Here are some ICT trends for year 2019 picked from various sources (linked to sources) and edited by me:
General: From AI to Moore’s Law, the entire industry is deep in the throes of massive changes. The future will be characterized by smart devices delivering increasingly insightful digital services everywhere. While CPUs continue to evolve, performance is no longer limited to a single processor type or process geometry.
Business: There seems to be a clear evidence from this research that businesses are adopting and looking to capitalise on the benefits of Big Data, the Internet Of Things and Sensor technology for their mobile workforces.
Open source: 2019 Will Be the Year of Open Source in software and even in hardware. We saw more activity in open source than ever before in 2018. And the momentum isn’t likely to slow down in 2019.
Web is mobile: According to the statistics of FICORA, Ofcom, the PC has lost its place as the first device and platform for web browsing. Almost half of the web browses the web with a smart phone, which places a requirement on all online services from shops to news sites.
Multiple devices: As the number of different IT devices continues to grow, there are more and more devices in use at the same time.
Situations and tasks that utilize and use multiple devices together have become commonplace. We need to think how how user interfaces could better support multi-device sharing.
Artificial intelligence: It seems that AI Market Ramps Everywhere. The AI term creates hope for some, fear for others, and confusion for all. Artificial intelligence (AI) is what the Internet of Things was two years ago – overhyped and not very well understood. The obvious shift is the infusion of AI (and its subcategories, machine learning and deep learning) into different markets. It seems that you don’t need to be artificial intelligence wizard anymore to use some AI – at best, implementation can be picked up by GitHub without really understanding anything. AI Still Has Trust Issues for many. There are also views that now hot artificial intelligence is the bubble that broke out last in the 1990s because at present, artificial intelligence and man form a bad cyborg. You need to separate AI Hype From Reality because it seems to be a miraculous thing where almost nobody knows what it is.
AI chips: While GPUs are well-positioned in machine learning, data type flexibility and power efficiency are making FPGAs increasingly attractive. Today, selling custom chips for artificial intelligence is still a small business. Intel, the largest manufacturer of computer processors, has appraised the current market at $2.5 billion, one half of one percent of the estimated value of the 2018 global semiconductor market. At a press event at the 2019 Consumer Electronics Show, Intel announced the Nervana Neural Network Processor (NNP-I), an AI chip for inference-based workloads that fits into a GPU-like form factor. Google and NXP advance artificial intelligence with the Edge TPU.
AI-driven development: AI-driven development looks at tools, technologies and best practices for embedding AI into applications and using AI to create AI-powered tools for the development process.
Huge data: It seems that It’s All About The Data. Data creation, management and processing always have been a winning business formula. It takes lots of data to train AI systems and IoT systems generate a lot of data.Data scientists now have increasing amounts of data to prepare, analyze and group — and from which to draw conclusions. The entire tech industry has changed in several fundamental ways over the past year due to the massive growth in data. Many data science tasks will be automated. Hardware and software are no longer the starting points for technology design. It’s now about data processing, flow and throughput.
Digital twins: A digital twin is a digital representation that mirrors a real-life object, process or system. Digital twins can also be linked to create twins of larger systems, such as a power plant or city. The idea of a digital twin is not new but is has become hot when AI and IoT were added to the mix.
Power consumption: Globally, ICT today consumes 8% of all electricity and doubles every year. I think we needs new semiconductor technologies and maybe also more optimized software that does more but consumes less power.
Memories: DRAM market growth stops in 2019. GDDR6 and HBM2 impacts system design. There is disparity between the different types of DRAM, from GDDR to HBM.
Faster storage: Apacer has CFexpress card, which supports PCIe and the new NVMe 1.3 protocol, transfers data at a rate of two gigabytes per second.
Heterogeneous architectures: Need for increased computing power requires new multi-processor architectures (hybrid processors). Heterogeneous design is changing the starting point for chip design so that integration is now more the real challenge rather than the processor core. Many ARM processors already use hybrid architecture. Intel has unveiled a new Foveros architecture that addresses the challenge of Arm processors.
Immersive technologies: Users can interact with the world with immersive technologies such as augmented reality (AR), mixed reality (MR) and virtual reality (VR). AR brings new possibilities. A smart space is a physical or digital environment in which humans and technology-enabled systems interact in increasingly open, connected, coordinated and intelligent ecosystems.
