Canonical just rolled out their newest version of the operating system, Ubuntu 11.10 with the codename Oneiric Ocelot. Ubuntu has a proven track record of releasing updates every six months that include new features, stability improvements and latest versions of the software.

One of the main reasons why we, at QBurst, use Ubuntu on 75% of our computers is the stability it provides. Canonical, the Ubuntu company, has always made sure that their users get updates every six months with a lot of changes.

The latest release 11.10, which was just released yesterday, October 13, 2011, brings major updates to its Unity Shell. The improvements include better polish and a new transparency effect in addition to the little icons at the bottom called Unity Lenses (Apps, Files, a new Music lens and Gwibber). The Ubuntu button is now on the launcher and there is also a new minimize/maximize/close button for Unity dash.

With Ubuntu Unity Shell, it is very easy to search and open an installed program. It also replaces the old task bar that was in the Ubuntu Classic theme. Close, minimize and maximize buttons are hidden by default and will be visible only when the user moves the cursor over the window.

The latest version also includes an updated version of the Ubuntu Software Center from where the user can install additional software with just one click. Installing an app has never been easier.

One of the main attractions of Ubuntu 11.10 is the redesigned Alt-Tab view. Ubuntu developers have given extra care to redesign the Alt-Tab view, which looks very attractive now.

Other than these visible design changes, Ubuntu 11.10 certainly has some cool under-the-hood updates. Ubuntu 11.10 uses the Linux Kernel 3 and many components from Gnome 3. The good news for Mozilla Thunderbird fans is that Ubuntu 11.10 now ships with Thunderbird as the default email application. Empathy is replaced with Thunderbird which will increase the email client users Ubuntu has. The GNOME login manager has also been replaced with the more flexible and Unity style LightDM. They have also updated the front-end of the social networking client application Gwibber.

With the release of Ubuntu 11.10, Canonical developers are now going to start working towards the future release 12.04. Ubuntu founder Mark Shuttleworth announced that the codename for 12.04 will be Precise Pangolin which will also be a long-term support (LTS) release. LTS means that it will be supported with updates for five years on servers and three years on desktops.

At QBurst, we always use the latest stable versions. We are very excited about the release of this Debian based operating system and have already started upgrading our Linux based systems to 11.10.

For existing Ubuntu users, the update is available through the Ubuntu Update Manager, and for new users download is available on Ubuntu website.

Version controlling is one of the main tasks in developing an application, no matter how big the application is. The developer will enjoy developing applications when file version control system (VCS) is used. The software life cycle consists of many phases. The major phases are “Integration” and “Maintenance”. VCS is a solution for many problems that a developer faces during the development and maintenance phases of the software life cycle. VCS helps a developer to complete these phases without much struggle, by keeping a log of all changes made by the developer

If you develop and deploy medium to large scale applications, you would have used version control system. The most widely used version control system is Apache Subversion. Apache Subversion or SVN in short, is a Centralized Version Control System. In this system, there is a single central repository. All changes made to documents/codes are saved in this repository. There can be many users (or developers) but all the changes are updated to this central database instantly.

This scenario has changed with the release of a Distributed Version Control System called Git, by the creator of Linux Kernel Linus Torvalds, who is referred to as the creator of Linux!

What Is Git?
From their website:
“Git is a free & open source, distributed version control system designed to handle everything from small to very large projects with speed and efficiency. Every Git clone is a full-fledged repository with complete history and full revision tracking capabilities, that does not dependent on network access or a central server. Branching and merging are fast and easy to do”

In other words, Git is a open source version control software that makes use of the distributed model system. The central repository can be hosted on a remote server. Developers can clone the central remote repository to their own local machine and start working on the local repository. This makes the version controlling even faster. When the work is done in the local repository, developers can commit changes to the remote repository.

Git platform is becoming very popular now because of the usability features and multiple platform support. Git is primarily developed on Linux, but can be used on other Unix-like operating systems including BSD, Solaris and Darwin. Git also runs on Microsoft Windows.

Why Is GIT Better Than Apache Subversion (SVN)?
Git is far better than SVN for the following reasons:

1. Distributed: Git is distributed, while SVN is client-server model. This means a lot to  developers who work on a single project from multiple countries across the world.

