Microsoft officially announces agreement to acquire GitHub in $7.5 billion deal
Following months of talks and rumors, Microsoft has finally officially revealed that it has agreed to acquire GitHub. The agreement sees the company acquiring the code repository for $7.5 billion in Microsoft stock.
Microsoft says that GitHub will retain its developer-first ethos and will operate independently to provide an open platform for all developers in all industries. The deal is expected to close by the end of the year.
Version 4.17 of the Linux kernel is here... and version 5.0 isn't far away
In his weekly message to the Linux community on Sunday, Linus Torvalds announced the release of Linux 4.17. The release comes a couple of months after the first release candidate, and in his message Torvalds also talks about version 5.0 of the Linux kernel.
Having previously said that Linux kernel v5.0 "should be meaningless", he said that this next major numerical milestone will come around "in the not too distance future". For now, though, it's version 4.17 -- or Merciless Moray, if you prefer -- that's of interest.
Apple removes apps using the CallKit framework because of Chinese regulations
Apple has bowed to pressure from China and started to remove apps from the App Store that use the CallKit framework.
There are strict cybersecurity laws in place in China which has already see VPN tools banned and led to a brief suspension of the popular WeChat app. While no specific reason has been given for the crackdown on the CallKit framework, it is suspected to be related to VoIP functionality.
Fedora-based Linux distro Korora is dead
Fedora is a great Linux distribution, but it is not always a wise choice for beginners. Since the distro focuses on truly free and open source software, it can be hard to get non-free packages, proprietary drivers, fonts, and codecs installed. Fedora 28 makes this easier thanks to an update to the Software app, but it is still not as easy as say, Ubuntu.
That's why Korora is such a cool operating system -- it uses Fedora as a base, but comes pre-installed with useful apps and repositories. True, that sort of deviates from the Fedora ideology, but at least it gives users choice. Sadly for some, Korora development is ending -- at least for the time being -- as the developer no longer has the resources to continue.
Google launches Android Jetpack to speed up app development
Google has a new tool designed to help developers produce Android apps faster than ever. Called Android Jetpack, it builds on the Support Library and has a strong focus on backwards compatibility.
Android Jetpack also builds on Architecture Components, giving developers access to components, tools and architectural guidance split into four categories -- architecture, foundation, UI and behavior. Each component is provided as an "unbundled" library which Google says means you can "adopt each component at your own speed, at your own time".
Watch Google's I/O keynote live here
It’s the season for developer conferences right now. Yesterday, Microsoft’s Build kicked off in Seattle, and today Google takes to the stage to reveal its future plans.
The annual Google I/O developer conference begins with a consumer keynote taking place at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, California. The company has already made some announcements regarding the likes of Android TV, Google Home, and a new Assistant for Wear OS, but there’s much more to come.
Apple tells developers that apps must support iPhone X notch from July
Apple has issued new guidelines for iOS apps submitted to the App Store, with the biggest change being that developers must use the iOS 11 SDK.
Devs are advised that they should "update your version of Xcode to the latest release of Xcode 9 available on the Mac App Store" as this includes the relevant SDK. Apple also says that apps should be "ready to take advantage of the Super Retina display by respecting safe areas, supporting adaptive layouts, and more".
Thousands of Android apps have built-in crypto keys and passwords
A large number of free Android apps suffer with flaky security because software developers are leaving cryptographic keys embedded and passwords hard-coded.
Speaking at the BSides security conference in San Francisco, software vulnerability analyst Will Dormann revealed how he had found serious security problems in thousands upon thousands of apps. After testing 1.8 million apps, he found almost 20,000 featured built-in passwords and keys, and even when a separate password store was used, user data was still open to attack from simple password crackers.
WSL-DistroLauncher is an open source tool designed to lure Linux distros to the Microsoft Store
Is it cool that there are Linux distributions in the Microsoft Store? Eh, I suppose. While I don't fully trust Microsoft's commitment to both Linux and open source, understandably, some Linux users and administrators have the need to also run Windows 10. And so, from a convenience standpoint, the whole Windows Subsystem for Linux thing is appreciated (we are watching you though, Microsoft!).
Unfortunately, not all Linux distributions are available in the Microsoft Store. This is a problem, as Linux users are very tribal -- a Fedora user, for instance, might be unhappy using Debian. Microsoft hopes to solve this dilemma by making it even easier for distribution maintainers to get their distros into the store. How does the Windows-maker plan to do this? With an all-new GitHub-hosted open source tool called "WSL-DistroLauncher."
Linus Torvalds: Linux 4.16 kernel launches on Sunday. Possibly. Maybe.
After a series of release candidates, Linus Torvalds could well be ready to unleash version 4.16 of the Linux kernel onto the world at the weekend. That is unless he changes his mind about the RC build: "rc7 is much too big for my taste," he says in his weekly update to the kernel mailing list.
Torvalds says that while he's not planning for there to be an eighth release candidate, the current size is causing him to think about the best course of action. For those who have not been following the story, he also details what's new in Linux 4.16.
Google launches 'Change the Game' design challenge to encourage female coders and gamers
Google has teamed up with Girls Make Games and ESA Foundation to launch a new initiative called Change the Game. It is designed to encourage more women to get involved in playing and creating mobile games, and there's a $10,000 college scholarship and a $15,000 technology donation up for grabs.
The company is seeking game ideas from US teenagers who are invited to share details of their designs. Google asks for details of game mechanics, storylines and asks "what emotions could the player experience or feel while playing the game?"
Google Play Instant lets you stream Android apps and games to try them out
With so many apps and games to choose from in Google Play, it's very easy to be tempted to try all of them out. Well... maybe not all of them, but it's easy to get carried away. This can mean waiting an age for a particular title to download, only for you to try it and discover you don't like it.
Today Google announces a solution to the problem: Google Play Instant. It lets you get started in a game without having to download it completely -- in essence you're streaming the bits you need to your Android phone or tablet.
Google opens up Maps API to game developers
Google is giving developers the chance to build games based on real-world maps by opening up the Maps APIs to them. On top of this, Google is bring Maps to the Unity game engine so developers can make use of real-time map data.
Titles such as Jurassic World Alive, The Walking Dead: Our World and Ghostbusters World will make use of augmented reality to create truly immersive gaming experiences. Developers have access to over 100 million 3D buildings, roads, landmarks, and parks from over 200 countries, allowing for great flexibility.
Download Android P developer preview as Google reveals release schedule
It's mere days since we were talking about the impending release of Android P for developers. Now, slightly earlier than expected, a preview of the latest version of Google's mobile operating system is here.
As this is a preview build, it is not only not aimed at the masses, but is also only compatible with a handful of Android phones -- specifically the Pixel, Pixel XL, Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL. If you have one of these devices, you can try out Android P for yourself, but Google has revealed that we’ll have to wait until Q3 for the final release.
Chrome for Windows drops Microsoft compiler in favor of Clang
The Windows version of Google Chrome is ditching Microsoft's C++ Compiler and switching to Clang. The change brings Chrome for Windows in line with versions of the browser for macOS, Android and Linux.
The move not only makes complete sense for Google -- why not use the same compiler on all platforms, after all? -- it makes Chrome the first high-profile Windows app to make use of the open source compiler Clang.
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