Sunday, July 15, 2012

Software : Developers are not walking away from BB10, RIM assures

Software : Developers are not walking away from BB10, RIM assures

Developers are not walking away from BB10, RIM assures

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Developers are not walking away from BB10, RIM assures

RIM has moved to refute a new survey which claims developers are already losing interest in the BlackBerry 10 platform.

A survey from Baird found that developer interest in the operating system had recently sunk 17 per cent in recent months, to just 3.8 points out of 10.

RIM's VP of Developer Relations Alec Saunders says he was 'shocked' by the report and is adamant that BB10 is not "bleeding developers."

"I was pretty shocked by the findings," Saunders wrote on the BlackBerry DevBlog.

"I was shocked because the numbers in the report do not gel with what we're seeing in the real world. The report contradicts much of what we are seeing and hearing in our developer community."

'Developers are amazed'

Contrary to the study, Saunders points out that App World vendors are up 157 per cent since January.

"I have been receiving a lot of feedback from developers personally and I can tell you that I am hearing again and again that developers are amazed by how easy it is to work with the BlackBerry 10 tools.

"They appreciate the open nature of our platform, which allows developers to bring their work and their skills and find a toolset that will work for them."

Another day, another fire to put out and BlackBerry 10 is still at least five months away.

Microsoft rumored to reveal Office 15

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Microsoft rumored to reveal Office 15

Microsoft has sent out invitations to a press event on Monday in San Francisco, and it looks like Office 15 could be the star of the show.

Steve Ballmer, Microsoft's CEO, will host the event, whereat the computing giant (Microsoft, not Ballmer) is expected to reveal the missing link in the Windows 8 and Surface chain.

Office 15 has been in private beta since January 2012, although non-disclosure agreements have kept most information about the "ambitious" upcoming software suite scarce.

On and Office

Paul Thurrott, however, managed to post some screenshots and first-impressions of the product, and the rebuilt software looks to be following Windows 8's lead.

Only Desktop interfaces have been revealed for the product (Metro is likely to have it's own, separate interface, particularly for tablets like the Microsoft Surface), and they look to borrow heavily from the bright, clean presentation seen in Windows 8.

Looking at what scant hints are now publicly available for the design and functionality of Office 15, it's a good bet that online integration will play a key role in the new software.

In addition to bundling in Microsoft Lync (an instant messaging client), other programs like Word and Excel will be integrated with cloud services like SkyDrive, My Office, and Facebook. Always-on connectivity is undoubtedly a huge focus for Microsoft going forward, and Office 15 will reflect that philosophy.

Compatibility may yet be an issue for Office 15, as support for Windows XP is coming to a close in two short years, and Vista's not far behind that. Windows 7 and 8 support are almost definite.

Though the product is still just in a private beta, a public beta is expected to hit the 'net sometime this summer.

The announcement on Monday will likely publish the final word on beta access and give consumers an excellent glimpse at the fairly one-note outlook of Microsoft's cloud-linked software project.
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