When it comes to mobile HTML5 performance, Apple’s iOS platform far surpasses the Android, according to a recent study from Spaceport. Read original content

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Kevin Benedict, Mobility Analyst and Consultant Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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Published March 21, 2012 – Reads 588
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Kevin Benedict is an independent enterprise mobility analyst, mobile strategy consultant, writer, speaker and SAP Mentor volunteer. Follow him on Twitter @krbenedict. He is a popular speaker around the world on the topic of enterprise mobility.

He maintains a busy schedule writing and speaking at events in North America, Asia and Europe. He has over 22 years of experience working with enterprise software applications and has built a mobile enterprise software company from the ground up that experienced 100% year-over-year growth for 4 straight years.

Article source: http://www.sys-con.com/node/2215942

For a large number of people updating WordPress is risky or other issues prevent them doing so: quite possibly the majority of WP blogs out there are out of date.

WP is an excellent software, but although personally I have always updated the next day, with 3.3 I refused, as with other people, due to the loathsome mandatory Toolbar and the now-collapsed sidebar in the Admin. Realistically, this means transferring to another CMS in the longer term; yet in the meantime I would be running an out-dated version.

However, as this gentleman points out, this isn’t the end of the world, nor necessarily dangerous even:

http://kevinjohngallagher.com/2011/09/omg-wtf-y-u-no-upgrade-kktnx/

Far more important is instituting a vigorous anti-spammer regime, and hardening the site on the server itself. It is annoying we still have to take active measures against these rascals, but perhaps in ten years they will be a thing of the past with increases in technological advancement. Yet now, only vigilance, passive or active, can protect a site.

Article source: http://www.zdnet.com/blog/security/compromised-wordpress-sites-serving-client-side-exploits-and-malware/11008

SAN DIEGO, Mar 21, 2012 (GlobeNewswire via COMTEX) –
Thunder SEO, an online marketing agency in San Diego, California, announces their SEO Strategist and Business Developer, Gary Magnone, has been selected to speak at WordCamp San Diego. The topic he will be presenting on is “SEO with WordPress”.

WordCamp San Diego will be held on March 24th and 25th at the Thomas Jefferson School of Law in the East Village of downtown San Diego. The conference will bring together 300 of the savviest designers, developers, marketers, and creative professionals in the San Diego area, as well as within the WordPress community. The presentations will be separated into those for “Developers” and those for “End Users”, covering topics like “Premium Plugins Adhering to the GPL”, “Custom Goals and Custom Themes”, and “Speaking the WordPress Language”. Magnone will be giving a presentation for the “end user”.

The “SEO with WordPress” presentation by Magnone will take place at 8:50am on Saturday, March 24th. This session will take a deep dive on what business owners, bloggers, and website owners need to know when it comes to increasing traffic to their WordPress sites. Magnone will focus on the critical mechanical site options that influence search engine accessibility like plug-ins, permalinks, and internal linking, as well as the importance of external links pointing to a site. Attendees will learn Magnone’s expert tips and tactics for leveraging keyword research, content development, and social outreach for attracting links to their sites naturally and how to translate those into higher rankings, more traffic, and ultimately more money for their businesses.

“One of the most frequently requested topics for WordCamps is how to implement SEO strategies successfully using WordPress,” said a member of the WordCamp San Diego 2012 Organizing Committee, “The organizers of WordCamp San Diego are happy to have Gary Magnone of Thunder SEO present this critical topic to our attendees at this year’s event. With over 20 hours of WordPress programming over two days, we’re sure this is going to be one of the most anticipated sessions.”

Because this year’s event sold out in a record 11 hours and 55 minutes, (an all-time record for WordCamps), WordCamp San Diego 2012 will be streamed live for those who were unable to purchase a ticket. Visit
http://2012.sandiego.wordcamp.org/ for more details on the live streaming of the conference.

Founded in 2007 in San Diego, CA, Thunder SEO supports clients with innovative and results-driven online marketing solutions integrating social media, content optimization and promotion, link building strategies and implementation, local search and mobile marketing, online promotions and sweepstakes, public relations and online reputation management. Thunder SEO is located at 2920 North Park Way, San Diego, CA 92104. For more information on Thunder SEO, call (619) 618-2396 or visit them online at
http://www.thunderseo.com/ .