Open hardware: Can RISC-V – Linux of Microprocessors – Start an Open Hardware Renaissance? RISC-V is an open source processor command set that can be used with the same principles as Linux code. RISCV is now being firmly linked to Linux as the Linux Foundation and the RISC-V Foundation have agreed to work together to promote open code development and RISC-V deployment. For the first time, Arm architecture will be a serious challenger in millions, even billions of embedded devices. Companies like Hi-Five, NVIDIA and WDplan to release product with RISC-V in them. This year RISC-V does not compete with traditional CPUs on PCs. Also MIPS hardware architecture is opening up.
Containers: Is Kubernetes the new application server? If you thought there was a lot of chatter about Kubernetes in 2018, you ain’t seen nothing yet.
Software robotics: Software robotics becomes widely available. Robot Framework will be important on this.
Intel processors: Intel Announces Faster Processors Patched for Meltdown and Spectre, New Intel Architectures and Technologies Target Expanded Market Opportunities. Intel Demonstrates 10nm-based PCs, Data Center and Networking Systems, Next-Gen ‘Sunny Cove’ Architecture with AI and Crypto Acceleration, and 3D Logic Chip Packaging Technology. 5 Observations From Intel’s Event article says that mysterious locations, codenames and process delays are on the top of the list. Intel’s Foveros Lakefield technology for making smaller chips.
AMD processors: Ryzen mobile processors would begin showing up in ultrathin and gaming laptops by the end of the first quarter. AMD starts to use 7nm technology: Radeon VII GPU will be available and it is promised to be 27% to 62% faster, third-generation Ryzen desktop processor and second-generation EPYC server processor will be available starting later this year. AMD is challenging Intel in Chromebooks with A-Series CPUs and launching Ryzen Mobile 3000-Series chips with 2nd-generation Ryzen Mobile parts.
ARM processors: Taking aim at Intel, Qualcomm launches chip for business PCs. The Snapdragon 8cx series is Qualcomm’s first chip specifically designed for computers. Qualcomm’s pitch is that laptops using its chips will go days without needing to be plugged in, and will always be connected to the internet via cellular networks. The Snapdragon 8cx is also the world’s first 7-nanometer PC processor platform and promises superior performance for laptop. Intel’s position on laptops is very strong and Qualcomm has a big hill to get up if it really wants to challenge Intel’s PC side. Huawei Rolls 7nm ARM Server CPU Kunpeng 920 that is said to outperform ThunderX2, Ampere by 25%. Rumors are circulating that Apple will obsolete x86-based computers in favor of its own SoC-powered successors.
NVIDIA: RTX 2060 GPU was introduced. GeForce RTX™ graphics cards are powered by the Turing GPU architecture and the all-new RTX platform. This promises to give you up to 6X the performance of previous-generation graphics cards and brings the power of real-time ray tracing and AI to your favorite games. GeForce RTX 20 Series GPUs to gaming laptops.
Microsoft hardware: Microsoft reportedly working on Xbox and Windows webcams for 2019.
Windows security: Microsoft officially announces ‘Windows Sandbox’ for running applications in isolation.Microsoft’s coming ‘Windows Sandbox’ feature is a lightweight virtual machine that allow users to run potentially suspicious software in isolation. It could debut in Windows 10 19H1,
Storage: NVMe Hits a Tipping Point. A show dedicated to NVM Express (NVMe) next month solidifies an industry-wide sentiment that the host controller interface and storage protocol hit a tipping point in the last year. It is expected that we’re going to see the majority of new products coming out with NVMe. There are already relatively young NVM Express Over Fabrics (NVMe-oF) specification and even some hard disk enclosures using NVMe.
Fibre channel: Broadcom Nudges Fibre Channel to 64G using 64G optical modules (just starting to sample) and PCIe Gen 4 connections that are not yet generally available on x86 servers.
Faster PCIe:PCIe 4.0 is ready. The PCISIG organization has completed the new 4.0 version of the PCIe bus, and now the technology is expected to be deployed on the devices. It is possible to to get the full PCIe 4.0 speed with both copper and fiber. It seems that this year PCIe 4.0 comes to wider us for x86 servers.