2. Works Off-line: Yes, this is the coolest and a remarkable feature of Git. Since Git is a distributed version control system, it allows “Local Repositories” to be created on the user’s machine in addition to the remote repository which is the master database. This makes Git very fast to operate and reduces the need for network connection. SVN does not provide this feature as the user must be online in order to push the files to the remote repository from the working copy.

3. No Duplication: Git does not duplicate files while saving into the repository. While updating revisions, Git will make a link to the file in the old revision, if the file is not changed. It uses index files for this purpose while SVN always saves two copies of the versioned file which makes SVN database considerably bigger than the Git database.

4. Coolest Clone Feature: One of the main reasons for Gitsters to like Git is the clone feature in Git. As Git also allows local repositories, every user can have the repositories cloned to their own system and work on that cloned repository, which doesn’t even require a network connection or Internet access. Once changes are made, users will be able to “push” those changes to the central master database which may be hosted on a remote server.

5. No or Less Data Loss: As Git allows to clone the central database, all users can have their own local copies of the master database. Therefore there is less chance for data to get lost. This is not the case with SVN, as the data will be lost if the central database becomes corrupt.

6. Integration With File Browsers: Git has integration with file browsers on various operating systems such as Ubuntu and Windows. RabbitVCS is a good application for Ubuntu users. Git for Windows is also available free of cost. SmartGit is a good choice for advanced users

7. Branching: One of the useful features of Git is branching. Git allows to have multiple local branches that can be completely independent. This way,  developers can test their application without depending on the remote repository or local repositories of other users.

8. Multiple Remote Servers for a Single Repository: With SVN, we can only have one remote repository for a single project. Git supports a multiple remote repository concept so that developers can commit changes to multiple remote repositories at the same time. This is a great feature if the developer wants to set up a backup server of the main repository server.

How Easy Is It To Adopt Git?
Git is a fairly easy and straightforward tool that makes life easy. Git commands are very similar to that of SVN and there is a crash course available now to study Git commands and technical terms.

Git is becoming very popular with the release of major application packages such as JQuery, Mootools etc. Many application developers are moving from SVN and other VCSs to Git. There are many reasons why you should move to Git. Support for cloning and branching, low resource usage, offline mode, etc. Interestingly, many developers are getting familiar with Git through the famous Repository Hosting website GitHub

At QBurst, we strive to adopt new technologies for the fast development of our organization and we are one of the proud users of Git – the coolest version control system that we have seen so far. Contact us for more information.

mCommerce

Mobile commerce or m-Commerce is creating a lot of buzz in the web space and is poised for further growth. It has never been easy to shop online any time, anywhere from the comfort of our palm. According to a study by ABI Research, it is estimated that people around the world will spend around $119 billion shopping online. There’s a massive opportunity for not only improving the way mobile purchasing works but also for inventing new ways to sharing and promoting services and merchandises.

Strategies for mCommerce

Even though e-commerce has flourished into a billion dollar market, most of the e-commerce retailers are not willing to cater to this ever growing market of net savy mobile shoppers. “Let’s develop an app” seems to be the game plan for many vendors – which is not enough. Below are some of the online marketing strategies that all the online vendors need to consider if they are looking to unleash the power of mCommerce.

• Search Engine Optimisation & Search Engine Marketing
• Affiliate tracking tools
• Mobile web analytics
• Social media presence and compatibility

Mobile web has the power to implement a complete m-Commerce portal. The above listed strategies work on mobile web pages. But it’s quite impossible to fully accomplish these in native apps. Native apps have to be discovered, purchased & downloaded prior to use.

According to market share data published by AdMob earlier this year, iOS makes up 50% of the worldwide smartphone market, with the next-highest OS on the list being Android at 24%. We can still create robust, native-looking web applications using HTML, CSS and JavaScript. Even though Safari on iPhone OS does not support flash, we have to agree that it is still a really great browser. It is also one of the most efficient browsers with its out of the box slick interface elements, which at times may vary between the iPhone and iPad.

Web Apps

Not everyone out there are aware of the fact that Apple has a section called “web apps” featured on its website, which is dedicated to showcasing optimized websites. Web applications or “web apps” as apple calls it - amalgamates the power of the Internet with the simplicity of multi-touch technology, all on a minuscule 3.5-inch screen. Visit the tApple website to check the 1700+ web apps featured in .

