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Mozilla has announced the public release of Firefox 3 Beta version of their browser. The download is a beta version and on the website they caution “Please note: We do not recommend that anyone other than developers and testers download the Firefox 3 Beta 1 milestone release. It is intended for testing purposes only.”. One of the more fascinating features of this new release is the zoom-whole-page feature that lets you resize all the elements on a page, up or down, including images and form elements. This should be extremely useful on pages where developers use absoulte font-sizings instead of using “em” units which display a font in a percentage of the original size.

Here’s some information on the release from the Firefox Download page :

New features and changes in this milestone that require feedback include: * Improved security features such as: better presentation of website identity and security, malware protection, stricter SSL error pages, anti-virus integration in the download manager, and version checking for insecure plugins. * Improved ease of use through: better password management, easier add-on installation, new download manager with resumable downloading, full page zoom, animated tab strip, and better integration with Windows Vista and Mac OS X. * Richer personalization through: one-click bookmarking, smart search bookmark folders, direct typing in location bar searches your history and bookmarks for URLs and page titles, ability to register web applications as protocol handlers, and better customization of download actions for file types. * Improved platform features such as: new graphics and font rendering architecture, major changes to the HTML rendering engine to provide better CSS, float-, and table layout support, native web page form controls, colour profile management, and offline application support. * Performance improvements such as: better data reliability for user profiles, architectural improvements to speed up page rendering, over 300 memory leak fixes, and a new XPCOM cycle collector to reduce entire classes of leaks.

Testers can download Firefox 3 Beta 1 builds for Windows, Mac OS X and Linux in over 20 different languages. Please be sure to read the full release notes before using this preview release. Developers should look at the Firefox 3 for Developers article on the Mozilla Developer Center.

If you’re ready to test out this new release, please visit the Firexox 3 Beta 1 Download page

I’ve already downloaded my copy for my Ubuntu Linux box and I’m testing it out at the moment and it looks pretty cool !!!

Have Fun !!
Dave

         

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If you remember all the recent ballyhoo about Google entering the wireless handset market with a possible gPhone, and their announcement last week that they weren’t going to release the product but instead they’ve created the Open Handset Alliance that ties numerous mobile device vendors to a common API (Applications Programming Interface). Well, I logged into Google code today to get some documentation for a project I’m working on and I noticed they’ve begun releasing information on their “Android” platform to developers and have issued the Android SDK (Software Development Kit). The Android SDK is utilizing the Java programming language, so it should be fairly easy to implement solutions for most developers familiar with object oriented programming and Java architecture. Here’s a quote from the site that summarizes the Android platform.

Android is a software stack for mobile devices including an operating system, middleware and key applications. It is being developed by the Open Handset Alliance, a group of more than 30 technology and mobile companies. Android was built from the ground-up to enable developers to create compelling mobile applications that take full advantage of all a handset has to offer. Developers can create applications for the platform using the Android SDK.

The main repository for the Android API is located here :
http://code.google.com/android

The Android SDK can be downloaded here :
http://code.google.com/android/download.html

Rumour has it that Google is excited about this alliance with other moblie companies and they have plans to deliver contextual ads to people’s phones. I’m not quite sure how well received such a project that would deliver ads to handsets would be, but only time will tell. As far as mobile device SDK’s go, Motorola and companies like PALM have had JAVA based open architectures for years now, so in my opinion there’s nothing compelling or innovative here. Additionally, when one considers how propietary the handset and mobile manufacturing industry is, I find it hard to imagine that the biggest companies out there will open their architecture to a single platform because there’s certain disadvantages to shared technologies when we’re talking about the manufacturing of electronic devices. After all, if all handsets or electronic devices were created equal, there would be no advantages to owning one brand over another.

As a lifelong developer who loves Linux and has years of experience with JAVA, I am intrigued by the Android API and SDK, and the coolest part is that Android relies on Linux version 2.6 for core system services such as security, memory management, process management, network stack, and driver model. The kernel also acts as an abstraction layer between the hardware and the rest of the software stack.