FPGA: FPGA Graduates To First-Tier Status because FPGAs are better for certain types of computation than CPUs or GPUs.While GPUs are well-positioned in machine learning, data type flexibility and power efficiency are making FPGAs increasingly attractive.
Enterprise software:Legacy enterprise applications and software systems have a reputation for being clunky, expensive, and almost impossible to keep up to date. Rethink your enterprise software systems and consider whether cloud-based options like SaaS may better serve your needs. Office 365 is massively successful. AWS services are running the backend of thousands of major companies now. As internet connections and speeds increase, the cloud becomes more and more viable as it is more cost effective to centralize computer hardware reducing costs for companies and employee overhead.
Windows 10: Microsoft is building a Chromium-powered web browser that will replace Edge on Windows 10. Microsoft could be preparing to ditch the EdgeHTML layout engine of its unloved Edge browser in Windows 10 in favour of Chromium. Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) is improved. Microsoft new Windows 10 reserves ~7GB of disk space for updates, apps, and more to ensure critical OS functions always have space.
Light Windows: Microsoft is working on Windows Lite, a super lightweight, instant on, always connected OS that runs only PWAs and UWP apps, to challenge Chrome OS. Microsoft’s ‘Centaurus’ device is yet another potential piece of its Chromebook-compete strategy.
Coding for Windows: Microsoft has released a public preview of Visual Studio 2019 for Windows and Mac. Microsoft open sources its most popular Windows UX frameworks and says the first preview of .NET Core 3.0 is now available — Microsoft is open sourcing WPF, Windows Forms and Win UI via GitHub.
Quantum computing: Quantum computing is a type of nonclassical computing that is based on the quantum state of subatomic particles that represent information as elements denoted as quantum bits or “qubits.” Quantum computers are an exponentially scalable and highly parallel computing model. They can work well on some specific tasks suitable for them, but are not suitable for most generic computing tasks we are used to.
Blockchain: Blockchain is a type of distributed ledger, an expanding chronologically ordered list of cryptographically signed, irrevocable transactional records shared by all participants in a network. It can work with untrusted parties without the need for a centralized party (i.e., a bank). Businesses should begin evaluating the technology to see if it fits their business or not. You need to separate Blockchain hype from Reality because it seems to be a potentially miraculous thing where almost nobody knows exactly what it is to what it is good for. Check this related Dilbert comic.
Related predictions and trends articles:
Gartner Top 10 Strategic Technology Trends for 2019
Virtual reality implementation: observations and predictions
5 IT job trends to watch in 2019 – because success starts with talent
Digital transformation reality check: 10 trends
These are the 15 best US tech companies to work for in 2019, according to Glassdoor
786 Comments
Tomi Engdahl says:
7 pieces of contrarian DevOps advice
https://enterprisersproject.com/article/2019/1/devops-advice-7-contrarian-pieces?sc_cid=7016000000127ECAAY
Common wisdom sometimes falls flat for DevOps teams. Consider these DevOps tips learned the hard way
Tomi Engdahl says:
4 ways IT teams waste time: Practical fixes
https://enterprisersproject.com/article/2019/2/4-ways-it-teams-waste-time-practical-fixes
Are status reports stealing too much time from your team? How about manual security tasks? Analyze, automate, and get back to top priorities
Tomi Engdahl says:
The Accelerator Wall: A New Problem for a Post-Moore’s Law World
https://spectrum.ieee.org/nanoclast/semiconductors/processors/the-accelerator-wall-a-new-problem-for-a-post-moores-law-world
Tomi Engdahl says:
Two graphical tools for manipulating PDFs on the Linux desktop
https://opensource.com/article/19/2/manipulating-pdfs-linux?sc_cid=7016000000127ECAAY
PDF-Shuffler and PDF Chain are great tools for modifying PDFs in Linux.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Windows95 v2.0 Lets You Play DOOM, Wolfenstein 3D, and More
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/windows95-v20-lets-you-play-doom-wolfenstein-3d-and-more/
with the release of Windows 95 being distributed as an Electron application.