Below are the advantages of building a web app instead of a native app.

Advantages:

• No Apple approval process or red tape, which is especially important given the terms of service dispute going on right now.
• Optimizing the app for other popular platforms like Android, Blackberry, etc with the same code is comparatively easier and cost effective.
• Don’t have to learn Objective-C or download iPhone SDK.
• Don’t have to share any revenue with Apple.
• 100% control over the means of payment, promotion and distribution to the user.

If you haven’t spotted this niche yet, it’s time to dive in and familiarize yourself with the tools required to optimize websites and web applications for this OS, because it’s going to be very exciting to watch this space unfold in 2011.

QBurst has an excellent track record in developing web apps for iPhone, iPads, iPod touch and other major mobile operating systems including Android, Blackberry and Windows Mobile. QBurst have all the tools needed to create a great web experience on the platform that’s currently dominating the mobile space are out there. Visit QBurst Mobile Apps page for more information.

Touch phones from iPhone, HTCs and other brands have been around for a while, where as Nokia had not come up with their smart phones until recently. Nokia offers most of the latest technologies, but they have had a typical vintage ‘phone’ look. During February 2010, the buzz for open sources for mobile software and OS grew stronger with the merger of moblin (mobile linux from Intel) and maemo (FOSS initiative for mobiles and other handhelds from Nokia) and which gave birth to the Meego operating system. Both maemo and moblin could be installed on mobile phones and applications on these platforms could be developed in C/C++.

During the fall of 2008, Nokia also acquired Qt that was initially developed by Troltech as a proprietary software. Nokia released the source code of Qt under LGPL after the acquisition. Nobody understood what Nokia was upto, because Qt ES (formerly known as Qtopia Core) wasn’t so popular at that point of time. Later, when Meamo development community created a support for Qt framework, it got clear that MeeGo applications can be developed with Qt! With Qt, it is possible to develop applications for a range of devices like netbooks, notebooks, palmtops, smart phones, PDAs, tablet PCs and other handhelds. Qt applications are very rich in GUI and have proved to be solid. Opera browser and Skype are popular examples. This makes MeeGo a serious competitor for Android and iPhone. MeeGo can be downloaded and byte-copied to a thumb drive for testing. It has got a pleasing appearance, vibrant colors and a nice interface and nice big icons designed for touch environment.

If we look at the new Windows mobiles, without skype they are rated ‘poor’ for user experiences. Skype has already announced its support to iPhone, Android, Symbian and BlackBerry and has ditched Microsoft again. In such circumstances, Microsoft is not left with many choices, they should either go open source with Windows Mobile or come up with their own hardware to compete with iPhone and android powered HTCs.

There is no clear winner in the battle of these premium touch phones, but the competition is getting tougher by the day.

As per Google Android’s developer forum, Android 2.2 is indeed a minor platform release including user and developer features, API changes, and bug fixes. A reading on developer features and API changes can be had on Framework API section. Android 2.2 platform is available to developers as a downloadable component for the Android SDK and it includes a fully compliant Android library and system image, as well as a set of emulator skins and sample applications.

Android 2.2 Froyo(Frozen Yoghurt) offers the following variances compared to Android 2.1 Eclair.

JIT Comparison: Android 2.2 Froyo Vs Android 2.1 Eclair

Froyo makes Google-based phones faster and more powerful with added features. It has:

o JIT(Just In Time) compiler
o Free additional RAM
o OpenGL ES 2.0 enhancements
o Wifi and USB tethering
o Flash 10.1 support
o Fixed problem with “crazy screen” / Resolution of cross multi touch
o Activation of Color Trackball
o Enable FM radio

Features like Hot Spot Tethering and USB Tethering make it more appealing. Wifi tethering is now available on Android phone. Certain devices like the Nexus One can be turned into a portable Wi-Fi hotspot that can be shared with up to 8 devices.You can use your Android-powered phone as a 3G connection for a Windows or Linux laptop by connecting their phone to the computer with a USB cable. The connection is then shared between the two devices. Watch how

Ending all the speculation as to whether it will be possible to install applications directly into the SD card and run it, this feature is enabled with Froyo. Now, Froyo will update all market applications simply by the click of one button: Update all.

