As part of our continuing work with Intel to highlight interesting software and developer demos, techniques and tools for Ultrabooks running Windows 8 we’ve got something here that would interest software developers looking at integrating media, social and sensor into their Windows 8 desktop software.

Hopefully, as a developer, you’re aware that some Windows 8 Ultrabooks have sensor integration. Sensors include cameras, GPS, NFC, touch, gyroscope, ambient light sensor, accelerometer and electronic compass. If you’re interested in this area, check out a really detailed tutorial with information and code pack from Intel – Ultrabook™ Desktop Applications Development on Windows* 8: Photo Application with Touch and Sensors The how-to shows how you can implement some of the new sensor features in your Windows 8 desktop application.

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We’ve covered the importance of Windows 8, the Windows 8 Store and Windows 8 apps before on Ultrabooknews. [Video and article here] and we’ll be bringing you more on software development, apps and opportunities in the future because we believe it’s one of the most important opportunities there is for developers right now. It’s also something we want to promote because for every Ultrabook and touch-enabled app that is launched, the Ultrabook product gets a little bit better. In an article over at the Intel Developer Zone you’ll find a great overview of the considerations you need to give when designing a touch-enabled application.

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Thanks to the Intel Insider program I was able to take part in the Mobile Dev Camp in Munich last week and what a great day it was. As with Hamburg and Amsterdam (I really must visit a Mobile Dev Camp in a country that speaks my own language soon!) I was blown away by the skill and focus of the developers and the quality of the presentations. I’m not a developer myself but I learnt a lot. I’m sure others did too.

Overall I came away with the impression that, as with Dev Camp Amsterdam, Europeans are slightly more focused towards Android than iPhone and are even continuing with Windows Mobile Symbian work due to numbers of end-users and the fact that a lot of people in Europe started in mobile software development before the iPhone boom. Switching operating systems isn’t cheap so a lot of the early software dev teams are still working with Symbian and Windows Mobile.

There’s also the feeling that the browser is coming of age. Four things seem to be driving the trend.

1. The growing number of mobile platforms and end-user devices means it becomes more expensive to cover everything.
2. Improvements in browser technology, in particular javascript engines, mean that in-browser code is now able to provide a better user experience.
3. Improvements in mobile CPUs also mean that in-browser code can be executed quickly.
4. HTML 5 elements provide a way for developers to get more creative in the browser.

Improvements in browser and platform technology was at the core of the first talk I attended. Stefan Zaunseder and Christian Schilcher from GISCAD who have both spent a lot of time researching the best technologies to use to present detailed mapping information via SVG. Should they use a client application or should they use a browser?

From the statistics they presented it appears that we’re now reaching a crossover point where, on smartphone devices, in-browser performance is finally reaching levels that can satisfy an end user. Interestingly enough it matches a lot of my own testing that indicates that the latest mobile cores and the latest browser technologies are now able to offer the end user an enjoyable way to use web-based applications without costing too much in size and battery life. Until now, this just hasn’t been possible.

Again, matching my own smartphone platform tests, it seems that the iPhone 3GS browser is leading the pack on the ARM platform. [As a quick sidenote to that topic I can say that although the ARM-based browsers are getting good, the best of the browsers on the best ARM platforms are still a long way away from the X86-based performance we see in Intel’s ultra mobility platforms. In my own javascript tests I’m seeing 3-5x more javascript performance at the same clock speed between Intel Atom and ARM A8 cores. Stefan, if you’re reading this, check out the Viliv S5!]

The second talk of the day came from Simon Tennant of Buddycloud. The subject quickly went to depths of Android coding that I’m not capable of following but I did pick up on one aspect Power efficiency. I personally have a problem with chatty protocols over 3G but BuddyCloud are using XMPP (as are Google and others) which they say gives them a full day of connected battery life on a regular smartphone. That’s interesting because although I haven’t tested extensively, I’m finding that Skype is an absolute no-no as an always-connected service over 3G. The protocol is effectively a multi-link P2P service and extremely chatty. I hope Skype find a way to improve that. Until then I’ll be looking for clients that use XMPP!

Simon had a nice slide which highlighted 5 tips for developers. Note how important he thinks power management is. I totally agree. Power management must be a core consideration for developers now.

The third session was from Simon Schoar who has a number of applications in the Android marketplace. He spent a good hour giving tips about what and what not to do when releasing an app. If I ever get into the Android application developer game (and believe me, I did think about it a few times at MDC09!) then I’ll be getting in contact with this guy.