         

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OK, all you Apple dorks and early iPhone adopters just didn’t listen to some of us who warned you about Apple’s partnership with AT&T, the absolute crappiest wireless provider ever. I guess the sale of iPhones was minimal in my home state of Delaware because anybody who lives on the Delmarva peninsula knows AT&T services are total garbage, but the typical tech geeks, wannabe’s and those “keeping up with the in crowd” had to go out and make sure they were in the technological elite and the first geeks on their block to own one. Well, here’s something I find ultimately amusing. Some video blogger chick (btw, she’s a hottie), just got her first AT&T bill, and guess what? It was 300 pages and sent to her in a box, not an envelope…

Watch here…

Well, she’s cute enough, I’m sure her rich daddy or her rich boyfriend will pay the bill for princess. For the rest of you iPhone dorks and Macintosh geeks, have fun with your new toy. You’re going to have to take out a second mortgage on your house to pay for it. Oh, I forgot, most Apple enthusiasts don’t own anything of real value because they’re so stupid they blow all their hard earned cash (or their parents cash) on their overpriced Appelicious goodies and the mortgage market is totally screwed at the monent.

         

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Apple’s iPhone

So you’ve got that new iPhone home and out of the box, signed up for your two year At&T contract and you’re all ready to go zipping down the information super-highway. visions of YouTube on a 3 inch screen dancing in your head you power on your iPhone for the first time and dive right in looking for the basics of a cellphone, customization. Can you customize it? Can you change the wallpaper with your OWN? Can you change the icons? Can you change the layout? Can you change the ringtone ?? After several hours of plugging around and searching the internet for answers you slowly come to realize the answer to those questions is *NO*. So is your new “tech toy” stupid? No, it’s smarter than you because in your neverending quest to be the most technologically savvy kid on your block, you were thrown a curve. Why ?? Here’s a few reasons. If you’ve been smart enough to resist those appealing commercials from Apple, but are on the fence regarding a future iPhone purchase, read on here for some useful information.

Multi-Function Devices
Color me black for having owned one of those TV/VCR combo units back in the 1990’s. I swore I’d never own another combo or multi-function unit ever again. If one of the devices breaks, you’re left with a partially functioning mess. I guess I hadn’t learned my lesson when I bought one of those Cannon Multi-Function printer / scanner / copier / fax machines years later only to have an overpriced hunk of junk that never worked correctly from the beginning. My philosophy on multi-function devices is etched in stone these days and the iPhone’s offering of phone / PDA / media player has me wondering why would anybody need all those functions packed into one small, easily breakable unit. The “tech geeks” who rushed out to buy an iPhone are more than likely own several iPods, PDA’s and God only knows how many old cellphones in the desk drawer. You think people would learn by now not to be bitten by the technology spider. Especially people who are carrying balances on their credit cards, have difficulty paying their bills or are still living at home with their parents (the majority of iPhone early adopters).

At&T Wireless Services
I’m not quite what they’re smoking out there in California where Apple is headquartered but to the vast majority of East Coast cellular subscribers, AT&T / Cingular is not an option. Ask any Cingular or AT&T subscribers from Florida about how they performed after the state was ravenged by three hurricanes. Connectivity was non-existent which lead many subscribers to move away from AT&T and/or Cingular to other providers such as T-Moblie and Verizon. Not to mention, anybody who regularly makes the trip up I-95 knows well of the Cingular “blackhole” driving through North Carolina where At&T or Cingular subscribers are lost without a signal. Cellular customers in Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey and many other states have all found themselves locked into long term contracts with Cingular / At&T and stuck with sporadic connectivity and poor service and support. I think the people at Apple should have done some due diligence before picking a singular (pun intended) provider for service.

Developers Left Out
It’s no suprise the iPhone doesn’t support third-party applications like standard PDA’s. The iPhone is a win-win situation for Apple in the marketing department. They’re certainly in no hurry to hand over their “captive audience” to outside development teams.

iPhone Hacked
Fox News reported today that the Apple iPhone is vunerable to hackers and security exploits. While I put little stock in anything reported on Fox News, it still remains a fact that hackers around the planet have turned their attention to the biggest “geek gadget” in recent years.

Interchangable Battery??
Perhaps the most stunning revelation from iPhone early adopters is the fact that the iPhone *does not* have an interchangable battery. Are you serious? A cellphone combo unit without an interchangable battery ??? That’s just a recipe for disaster.

Enjoy the Apple iPhone for what it is. A well done piece of hardware with a very cool GUI. Nothing more, Nothing less. Feature-wise, it’s a bomb but does anything *ever* live up to our inflated expectations, especially as far as technology is concerned? I can’t think of anything that has.

         

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