Industry News - Week of Feb 20, 2017
Along with the New Year has been the gradual appearance of Zebra devices running Android Marshmallow, the gradual disappearance of the Google Now Launcher, an increase in the ways and means of using the "Internet of Things," and a decrease in device security thanks to new exploits in JavaScript and Windows 10.
What’s New for Android ‘M’ and the impact on Zebra developers
Zebra's Darryn Campbell took an exhaustive look at Android 6 Marshmallow, details what's different and better about the latest release and provides guidance for Zebra customers and partners who are planning a deployment or migration.
IBM Watson Gets in on the IoT Act
Since Watson's coming out party on the American quiz show Jeopardy, IBM's super computer has proven it can do far more than embarrass its human counterparts. Financial services company Visa will tap Watson's power to process IoT-based transactions, which could open the door to a whole new world of questions and answers.
Instant Apps: Run an App Without Installing It
One question every smartphone user asks at least once during the life of the device is "Do I really want to install this app?" Introduced and demo'd at last year's Google I/O, Android 7 Nougat's "Instant Apps" eliminates the need for that question by allowing apps to be run from the cloud.
Google Giveeth, Google Taketh Away. Rumor has it that the Now Launcher, which upwards of 70 percent of Android users reportedly download immediately upon setting a new device, may be going the way of its hands-free mobile payment app. For Zebra partners, the EHS Launcher might be a better bet anyway.
Windows 10 Device Pictures Might be Visible to All
If you thought Apple's iCloud left users vulnerable to picture hacking (and it does), Windows 10 Mobile apparently goes one better, leaving on-device pictures visible to anyone holding the device without the need of a password or PIN.
IBM Bypasses Carrier, Wi-Fi Networks to Spread Alerts
IBM has developed a means of spreading messages and alerts from one device to another in the event of carrier or Wi-FI networks service interruptions. The technology will be employed next month in a weather app for Android that can warn people of floods, storms, tsunamis and other catastrophic events by using on-device Wi-Fi and Bluetooth radios to "mesh" one device to another.
Recent JavaScript Advancement Slays Stalwart Security Scheme
The progress made by JavaScript to advance cloud computing are immeasurable, but one recent advancement has the potential to tear it all away. A security technique known as ASLR, under which program code is stored randomly in memory (and hence difficult for malware to find and exploit), might now be detected and made visible by a simple piece of JavaScript code developed recently by researchers.
Edward Correia