Mobile phone software development is still very much an ARM-based activity. With effectively 100% of smartphones being on the ARM platform it’s hardly surprising but in my talk about device segmentation I bravely (and partly in German for the first time ever) tackled the subject of device segmentation. I tried to highlight the changing crossover point between devices on ARM and Intel ultra mobile platforms and to show how small the current X86 devices have become using a big set of devices I took with me. I also highlighted some applications that I think don’t really fit onto a smartphone very well. Media playback, ebook reading, navigation and web browsing were my main examples and you can see those functions in the image below.

I also highlighted where Intel are moving to, the expected sizing of Moorestown devices and how the Moblin platform could cover everything from smartphones to netbooks. When I highlighted the numbers involved I couldn’t help but notice a few people start to make notes! It’s something to think about because as Moorestown and Medfield platforms feed-in and Moblin develops into a mature OS with a quality application delivery and monetisation process, just a  5% penetration into the smartphone / mobile internet and netbook market means many millions of end-user devices! Imagine what the numbers are going to be like if it penetrates further. Intel like to quote a total addressable market of over 400 million devices. ABI research say much the same. Keep the Intel Atom Developer Program in mind, people!

Thanks to all the organisers and sponsors of MDC09. I’m looking forward to speaking to you all again soon.

@Chippy

More MDC09 information can be found here (German, translation.)

A few minutes after the iphone 3GS announcement yesterday I tweeted that it was still the most important MID out there. Despite some ridiculously lame announcements (MMS and tethering for example) the fact that the processor has been upgraded, that a compass has been added along with video capability, that there’s a turn-by-turn navigation offering and the introduction of a ton of ebooks into the store highlights that it can stretch its wings across nearly all the segments that mobile internet devices should be in. Internet, gaming, photography, communications, ebooks, navigation and media playback.

The fact that it’s capable of all these things (albeit in ‘standard definition’ and with carrier-tied 24month contract) makes it important to watch. Imagine what’s going to happen within the iphone developers ecosystem. The creativity contained within it is incredible and we’re going to see amazing applications, new usage models and a ton of new user-created data.

But…

It’s still not quite the MID most of us are looking for. Keyboard, hi-res screen, 720p recording, hi-def playback, video-out (wasn’t this supposed to be in the new OS?), removable battery, processing power, camera flash, Adobe flash and a general dash of openness are going to be big issues for pro-mobile types and that’s why it doesn’t really challenge devices like the UMID, the S5 or new devices like the Compal KAX-15 or the rumoured Nokia N900. Looking to 2010 and Moorestown/Moblin 2 the iPhone is going to look positively low-def if what’s promised comes true.

It looks like the hardware problems are solved and we could have our ideal MID tomorrow but that software ecosystem is key to gaining a fan-base, developers, word-of-mouth marketing and, quite simply, sales. Moblin and Maemo need to attract some of that creativity otherwise we’re left with some good hardware and a set of basic applications. App stores, stylish hardware, compelling API’s, unique features and attractive brands are a must.  The iPhone may not be the MID that any of us would create in our dreams but it’s still the most important MID out there.

Last week I listed 10 important ISVs that are working with Intel on Moblin-based software. Gypsii, Move Networks, Fring and a bunch of others. Today, you can add two more to the list; FancyPants and Orb.

FancyPants is a GUI development system. Announced in a press release that I missed last week you’ll see that they (that’s FST – Fluffy Spider Technologies) develop an API and software suite for implementing graphics and media-rich GUI solutions. Up until now, OEMS have had to employ the services of software houses to ‘finish’ the existing Moblin, Ubunti and Asianux stacks but this could help them turn around nice designs at lower cost and with a shorter time to market.  They’ve also produced a demonstrator running on the Compal JAX10 (Gigabyte M528, Aigo MID) which you have to take a look at here. Its smooth! I certainly wouldn’t mind having a bit of fun with this on my MID! [Article continues…]

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Java, Brew, Symbian, Adobe Air, Android, Moblin, .Net, Windows Mobile, Flash Lite, AJAX, iPhone. The mobile software development process is complex and full of choices. Too many for me to understand. I gave up software development when I was about 25 after spending way to many nights coding in C and looking up from the keyboard to see daylight.

I have so many unanswered questions on the topic that I really don’t feel qualified enough to even start to write an article on it. Take those keywords at the top there; Which are core architectures and which are generic programming environments? If I were an independent software developer (ISV) and I wanted to develop for Symbian, Windows Mobile, iPhone and Moblin, which programming environment should I choose. Java? Or should I just develop an AJAX-based browser application?

If anyone has any ideas, knows of any good articles or even fancies writing an article on the subject, I’ll be happy to listen. It’s not that I’m planning any software development, no, I’m just trying to understand how an ISV might react to 10 million Android installations, 100’s of million Symbian installations, 50 million Moblin installations or 20 million iPhone installations.  ISV’s, how would you react?