Electron is a open source framework that allows developers to create self-contained applications using JavaScript, HTML, CSS, and a web browser. These Electron packages contain all of the required programs and support files that an application needs to run so that they are easily distributed.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Here are examples of everything new in ECMAScript 2016, 2017, and 2018
https://medium.freecodecamp.org/here-are-examples-of-everything-new-in-ecmascript-2016-2017-and-2018-d52fa3b5a70e
Tomi Engdahl says:
How open-source software took over the world
https://techcrunch.com/2019/01/12/how-open-source-software-took-over-the-world/?sr_share=facebook&utm_source=tcfbpage
Tomi Engdahl says:
PyGame Zero: Games without boilerplate
https://opensource.com/article/19/1/pygame-zero?sc_cid=7016000000127ECAAY
Say goodbye to boring boilerplate in your game development with PyGame Zero.
Tomi Engdahl says:
GStreamer WebRTC: A flexible solution to web-based media
https://opensource.com/article/19/1/gstreamer?sc_cid=7016000000127ECAAY
GStreamer’s WebRTC implementation eliminates some of the shortcomings of using WebRTC in native apps, server applications, and IoT devices.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Open edX and OpenStack for complex learning environments
https://opensource.com/article/19/1/openedx-openstack-complex-learning-environments?sc_cid=7016000000127ECAAY
This combination can close the skills gap by enabling IT professionals to acquire critical skills in complex distributed systems technology from any location.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Get started with Go For It, a flexible to-do list application
https://opensource.com/article/19/1/productivity-tool-go-for-it?sc_cid=7016000000127ECAAY
Go For It, the tenth in our series on open source tools that will make you more productive in 2019, builds on the Todo.txt system to help you get more things done.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://techcrunch.com/2019/02/13/google-says-itll-invest-13b-in-u-s-data-centers-and-offices-this-year/?sr_share=facebook&utm_source=tcfbpage
Tomi Engdahl says:
The open source guide to DevOps monitoring tools
https://opensource.com/downloads/devops-monitoring-guide?sc_cid=7016000000127ECAAY
Tomi Engdahl says:
Why should you use Rust in WebAssembly?
https://opensource.com/article/19/2/why-use-rust-webassembly?sc_cid=7016000000127ECAAY
Learn why to use Rust instead of other programming languages with Wasm.
WebAssembly is a binary file format that all major browsers (with the exception of IE 11) have implemented for virtual machines to run. WebAssembly has the ability to start and run much quicker than JavaScript
because WebAssembly is a native-like assembly format, many languages can be compiled down to it, meaning sharing code between other platforms and the web is now much more practical.
Tomi Engdahl says:
7 steps for hunting down Python code bugs
https://opensource.com/article/19/2/steps-hunting-code-python-bugs?sc_cid=7016000000127ECAAY
Learn some tricks to minimize the time you spend tracking down the reasons your code fails.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://playclassic.games
Tomi Engdahl says:
Agile at scale — why it is so hot right now
https://favrohub.com/agile-at-scale-why-it-is-so-hot-right-now-a47c3697c222
Agile is not just for techies anymore. The use of agile workflow management has gone from software development teams to entire organizations in a few years as the speed of market adaptability became the new business currency. Here is why this is happening right now and how your organization can make huge progress by working in an agile way.
Tomi Engdahl says:
ISE 2019: Yeti Tablet Shows Off Huge 98″ Android Tablet
http://www.ravepubs.com/rave-video/ise-2019-yeti-tablet-shows-off-huge-98-android-tablet/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Agile vs. DevOps: What’s the difference?
https://enterprisersproject.com/article/2019/1/agile-vs-devops-whats-difference?sc_cid=7016000000127ECAAY
Agile and DevOps have a shared past. That leads to some lingering misunderstandings about the terms
Tomi Engdahl says:
System Beeps Is an MS-DOS Program and Album for Your Motherboard Speaker
https://blog.hackster.io/system-beeps-is-an-ms-dos-program-and-album-for-your-motherboard-speaker-22803f7d2e6b
https://m.habr.com/en/post/439192/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Introduction to Small Scale Scrum
https://opensource.com/downloads/small-scale-scrum?sc_cid=7016000000127ECAAY
This agile framework is designed for small teams whose members play multiple roles.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Dieter Bohn / The Verge:
Microsoft unveils HoloLens 2 with an ARM CPU, more comfortable, lighter, and with 2X wider field of view than its predecessor, available for preorder for $3,500
Microsoft’s HoloLens 2: a $3,500 mixed reality headset for the factory, not the living room
https://www.theverge.com/2019/2/24/18235460/microsoft-hololens-2-price-specs-mixed-reality-ar-vr-business-work-features-mwc-2019
Tomi Engdahl says:
Brian Heater / TechCrunch:
Microsoft announces Azure Kinect, a new depth-sensing camera for enterprises that uses Azure cloud; pre-orders open now for $399 — Today’s Mobile World Congress kickoff event was all about the next Hololens, but Microsoft still had some surprises up its sleeve.
