discovery workshops are a kind of team-to-team collaboration. The most critical step for us is the exploration of our projects.

• Reduce The Risk Of Designing The Wrong Thing

If we revisit the problem and question the reasoning behind our decisions, it will help us build a more robust and less buggy.

• Include All Specialty Representatives

To order to resolve issues, creators, UX experts, designers, developers, and QA teams come together in a workshop. Everyone has an ability to consider from different angles and as a result, everybody is more dedicated to the company and brand.

• Eliminate (or minimize) surprises

Discovery workshops ensure that everyone is on the same page about what needs to be done and why. When the project starts, this means fewer misunderstandings.

• Growing Up As A-Team

When we do this work together, we all benefit from learning more about the positions of each other, and we can appreciate the skills that we each bring to the table.

Will You Save Time And Money By Skipping Project Discovery?

The Discovery of the project is a great opportunity for not only the development team to understand what should be delivered, but also why it should be delivered. Just one process helps to align company expectations and business plans with client needs and wants a software development team’s knowledge.

Although some may believe they have no time, budget, or need to explore a project, the example mentioned above illustrates how much a project has to lose if it overlooks this phase.

You may think you save money by jumping right into production but without proper knowledge and many choices will turn out to be expensive mistakes that need to be fixed anyway when you base decisions on the assumptions.

The same occurs when the time-saving process of the discovery is overlooked. There will be a lot of decisions to make that will have a huge impact on the project. We can become the face of the company “to be or not be” if they are made quickly without planning.

What Are The Results Of The Discovery Workshops You Should Expect?

Brand development workshops focus on different aspects of project planning, but guide the process in a way that ultimately gives you tangible results.

At the very least, going through the workshops will leave you:

• A well-defined set of business objectives
• Tech guidelines for stacking and a description of software architecture
• Evaluation of the implementation costs of your product
• Detailed overview and viewpoint of your main target audience
• Your product’s initial range and strategic plan, complete with an MVP concept (the Minimum Viable Product is a product version with just enough functionality to gather validated learning)

At exploration sessions, design principles of the final product may also be drafted. You can then use these ideas in the next phase of project development to construct a clickable prototype of your product.

What Does A Discovery Workshop Involve?             

We always start a project with collaboration on experimentation between our team and the customers. Despite the fact that each company is different, and some companies know how to run project discovery workshops in the right direction withwell-practiced approach to running project discovery workshops ensures a solid start for projects.

• Face-to-Face Interaction   

Once a project starts, various stakeholders can sometimes be hard to get hold of when needed. Asking and answering questions face-to-face puts us at a much better starting point.

One can encourage members of the client team to initially appear for half a day in the office to work face-to-face. Since some have customers around the world, meeting in person is not always the most practical solution–so one can also deliver video calling experimentation workshops.

• Incorporating Ground Rules

Begin to build a strong relationship with clients during this workshop discovery. It is integral to the success of each project to learn to work with each other and to establish a good attitude. One should value being transparent, honest, and respectful of the thoughts and ideas of everyone–understanding that everyone is on the same team is crucial.

• Time For Collaboration

Discovery workshops are often used to define the requirements of the project. While that should be the ultimate goal, we should ensure that we first develop an understanding of the background of the project. What are the goals of the client? What do they try to accomplish and why?

They then concentrate on addressing the plan as a whole, identifying the potential pitfalls and what the alternatives might be. We provide an understanding of what is considered a successful outcome by the client. Being able to engage in this dialog with stakeholders and understanding the key performance indicators they are targeting helps us to have more scope and accurate estimates.

• Packaging And Information Sharing

After a workshop on exploration, we always have to work through a beautifully messy pile of data. The next step is to condense all activities of the workshop into a convenient white label document to which the client can refer. It details the core goals and characteristics that we can help them achieve. We also set deadlines and milestones based on the workshop data collected.

And that’s all! In your project planning customer or creator, discovery workshops are a useful extra step. They can help you build bonds with your collaborators and enhance understanding. They are a bit of initial effort that can make a project flow smoother.

How Long Does The Project Discovery Workshop Last?

Each digital product has a unique set of specifications and techniques. For each company, a discovery workshop is designed to deliver maximum value and generate requirements-based solutions.

Many plans are so well-scoped that with relevant information there is little space to fill in the gaps. While others come with a bare-bones concept, it takes a lot to refine the idea and determine the project’s reach.

Typically, these intense sessions last from 2 to 4 days depending on the scope of the project, and have a detailed plan to meet defined milestones and targets by the end.