The Thunder SEO logo is available at

http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=12128

This news release was distributed by GlobeNewswire,
www.globenewswire.com

SOURCE: Thunder SEO

        CONTACT: Thunder SEO
        (619) 618-2396

(C) Copyright 2010 GlobeNewswire, Inc. All rights reserved.

Article source: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/thunder-seo-announces-gary-magnone-to-speak-at-wordcamp-san-diego-2012-03-21

The Android platform is taking a few hits these days as it moves towards unification with Linux and further integration into Google with Google Play. There was the report of a developer leaving Android development due to lack of interest in his games. While an isolated case, a new study from Appcelerator confirms the trend – developers are losing interest in Android.

Before we get into this study, it’s important to note that Appcelerator’s study doesn’t account for all app developers. The study surveyed 2,173 Appcelerator Titanium developers on their plans and development priorities, then called 484 of those developers back in for further questioning. While it’s not every developer, it’s a decent sample size that should be able to predict general movements within the smartphone development arena.

Mobile app development is on the rise according to the report. It says that more than half of the respondents said they are now focused on increasing their mobile development. About 16.7 percent of these same respondents also said they will focus on innovating their apps in 2012.

The rise in mobile development doesn’t mean that interest across all platforms is as high. It’s found that interest in Android development is dropping. The interest in developing for Android phones dropped 4.7 percent to 78.6 percent and interest in Android tablets dropped 2.2 percent to 65.9 percent.

At least Android isn’t as bad off as the Blackberry OS with interest in that platform dropping 5.2 percent from last year to 15.5 percent overall.

Windows Phone 7 interest seems to be rising with the platform taking a solid third place after iOS and Android. The launch of the Windows 8 phones and tablets might help grow those numbers later this year.

If you’re more of the visual type, here are two graphs that chart developer interest in various platforms. The first is overall interest in mobile platforms taken from the most recent survey.

The second is looking at growth or decline of interest from 2010 to 2012 for each platform. This graph is the most striking as it visibly tracks the decline Android is currently experiencing.

Appcelerator’s principal mobile strategist Mike King spoke to The Register on the decline of Android development interest. He says the blame falls squarely on Android’s fragmentation of its own market. The multitude of devices, all potentially running different versions of Android, make it hard for developers to make money according to King.

Another trend in 2012 seems to be the rise of HTML5. Seventy-nine percent of mobile developers are planning to use HTML5 in some capacity this year for their apps. Pure HTML5 development is not all that popular yet, however, as only six percent of developers are planning to build an entire app using HTML5. The majority of developers (72 percent) are building hybrid apps that utilize some HTML5 code, but also use other programming languages when building apps.

App developers are going to utilize cloud technologies in a big way in 2012. Thirty-five percent of developers are wanting to use the cloud to implement location technologies into their apps with 33 percent using the cloud for notifications.

On a final note, developers are using social media integration in the same ways they were using them last year. The top three uses of social media are literally unchanged from last year – notifications, sharing status updates and authentication. As much as Facebook touts Open Graph as being the future of apps using Facebook, only 17 percent of developers are actively using it.

The entire study can be obtained for free at Appcelerator’s Web site. It’s a good indicator of what the mobile app ecosystem is going to look like in 2012. It will be interesting to see if Google responds to developer concerns over its Android environment slipping.

Article source: http://www.webpronews.com/android-development-interest-slips-html5-on-the-rise-2012-03

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March 20 (Bloomberg) — Mark Travis, chief executive officer of Intrepid Capital Corp., Ward McCarthy, chief financial economist at Jefferies Co., and Dan Wiener, chief executive officer of Adviser Investments, talk about the U.S. housing market and economy, and investment strategy.
They speak with Pimm Fox on Bloomberg Television’s “Taking Stock.” (Source: Bloomberg)

March 20 (Bloomberg) — Colin Wiel, co-founder of private-equity fund Waypoint Real Estate Group LLC, talks about his company’s strategy of investing in foreclosed homes.
Wiel speaks on Bloomberg Television’s “InBusiness With Margaret Brennan.” (Source: Bloomberg)

Sales of previously owned U.S.
houses held in February near an almost two-year high, adding to
evidence the market that triggered the recession is firming.

