Technology Trends in 2011

Ya! Every one, every tech blog out on the planet, is doing a recap of 2011. I thought I will do one on techedIN too, depending on what caught my attention in 2011. There were plenty of trends in the Information Technology world that I consider as trends that defined 2011, for various reasons. I would like to list them for you!

Social Media Revolutions
What Malcom Gladwell said in 2010 was proved wrong in 2011! He tried to postulate why revolution will not be tweeted. And that whole line of argument was proved wrong in 2011, when Social Networks had a greater role to play in almost all political uprisings across the world. From Arab Spring to Occupy Wall Street, protesters and agitators across the world used Facebook and Twitter to organize and move. It was proved that  if you have a smartphone and a twitter account, you could bring on a revolution. It was proved that social networks like Twitter and Facebook can help to bring about change in more ways than we thought.

Hacktivism
2011 was also a year when hacking went wild. Almost every month you woke up reading about a website or email that was hacked. You heard about accounts compromised. And secusity breached. LulzSec and Anonymus became some sort of modern day heros for their Robin Hood like approach to hacking. Companies like Sony were punished and hacked for their greed.  Their "Operation Anti-security was aimed at protesting government censorship and monitoring of internet. Thus, the new word Hacktivism was born.

Mobile Overload
There were big time battles to take over that huge space in the future of computing, mobile technology. We witnessed wars. Apple suing companies that made Android devices. Oracle suing Google. Patent Trolls trying to earn some quick money suing developers. And then we saw the market flooded by tablets and smart phones. Apple, Google and Microsoft led the show. iOS, Android and WP 7 became household names. RIM was trying to survive. Nokia became famous for trying nothing to handle the decline of their Symbian OS. HP came up with WebOS, something that tech gurus dubbed as the best tablet OS ever, and then killed it. And then there was the HP fire sale! And then you had Amazon joining the war with Kindle Fire. Touchscreen became the fashion. 2011 was overloaded by mobile phones! And Steve Jobs passed away! Ice Cream Sandwich was born!

Rise and Fall of Location
Location based applications either changed their course or committed suicide in 2011. People began to see why location based applications like Gowalla or Foursquare were not that great an idea when offered alone. People learned that to make location based applications popular, you needed to club it with something else exciting. Like Facebook, a social network. Like Foodspotting, a hobby. Like badoo, a dating service based on location. No one cared for location after the initial use, if it was not clubbed with anything else.

Everybody Goes Social
Ya, I meant Google went social. After a couple of failed attempts at creating a successful social experience based on Google products and the sad demise of Orkut and the murder of Buzz, Google came up with Google+. And Facebook replied with enhance features. And everyone who came into the tech market was trying to be social in one way or the other. Almost all applications available in the market and almost all devices  in our hands are socially enabled.

Ugly Patent Wars and Trolls
This must be read along with the mobile overload. However, it was a major trend in 2011 to sue for patents. Ugly patent wars I would call them. Google failed to buy Nortel's patents, defeated by an Anti-Google consortium. Then they bought Motorola. In 2011, we say everybody trying to sue everybody else holding one or the other godforsaken patent. The most noteworthy among them is the failed attempt of Apple to stop Samsung from selling their tablets and phones. And then Oracle suing Google. Then there was some company hitherto unheard of, threatening to sue developers.

Start Up Rush
2011 was also the year of start ups. And venture capitalists. This was a year when venture capitalists got the tag "ANGEL" attached to their profile. Everyone started a start up in the hope of becoming the next Google or Facebook. From Codecademy to Oink to Sojo Studios, every one was trying everything to change the world and save the universe. You often heard the word 'bubble' floating around. You witnessed cat fights on tech blogs about why women are not coming forward to start tech start ups. You heard about how blacks are ignored in the startup world. Then you saw start up incubators trying to save the world and protect the unprotected.

Mobile Payment
Near Field Communication became the buzz word. Everyone from Google to Apple, from  Visa to Mastercard tried to take over the mobile payment space. The war is on. perhaps this war is going to define 2012. We shall wait and watch! 

How to figure out which programme or application opens an unknown file type?

Your client or colleague sends you an email with an important attachment. You download the attachment and eagerly open it to find that it is an unknown file type and you cannot open it on your system as your computer does not have the programme that runs it. Windows offers to help you figure out the programme. Knowing Microsoft for so long, you will not try it as you will end up finding nothing about the file. 