Who All Are Involved in This Discovery Workshop?

If you are curious about who will be involved in this workshop, it usually depends on the project and context. You are assigned a cross-functional team that includes a Design Strategist, a Product Manager, a Software Developer, a Business Analyst (BA), and a cross-functional team that represents everyone. They ask probing questions to get the information you need and give you invaluable insights to guide the project in the right direction.

In a discovery workshop, to identify fresh perspectives, we cover every element, every topic, and look beyond the seemingly mundane. There is always a decision-maker in the room and a usual practice is an expert opinion on topics of utmost importance.

Every individual in the lab brings value to the table and you are expected to see successful long-term outcomes with the combined expertise.

Let’s Discover Together

Whether you are pursuing a great idea or you already have an expanding business than starting a project with a workshop on exploration guarantees a smooth ride. Discovery workshop is an art and this provides not only a set of results but also improves conversion chances. 

We can work together to explore your options and we are open to partnerships and we are open to new projects. Share it with our experts at sales@fusioninformatics.com if you have an idea you would like to talk about!

The post Secret behind Project Discovery Workshop Making Projects Successful appeared first on AI, ML and IoT application development company | Fusion Informatics.

In the new Android handsets accounted for 28 per cent of the market, beating Apple’s 21 per cent but still below market leader Research in Motion (RIM), which holds 36 per cent. NPD attributes the increase to the number of vendors using the operating system, marketing campaigns and new investment in the sector.

“Recent previews of BlackBerry 6, the recently announced acquisition of Palm by HP, and the pending release of Windows Phone 7 demonstrates the industry’s willingness to make investments to address consumer demand for smartphones and other mobile devices,” said Ross Rubin, executive director of industry analysis for NPD.

“Carriers continue to offer attractive pricing for devices, but will need to present other data-plan options to attract more customers in the future.”

Of the major carriers AT&T had the largest slice of the smartphone market, with almost a third of its customers using advanced handsets. Verizon’s share stands at 30 per cent, with T-Mobile and Sprint at 17 and 15 per cent respectively.

Android may have problems in the future however. Apple is widely expected to unveil a new generation of iPhone next month and, if the leaks are accurate, it could well prove to be a huge hit.

Resource:
http://www.v3.co.uk/v3/news/2262773/android-handsets-outsell-iphone

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Silverlight 4 provides media and enterprise application and media capabilities, out-of-browser flexibility and tools support via Visual Studio and Expression Blend with Sketchflow to enable robust application development and rich interactive experiences, Microsoft said. At Microsoft’s MIX 2010 conference in March, Scott Guthrie, corporate vice president of Microsoft’s .NET Developer Platform, said Silverlight adoption has continued at a rapid pace with installations approaching 60 percent of all Internet devices worldwide — an increase of nearly 15 percentage points in just four months. Enterprise customers such as Major League Soccer, BBC, eBay Inc., Netflix Inc., NBCOlympics.com and CT Corp., a Wolters Kluwer business, are using Silverlight. Also, customers such as Associated Press and eBay, and partners such as 352 Media and Planview have announced their commitment to Silverlight 4.

Indeed, in just five months, Microsoft has gone from beta to the full release of Silverlight 4, with several milestones along the way, including: The release of Silverlight 4 beta at the Professional Developers Conference in November 2009 which included enhancements for enterprise application developers; as well as the release of Silverlight, Visual Studio and XNA Framework developer toolkits for Windows Phone 7 at MIX. Also at MIX, Microsoft released a release candidate of Silverlight 4.

And at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) show earlier in April, Microsoft announced that is working with Intel and Broadcom to deliver the Silverlight platform to set-top boxes, connected TVs, Blu-ray players and other devices . At NAB Microsoft also launched Internet Information Services (IIS) Media Services 4 and the delivery of the Silverlight Media Framework 2.0.

Resource:
http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Application-Development/Microsoft-Ships-Silverlight-4-546735/

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One of the features missing from the iPhone and related devices has been a front-facing camera to allow video calls or video chat.

While video calling is not as popular as some telcos might like, video chat and video conferencing is used quite widely. The difference largely comes down to cost: video calling is a premium service (eg, Telstra charges 55c per 30 seconds compared with 37c for voice), while video chat comes out of the user’s Internet quota for the month.

9to5mac has noted the presence of various resources in the iPhone SDK 4.0 that signal the addition of video chat or conferencing.