Purchases dropped 0.9 percent to a 4.59 million annual rate
from a revised 4.63 million pace in January that was faster than
previously estimated and the highest since May 2010, a report
from National Association of Realtors showed today in
Washington. The median price increased over the past year for
the first time since November 2010.

“The U.S. housing market is stabilizing and very gradually
carving out a recovery,” said Sal Guatieri, a senior economist
at BMO Capital Markets in Toronto, who correctly projected the
February sales rate. “Housing demand should pick up in response
to falling unemployment and attractive affordability.”

Buying a house is coming within reach for more Americans as
hiring picks up, incomes grow, property values steady and
mortgage rates hold near record lows. The report also showed the
number of houses for sale climbed in February by the most in 10
months, a reminder that foreclosures continue to loom as a
headwind for the market.

Stocks dropped, led by declines among energy companies. The
Standard Poor’s 500 Index fell 0.2 percent to 1,402.89 at the
close in New York. Treasury securities rose, sending the yield
on the benchmark 10-year note down to 2.3 percent from 2.36
percent late yesterday.

Survey Results

The median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey of 77
economists projected a sales pace of 4.61 million. Estimates
ranged from 4.44 million to 4.8 million. The January reading was
revised up from a previously reported 4.57 million rate.

Purchases of existing homes, tabulated when a contract
closes, climbed to 4.26 million last year from 4.19 million in
2010. Demand peaked at 7.08 million in 2005 during the housing
boom. In 2008, sales totaled 4.1 million, the least since 1995.

Even with the decline last month, January and February
sales marked the strongest start to a year since 2007.

“Business is getting better gradually,” said John
Huebner, owner of Century 21 Real Estate Professionals, a
brokerage with 210 sales agents in Orlando, Florida. “People
are moving and houses are selling, and that’s good for us.”

More people are searching for homes online, giving his
brokers more leads on sales as shoppers seek to take advantage
of low interest rates and prices, Huebner said.

“If homes are priced well and in good condition, we’re
seeing multiple offers,” he said.

More Inventory

The number of previously owned homes on the market rose by
100,000 to 2.43 million in February, today’s report showed. At
the current sales pace, it would take 6.4 months to sell those
houses, up from 6 months in January.

The median price climbed 0.3 percent to $156,600 from
$156,100 in February 2011. It was the biggest gain since the
year ended July 2010, reflecting a temporary boost in demand
related to the Obama administration’s homebuyer tax credit.

A measure of housing affordability climbed in January to a
record 206.1, according to the NAR’s data. A value of 100 means
that a family with the national median income has enough to
qualify for a median-priced property.

Today’s report showed purchases declined in two of four
regions, led by a 3.3 percent drop in the Northeast. Sales in
the Midwest increased 1 percent.

Distressed sales, comprised of foreclosures and short sales
in which the lender agrees to a transaction for less than the
balance of the mortgage, accounted for 34 percent of total
demand last month, little changed from January’s 35 percent.

Foreclosures

Home foreclosures may remain a persistent concern. Filings
fell 8 percent in February, the smallest year-over-year decrease
since October 2010, as lenders began working through a backlog
of seized properties, RealtyTrac Inc. said last week.

“February’s numbers point to a gradually rising
foreclosure tide,” Brandon Moore, RealtyTrac’s chief executive
officer, said in the statement. “That should result in more
states posting annual increases in the coming months.”

Federal Reserve policy makers last week said they will
continue to swap $400 billion in short-term securities with
long-term debt to lengthen the average maturity of the central
bank’s holdings, a move dubbed Operation Twist and aimed at
holding down borrowing costs like mortgage rates.

To contact the reporter on this story:
Timothy R. Homan in Washington at
thoman1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Christopher Wellisz at cwellisz@bloomberg.net

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Article source: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-03-21/sales-of-previously-owned-u-s-homes-decreased-in-february.html

HTML5 apps and even an HTML5 phone seem to have all sorts of obvious advantages for telcos, not least of which would be to open up the smartphone so that Apple can’t keep sucking up nearly all the profits. Alas, there may be a way to go yet. By Ian Scales.

