Software : Half of Samsung's R&D workforce works exclusively on software

Half of Samsung's R&D workforce works exclusively on software
Heading back to iWork: Apple plots return of missing productivity app features
No free Xbox Music access for Xbox One, Music Pass subscription required

Half of Samsung's R&D workforce works exclusively on software

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Samsung wants to move way from its hardware roots and embrace software as soon as possible. So said the vice chairman of its electronics division and CEO, Kwon Oh-hyun, during the company's analyst day in Seoul.

The 61-year old, whose background is in the chip business, revealed that half of Samsung's employees working in the R&D division are currently working on software solutions and that number is likely to rise significantly.

A "ball" analogy

Kwon compared Samsung's current status to Boston Red Sox's recent World Series championship in baseball. The team, he said, led major leagues in batting but not in pitching performance and somehow managed to win the world championship.

His conclusion being that nobody can be strong in both before adding "even though we're doing the software business, we're not as good as we are in hardware".

Samsung has more than 40 R&D labs and so-called global research facilities scattered across the world including one in Staines just outside London which focuses on telecoms and audio visual.

The company's research and development head count stood at 50,000 employees as of 2011, nearly one in seven of its employees back then, that last number rose to 425,000 by the end of the chaebol's 2012 financial year.

Tizen's the future?

Samsung is quietly betting on Tizen, a multi-purpose operating system, that replaced MeeGo and its own Bada OS, to fulfil part of its software ambitions.

The company still relies on Google's Android and Microsoft's Windows operating systems to power most of its electronic products but some recent changes in the market, most notably Google's acquisition of Motorola and Nokia's purchase by Microsoft, may have finally convinced Samsung that being in control of one's software is the way forward.

In the meantime, check Samsung's first attempt at producing a Tizen-based smartphone

Heading back to iWork: Apple plots return of missing productivity app features

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In a rare move, Apple has pre-announced the return of some iWork for Mac features that went missing in the suite's most recent iteration.

Apple kept its note cut-and-dry, but this is likely in response to power users who've complained the company stripped or "dumbed down" the offering to bring it more in line with iOS 7. Microsoft even threw in its own criticism last month, calling Apple's iWork apps "watered down" compared to Office.

Apple addresses none of the criticism, instead explaining that it rewrote Pages, Numbers and Keynote for iWork from the bottom up "to be fully 64-bit and to support a unified file format between OS X and iOS 7 versions, as well as iWork for iCloud beta."

In the process, some iWork '09 features didn't make the cut for initial release, however Apple plans to reintroduce some features over the next six months. Interesting Cupertino only mentions "some" features staging a comeback, though it does offer "brand new features" will also make it through in subsequent releases.

Features making a comeback

Apple listed 18 features it will bring back in the coming half-year, a smattering for Pages, Numbers and Keynote each.

Pages will see the return of its customizable toolbar, vertical ruler, a quartet of improved tools, keyword shortcuts for styles and the ability to manage pages and sections in thumbnail view.

Numbers will also see the return of the DIY toolbar, page headers and footers, and improvements to AppleScript support, among other features.

Keynote's toolbar too will show its face again, along with a restoration of old transitions and builds, improvements to presenter display and AppleScript support boosts.

While it's a good start, even with these features returning iWork's apps won't be completely back up to par with older versions. Apple has a remedy for that, albeit a crummy one - just use earlier iWork apps.

The company concluded with a tip on reverting document files to previous versions of iWork apps. Unedited documents can be reverted to the iWork '09 by going to File > Revert To.

Edited docs (with edits you want to save) can be saved as an iWork '09 document by selecting File > Export To and choosing Pages '09, Numbers '09 or Keynote '09.

Yes, it's true. The iPad Air is TechRadar's first 5-star tablet.

No free Xbox Music access for Xbox One, Music Pass subscription required

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Microsoft will not offer free, ad-supported access to its Spotify-like Xbox Music service on the Xbox One console after all, the company confirmed today.

The company offers free access for users through Windows 8 and at music.xbox.com, but Xbox One users will require a monthly Music Pass subscription ($9.99, £8.99) in order to play anything beyond a 15-song trial.

Despite indications from a senior Xbox employee last weekend, there will be no ad-funded option on the Xbox One, which is in line with the policy on Xbox 360, Android and iOS.

On the Xbox 360 users also need an Xbox Live Gold subscription to even access the app, which will also be retained for the Xbox One.

Dashed

The confirmation from Microsoft dashes the hopes of prospective Xbox One buyers who'd received word they'd be receiving ad-supported access as long as an Xbox Live account was present.

In answer to a Twitter question earlier this week, Albert Penello, head of product planning for Xbox One, told a follower: "You don't have to subscribe, but you will get periodic ads."

After realising his mistake (or be ordered to send out the right info), Penello wrote: "I was wrong about Music on XboxOne: You get 15 free song plays then need Music Pass for ad-free streaming. No ad-supported streaming. Sorry!"

So, disappointment for those wishing to stream free music on their Xbox One. However, at least the console still supports audio CDs, music streaming from a home server and personal music collections, unlike the rival PlayStation 4.

Panello pointed out: "But don't forget, Xbox Music supports Play-To of all your music directly from your PC."

Fighting Talk: How the Xbox 360 won the console war.

Yahuui Blog

Thursday, November 7, 2013