In particular, the Conference framework includes a number of strings such as “Creating video conference call” and “Finalizing video conference call”.

Video chat/conferencing is pretty pointless on a handheld device that lacks a front-facing camera, so it is a reasonable assumption that this year’s iPhone and iPod touch – plus the next revision of the iPad – will have front-facing cameras.

9to5mac speculates that video chat could be used as part of Game Center, Apple’s forthcoming social gaming network.

There’s also the question of when the relevant APIs will be opened to third party developers. It is quite possible that they will be initially available only to Apple software such as iChat.

Resource:
http://www.itwire.com/your-it-news/mobility/38234-iphone-sdk-40-suggests-new-cameras-for-iphone-ipod-touch-ipad

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Thursday, the company added more missing pieces when it introduced the fourth generation of the iPhone operating system at its headquarters in Cupertino, Calif. After a wait of almost three years, we finally get multitasking–though not for everyone–and other sorely needed features like home screen folders and a unified e-mail in-box. The update is available for developers now with the general release for the iPhone and iPod Touch coming this summer and the iPad in the fall.

It doesn’t deliver quite the changes that we got from the iPhone 3.0 release last year (at least for now), but rest assured that OS 4.0 is a major update that checks off more boxes from our standing iPhone wish list. Though OS 4.0 is set to bring 100 new features, CEO Steve Jobs and Scott Forstall, senior vice president of iPhone software, focused on the seven biggest changes, or “tent poles,” during the course of Thursday’s event.

Multitasking

In our review of the iPhone 3GS, multitasking led our list of common cell phone features that were lacking. Granted, that list was shorter than it had been with previous iPhone versions, but multitasking remained a major omission in light of Android and the Palm Web OS.

Apple, however, has a special talent for making us forget such things by packaging an existing feature in a flashy new way. As Jobs said, Apple isn’t about being first, but rather about “being the best.” We’ll have to get our hands on the update before we fully agree, but Apple appears to have hit the mark. During the demo, Jobs showed how you’ll be able to tap the Home button twice to get a pop-up menu of running apps at the bottom of the display. As you switch back and forth, you’ll return to the exact point you left, even if you’re in the middle of a game. There’s no task manager of any kind and Jobs dismissed competitor devices that have one. As he put it, “If you see a task manager, they blew it.”

Though the pop-up menu only shows four apps at a time (you may be able to swipe through a longer list), you’ll be able to run at least 12 apps simultaneously. Jobs did not say if that number is a hard limit, but we’ll confirm that one exists when we get to play with the OS ourselves. Forstall insisted that multitasking would not affect performance because Apple distilled background processes into seven API services. They include audio from apps like Pandora Radio (yay!), VoIP (for Skype calls), push notifications, and task completion. Multitasking also will support local notifications and related security setting enhancements.

There is bad news with multitasking, though. The feature is compatible only with the iPhone 3GS and the third generation of the iPod Touch. Owners of other iPhone and iPod Touch models still get other OS 4.0 benefits, but you’ll need to upgrade if you want the full package. Before you run to the store, however, keep in mind that OS 4.0 probably won’t appear until after the Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference in June. At that event–we’re still waiting for firm dates–we should get new hardware, so make your upgrade decision then.

iPhone OS 4.0 features

Folders

Are you sick of scrolling through seven home screen pages to find your app? We certainly are, which is why we welcome the option for home screen folders. After a long press on the home screen (so the icons “jiggle”), you can take an app and drop it on top of another to create a folder. To see the contents of a folder or change the default name, just tap it for an expanded view. You can add as many folders as you like, but we’re unsure if there’s a limit to how many apps you can store in a single folder.

The process appears to be easy, though we wouldn’t say it offers a huge change from the equivalent steps on Android. It’s interesting, though, that with multitasking and the home screen folders, Apple is slowly chipping away at the advantages that Android currently holds. We love a good fight so we can’t wait to see how this develops.

E-mail

Though e-mail has always worked well on the iPhone, the experience has been a little disjointed with its various in-boxes and limited options for message sorting. Fortunately, the OS 4.0 update fixes some of those flaws. Not only will you get a unified e-mail in-box, but also the ability to add multiple Exchange accounts, organize e-mails by thread, quickly switch between accounts, and open attachments with a preferred app. We’re most excited about the unified in-box–sometimes it’s the little things–but we certainly wouldn’t kick the other features out of bed.

iBooks

iPhone owners will be able to get iBooks, the Apple’s e-book reader, on their devices. They’ll also be able to access Apple’s iBookstore to purchase new content. And if you have an iPhone and an iPad, you can read your book on both devices (with just one purchase) and sync your current page.