Article source: http://www.telecomtv.com/go/?ct=1&cid=48560&id=e9381817-0593-417a-8639-c4c53e2a2a10

ORLANDO, Fla., Mar 21, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) –
Kony
Solutions, the leading mobile platform provider, has released its
list of key mobile market developments for 2012 from Chief Technology
Officer Sriram Ramanathan. Working with the nation’s largest brands,
including more than 60 Fortune 500 companies, two of the three
largest U.S. banks, and 3 of the top 5 U.S. airlines, Ramanathan has a
street-level view of how IT organizations are deploying mobile
technology.

Tapping into his experience developing both business-to-consumer (B2C)
and business-to-employee (B2E) mobile applications, Ramanathan predicts
that organizations adopting a “mobile first” mindset and taking
advantage of HTML5 will be the ones to maintain their competitive
advantage and succeed in today’s increasingly mobile-savvy market.
Additionally, Ramanathan concurs with widespread 3rd party
forecasts that Business-to-Employee deployments will take off this year
as organizations make mobile a more strategic part of their IT
infrastructure. Five key mobile market trends companies should prepare
for now include:

1. The Rise of Mixed Mode Apps

Not all apps are created equal. To take advantage of the benefits of
HTML5, along with the ever-expanding capabilities of mobile devices,
organizations will rely on mixed mode apps that combine HTML5 features
like enhanced animations and transitions, along with the
performance-oriented abilities of native apps to achieve the best
individual user experience across phones, tablets, kiosks and desktops.

2. HTML5 Goes Mainstream, Pushes the Boundaries of Handset
Capabilities

There are more than 9,000 mobile devices on the market and new devices
are entering the market at a ferocious pace. ABI Research projects that
44 billion apps will be downloaded by 2016–it’s clear consumers are
expecting to have a high-quality and feature-rich app for just about everything.
Even though HTML5 isn’t expected to be ratified until 2017, support
for this evolving standard is on everyone’s roadmap, and developers and
IT departments are hustling to incorporate this functionality to meet
consumer demand.

3. The New JavaScript?: App Developers Tackle HTML5 Using
Prior Expertise

Embracing HTML5 does not mean organizations must start from scratch to
implement optimized mobile solutions. Tapping existing JavaScript
knowledge, organizations will leverage their current resources when
integrating HTML5 technology, thus redefining the developer’s job
description.

4. The Mobile Workforce: How HTML5 And BYOD Come Together

In the age of the mobile workforce, today’s employees bring their own
devices to work and expect more than a cookie-cutter enterprise
application. Organizations will be hard-pressed to find an executive who
does not expect feature-rich data, location awareness, and visualization
tools when surveying company analytics on-the-go via their mobile
devices. And as more organizations implement B2E mobile solutions, we
will increasingly see HTML5 as a key enabler of these offerings.

5. The Enterprise Is Evolving: Organizations Restructure To
Adapt

As BYOD evolves, organizations will restructure the roles of IT
departments. This change will manifest itself in the role of a Mobile
CIO and the build-out of new Mobile Centers of Excellence, charged with
assigning application policies, regulating internal practices and
ensuring solutions are optimized to take full advantage of the mobile
channel. No longer will teams look first to the Web Development
department — instead, expect mobile to lead the charge on business
strategy.

“HTML5 functionality is exploding, revolutionizing consumer expectations
of mobile apps, and at the same time, BYOD is compelling IT
organizations to adapt quickly,” said Sriram Ramanathan, CTO of Kony.
“We’ve heard of ‘consumerization of IT’ but what we’re really working
with is the mobilization of the entire workforce, from sales to HR to
C-level executives. I predict that organizations in 2012 will feel
greater pressure to develop engaging mobile enterprise apps with the
agility and adaptability to meet current demand and prepare for future
advancements.”

Ramanathan has more than 20 years of experience at leading companies in
telecommunications, wireless and mobile technology. Most recently
Ramanathan was an IBM Distinguished Engineer, IBM Master Inventor, and
CTO of wireless, mobile and communications for IBM Global Business
Services. Ramanathan has filed for more than 85 patents in the mobile,
wireless, digital media and smart grid domains.

