2009年2月26日星期四

英国用户在Android Market下载量前十的软件排名(Andy提供)

T-Mobile英国不久前公布了英国用户在Android Market下载量前十的软件排名,其中备份软件,在线购物比价,星相软件榜上有名。

依下载量排名为

1. The Weather Channel – 天气预报软件
2. MySpace Mobile – MySpace用户的最爱
3. ShopSavvy – 扫描商品条形码并在线比价
4. Daily Horoscope – 每日星座运程
5. Free Dictionary Org – 字典软件
6. Ringdroid –使用机内MP3和自录音频文件制作铃声
7. Backgrounds – 50000张墙纸包
8. Barcode Scanner – 和ShopSavvy差不多, 不过只用来扫描和查询CD与书籍的价格
9. Save MMS – 让用户可以保存彩信内的图片和视频音频到手机本地
10. Compare Everywhere –还是通过条形码在线比价的软件

可以看到图和音乐仍然是重点, 看来人的基本需求是比较类似的, 不过电子交易部分也凸显出来

2009年2月15日星期日

又要写代码了还是VM, 久违了VIM, 久违了GCC


刚刚和兄弟们讨论了对于新版本的虚拟机的设计, 很快就会分工合作新的版本的java虚拟机了. 这个版本的目标非常明确, 就是全面兼容j2me的标准, 同时也支援市面上主流的移动终端平台. 当然, 新版本会瞄准对高端设备的支持, 比如MTK中我们就是以Arm9系列为基础开发的, 比如TMK 6235. 届时, 我们将有一个完全自主的虚拟机可以直接运行任何j2me编写的软件, 包括我心动的Opera mini, cool!

不过更值得期待的是在虚拟机之后的下一步内容, 就是提供给开发者一系列好的Cloud Computing(云计算)类库, 完成MAOL的跨时代之旅.

很久没有组织展开如此大的软件体系设计和开发了. 尤其是又可以直接编写其中的代码, 挺让我兴奋的. 一直搞不懂为什么写了快20年程序了, 还是这么喜欢编程. 一旦投入进去, 什么劳累和烦心都不见了.

在这里先透露一下新版本的结构

1. 平台透明化的 Unified C Library (MCSET for Symbian/MTK/WindowMobile/Linux/IPhone......)
2. 100% java bytecode standard VM (基于MCSET, multi-thread enable, ha!)
3. J2ME classpath (CLDC/MIDP2.0...... 将会使用opensource的, 并且保证我们的改动也会opensource, 主要的改动应该是native functions的实现).

2009年2月14日星期六

MTK Arm9

上网查询了一些MTK Arm9系列的资料(比如6235). 从硬件规格来说, MTK的新硬件基础, 已经可以完成智能手机的要求了.  不过MTK还是选择Nucleus作为操作系统平台. 虽然这款RTOS在很多方面表现出色, 不过我个人更愿意在Arm9上运行Linux,呵呵.  (其实Nucleus Plus也不错, 至少可以使用C++, 不知道MTK是否会选择)

由于在国内, 甚至国际的手机工业中上MTK的影响力, 我们可以想象2009年当MTK Arm9平台兴起的时候, 也就意味着手机软件服务竞争的时代离我们不远了.

现在正在等待拿到MTK 6235的开发套件, 除了依托MTK提供的软件基础架构进行我们的VM的移植以外, 我个人很有兴趣将Arm Linux移植上去. 看看是否能将MTK硬件平台和操作系统平台进行分离.如果可以的话, 对于国内很多厂家和开发人员来说, 实在是非常有意义的事情. (不知道是否有其他人在做类似的工作, 如果有, 请大家告诉我). 

2009年2月12日星期四

iPhone management tools: Are they enough? (InfoWorld)(摘录)

本文摘录自: http://tech.yahoo.com/news/infoworld/20090212/tc_infoworld/125561

San Francisco - The simple facts are these: Unlike its main smartphone competitors, Apple does not offer large organizations a set of centralized application software controls to push applications and policies to the iPhone or to control the device's applications. Although Apple offers the free iPhone Configuration Utility for setup, security, and policy management, it's nothing like the BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES), Microsoft System Center Mobile Device Manager, Nokia Intellisync Device Management, orMotorola Good Mobile Suite that enterprises are used to having.