https://techcrunch.com/2019/02/24/microsoft-announces-an-azure-powered-kinect-camera-for-enterprise/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://worldwideweb.cern.ch/browser/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Can we ever evaluate technical debt?
https://techcrunch.com/2019/02/22/can-we-ever-evaluate-technical-debt/
Plus more infrastructure sadness, Greenland! and India/Facebook challenges
Tomi Engdahl says:
Linus Torvalds pulls pin, tosses in grenade: x86 won, forget about Arm in server CPUs, says Linux kernel supremo
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2019/02/23/linus_torvalds_arm_x86_servers/
Processor designer says he’s right about one thing: The need for end-to-end dev platforms
Tomi Engdahl says:
Developer happiness: What you need to know
https://opensource.com/article/19/2/developer-happiness?sc_cid=7016000000127ECAAY
Developers need the tools and the freedom to code quickly, without getting bogged down by compliance and security.
Tomi Engdahl says:
5 things to master to be a DevOps engineer
https://opensource.com/article/19/2/master-devops-engineer?sc_cid=7016000000127ECAAY
Getting the foundations right is key to DevOps success.
Tomi Engdahl says:
A lesson in shortcuts.
https://plus.google.com/+RobPikeTheHuman/posts/R58WgWwN9jp
Long ago, as the design of the Unix file system was being worked out, the entries . and .. appeared, to make navigation easier. I’m not sure but I believe ..
Tomi Engdahl says:
Hyperscale data centers are a game changer. By 2020, demand for data center storage is expected to increase by 5 to 10, from two terabytes to 10 terabytes for a normal enterprise data center and to 20 terabytes for a hyperscale data center.
By 2020, 47% of all servers, 68% of all processing, 57% of all data stored, and 53% of all traffic will be hyperscale. In order to sell drives into a socket in the hyperscale data center, SSD providers must meet hyperscale requirements.
Hyperscale Data Centers: A Game Changer for SSD Designs
https://www.mentor.com/products/fv/resources/overview/hyperscale-data-centers-a-game-changer-for-ssd-designs-5d5f3cb3-3d68-4025-8980-19016142aec1?uuid=5d5f3cb3-3d68-4025-8980-19016142aec1&clp=1&contactid=1&PC=L&c=2019_02_19_veloce_hyperscale_data_centers
Out of the blue, what is known as non-deterministic or random latency of solid-state drives (SSDs) is becoming the “make-or-break” issue for the success of SSDs in hyperscale data centers. Considering that SSDs replaced hard disk drives (HDDs) as the primary choice for storage, the random latency of an SSD may force out of business a storage player that ignored or downplayed the problem.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Makena Kelly / The Verge:
FTC announces a new task force to monitor competition in “technology-related sectors” and says that it will look into previous mergers — And they’re going to look at previous mergers — The Federal Trade Commission will be launching a task force to monitor competition …
New FTC task force will take on tech monopolies
https://www.theverge.com/2019/2/26/18241491/ftc-task-force-tech-monopolies-bureau-competition-online-platforms
And they’re going to look at previous mergers
The Federal Trade Commission will be launching a task force to monitor competition in the US’s technology markets, commissioners announced today.
The task force will include current officials working in the agency’s Bureau of Competition in order to “enhance the Bureau’s focus on technology-related sectors of the economy, including markets in which online platforms compete.” It will also include 17 staff attorneys who will be tasked with investigating anti-competitive behavior in the tech industry.