Encounters with unknown file types is a major issue that often comes up in offices across the world. With many organizations moving towards Open Source and many still sticking around with Microsoft, the issue is not as simple as you think.  It forces you to waste a lot of time and phone calls, trying to figure out what went wrong.

What can you do when you come across a file you cannot open? 

1. Find out the file extension. Most files have a file extension. It can be .odt .epub .txt .jpeg or anything. See what follows the dot (.) after the file name. That is your file extension.
2. If you do not have the file extension mentioned in file name, go to the file and right click to open the properties of the file. Check out file type to figure out the file extension. 
3. Once you figure out the file extension, go to WolframAlpha. You can go to WolframAlpha from here. Type the file name in the text box and click search. WolframAlpha will come up with a list of programmes that will help you open the file. 
4. Go back to Google and find out how to download this Application or Programme, which can open this unknown file for you.

Samsung, I don't want your value pack!

Roumour mill is running again, with stories about how and how not Samsung will provide Samsung Galaxy S and Original Galaxy Tab users with Ice Cream Sandwich. I am following each story closely.

Last week Samsung announced the list of devices it will include in the Ice Cream Sandwich update. Samsung Galaxy S and Original Galaxy Tab, the two devices that provided Samsung with the stepping stones to mobile success were not included in the list. There was such a hue and cry in ts social media world about how unfair it is not to give updates for devices like Galaxy S and Original Galaxy Tab even though they are as capable as any other devices out there to receive one. It seems that Samsung's Touchwiz is the culprit.

Looks like Samsung could not provide an Ice Cream Sandwich update for both the devices given the fact that the space available in them was not adequate for both ICS and Touchwiz to run together. Many pointed at Apple and asked Samsung to learn from them about keeping updates for sold devices on. Then there was news that Samsung is in fact considering an update for both the devices. I was happy that ICS is coming soon on my Galaxy Tab.

No! The news is out now! It seems that instead of an ICS update, Samsung will give us some value pack that will bring the tab and S closer to ICS functionality. Value pack, my foot! Samsung, either you give me my ICS or give me nothing. I don't want any value pack. Drop Touchwiz and spend that money to give us a vanilla ICS. Please don't insult us, people who jumped into buy your first products, by giving is a value updated of sorts.

How to get Google Analytics on your Android Phone

A few days ago, I wrote about a tool that bloggers can use on their Android Phone to keep track of their Google Adsense Account. But if you are a passionate blogger, just a way to keep track of an Adsense Account is not enough. Most bloggers do not care about making money. They just want more people to read what they write. And Google Analytics is the best tool available out there to help you keep track of how people are using the information on your blog.

In a world that is moving towards mobility in a great way, I am sure some of you are looking at ways in which to keep track of your Google Analytics Account on your Phone. If you use an Android Phone, there is a neat application to help you access information frm your Google Analytics Account.

GAnalytics! Yes, that is the name of the application. There are plenty of applications in the Android Market that promise to help you access your Google Analytics Account. However, I like GAnalytics in particular. It has your Google Analytics information presented in a neat and organized manner. It is very easy to figure out how your blog is performing if you use GAnalytics. It allows you to see the performance of your blog on a daily, weekly, monthly or yearly basis. From visits to pageviews to traffic sources, GAnalytics allows you to get a deeper understanding of how your blog is doing. You can download GAnalytics from here.

What is the time limit or size limit for YouTube Video uploads?

I know. If you are into serious video making and want to show off your videos in front of the world, you will hate the upload size and time limit some of these video sharing sites have in place. Not that many of us create videos that are more than ten minutes. But then, sometimes, one of these rare times, you will make a video that is longer in duration or larger in bite size. You will try and upload it on your favourite video sharing site, YouTube, only to find that you cannot upload that video because of a time limit.

What is the upload size or time limit for YouTube? As far as I know, you can upload only 15 minutes videos on YouTube. There is no size restriction on YouTube, like the 500 MB a month restriction on Vimeo for the video you upload.

That is great, right? You can upload 15 minutes video on YouTube. What if you make a video that is 20 minutes or longer? Will not YouTube allow you to upload that? Will you see that horrible error page with an empty video box which says your video is removed because it is longer than what it should have been?