Enterprise

Though Forstall said 80 percent of Fortune 500 companies are using the iPhone, the device still doesn’t have quite the reach of the BlackBerry in IT departments. Yet, Apple continues to pursue that market with new features like enhanced data protection, mobile device management, wireless app distribution (nice), and multiple exchange accounts. Also new is support for Exchange 2010 and SSL VPN from Juniper and Cisco.

Game Center

Coming “later this year,” so perhaps not at the same time as the general OS 4.0 release, is Game Center. It will bring features like a social gaming network, the ability to invite friends to games, leaderboards, achievements, and the opportunity for “matchmaking” (setting up two people to play). We didn’t get an extensive demo of Game Center so Apple may still be tinkering with it.

iAds

Though Jobs and Forstall spent a lot of time on this feature, we’re not so enamored. Apple knows that iPhone users spend a lot of time in apps and it has recognized the revenue opportunities. iAds appears to be all about making you “want” to click on an ad by offering multimedia and interactive content. Jobs described it as combining “interaction” and “emotion” like we get in TV commercials. For example, if you have an ad about “Toy Story 3,” you’ll be able to see a preview and search local theaters for showtimes.

Though iAds will deliver new functionality to users, developers clearly are the primary target audience. Jobs even said that Apple wants to help developers make money by offering them a 60 percent share of any revenue. Yes, we understand that free apps aren’t really free, but the prospect of more ads cluttering our phone isn’t exciting. And you can be sure iAds will be available beyond the iPhone 3GS.

Other changes

Jobs and Forstall didn’t detail the 93 other new features of iPhone OS 4.0, but we did get a brief glimpse of other additions at the start of the presentation. Here are a few to ponder.

• Spell check
• Larger fonts for e-mail, texts, and alerts
• Persistent Wi-Fi
• Tap to focus video
• Customizable wallpapers for the home screen
• Search text messages
• Choose image size in mail messages
• Recent Web searches
• Create playlists
• 5x digital zoom in camera
• Bluetooth keyboards
• Gifting of apps
• iPod out
• Birthday calendar
• Wake on wireless
• File and delete mail search results
• Web search suggestions
• Rotate photos

What iPhone OS 4 means for the iPad

Version 4.0 of Apple’s iPhone OS is going to bring many welcome improvements to the iPad, including multitasking, app folders, and more capabilities for app developers to tinker with. Unfortunately, though iPhone 3GS and third-gen iPod Touch users can expect to run the new OS this summer, iPad owners will need to keep patient until fall.

On the upside, there are a few OS 4.0 capabilities included on the iPad currently that iPhone users will have to wait until summer to play with. Features such as iTunes playlist creation, home screen wallpaper, and iBooks will have iPhone users giving the iPad envious looks until their upgrade is available. Also, the iPad already offers apps that all can maintain your place after exiting the app. These include: Numbers, Keynote, Pages, and iBooks.

Another silver lining iPad owners can hold on to is the fact that OS 4.0 should come as a free upgrade. The iPad’s OS 3.2 documentation states that OS upgrades will be provided to users free of charge up to and including OS 4.0.

The collective groan from iPad users is mostly over having to wait for OS 4.0’s multitasking capability. Given the iPad’s aptitude for Web and e-mail browsing, it’s a shame that users can’t yet use these features simultaneously–a fact that Netbook proponents are quick to point out.

It might be easier to muster some patience if we only understood why Apple chose to stagger the roll-out to the iPad. No reason was cited at the OS 4.0 unveiling event. Given that Apple releases a new crop of iPods every fall like clockwork, it’s possible that the iPad update is being deliberately delayed to dovetail with an iPod announcement and Apple’s rumored cloud music service. It’s also possible, given the larger screen of the iPad, that porting over iPhone OS 4 simply requires more time.

Resource:
http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-19512_7-20001998-233.html

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Microsoft, which launched the Silverlight 4 Release Candidate at its MIX10 event last month, is positioning Silverlight 4 as a tool for developing line of business applications as well as a way to move the classic Windows Forms and ASP.Net/Ajax into a more modern user experience. Silverlight 4’s hooks to SharePoint 2010, Office, and Internet Information Services (IIS) also reflect this business focus.