Bob Egan, chief analyst at the Tower Group, says there is virtually no security and management inherent in the iPhone that he would consider enterprise-class.

[ What's the iPhone missing for the enterpriseInfoWorldfinds a baker's dozen in omissions. ]

Apple hasn't completely ignored the enterprise
However, that's not to say Apple has taken no steps at all to satisfy consumer cravings to use the device at work. For example, in the first version of the iPhone, a user could not synchronize e-mail, so road warriors who read and deleted messages on their iPhones had to delete the same missives when they got back to the office. This was also true of calendar entries.But iPhone OS 2.x supports Microsoft ActiveSync, allowing e-mail synchronization with Exchange, and IBM has added a similar capability to the iPhone for Lotus Notes users.

The ability to wipe out all data remotely -- and thus remove a major security fear -- was also added to iPhone OS 2.x.

However, one of the primary benefits of BES is the ability to install applications remotely. Although Apple has promised business users this capability, so far it is still all about usingiTunes as the way station. IT can install custom programs into employees' iPhones without having to publish the software throughApple's App Store, but doing so requires each iPhone user to be cabled to the desktop for the transfer.

"The iPhone has a consumer distribution model for applications that Apple has been successful at, but it is not aligned with how enterprises buy, qualify, and maintain applications. The distribution model is broken," says Egan.

Third-party management solutions are available
With no enterprise-class management system from Apple,independent software developers have begun to target specific management and security areas.

For example, Astaro announced an alternative to the Cisco VPN solution built into iPhone OS 2.x. In a typical heterogeneous network environment, the Cisco tie-in meant that iPhones could only talk to servers enabled with Cisco VPN software, which not all companies use.

Purewire offers some security control as well. It configures a proxy for the iPhone so that e-mail and Web connections initiated by a user are first sent to its datacenter, where Purewire enforces policies created by IT. It also offers its own anti-virus tools to block malicious scripts hiding within Web sites.

And Zenprise provides a troubleshooting tool for the iPhone that monitors and fixes user issues, such as not getting e-mail or calendar entries on the iPhone.

Security issues will only get trickier
Richard Stiennon, chief research analyst with IT-Harvest, agrees that the current iPhone security and management tools aren't up to snuff. The problem will only get worse due to the iPhone's use of open APIs, which help them interact better with other tools and services, but also open paths for malware. "The open, or even partially open, APIs cannot be easily secured," he says.

Steinnon expects security vendors to offer more, and more capable, tools as user demand for the iPhone forces businesses to bring them in. That's true not just for the iPhone but for all mobile devices designed primarily for consumers, such as the Google Android platform, he notes. That's pretty much everything but the BlackBerry and perhaps Windows Mobile.

Skeptics maintain that the iPhone is no more than a toy
Tower Group's Egan sees such point tools for business iPhone management as Trojan horses that IT should be wary of. The availability of such tools mislead enterprise users into thinking the iPhone is compatible with enterprise-class security and compliance needs, when it is not. "The minute you try and interact and deploy management and security and qualify applications on a large scale, there's nothing there," he says.

Egan says enterprises make platform decisions that are not typically driven by the usability of a single device. UntilApple is willing to talk about its long-term enterprise strategy or compliance, management, and security, he calls the iPhone a one-trick pony.

2009年2月10日星期二

Limo - 值得期待吗?


      如果说Linux在移动领域一直有努力的话(比如Motorola的手机), 那么最近几年应该是他倍受关注的时候. 除了google Android大力渲染他是植根于linux系统之外, 最热闹的莫过于Limo Foundation的动向了(http://www.limofoundation.org/). 在6家厂家于07年成立这个组织以来, 一直希望能统一Linux在移动终端的标准, 这个标准包括一个开放的和硬件平台无关的linux操作系统标准.

      近期传出nokia收购奇趣科技, 说明老牌的nokia开始向开放架构的手机靠拢. 不过也看得出他十分不情愿加入Limo联盟, 可能有另立山头的打算. 在加上google Android也一再强调不会采用Limo的基础平台. 看来一个大一统的linux离我们还有距离. 
  