Tomi Engdahl says:
USB 3.2 standard gets new, even more confusing names ahead of its mainstream debut
https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2019/2/27/18243425/usb-3-2-standard-names-connectivity-cables-innovators-forum
The new spec promises up to 20Gbps speeds, but the names are more complicated than ever
First, the good news: USB 3.2, the upcoming specification that the USB Implementers Forum announced back in 2017, is finally coming out this year. The bad news is that the group has also brought with it a slate of new names not only for the new standard, but also for the old versions of USB 3.0, too.
Here’s how it all breaks down:
USB 3.2 Gen 1: originally known as USB 3.0, and previously renamed to USB 3.1 Gen 1. It’s the original USB 3.0 specification, and it can transfer data at up to 5Gbps.
USB 3.2 Gen 2: Previously known as USB 3.1, and then later as USB 3.1 Gen 2. It offers speeds at up to 10Gbps.
USB 3.2 Gen 2×2: formally known as USB 3.2, it’s the newest and fastest spec, promising speeds at up to 20Gbps (by using two lanes of 10Gbps at once).
There is a method to the USB-IF’s madness here. Each new specification absorbs the previous generations as included within that spec, as a way to keep things relatively consistent. Hence, when USB 3.1 came out, the previous 3.0 spec became USB 3.1 Gen 1 and the new, faster 3.1 spec was USB 3.1 Gen 2.
To make things easier, the USB-IF also has recommended names for companies to market these three specs with: SuperSpeed USB, SuperSpeed USB 10Gbps, and SuperSpeed USB 20Gbps.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Intel SGX Card expands SGX security protections to cloud data centers
Intel announces new Intel SGX Card line.
https://www.zdnet.com/article/intel-sgx-card-expands-sgx-security-protections-to-cloud-data-centers/
ntel announced today Intel SGX Card, a new product to expand its SGX security feature to existing data center server infrastructure that wouldn’t have been able to benefit from it due to hardware architectural limitations.
Intel SGX stands for Software Guard eXtensions, a feature found in modern Intel CPUs that allows developers to isolate parts of applications inside secure “enclaves.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Intel SGX Card Extends Memory Protections to Existing Cloud Servers
https://www.securityweek.com/intel-sgx-card-extends-memory-protections-existing-cloud-servers
Intel and its partners this week made several cybersecurity-related announcements, including the launch of new silicon-enabled products and tools.
Software Guard Extension (SGX), an isolated execution technology present in some Intel processors, is designed to protect code and data against disclosure and changes – even if the system has been compromised – by allowing developers to partition their applications into hardware-protected memory regions called enclaves.
SGX has been used by some of the world’s top cloud services providers, including Alibaba, Baidu, IBM and Microsoft. However, Intel says there has been an increasing demand for the technology in existing data centers that may be using processors that do not include SGX.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Icons and Screenshots of Microsoft’s Chromium-based Edge Browser Leaked Online
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/microsoft/icons-and-screenshots-of-microsofts-chromium-based-edge-browser-leaked-online/
Leaked images related to Microsoft’s Chromium-based Edge browser have been leaked online this past week. These images include ones allegedly for the Edge installer and what appears to be a Edge Canary icon.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Adobe Sends Emails About Retirement of Shockwave on April 9th
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/software/adobe-sends-emails-about-retirement-of-shockwave-on-april-9th/
Adobe has started sending out emails to enterprise clients about the imminent retirement of Adobe Shockwave. These emails state that Adobe Shockwave player for Windows will no longer be available for download starting on April 9th 2019.
Released in 1995 by Macromedia, Shockwave brought interactive content and games to the web in a way that was never seen before. In 2005, Adobe purchased Macromedia and all of their interactive web products such as Flash and Shockwave continued under the Adobe name.
With developers moving their interactive projects away from products like Flash and Shockwave and towards HTML5 and WebGL, Adobe had decided to retire Shockwave on April 9th, 2019.