Scott Guthrie, corporate vice president of Microsoft’s .Net Developer Platform, will deliver the news in a keynote at the DevConnections conference in Las Vegas. It’s been a busy couple of months for Guthrie, who presided over last month’s launch of the Windows Phone 7 development platform, which is powered by Silverlight.

Microsoft’s choice of Silverlight — the full Silverlight programming model, not a mobile version — as the platform for native Windows Phone 7 application development has sent a charge through the software giant’s army of developers. Windows Mobile didn’t provide much incentive to this group, but Silverlight — which is based on .NET — is right up their alley.

Microsoft is now offering the Windows Phone 7 development toolkit as a free download, a package that includes Silverlight, Expression Blend for Windows Phone and a preview of Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Express.

Microsoft is also planning to launch Visual Studio 2010 on April 12, a release that includes technology that helps programmers bridge the .Net and Java worlds, as well as Windows Azure templates for moving code between cloud and on-premise applications.

Resource:
http://www.crn.com/software/224202066

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The IdeaPad S 10-3t from Lenovo is one of the cheapest tablets ever launched in India. Lenovo netbook is available at a price of Rs. 30, 740 in India; it seems that the company is all set to make it tough for its other competitors such as, HP Slate and Notion Ink’s Adam.

Lenovo netbook IdeaPad S10-3t comes with a 10.1 inch screen that can be swirled by 180 degrees to form a tablet. The LED based 16:9 display is claimed to be built with its NaturalTouch fingertip touch technology, versus pressure touch technology. The device sports a stylish look on its back having a dual color pattern.

The Lenovo netbook keyboard is stylish and one-piece touchpad makes it a portable and reliable PC for those who look for latest trends in gadgets. The steel hinge of the screen also makes it durable and sturdy.

Another amazing feature of Lenovo netbook IdeaPad S10-3t is its 8 cell battery that has extremely good life. It gives 7 hours of ‘balanced’ mode and 9 hours of ‘super energy saver’ mode with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi on. Hence, its difficult to win an argument with a battery life like that.

Other specifications of Lenovo netbook IdeaPad S10-3t include a DirectSharing that allows for easy synchronization of files with another laptop without internet connectivity. The instant-on OS, the Quick-Start 2.0 is installed with other software like Maplife 1 mapping software, Active Protection System to protect HDD from bumps and shocks and a VeriFace, the face recognition software.

Lenovo netbook IdeaPad S10-3t is powered by Intel Atom N450 Processor and 250 GB hard drive to offer rich audio experience Dolby headphone audio and stereo speakers.

Lenovo IdeaPad S10-3t will be available across all Lenovo Exclusive Stores. It will be available in select Lenovo Multibrand Stores. The company also plans to extend the distribution to Large Format Retail Stores and other regional distributors.

Resource:
http://infocera.com/Lenovo_IdeaPad_S10-3t_in_India_at_price_Rs._30,740,_a_touch_tablet_netbook_8324.htm

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Fanbois’ bible Appleinsider reports that people with a “proven track record” in divining Steve Jobs’ thoughts have said that the cappuccino firm has a “full-on solution” to one of the most widely cited criticisms of the Iphone, its lack of multitasking OS support.

Actually the Iphone OS does support multitasking, however Jobs has, in his egomanical zeal to assert control over all he surveys, disabled it for all but the core Apple applications. Apple apologists counter this with flimsy arguments revolving around either their own limitations or those of the hardware. The fact is that Apple intentionally crippled the underlying Iphone OS, which is based on the capable – and multitasking – OS X.

There was perhaps a pragmatic case to be put forward that, on a device such as a smartphone, the need for multitasking is diminished because the screen real-estate naturally limits the display of applications. That didn’t fully convince us, but it served as a convenient excuse, perhaps. However today is the day that Apple will start taking orders for its latest toy for the well-heeled, the Ipad. That device will feature a screen that should be physically able to display more than one application at a time, and it will run the Iphone OS.

Surprisingly for Apple, a company that realises that a portion of its users are technologically not to mention logically inert, the latest Iphone SDK has caused some head scratching. First, the release brought in support of two new gestures, including a three finger salute and a single long finger press. The second is the removal of references to video capabilities in Ichat, which had given rise to the notion that a camera might be included on the Ipad.

It stands to reason that, if these references are removed from the SDK, then either Apple doesn’t want to allow developers access to it or, more likely, wants to use it as a ‘killer feature’ for later revisions.