      不管目前limo是否能真正统一移动linux领域, 他所努力的方向还是值得期待的. 不过不管是哪个阵营的linux目前都没有像GNU linux一样全面开放开发环境, 这个对于我这样的GNU开发工具的忠实开发者来说不能不说是很大的问题, 不过我相信, 全面开放的linux迟早会到来:)

Test Center review: Java fights Flash (InfoWorld) (摘录)

本文摘录自

http://tech.yahoo.com/news/infoworld/20090209/tc_infoworld/125043

A long time ago, in an ancient world when the Internet was young, the Java language was so hot that Fortune put Scott McNealy on the cover with a superhero costume and the name "Java Man." The cross-architecture power of Java was going to remake the computer world and become the default OS for all of computerdom.

Although Java found a great deal of success in education, scientific computing, and server farms, it never got far on the desktop. The Java applets that could be embedded in any Web site couldn't compete with the smooth animation and anti-aliasing of Flash. Microsoft fought back with dynamic HTML, later reborn as AJAX, and the applet threat to Redmond's Web dominance faded away.

[ See the Test Center's reviews of Microsoft Silverlight 2,Adobe AIR 1.5, and Adobe Flex Builder 3.0. See the special report on rich Internet application development. ]

It's now more than 11 years later and Sun is back to take another stab at owning user-level interaction. The task is harder becauseAdobe has AIR alongside Flex and Flash, all slightly different tools offering some functionality beyond HTML and JavaScript. Flash alone is on its 10th version and comes with more features than ever before. That's just the beginning: Microsoft offers Silverlight, Apple still pushes QuickTime, and there's always the animation fun in AJAX. All of them are competing to be the dominant tool for delivering heavily animated widgets for picky users who presumably want their slick graphics to dance, wiggle, and swoosh across the screen in the process of -- oh, I don't know, sending an e-mail.

Lipstick for Java
Sun is now a bit better prepared for the battle. It has a rich stable of libraries for animation, including the well-regarded Java 2D, developed with Adobe to mimic much of the computational structure of PostScript. This is essential because some suggest that Flash beat out Java applets for Web animation because it offered smooth anti-aliasing. If Java 2D is not enough, there are a huge panoply of open source libraries developed to handle almost any need a programmer might have.

The problem for Sun was how to put this wine in a new bottle. Although the parts were ready for Web artists long ago, artists weren't ready for them. Some savvy artists can write scripting code for Flash, but pure Java requires a great deal more devotion. So Sun created a new language that is little more than syntactic sugar on top of Java. It built something that it hopes Web developers will like and used a new compiler, javafxc, to turn it into Java byte codes for the JVM. Voila! Java with new lipstick.

I've spent several days playing with the new language, and I've come to the conclusion that JavaFX's success and failure will be largely a matter of taste. The new syntax hides some of Java's nerdiest and most insistent requirements, giving the user a bit more freedom to ignore some punctuation. Many of the design details about color and placement can be mixed right into the code, producing something like CSS, HTML, and JavaScriptcombined in one file. There are also a number of built-in functions for handling the most common tasks, such as tweening GIFs or loading a remote file.

This convenience comes with a price: learning yet another syntax and remembering yet another set of ways to structure a Web application. The old keyword "void" is renamed "Void" with a capital "V," but you don't need to type it explicitly when defining what comes back from a function. There's plenty of other syntactic sweets. Collection data structures can be built up with phrases like insert "Fred" before names[3] . I think this could be welcoming for the right-brained, visual thinkers. Much of the dot notation for objects is replaced with more casual sentence-like strings.

After some experiments, I found myself torn. Why didn't Sun use Groovy, a quicker shorthand for Java programming? Or perhaps JavaScript? There are clever hooks between the JavaScript layer in the browser and the JavaFX applets. Or why not plain old Java? I've been wondering whether it was such a good idea for Java programmers to embrace different syntaxes like XML or the Properties file when much of this can be expressed in Java itself. But it doesn't matter -- I'm not the main audience.

Web mixology
In time, the syntax grew on me. The principle advantage seems to be that everything for a page is plopped in one file. The layout objects, the style, and the animation effects are all mixed together in one place. There's no need to page between CSS, HTML, and JavaScript files. Mixing the parts into one file isn???t a requirement -- in fact there are several mechanisms to encourage programmers to split a project into reusable modules.

