Allo? Knock Knock, Is There Anyone Home?
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
| Allo? Knock Knock, Is There Anyone Home? | |
| Number | 2763 |
| Broadcast Date | MAY 18, 2016 |
| Episode Length | 44:00 |
| Hosts | Tom Merritt |
| Guests | Scott Johnson |
Are we headed to a world without screens? Could eyes and fingers be enough to control your computers? Plus all the announcements from Google I/O from Scott Johnson and Tom Merritt.
Guest
Headlines
- Google announced a voice-activated device called Home that has a speaker in the base and integrates with other cast devices like Chromecast Video and audio. A modular case can be ciustomized with different bases. Google Home has a mic system and speaker, no buttons. and is a little shorter and squatter than Echo. It can support multiroom audio with other cast-enabeled devices. And supports home networking systems for Home Control. Google Home won't arrive until later this year.
- Submitted by flo-BAMA
- Google also announced a messaging app called Allo. It includes Whisper Shout which lets you use a slider to set whether your message is large or small. You can use Ink to draw on photos. It includes Smart Reply from Inbox which learns over time to suggest appropriate replies. It also includes Google Assistant, the voice-activated smart assistant which can do things like detect you're talking about restaurants, suggest some and book one through OpenTable. You can also use it to chat with Google Assistant directly. Finally, an incognito mode offers, end-to-end encryption, discreet notifications and permanent delete. It's coming to iOS and Android summer.
- Another app called Duo is a one-to-one video calling app. A feature called knock knock, shows a live video stream of the caller before you pick up. It's end to end encrypted and built on WebRTC and QUIC. It's coming to iOS and Android this summer.
- Google announced it will take submissions for the name of Android N at android.com/n. Though Google reserves the right to make the final call. Google also claims its compiler is now 600% faster and apps are 75% faster to install. Android N promises File-based encryption, media network hardening and most impressive, automatic update downloads that install upon reboot. Goodbye ‘Android is updating” button. Woohoo!. The recent apps will be limited to the most recent and will have a clear all button. You can also now double tap on the recents button to go to the previously used app. And you can reply right from notifications and mute or silence them from there as well. A beta release candidate is out today at android.com/beta with the full release coming later this summer.
- Google also announced VR Mode in Android N and the Daydream platform for VR development which gives VR apps exclusive access to the device’s processor cores. Phones running Daydream must match performance and latency standards. Samsung, HTC, LG, Mi, Huawei, ZTE, Asus, and Alcatel are already committed to making Daydream-Ready phones coming in the fall. Google also has a reference design for a controller with two buttons and a clickable touchpad. Versions of that will come in the fall too. And Google Play for VR has Netflix, Hulu, HBO, WSJ, CNN, New York times, MLB, and more as VR app partners. Google will have its own VR apps too including, Google Play Movies, Google Streetview, Google Photos, YouTube.
- Android Wear 2.0 is coming this fall with Smart Reply, handwriting recognition and a full keyboard. Google Fit will now automatically recognise activity like running. And you can stream music like Spotify right from Watch Face. All this can be done without need of a phone if your watch has the connection. That also means apps can be standalone and run entirely on the watch. Finally, developers will now be able to use a unified API to include data from other applications on their watch faces.
- And for the devs Android Studio 2.2 offers faster builds, test recording which writes test code for you, a layout designer, APK Analyzer and enhanced C++ support including CMAKE and NDK Build. The next generation of Firebase will be a suite of integrated products including analytics, crash reporting, remote config, cloud messaging and dynamic links The new Firebase is available today at firebase.google.com. Finally developers can adjust their existing apps to be available without installation with Android Instant Apps. Only the pieces of the app it requires are loaded. Instant apps is backward-compatible to Kit Kat.
- Android N is also being demonstrated in the car at Google I/O running all systems. In the meantime the existing Android Auto system is adding Waze this year along with support for hot words (when you just say OK Google take me home for example) and WiFi.
- Submitted by anotherjmartin
- Microsoft is selling the feature phone business it acquired from Nokia to FIH Mobile a subsidiary of FoxConn for $350 million. FIH Mobile gets the rights to use the Nokia brand and a manufacturing facility in Hanoi, Vietnam. Nokia will license its brand to a newly-created Finnish company called HMD Global which will sell Android phones and tablets. Microsoft says it will continue to develop Windows 10 Mobile and support Windows Phone devices like its own Lumia. The sale is expected to be finalized in the second half of the year.
- Submitted by KAPT_Kipper
- Apple is opening an iOS App Design and Development Accelerator in Bangalore, India early next year. Apple will host weekly briefings, conduct one-on-one app reviews and provide support and guidance for Swift programming. Microsoft and 500 Startups also have accelerators in Bangalore. Tim Cook will travel to Hyderabad next to open Apple’s first development center outside the US.