Do not worry. YouTube will not let you down. Look for a link on the upload page on YouTube that asks you if you want to upload content that is more than15 minutes. If you find it there, then go ahead and click on the link. It will take you to a verification page. You will have to verify your account using your phone number. Once you enter your phone number, Google will send a verification code to your phone. Once you verify your phone you can upload videos that are more than 15 minutes.

This is a great step from Google to manage copyright issues. Normal users will not make content that is more than 15 minutes. If you want to upload content that is more than 15 minutes, Google wants to make sure that you are responsible for that content. Keeping our phone number is a great way to make sure that we are available to take care of it in case there is an issue about copyright.

How to keep track of your Adsense Account on Android?

You are a blogger and you write a lot. And you have an Adsense Account you use to try and monetize your content, hoping that you can make some money as you write, without an editor breathing down your neck.

Blogger and Google revolutionised the way people benefit from creating content online. Pairing blogging with Google Adsense, they opened up a way for  ameture bloggers to monetize their otherwise 'worthless' content.

Now a person like me, who would not have taken to writing my heart out for the fear of rejection, can write any time of the day about anything I want. And I have an incentive to do so. I can place a few advertisements from Google on my blog and make some money out of what I write. If what I write is useful, more people will visit my blog. Some of you will click on an advertisement you see here. And I will get paid for the time and effort I have put into creating the content you are reading.

If you are a blogger like me and you run Adsense Campeigns on your blog, I am sure you will want to keep track of your Adsense Account every day. So far most of us used to do that when we were in front of a personal computer. Times have changed. Most of us would like to have such information on our fingertips, accessing it on the go. We want that information on our phone. Is there a way to access your Adsense Account on your phone?

If you are using an Android Phone, like I always say, there is an app for that too. Adsense Dashboard is the application. You can download the app from here. Adsense Dashboard allows you to keep track of the Adsense Campeigns you have on your blogs. It allows you to see how your Adsense Account is performing, at a glance. It tells you how many pageviews your blog generated, how many clicks got converted into what kind of money. It also tells you how much money you have made so far. Adsense Dashboard is a very useful application if you want to keep track of the different channels you have created in your Adsense Account.

If you are a blogger and found Adsense Dashboard, the application for Android, useful to keep track of your Adsense Account let me know.

Samsung may bless Galaxy S & Original Tab with Ice Cream Sandwich

Samsung seems to be listening. After drawing the ire of the blog world and customers on twitter for not including Galaxy S & the original Galaxy Tab in the list of possible candidates for Ice Cream Sandwich update, looks like Sammy has taken the right decision to evaluate the possibly of an ICS update for these devices.

Samsung is probably confused if the users will like the Tab and S without Touchwiz. They don't have to be confused. I think Samsung must not waste time trying to figure out how to incorporate Touchwiz into the ICS update they are planing for both the devices. I did not buy the Galaxy Tab for Touchwiz, with all due respect to the Samsung Developers. I bought it for the hardware specifications and to experience Android. I am sure the users will not know the difference between Touchwiz and a vanilla Android. Besides, ICS user interface is much more sophisticated and beautiful. It does not need to be tampered with.

I think it's about time great hardware makers like Samsung focused only on hardware and not software. We do not care how the user interface is differentiated. All that we want is the ability to use the most recent version of Android on these devices. It is time you guys looked at phones like you look at personal computers.

It is a welcome move from Samsung if they have decided to include Galaxy S and Tab in their list for ICS update. Since Samsung is a leading Android Phone Maker, I am sure this will change a lot of things in the game. It will change the way people look at phones.

While keeping my fingers crossed, I have deferred my decision to move from Samsung to Sony Ericsson for want of regular updates. Good luck Sammy!

Stream Bollywood Songs on your Android Phone

The Android Market ecosystem is full of applications that allow you to stream music. Plenty of them out there allows you to get online music and radio station streaming. If you are someone who is keen on listening to music but do not want to save songs on your device for the fear of eating up space, these applications are good for you. Or if you are bored of the music saved in your device and wants some pleasant music surprises steaming is a great idea.