Is mixing bad? Some devotees of strict separation of functions like Model, View, and Controller will grimace. Separate files for different jobs make it easier to maintain, the devotees of MVC insist. Lumping everything together in one JavaFX file makes it harder to give the CSS file to some designer and the JavaScript file to an AJAX programmer. Yes, that's true. But the integration is so tight that it can be onerous paging between the different files to first give some div an id, then give the id some styles, and then tell the id how to behave. If the code isn't too complex, why not mix them together? There's a chance that the designer will be able to cut and paste enough code to skip the programmer. Then it won't be a question of separating the tasks for the various people because there won't be two different people.

This mix-up isn???t required because the language has ways to separate the work if desired. The skin can be broken off into CSS files for a designer to work through while a programmer works on the scripting. I???m guessing, though, that JavaFX will be much more accessible to designers than JavaScript or some of the other languages. I???m also sure that there will be plenty of debate about the right way to structure an application.

Sun put a great deal of effort into adding JavaFX tools to NetBeans (see screen image). The simplest way to investigate the platform is to download a pile of code that comes wrapped up in NetBeans. There's also a collection of plug-ins that will export graphics from Adobe's Illustrator, Photoshop, and Flash. I think it might be possible for a brave artist to export some art from their favorite tools and create a morphing wonderland in NetBeans. But the average artist will probably need some hand-holding because the syntax of JavaFX is filled with many options that just pop out of nowhere. Only a programmer would think of mixing an if-then statement into a string definition:

var s="The world is {if (date>1492) "round" else "flat"}.";

It's a good thing we got rid of those curly brackets from Java's if-then syntax because then we could use them for something else in the middle of a string.

The artists out there don't need to confront such fun at the beginning because there's plenty that can be done with the simpler syntax. They don't need to wonder about such wormholes in the string definition until later.

Param Singh, the senior marketing manager for JavaFX, told me that Sun expects the early adopters will be largely Java developers and some very savvy designers.

???The tools are clearly in an IDE so you need to be familiar with an IDE,??? Singh said, before explaining that visual tools for designers were coming later, along with tools for developing JavaFX applications for mobile handsets.

I???m wondering whether these tools will also be free or at least much more inexpensive than Adobe???s tools. Programmers have reaped the rewards of the open source revolution and there???s a wide array of free tools. JavaFX could make inroads with young developers if the designer tools are significantly cheaper than Adobe???s.

I don't know if this is enough to capture much market share from Flash, AIR, or any of the tools. Programmers love their ruts. But it will empower Java programmers to take on new tasks, and this may let the language colonize more of the screen. Java programmers with a serious pile of code will be able to distribute it with greater ease.

The old guard
This is why I think the most common users of JavaFX will probably be scientific and financial programmers who need to put a prettier face on their sophisticated systems. Any Java library can be integrated into a JavaFX application, and this makes it possible to put a very smart, fat, computation-rich back end behind the tweening graphics. I can't imagine writing such programs in something like Flash's ActionScript. The tools for developers aren't as ready to handle big projects. It's nice to be able to call upon the multithreaded world with profiling tools.

Perhaps the real leverage will come as the hard-core Java folks push for better deployment options. One programmer, for instance, showed how to integrate JavaFX code with the drag-and-drop model for the desktop. This code will deploy directly through Java's Web Start, making it possible for someone with the latest version of Java to just click on an application that will accept files from the local computer. It's a pretty nice deployment model for a corporation, a free open source project, or anyone that's not planning on charging directly. JavaFX could end up being a good replacement for Swing by giving Java developers a chance to build up their UI out of HTML-like components instead of the Swing versions. JavaFX is not just a way to make a Web page dance; it has all of the right mechanisms for deploying desktop applications.

I think many designers will also enjoy building upon the hard work that???s gone into Java over the years. The JVM is very fast these days, thanks to the demands of the server-side installations that can???t hide behind a cursor that turns into an hourglass. The libraries are numerous and generally well-vetted for security holes. Plus, the latest JVM is installed on 80 million desktops already. These are now capable of handling JavaFX.

The rest of the artistic world may be a harder sell. Adobe makes nice tools for using Flash and AIR, but it charges a pretty penny for them. It may be possible for JavaFX to attract some of the younger, poorer designers who don't have the money to buy into the Adobe stack.