Apple has been unable to capitalise on the falling or plateaued marketshares of its traditional rivals, and it has simply failed to evolve the Iphone OS, which was nothing short of revolutionary in 2007. Aside from a content delivery mechanism, copy and paste functionality is just about the only ‘major’ software feature that has been added in almost three years. Although coming late to the party, Google’s Android has picked up the baton of innovation simply by allowing developers to do what they want with the system.

Those who desperately want basic operating system features from their Apple devices should only have to wait a little while, as the Iphone Dev team is usually not far behind Apple with their releases. In the meantime, we’ll let Jobs’ Mob bask in some glory for finally providing functionality that it intentionally and somewhat inexplicably took away right from the start.

Resource:
http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/1596229/apple-iphone-basic-functionality

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Apple has neither confirmed nor denied that a next-generation iPhone OS is impending at all, but that hasn’t stopped the speculation. Apple seems to be a slave to routine, and past development and release cycles suggest that we can expect a new iPhone OS this summer.

Multitasking, or the lack thereof, has been one of the most prevalent complaints about the iPhone as a serious business smartphone–although I am not sure it is iPhone users who are doing the complaining. The lack of iPhone multitasking was a prime target of Verizon’s “Droid Does” marketing campaign for the Android-based Motorola Droid.

The reality, though, is that the iPhone OS is already capable of multitasking–technically speaking. Certain apps and functions already multitask. You can switch to email or calendar while a voice call is still connected in the background. You can listen to music from the iPod function while continuing to use other apps on the iPhone. The multitasking is there, Apple has just restricted which apps actually have access to it.

To be honest, the iPhone screen only has enough real estate to display one app at a time, so multitasking is irrelevant in most cases. What is more important than literally leaving other apps open in the background, is building apps that are capable of retaining their state even when they’re not in the foreground.

In other words, I don’t need the app to run simultaneously, but as I switch from app to app I would like for the app to remember where I was so I don’t have to start over each time. Since I can only see one app at a time anyway, this sort of app memory basically achieves the same goal as true multitasking. This solution is the responsibility of the app developers rather than Apple itself, and many apps already take this approach.

True multitasking introduces some additional issues that Apple, or iPhone users will have to contend with.

1. Battery Life. Battery life is often cited by Apple as one of the reasons multitasking hasn’t been allowed thus far. The more apps that are running at the same time, the faster the battery power will be consumed.
2. Performance. Multitasking is still limited by the processing power and memory available to the system. Opening two or three applications on a Windows PC may work fine, but if you open ten applications you will probably grind your system to a virtual halt. Running multiple applications simultaneously will bog the iPhone down and could lead to frustrating performance.
3. Management. As I stated above, you can only really see one app at a time on the iPhone. With multitasking, you might have four or five apps running in the background–eating up battery life and impacting performance–and you may forget about them. The next generation iPhone OS needs to include some sort of interface or function that shows which apps are active so you can manage them properly.
4. Security. The iPhone OS closes the current app when you switch back to the main screen or accept an incoming call. This security model ensures that there are no apps running in the background and ensures that malicious apps can’t be used to compromise the iPhone, steal data, or spread malware. As has been seen with jailbroken iPhones, enabling multitasking opens the platform to potential malware attacks.

While these are concerns, it is hard to ignore the fact that all competing smartphone platforms already include multitasking and that many focus on that capability as a competitive differentiator when comparing against the iPhone.

I am not suggesting that Apple’s current pseudo-multitasking model is perfect, but I am pointing out that true multitasking is not without its issues, and that there are other potential solutions for a device like the iPhone which achieve the same results–or close enough at least–without introducing the concerns that come with multitasking.

Multitasking–true multitasking–is, in fact absent from the current iPhone OS. But, it seems like it is more of an issue from a marketing perspective than an actual concern of iPhone users. If, and when, Apple does introduce true multitasking in the iPhone OS, what will Apple competitors have to attack in their commercials?

The launch of the iPad changes the equation entirely as well. Because the iPad is built on the iPhone OS, and it has a significantly larger display to work with, users will expect to be able to open multiple apps and cascade or tile them to switch back and forth just as they are used to on desktop and notebook computers today.

While the value of multitasking on the iPhone itself may still be questionable, it would be a serious handicap to the iPad–even bigger than the inability to view Adobe Flash. Particularly when considering the potential business use of the iPad, multitasking becomes a critical element.

Multitasking is always at the top of the iPhone OS rumor list, though, so it may be premature to get too excited just yet.

Resource:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/pcworld/20100312/tc_pcworld/doestheiphoneosneedmultitasking_1

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