If you are from India and you do not like all these heavy drum beating stuff they play in English or if you love listening to Hindi songs once in a while, what can you do? Most flats the Android applications all you to stream oly western music. For the love of India, is there an application that allows you to play Hindi songs? Yes, there is.

Saavan Music! A great application that allows you to stream both old and new Hindi songs on the go. You can make your own play list or play randomly as you go when you are using Saavan. You can also choose from the list of top songs. Or you can choose from the different categories or themes available in Saavan. If you are in India and are using an Android Phone, I would say Saavan is a must download. You an download Saavan from here.

Use anyone's face as a smiley or emoticon in Facebook Chat

I am sure you have come across plenty of applications that offer to show customized smileys on your Facebook chat. The issue is, if your friend does not have the same application installed on their profile they will not be able to see the custom chat smiley you are using. And most of these custom chat applications are malware or spyware in disguise. You can never trust them.

Is there any way you can use custom smileys as you wish on your Facebook chat and let your friends see it without having to install a Facebook app? Yes, there is. Facebook now allows you to use profile pictures as smileys in your Facebook chat. How do you do it?

Go to any Facebook user or page url and copy the I'd and come back to your chat window and put them in double brackets. The profile picture of that person or page will appear as a smiley. For example if you want to use "xyz" profile picture as a smiley, go to that user's url. Go to www.facebook.com/profile/xyz or www.facebook.com/profile/687659018 and copy the profile id. In this case copy xyz or 687659018. And paste it into your chat like [[xyz]]. This will enable you to use that person's Facebook profile picture as a smiley icon. You can also use profile pictures of pages as emoticons or smileys. The only catch here is that if the page is automatically created by Facebook from wikipedia, then you cannot use it as an emoticon. This is also a great way to share information about people and pages because when your friend who receives the emoticon hovers the cursor on the image he will see a pop up with information about that person or the page. I am sure Facebook will integrate this feature soon to status updates. Till then have fun converting people into emoticons.

Best recipe application for your Android Phone

You love cooking? You love trying out new recipes every day? You have a dinner coming up and you are wondering what to cook for your guests?

I don't cook. I don't cook because I don't know how to cook that well. However I have friends who love cooking. I find them always on the look out for new recipes. Most of them rely on cook books. Some of them rely on online recipe libraries. Both are limited when it comes to finding new and exciting ways to cook. They make discovery of new recipes a boring thing to do.

I have been searching for a good Application for Android that will allow my friends to cook well. See, when they cook well I get to taste it. Any hit recipe offers me a great lunch or yummy dinner. That is my incentive. So I set out on this journey to figure out a good recipe app on Android.

The search did not go on for long. I stumbled up on one of the best recipe application in the Android Market. Campbell's Kitchen.

Campbell's Kitchen is fully gear recipe application. Neatly designed. Beautiful images. Greatly organized to allow you to discover great recipes. The best thing I liked about the application is how the Kitchen offers recipes under beautifully organized themes. You can also register and save tips and tricks to save your face for a dinner. For each recipe you get to know step by step instructions on how to cook it, ingredients and the nutritional value of hag food. That way you can be sue about what you are cooking. You can download the application from here.

Now I perfectly understand how US patent system works!

Now I perfectly understand how US patent system works.

Just read the news that Apple is awarded a new patent. It is for a system that allows users to use other applications on a device as they are making a call. For example, you are on a call and you want to quickly look up something in your calendar. Or you want to find out a place on the map. Or you want to look at a website. Apple got the idea patented. This means no other operating system or device manufacturer can make a device which will allow you to look up something on your phone while you are on a call.

I use an Android Phone. I don't know who invented this feature. But I know that I can access other applications on my device while I am making a call. I just need to minimize the call window and it will rest in the notification tray while I am accessing the application I want.
Even I can remember my old symbian phone used to allow me do this. Symbian has its limitations. So you could only access a few applications like contact list or calendar while you were on a call. And I had symbian phones long ago, even before Apple came up with their first phone.

I am trying to figure out who invented this feature. I am sure it is not Apple. But now they are telling us that Apple is awarded the patent for this particular feature. And that shows you exactly how the patent system in US works. You don't have to invent anything to get a patent. All that you need to do is ask first. Ask and it shall be given to you. Make sure that you ask first.

That is as dumb as a patent system can get.