Handicapping the overall success of JavaFX is a bit more difficult. Will it displace Flash, Silverlight, or the others? Not immediately, especially when Microsoft is willing to work so hard on such big-budget extravaganzas like the 2008 Olympics. But I think it has enough meat on the bones to earn some real fans and win a solid niche wherever there's Java code that needs a prettier face and better distribution method. It gives Java another chance to gain some ground on the desktop.

2009年2月9日星期一

Opera mini 变革时代

很难想象一个欧洲公司在多年的沉默后将会是多么可怕的事情, 看到Opera公司的新产品才知道原来他们这么多年都在准备一个大规模杀伤性武器(小布什一直在错误的地方找:)).

http://www.opera.com/mini/

1994年我们大部分人还不知道互联网是什么, 那个时候整个学校只有一个又大又慢的modem连接在教育网, 当时唯一的网络活动就是字符终端方式的BBS, 虽然已经有图形界面浏览器出现了, 但是由于网络速度太慢, 我们几乎不屑于使用, 记得当时访问麻省理工学院的网页, 每次输入地址后都需要去泡一杯咖啡然后坐在边上等待, 这个习惯我一直保持到现在, 导致每次要浏览信息我都要去泡咖啡,或者干脆就呆在Starbucks, 呵呵. 

到了1996年, 情况完全不同了, Netscape浏览器开始成为我们最常用的软件. 虽然当时用的最多的是查询论文和图书, 但是它已经能展现web page丰富生动的内容形式了(终端的BBS我还是继续使用了很久, 直到不久以前, 当然, 现在愿意这么玩的人已经不多了). 而internet的速度提高也大大改善了用户使用浏览器的体验. 不过这个时候我们身边的互联网还叫"窄带网络".

不知道什么时候开始, 我们身边的网络已经进入"宽带"了. 当时很多人在讨论"宽带"上会有什么不一样的东西. 比如"Streaming multimedia", "Instant message"...... 不过, 有一样东西悄悄的呆着,却对我们的生活产生了巨大的影响, 那就是几乎被所有的人忽视的"浏览器". 不管网络带宽如何变化, 人们用的最多的其实还是浏览器.

回到手机上, 恩.....我不知道怎么表达我对手机上看网页的感觉, 如果不是因为这个是公开的blog, 我应该会骂出很难听的语言. 实际上, 当我们看到WAP成为手机上的主流标准后, 我和身边的同学都脱口骂出了. 

其实, 客观的说3g到来以前WAP的价值还是存在的, 毕竟在手机终端的展现力和网络速度都有限的情况下, 他还是能将信息用人们勉强能接受的方式送到用户端. 很多软件公司也针对这个时期的特点提出了一些有趣的解决方案, 最常见的是将传统互联网上的Web page转换成WAP支持的格式. 比如以下的东西:

不过我们还要如此痛苦的忍受多久呢?很多时候冲动地想自己在手机上写一个完整的Browser来发泄一下愤怒, 以至于整整两个月的时间每天晚上都在读Webkit的源代码. 但是终于由于各种困难放弃了(这可能就是当CEO无法避免的后果吧, 呵呵). 还好之后看到Blackberry/iphone/gphone都推出几乎可以很好浏览标准互联网web page的浏览器产品, 心情平静了很多, 遗憾的是, 这些浏览器都绑定了特定的手机平台, 注定他们只能在自己的游戏圈里玩(虽然他们中大部分是基于Webkit这个open source的项目改进的......)

Opera mini是一个j2me的应用, 因此能运行在除了iphone之外的几乎所有手机, 应该是3g时代最重要的应用之一, 虽然人们还是会向忽视pc端的浏览器一样忽视它, 呵呵. 

当然, opera mini这样的产品对于产业的影响是巨大的, 首先他将摧毁目前几乎所有的wap技术基础的服务和产品(如果他们不转型的话). 其次, 他让目前大部分的传统互联网强者能用最低的代价直接切入移动互联网. 

拭目以待, 或者参与这个游戏? 呵呵, 我想如果我们写的java vm能跑在iphone上(这一天会到来), Steve jobs可能不会太高兴吧. 