It can be concluded that Android 2.2 makes Google-based phones faster and more powerful with added features

o Ignore this, the ones who do not like Flash, Froyo has it.
o Froyo also has HTML5, the rival Web content standard that Apple prefers, and it does it faster than the iPhone.
o Froyo also makes existing Android phones run faster – up to 4x faster, according to early reports.(Seven reasons why Android 2.2 Froyo beats the iPhone)
o Other useful features that the iPhone doesn’t have: native Wi-Fi and USB tethering and native Web apps.

To know more about how you can leverage these to benefit your Android application development, please get in touch with bdg@qburst.com.

Open Source Application

Skipfish is an open source scanner written in C language used to detect vulnerabilities in web applications. Users can compile the code and execute it for installation. Skipfish crawls through the web application, detects the security probes and generates a report for security assessments.

Features

Skipfish overcomes some of the common issues associated with other web security scanners. It is designed for high performance. It can handle 7000+ requests per second against local instances, 2000+ for LAN/MAN networks and 500+ against Internet targets. Its usability extends even to websites with multi-frameworks and different filtering rules. It also chalks out tricky scenarios including stored XSS (path, parameters, headers), blind SQL and XML injection.

The main security checks performed by the scanner are categorized based on the risk levels and are listed in the Skipfish wiki. This tool is expected to support Linux, FreeBSD 7.0+, MacOS X, and Windows (Cygwin) environments.

Limitations

However, Skipfish is not found to satisfy some of the major requirements charted out in the WASC (Web Application Security Scanner Evaluation Criteria).

The Skipfish 1.29 beta version is currently available for download.

Finally Google has arrived at the ‘Micro-blogging’ platform with a real ‘buzz’. On 9th February 2010, Google introduced ‘Buzz’, the new social networking application to embark on its battle to limit the popularity of Twitter. So, now there are lot of competitions going on in the Internet space. Google Vs Microsoft (Operating System & Enterprise Application Suits), Orkut (Owned by Google) Vs Facebook (Social Networking) Google vs Apple (Smart phone market). Before acquiring YouTube, they fought against them with Google Videos. So what we understand from all these competitions is that Google is not just targeting a niche or industry, rather it want to rule the entire IT Business.

At the first look, we may feel that Google Buzz is an integration of Facebook and Twitter, but it is beyond that. First and foremost advantage is that you don’t have to go to another web page to see the ‘buzz’, it’s there right below the inbox in  the Gmail. The conversation will go like an email thread which is the fascinating aspect of Buzz. You can post in the Buzz, which can be held as private or public. Also, you can connect your profiles in Flickr, Piccasa, Google Reader and Twitter to Buzz. That means you aren’t missing any of your friends and by start ‘Buzzing’, you are increasing your friend and professional network. See this wondeful Video of Buzz, to get more insights.

Now we can perhaps clearly say that it is now ‘Google Vs. Rest of the World’. Apple and Microsoft are companies that are worth more than  $ 100 billion each, Facebook and Twitter are the champs of their respective niche, though they are not monetizing it well. There is no doubt that the internet and enterprise software market will come under the reign of Google, which is not far away.

After months of anxiety and speculation Apple has finally launched their latest creation, the iPad Tablet. Apple’s CEO, Steve Jobs, unveiled the breakthrough product in a grand meet held at San Francisco on 27th Jan 2010. Apple’s iPad is developed for people on the go to ease their online usage and other PC related tasks.The iPad is neither an iPhone nor a PC but a gadget that bridges the gap between the two. With its small size and touch screen technology, Apple’s iPad  is all set to create a new era of Tablet Computing. Although the device lacks complex functionalities when compared to a PC, it is equipped with much desired functions like web browsing, delivering media, capsuling literature, video gaming etc.
The 9.7 inch device with half an inch thickness weighs just 1.5 pounds. It features a touch screen and is available in 16, 32 or 64 gigabytes of flash memory storage.

Competitors

Analysts foresee Apple’s launch of this handy device, as a possible threat to the notebook and PC makers like HP, Dell, and Acer who have attained considerable growth in the notebook market in recent quarters.

Pricing

Aiming at a deeper market penetration, Apple has reasonably priced the Tablet at $500. Surveys project a sales estimate of approximately 3 – 4 million Tablets in the first year.

