Hasta La Gadget!

It might seem like a crazy stunt that you would never think anyone would pull off, but it officially happened. A developer at an undisclosed “critical infrastructure company” was caught outsourcing his job to China for less than one-fifth of his six-figure salary. From there, the developer could sit back and relax.

A 2012 case study from Verizon brought forth the story of the sneaky developer. Only known as “Bob”, he worked at the unnamed company for a quite a long time, and was earning “several hundred thousand dollars a year.” Plus, he received excellent performance reviews along the way, noting that he was one of the best devs at the company, and that his code was very well-written.

However, Bob’s code wasn’t actually his code, but rather the job of Chinese workers whom Bob paid around $50,000 a year (which says that Bob was being paid around $250,000 a year). Instead, Bob surfed Reddit, watched cat videos, browsed eBay, Facebook, and LinkedIn, and then sent an email to management at the end of the day summarizing that day’s work (of the Chinese workers, that is).

Here’s where Verizon comes into play. The anonymous company asked Verizon for help in understanding some abnormal activity that the company discovered in its VPN logs, most notably a near-constant connection from Shenyang, China that used Bob’s login information. After taking a look inside Bob’s computer, Verizon found hundreds of invoices from a Chinese consulting firm in Shenyang that Bob used to get his work done for him. Needless to say, Bob is now unemployed.

Image via Flickr

Developer fired for outsourcing job to China is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Ford is serious about allowing developers to create applications designed specifically to run inside Ford automobiles. Early last year we talked briefly about the Ford OpenXC platform when it was first announced and entered beta. At CES 2013, Ford has announced its first software developer program and the automaker has now announced that its OpenXC platform is out of beta.

At CES 2013 Ford launched its developer program offering up a Sync AppLink API allowing developers to create smartphone applications that can be controlled from inside the car using voice commands. While that AppLink API is specifically for Ford vehicles, OpenXC is an open source hardware and software platform developed by Ford Research and Innovation.

Ford says that the goal of the OpenXC platform is to allow the open-source hacker community to explore what can be done with vehicle data. The OpenXC kit includes a vehicle interface module that is based on the popular Arduino platform. Developers can use the vehicle interface module for reading data from the vehicle’s internal communications network.

Ford says that the module offers hackers real-time access to vehicle details such as vehicle sensors, GPS receivers, and vehicle speed. The hardware module is designed to connect to a smartphone or tablet allowing developers to write applications for those devices that can interface with and receive vehicle data. Ford points out that the system provides read only data and is designed to keep everything isolated from the vehicle control systems.

Ford OpenXC platform exits beta is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

OUYA‘s Developer Console kits are winging their way to eager coders, and the first demos of the provisional interface and gameplay experience are emerging. Early game partners CodeZombieGames took some time out of tinkering with their new toy to run through the unboxing, setup, and usability of the OUYA box, including video playback, internet browsing, and actually playing a game. Read on for the videos.

OUYA is based on Android, but the team responsible for the box has reskinned Google’s OS with a UI more suited to TV use. The latest previews of that interface were given last week, though OUYA was keen to point out that it’s a work-in-progress and is likely to change from what we see here before the final build is signed off.

OUYA Dev Console interface:

Still, it’s a good preview of the overall owner-experience. The UI is clean, a little like the Metro-style interface on Windows Phone, and there’s an easily-navigable onscreen keyboard for text entry (though external peripherals should be supported). The most obvious thing is adjusting games to suit widescreen TV displays: CodeZombieGames’ choice of title is clearly formatted for a portrait phone orientation.

Those regular buyers who backed the OUYA Kickstarter or who have preordered the console since will have to wait a little longer to get their hand on the Android cube. First shipments are expected in March 2013.

OUYA Dev Console overview:

OUYA Dev Console hooking-it-up:

OUYA developers share console first-impressions is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Play To is often an unsung advantage of Windows 8; it’s the key to spreading media throughout the home without jumping through hoops, much like Apple’s AirPlay or the more universal Miracast. Microsoft wants those quieter Windows advocates to pipe up a bit. It just posted a sweeping developer overview of Play To support that addresses the basics and dives into the nitty-gritty details. The biggest takeaway may be that programmers sometimes don’t have to do anything — unprotected music and video in common formats are usually shareable as a matter of course, and it’s only with photos or complicated conditions like playlists that a “contract” is needed to reach another screen or speaker. The document does have some warnings for developers, however, both official and otherwise. There’s a (fairly evasive) explanation as to why copy-protected media won’t work, while commenters remind us that hardware compatibility isn’t as surefire as we’d always like. Any developers who want their media apps to shine on an XPS 12, however, could still find the guide to be just what they need.

Filed under: Software, Microsoft

Microsoft outlines Play To for Windows 8 developers, shows media sharing just a heartbeat away originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 18 Nov 2012 06:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The rise of touchscreen Windows 8 PCs isn’t a happy occasion for anyone who’s been carefully keeping PC screens clean: years of slapping wayward hands have been undermined by an interface that practically begs us to smudge up the display. While we suspect it’s really aiming for ease of use, Elliptic Labs may have heard that subliminal cry for cleanliness while producing its new Windows 8 Gesture Suite, a touchless control system built for a very touch-focused platform. The company’s newest take on ultrasound control can pick up 3D hand motions near the display and invoke all of Windows 8’s edge swipes and scrolling without the extra effort (or grease) of putting skin to screen. The method doesn’t need a one-to-one map of the screen and can work even in pitch darkness, which leaves adoption mostly dependent on hardware support rather than any wary users — despite immediate availability for the SDK, PCs need extra microphones and transducers to drop the touch layer. If computers with the Gesture Suite arrive in the hoped-for 12 to 14 months, though, we can get back to obsessing over a fingerprint-free LCD while saving some physical strain in the process.

Continue reading Elliptic Labs develops touchless gesture control for Windows 8, assuages our fear of fingerprints (video)

Filed under: Laptops, Tablets, Software

Elliptic Labs develops touchless gesture control for Windows 8, assuages our fear of fingerprints (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Nov 2012 06:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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