开放架构,未来手机大格局

记得1989年我接触到第一台个人计算机Apple II, 从此开始结下计算机的缘分. 当时的个人电脑和现在有很大不同, 如果你选择一种计算机, 那么从操作系统到应用软件(虽然当时的应用少的可怜, 我使用最多的是一个撞球的小游戏, 呵呵)都必须使用这家公司的产品, 或者这家公司指定的软件产品. 所以感觉有被圈套住的味道. 在玩腻了上面的应用之后, 我发现最吸引我的东西最后是basic编程, 因为你终于可以自己编写和使用自己的软件, 虽然那个时候身边没有像样的教材和指导老师, 学习得异常辛苦,但是还是十分享受自己能编写和创造软件的乐趣, 那时最希望的就是一台可以完全自己架构的计算机.

1992年, 终于拿到第一台IBM PC和DOS操作系统, 当时我很清楚的感觉到, 新的时代必然到来. 和之前的个人计算机不同, 开放的标准开始被推广. 任何厂家只要遵循IBM PC标准,就能推出自己的计算机产品, 而操作系统也开始独立于硬件厂家, 成为计算机行业的主导力量. 而各种各样的应用也超出想象的迅速诞生. 用户可以选择任何厂家的机器, 选定自己喜欢的操作系统, 然后安装适合自己的应用软件. 这个局面一直持续到今天仍然在继续. 当然, 最后开放兼容的操作系统目前所剩不多了. Microsoft公司凭借早期的DOS和后续的Windows, 以及成功的商业运作(虽然有些做法被很多人指责)几乎垄断了目前个人操作系统的天下. 所剩的竞争者只有草根精神的Linux/BSD和永不妥协的Apple Mac OS(实际上现在的Mac OSX是以BSD为基础的).

PC领域从封闭到开放, 为用户带来了完全不同的使用环境和自由选择的乐趣. 对当前个人计算机的发展有着革命性的意义. 

现在来看看目前手机业的情况, 很像是30年前的个人计算机. 当大部分用户购买一个品牌的手机, 那么只能使用指定的操作系统, 只能选择这个公司为你开发或者整合的应用软件, 虽然目前的很多手机也可以在一定程度内让用户自己选择一些应用软件, 但是对于大部分用户来说都是十分困难的.

最近各个大牌的手机厂家都开始宣布开放自己平台的开发标准, 这是对应用软件开发者和用户很好的消息. "开放"终于开始在手机行业重新演练当年个人电脑走过的老路了.

可以想象在不久的将来, 用户购买某个品牌的手机, 然后自己选择喜欢的操作系统, 并安装适合自己使用的应用软件. 届时, 手机才能真正成为大家最常用的设备. 而手机行业也将和当年的PC一样进入一个高速膨胀的新时代.

但是, 和当年的PC不同的是, 现在各个手机厂家都很清楚的意识到基础平台对于未来商业竞争的价值, 这一点当年很少在PC初期被重视, 所以Microsoft才会很快占据OS的垄断地位, 直到有一天Microsoft为了打击当时几乎动摇自己的对手Netscape, 开始进行IE+Windows的捆绑, 让所有人认识到平台的重要性. 现在的平台厂家已经很清楚自身价值所在, 因此, 各个平台共存的局面一定会存在很久的时间. 但是无论如何, "开放"就像一个无法阻挡的战车, 推着所有的人向前进, 即使很多人不愿意接受.

很长时间一直在跟踪一个很有意思的东西http://openmoko.com, 一个真正意义上的全开放手机. 开发者可以购买openmoko的硬件, 却自己定制和安装操作系统(目前主要是GNU Linux), 甚至google Android也能在这个手机上运行起来, 我相信很快Window Mobile也能在这个平台上运行.然后在选择安装自己喜欢的软件. 类似的设计在欧洲也有一家叫Trolltech的公司推出的greenphone.

我没有能力预测全开放的手机什么时候会到来, 因为业界很多厂家要拿出自己的"奶酪"重新分配, 正是这个原因, 连以开放为主要宗旨的google也在Android的态度上表现很暧昧, 一个以Linux为基础的系统却始终没有全面开放GNU体系的开发环境, 而是强迫开发者使用google自己的开发环境. 同样已经很成功的iphone虽然也是以BSD为基础, 但是却要求开发者必须使用自己的环境开发甚至发布软件产品也必须通过app store. 而其他传统手机厂家, 比如Nokia甚至要求开发者支付license费用才能开发和发布产品, 这个号称自己是个互联网公司的企业不知道是怎么考虑的, 才会有这么愚蠢的决定, 呵呵.

