CoderTools

The thing about Smartphones is that they invariably assume that you are stupid.  Specifically they try to spell check everything and in real-time.  The device that I use has a knack of switching my words for something, which makes no sense.  For example, until five minutes ago my last blog entry suggested that my lack of updates was due to primrose.  Or course this is complete nonsense but a result of the spell checker swapping my poorly spelt words for something from its dictionary.  In truth I cannot blame the software but myself for not checking the post before making it public.

For the last couple of months I have been looking at single-sign-on services, which I plan to use for my next project.  I have settled on OpenId (www.openid.org), which is supported by a growing number of well known companies from Facebook through to Google.   And this will allow me to authenticate people without forcing customers to create yet another online account.  The only thing I am missing now is how a customer will behave when presented with the option to sign on using their Facebook account?  Will they fear that I will have access to personal information or feel glad that they can continue to use an existing account?   Only time will tell but I hope my move to a common authentication method will be a good one.

The thing about blogs is that one can easily prioritise other things over them. Before you know it a year has passed and no new entries.

The past twelve months have been busy with much of my time spent working on my employers' projects. I have been able to make some updates to Totaledit Pro and some stability upgrades to Totaledit. I have also continued my foray into mobile software.

Next steps .... Well I want to push forward with mobile software development and HTML5, which is rather impressive. Especially the canvas tag.

Watch this space for updates on mobile tech.

Did anyone notice that Microsoft had withdrawn its Social Networking Kin phone from sale (www.theregister.co.uk/2010/06/30/microsoft_kills_kin_phone/)? Initially this caught me by surprise especially with the popularity of this domain. Social networking is the new email and it success is highlighted by the likes of Facebook and their reported 500+ million users (www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2010/07/22/facebook-users-500-million.html). On reflection I believe that the Kin phone fell into the same trap and the Microsoft Network seen around 1995/6. Similar to AOL, Microsoft believed that the online future lay within private and managed networks, which people could dial into. The Internet was a no-mans-land of poor regulation and low quality content. As Netscape grew in popularity Microsoft made a u-turn and pushed full speed into the Internet releasing Internet Explorer on the way. The Kin device was targetted at the idea of social networking but not in the flavour that people wanted to buy. A Microsoft view of the social networking world, which many were not willing to subscribe to. Are Microsoft doomed to repeat their past mistakes? The company just doesn’t appear to be able to find the tipping point, which has the public rushing to the stores to purchase their devices. In contrast Apple’s profits were up 78% in Q3 FY10 profits after the release of the iPhone 4.0 (www.zdnet.com/blog/apple/apple-announces-record-q3-2010-revenue-earnings-up-78-percent/7664).

Like Microsoft, Nokia and despite their sizable world-wide market share are playing catch-up. They just brought Motorola (www.toptechreviews.net/tech-news/nokia-buys-motorola-wireless-network-for-1-2-billion/), which can only be an attempt to gain a foot hold in the US. Despite owning a 39% share of the mobile space Nokia has slowly lost ground to the new players including Apple and Google. Android based devices are flying out the showroom doors and is slowing gaining market share. Android continues to be a long way off from Apple’s success but they are a force to be reckoned with. Especially as companies like HTC extend the open platform with custom built extensions.

The question that I have found an answer to is what will the future of the Internet be? Email was once the king of the castle but has fallen out of favour with the younger generation. Social Networking is riding high but soon its day will come. And I believe that this will happen sooner than we all think.

The thing about holding down a full time job is that is does rather interfere with my writing of software for CoderTools.  Five or so years ago I head dreamt of handing in my notice and working fulltime on the thing that I loved.  And that was writing software, which many people use day in and day out.  Unfortunately my lack of business sense has left me wondering how one does get to the pot of gold at the end of the small software house rainbow.  To this day TotalEdit costs more to run and the few dollars it generates.

I am currently working on the next version of TotalEdit Pro, which includes a handful of bug fixes and enhancements to features.  This work though has left me thinking about what it takes to create a viable piece of software.  Something that will generate an income.  I began to wonder if TotalEdit is too feature rich leaving those opting for the Pro version few and far between.

Personally I am still looking for that pot of gold and a means to work fulltime on writing good quality software.  I have come to the conclusion that I have long past the time when I should have followed a different software path.  And it is time for a shake up.  Playing around with the price of TotalEdit Pro hasn't helped.  Even at $10 the price appears to be too much for most.  Is iTunes to blame with the market shifting to a $1 per app culture?  But I doubt this is true especially as I have never succeeded in selling TotalEdit in any great number.

Hopefully TotalEdit Pro 5.6 will be out shortly and as always free to any existing license holder.

It happens to the best companies when they reach a size that they become a slow moving target. A point where corporate politics detract from the fast paced world of the startup.  During the 10 or so years that Microsoft has been playing around in the mobile market, starting with the iPaq type of device and later the smart phone other companies have managed to corner either the consumer or business markets.

Apple appears to be able to do no wrong with strong sales of the iPhone, which has caught the likes of Microsoft, Blackberry and Nokia off guard. For a long time the latter appeared to flounder in the comfort of their 40 million plus handset sales only to have their devices found wanting. Specifically with regard to Microsoft’s dominance in the office product market and how one would connect Microsoft Exchange to their Nokia device. In contrast the likes of Apple and Blackberry have been able to build on their relationship with Microsoft and offer this type of functionality. It is yet to be seen if the lack of native Exchange support on Google’s Android platform will be a deal breaker for many. But we must not forget just how much market share Nokia owns. It’s a lot and despite the success of the other brands, they all have a long way to go before Nokia steps down from being number one.

What about Microsoft? Windows Mobile 6.5 was at best a cheeky attempt at keeping pace with the user interface and technology advances found on the iPhone and Android. Similarly Nokia eventually dropped Symbian for their flag ship device and opted for a Linux based operating system instead, which oddly enough is what Apple and Google had done from the start. Microsoft’s Windows Mobile 7 is due for release in November 2010 and promises to be a ground breaking consumer device but still I wonder how much market share it will be able to consume?

Apple has something special in that they are seen as cool. A must have accessory rather than a tool. I am doubtful of any other company that would make the same claim. Blackberry is moving along and Google are busy building alliances with as many companies as possible. HTC, Dell to name a few have Android devices in production and development.

In the end I believe that it will be the OEM license fee that will be the proverbial nail in Microsoft’s mobile coffin. Google Android does not command a license fee, and there are various licensing and customisation options available to those who wish to use it on their device. That is to use the operating system as-is or wrap it in a bespoke user interface, which has led many hardware manufacturers to chose it as their platform of choice. The second half of 2010 is going to be a very busy time for Android.

Depending on the available profit margin for mobile type of devices I wonder just how zealous companies will want to adopt the Windows Mobile 7 platform. It isn’t clear what the differentiator is going to be. What is it about the Microsoft platform that warrants the additional cost of the OEM license fee? Just like Apple and Google, Windows Mobile 7 will have an application store. From the software author’s perspective all platforms are relatively easy and free to develop for. The cost of publishing is roughly the same requiring a one off subscription payment of $50 - $100, and then per sale transactions costs are comparable too. No, Microsoft will need to rely on the likes of HP to create a Mobile 7 device that is seen as a must-have accessory and then, just maybe, they will be able to claw back some market share.

I have just uploaded a new version of TotalEdit Pro.  There are a handful of new FTP features all designed to help you work.  Namely the ability to download and upload multiple files in a single action and also type in the full remote path in order to navigate qui