Available Models

Three basic models were introduced at the launch with WiFi capabilities. However, 3G connectivity which is expected towards March 2010 needs to be ordered separately. Price tag starts from $500 with 16GB of memory increasing to $600 and $700 for 32GB and 64GB memory. The device comes with a Dock connector to USB cable, 10W Power Adapter and documentation.

Interested to know more on iPad Tablet? Find it here: Apple.com.

Ever Thought Of Locating Your Twitter On Your Mobile Phone Even Without a GPRS Subscription?

This concept has become a reality in India with the Shorthand mobile SMS browser introduced by the Shorthand Mobile-India(www.shorthandmobile.in), a subsidary of Smarttouch mobile Inc.. The browser once downloaded will connect you to your desired web content just through a text sms. Yes, it’s that simple!

The desired web contents are stored as SMS Apps and are listed in the Shorthand browser for easy scroll and click. The users have to just scroll down to their SMS App and click the same to access the online network. The web content is located as soon as the browser sends the text message. Hence, it does not require an active data plan.

Main Features
Apart from the general SMS Apps, Shorthand has a rich GUI that makes the platform more interesting and user friendly. Apart from other similar services of accessing web content through SMS and short codes, Shorthand SMS stands apart as there is no need to undergo the complex process of storing and using the “short codes”, “keywords” and “phone numbers” to get connected. Shorthand SMS browser lets you easily select your desired content from the well listed menu in a simple way.

Cost To The User
The users can enjoy the Shorthand browser platform absolutely free of cost. Users do not have to use their data plan while accessing through the SMS Apps. Updates to online contents via SMS Apps are sent as text messages and hence only normal SMS charges apply. However downloading the Shorthand browser for the first time needs a data plan enabled.

Shorthand Mobile Compatibility
The compatibility of this platform is not at all restricted to high-end smart phones but also works on mid-tier and low-end handsets. The browser supports different platforms including J2ME, Windows Mobile and Pocket PC phones. Below is the list of phones which is currently Shorthand compatible.

Samsung S3310
Samsung S3500
Samsung SGH-L700
Nokia N70
Nokia N82
Nokia 7210 Supernova
Nokia 2700 Classic
Nokia 5130 Express Music
Sony Ericsson G502

The Application support in the server side and website maintenance for Shorthand mobile (India) is taken care by QBurst Technologies.

Upcoming Apps
Shorthand Mobile proposes to add around 15 SMS Apps to be listed on its SMS browser platform ranging from a wide area across finance, social networking and search to transportation and news which are on the pipeline.

Target Market
The parent company, Smarttouch mobile Inc., launches the shorthand mobile sms service in the Indian market with a social networking pack, which includes Facebook, Orkut, Twitter and SMS GupShup apps in the first quarter of 2010. The service would be launched through leading telecom operators on a monthly subscription pattern which is yet to finalize on.

Google comes up with so many innovative as well as user friendly ideas at reasonable price. When compared to Lotus notes or Microsoft Exchange, Google Apps provides tools at a very low price. Services provided by Google App engine makes it easier for an employee  to work smoothly and efficiently. What makes Google Apps special ?? . Answer to that question will be ” Google gives good quality services to any person or organization at affordable cost “.

Google Apps provides many services. Among them the most widely used and appreciated tools include

• GMail: Run your business, not your server
• Google Docs: Manage meetings online with Google calendar
• Google Calendar: Online docs with real time collaboration
• Google Sites: Create dynamic web pages in an easy way as creating a document
• Google Talk: Make calls and get your chat on
• Google Videos: Google hosted video. Saves you time and money

These itself could support the various levels of communication in an organization in a more simpler and more effective way. Adding cherry to the cake is the price. These Google App engine tools come at affordable prices and that too in different editions.

1. Premium edition ($50 per user per year)
2. Education/Non-profit edition (comes free to a limited number of users)
3. Standard edition (comes free to individual users)

You can compare the different editions:

1. Standard Vs Premium
2. Education/Non-profit Vs Premium

You can visit these links to get more information about Google Apps

http://www.google.com/apps/

http://www.google.com/apps/intl/en/business/index.html#utm_medium=et&utm_source=catch_all