开放架构是不可阻挡的发展趋势, 也是未来手机业爆炸式发展的必要基础. 用户和应用开发者都在期盼, 而厂家虽然知道这个道理, 却不会很情愿的接受, 直到他们找到自己在开放体系中的价值. 不过到那个时候, 他们还会是业界的强者吗? 新的英雄一定会在这个动荡时期诞生, 说不定就是正在阅读这篇文章的你, 呵呵!

Mobile Era


先看几个东西(如果觉得技术性太强,可以略过):
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2320619,00.asp
为什么看这些呢? 主要是怕大家在金融危机中郁闷到睡着, 叫醒大家看看其实外面还是很热闹的.呵呵
鉴于目前的业界发展, 个人认为, 宽带移动互联网的基本技术格局已经形成, 技术的主要方向已经没有悬念. 接下来将是抢占关键位置的时候(国内我认为还有一定的缓冲, 但是随着各个运营商对3g的竞争, 也会很快和国际接轨).
我认为以后的移动互联网将是两个主要阵营共存:
1.  传统互联网强者将凭借类似opera mini这样的super browser迅速切入移动互联网. 就如上面的新闻所示, 移动终端对web app(技术上主要是java script) 的支持很快将完善, 到时候, 以信息交互为主的web应用将大量被用户使用, 比如"门户", "搜索", "电子商务","社区"等, 尤其是web2.0概念的产品会同样变成移动互联网用户粘度很高的关键应用. 这个是web阵营的情况, 注意, wap不可避免从历史上消失, 包括与其相关的衍生/过渡技术产品, 而国内类似"UC web"这样的公司的技术基础将受到严重威胁.

2.  native应用会成为新的亮点, 这个已经被iphone 的 app store证明了, 我就不多说了. 谁拥有最多的应用开发群体, 谁就是赢家. native应用由于具备web应用无法取代的用户交互性, 必然会长期存在.更为重要的是, 无论是哪个阵营, 都不可避免的会将大量数据和运算云集到服务器上, 实现在线计算, 就是目前最为流行的词语" 云计算" , 就是说我们的MAOL的概念中的基本元素基本都具备了(在中国, 还有支付环节的问题尚未明朗).

(Desktop PC/ laptop / Cell phone) : [JavaScript(web) / Native Application] <---> Cloud Computing service

为了便于理解我举两个例子:例子
1:我们目前实验中的google Map App, 就是典型的云计算架构, 客户端负责用户交互,接受用户指令, 然后地图图片生成由google提供的service在线完成,  而地理信息的查询由另外的service在线完成, 但是都统一送回到客户端进行展现. 这就是云计算的简单案例. 请注意, 在整个开发过程中, 应用开发者不需要自己架设任何服务器, 甚至不需要知道服务器在哪里. 只需要调用其他云计算厂家提供的service就可以了. 他们自己只需要关心应用的设计和使用逻辑. 所以可以在短时间内完成产品开发.

例子2:手机拍下了照片, 直接在线存储在SU2X的云计算服务器(主要负责用户数据存储). 用户可以在手机上查看, 或者利用电脑甚至数字电视即时查看, 如果用户允许共享, 其他人也可以立即通过各种终端即时查看. 这里要注意的是, 手机上可能是我们提供的相片native应用看, 电脑上可能是通过java script开发的web应用看, 但是都是访问的 SU2X提供的service.  要知道, 开发这个应用的开发人员仍然不需要架设自己的服务器, 也不需要关心服务器在哪里. 这个SU2X的service可能不仅仅存图片, 比如address book信息等等, 开发者可以很快地开发很多类似的应用.

可以预见, 未来的胜家实际上一定是云端的赢家, 因为终端的差异化将逐步消失. 这就是为什么apple在以硬件和基础系统吸引大量用户后,马上推出app store的内在动力, 因为他知道, 前者的优势将很快被追赶.

此外, 有两个领域必须关注: 一个是广告, 再就是手机支付, 实际上前者在我看来也是变相解决支付的问题:)

客户端上跨平台的j2me虚拟机(Native 应用)加上super browser(java script应用) , 以及服务端的云计算 , 新的时代, 新的舞台, 粉墨登场的各个角色中看得到我们吗?.....