- LinkedIn announced this morning that a dataset containing 117 million email addresses and passwords from a hack in 2012 has been released for sale online. LinkedIN is working to validate the data and contact affected users.
- Submitted by stevei0
- Family profiles on Uber let you set up one account for all billing. Uber introduced the Trip Tracker tool today. Anyone who rides under a family profile account would have trip detail notification and location sent to the person in charge of the profile account . Trip Tracker is available now with the latest version of the Uber App.
- Charter’s acquisition of Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks serving a total of 25 million customers in 41 states. Charter paid $55 billion for TWC and $10.4 billion for Bright House. Charter told Bloomberg it will phase out the names Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks. Under the conditions of the deal, Charter can’t do usage-based pricing, data caps, interconnect fees or make TV exclusivity deals.
- Netflix launched a speed test called Fast.com. It loads as soon as you visit the URL and gives you report on your download speed with a link to compare it to speedtest.net. The site’s FAQ says that if consumers aren’t getting the speed they’re paying for, “you can ask your ISP about the results.
Discussion
Pick of the Day
- To further combat unimportant email that clutter my inbox, I rely on a great service called Unroll.me.
After logging in with my email credentials, the website (or app) presents a list of emails sent from marketers, subscriptions lists, etc. and lets me do one of three things for each:
1. I can keep getting letting the email hit my inbox (for those so worthy)
2. I can add the email to my roll up list, which groups multiple emails into a single daily email
3. I can unsubscribe and never be bothered by the email again
To date, I’ve kept 36 emails in my inbox, rolled up 128 emails, and unsubscribed to 153 emails. Not too shabby.
The service is free, with ads in the roll up that aren’t too annoying (IMO), and is available via the web and on iOS.
Yours truly, - Submitted by Jesse (hometownrival) in Perfectly cromulent Indianapolis
- To further combat unimportant email that clutter my inbox, I rely on a great service called Unroll.me.
Messages
- Tom and Awesome Contributor,
Here is a comment on your discussion with Veronica about work communication off the clock. I recently ran into this situation at my work. I am in an hourly supervisor role and my boss is in a salary "always on call" role. We do have a great work relationship. However, about once a week I would get a call from him on my day off. The conversation was always about work related items, but not always an emergency situation. Finally, I just talked to him about it and asked if he would only contact me if an emergency arises. He apologized and said he forgets hourly employees have lives outside of work. Because of his role of being always on call, work is his life. My advice to people that run into this situation is just talk to their boss about it. You might be surprised how well it goes or how sorry you might feel for your boss's situation. - Sent by Justin in currently balmy Arkansas
- Tom and Awesome Contributor,
- On-call professionals can't use Do not disturb mode since they need to be available. So he likes the idea of setting policy about email and limiting notifications to emergency use.
- Sent by sTim
- You can use the VIP feature in iOS to only get notifications from certain people. And Favorites to make exceptions to DND.
- Sent by Jesse (hometownrival) in Perfectly cromulent Indianapolis
- Just been switched on in the UK, my card has finally registered.
Screenshot for proof (please redact the last 4 digits if you want to share)
Hoping I'm ahead of the news cycle on this one :) - Sent by Matthew
- Just been switched on in the UK, my card has finally registered.
- I hoped that the Nvidia 1080 and 1070 graphics cards will be the first cards to make 4K gaming for PC at 60fps possible, but they do not. I got a feeling we will have to wait another generation for those. I am sure NVidia will launch a 1080ti or a Titan model some time later probably to head off AMD's top of the line card when that is introduced so maybe there is hope for this generation.
As for an upgrade, ... they offer 70% over the original 980 which makes that a HUGE jump. Having said that, and after playing Rise of Tomb Raider and Doom at 1080p, my current 970 had no problem to achive solid 50+ frame per seconds at 1080p with high settings in both games. So not sure what the reason would be to upgrade...having just admitted that, I am still wanting one ;-) - Sent by Thinus
- I hoped that the Nvidia 1080 and 1070 graphics cards will be the first cards to make 4K gaming for PC at 60fps possible, but they do not. I got a feeling we will have to wait another generation for those. I am sure NVidia will launch a 1080ti or a Titan model some time later probably to head off AMD's top of the line card when that is introduced so maybe there is hope for this generation.
- I thought Netflix increase was happening this month.
Netflix charged $7.99 on 5/12/2016 for next month of usage.
I still have 2 screens plus HD plan. Plan page says "Your plan price is guaranteed through at least June 16, 2016".
I'll check again next month ; Maybe I just missed the increase deadline for the month ... - Sent by Robert from Columbia, NJ
- I thought Netflix increase was happening this month.
YouTube
Links
| Preceded by: "Pick a Card Any Card" |
Allo? Knock Knock, Is There Anyone Home? |
Followed by: "Cool Kids are Second Movers" |