About Kony Solutions

Kony enables companies to provide innovative mobile solutions on every
mobile device. Leveraging the KonyOne Platform, an application is
defined just once, and deployed across more than 9,000 devices, 7
operating systems and multiple channels, including native, HTML5 and
mobile web, hybrid, social media, SMS/MMS, kiosks, desktop and tablet
applications. KonyOne provides a universal framework that ensures the
best user experience by optimizing all native capabilities for each
device operating system and browser. Given the market’s rapid rate of
device and platform upgrades, Kony future proofs applications against OS
and browser updates, providing SLAs guaranteeing timely support of the
newest operating systems and devices. Leading brands have built mobile
enterprise applications with KonyOne, including Hotwire, Huntington
Bank, Hyatt, Toyota and Capital One.

In 2011 Kony was positioned as a “Visionary” in the Gartner Magic
Quadrant for Mobile Consumer Application Platforms (MCAP) report. Kony
has been named a Gartner Cool
Vendor, a ‘Most
Innovative Company of the Year’ by the American Business Awards and
was chosen as one of Fast
Company’s 100 innovative Apple-affiliated achievers.

For more information, please visit
www.kony.com .
Connect with Kony on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.

SOURCE: Kony Solutions

        Affect
        Kate Ryan, 212-398-9680 (Media)
        kryan@affect.com

Copyright Business Wire 2012

Article source: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/html5-goes-mainstream-and-byod-picks-up-steam-five-disruptive-trends-changing-the-mobile-market-landscape-2012-03-21

TORONTO, March 21, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ –
“Mygazines” becomes Uberflip, redefining its digital publishing solution
as an affordable inbound marketing and communications tool.

Uberflip (formerly “Mygazines”)
announced today the roll-out of a completely redesigned service and
pricing structure. Uberflip’s HTML5 solution seamlessly converts PDFs
into stunning interactive publications that are device-ready for
tablets, smartphones, and desktops from only $29.95 per month.

“Marketers, for example, are spending thousands of dollars to convert
their content into mobile apps. They can now make their PDFs instantly
available with a device agnostic format for only $29.95 per month,
after a no risk 60-day free trial,” said CEO Yoav Schwartz. “The idea
is to put this powerful cloud solution in the hands of every
corporation, firm, agency, publisher – really anyone.”

Within minutes, clients are able to upload a PDF, enhance it, and make
it instantly available on tablets and other devices. The result is a
digital publication that is more engaging, accessible, and trackable
than the PDF format it originated in. Audiences access a company
branded URL for the document; Uberflip recognizes the device and shows
an optimized interface using HTML5 technology on mobile devices such as
iPhone, iPad, Blackberry, and Android-based smartphones and tablets.

To stress that its solution is truly for any company Schwartz decided
the company would drop the ‘Mygazines’ name in favour of a name with
more diverse appeal. “We chose the name Uberflip because we offer the
best solution to help any company offer a flip book experience to their
audience. We’ve become a popular solution not only for traditional
media publishing content like magazines, but also any business looking
to convert training materials, catalogs, flyers, reports, whitepapers,
and other types of documents,” explained Schwartz.

The rebrand of Uberflip is yet another example of how the proliferation
of tablets and smartphones has forced businesses to rethink their
marketing communications strategies and adapt to an age of digital
conversion. Uberflip offers the first cloud-based PDF conversion
service at $29.95 that can adequately meet the needs of companies of
all shapes and sizes.

About Uberflip
Uberflip (
www.uberflip.com ), formerly Mygazines, makes it easy to enhance, distribute and track
PDF content on tablets and other devices. Within minutes, documents are
converted into page-turning experiences where links, video and social
media integration are just the beginning. The Uberflip Application
allows marketers, publishers and other content creators to meet all
distribution, security, monetizing and tracking requirements for their
content. Uberflip’s solutions help companies save costs and make money
through new marketing channels.

Clients and partners include Thompson Reuters, Dupont, Research in
Motion, Grant Thornton, Minden Gross LLP, HP and Cornell University.

Download Press Kit

SOURCE Uberflip

Copyright (C) 2012 PR Newswire. All rights reserved

Article source: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/supercharge-pdfs-on-tablets-via-uberflips-html5-2995-answer-2012-03-21