Tomi Engdahl says:
New Kinect Sensor Switch Focus From Gamers To Developers
https://hackaday.com/2019/02/26/new-kinect-sensor-switch-focus-from-gamers-to-developers/
Tomi Engdahl says:
USB-sekoilu päättyy vasta ensi vuonna, mutta sitä kannattaakin odottaa
http://www.etn.fi/index.php/13-news/9148-usb-sekoilu-paattyy-vasta-ensi-vuonna-mutta-sita-kannattaakin-odottaa
Uusiin nimiin tuonee järkeä vasta ensi vuonna hyväksyttävä USB 4.0.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Suositut korttitietokoneet rynnivät ammattilaitteisiin
http://www.etn.fi/index.php/13-news/9144-suositut-korttitietokoneet-rynnivat-ammattilaitteisiin
Tomi Engdahl says:
http://www.etn.fi/index.php/13-news/9148-usb-sekoilu-paattyy-vasta-ensi-vuonna-mutta-sita-kannattaakin-odottaa
Tomi Engdahl says:
USB 3.2 standard gets new, even more confusing names ahead of its mainstream debut
https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2019/2/27/18243425/usb-3-2-standard-names-connectivity-cables-innovators-forum
The new spec promises up to 20Gbps speeds, but the names are more complicated than ever
Tomi Engdahl says:
USB 3.2 is going to make the current USB branding even worse
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2019/02/usb-3-2-is-going-to-make-the-current-usb-branding-even-worse/
People already get the names wrong, so the USB group has doubled down on bad naming.
Tomi Engdahl says:
MICROSOFT’S HOLOLENS 2: A $3,500 MIXED REALITY HEADSET FOR THE FACTORY, NOT THE LIVING ROOM
Designed to get work done
https://www.theverge.com/2019/2/24/18235460/microsoft-hololens-2-price-specs-mixed-reality-ar-vr-business-work-features-mwc-2019
Tomi Engdahl says:
Next Windows update brings better Linux integration
https://www.zdnet.com/article/next-windows-update-brings-better-linux-integration/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Romy Varghese / Bloomberg:
Cities across the US are using legacy software from the ’80s built with obsolete programming languages and unfriendly user interfaces
America’s Cities Are Running on Software From the ’80s
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-02-28/america-s-cities-are-running-on-software-from-the-80s
Even San Francisco’s tech chops can’t save it from relying on computers that belong in a museum
To put it mildly, the setup “doesn’t reflect business needs now,” says the city’s assessor, Carmen Chu.
Politicians can often score relatively easy wins with constituents by borrowing money to pay for new roads and bridges, but the digital equivalents of such infrastructure projects generally don’t draw the same enthusiasm. “Modernizing technology is not a top issue that typically comes to mind when you talk to taxpayers and constituents on the street,” Chu says.
For local officials throughout the country, the shift from old-school servers to rented cloud storage has made it tougher than ever to fund upgrades. They can budget physical equipment as capital expenses, meaning they could issue bonds to pay for them. But cloud computing is a service, as the people selling it love to say, which means officials have to pay for it with operating funds—the same pool of money that goes toward addressing more tangible demands, such as parks and cops.
Of course, improvements cost money that constituents don’t always want to pay.
“We’re dealing with an irrational public who wants greater and greater service delivery”
It’s a “lot of manual work” just to perform basic functions, Chu says.
Searches that should seem simple take much longer because of the system’s quirks.
The system doesn’t flag data entry mistakes
Chu says they “have not really focused on solving the mundane problems of basic core government functions.”
Municipal offices across the country are struggling to do their jobs with obsolete gear that can often be expensive and time-consuming to replace
Tomi Engdahl says:
Import Excel data just by photographing a spreadsheet
https://www.engadget.com/2019/03/01/microsoft-excel-import-data-from-picture-android/?sr_source=Facebook
The feature is available in the updated Microsoft Excel app for Android.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Import Excel data just by photographing a spreadsheet
https://www.engadget.com/2019/03/01/microsoft-excel-import-data-from-picture-android/?sr_source=Facebook
The feature is available in the updated Microsoft Excel app for Android.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Jon Porter / The Verge:
USB Implementers Forum announces USB 4, which offers a maximum speed of 40 Gbps, double that of USB 3.2, and support for Thunderbolt 3 — Double the speed of USB 3.2 up to 40 Gbps — Hot on the heels of USB 3.2 receiving a confusing Gen 2×2 suffix, the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) …
With USB 4, Thunderbolt 3’s benefits become open to all
Double the speed of USB 3.2 up to 40 Gbps
https://www.theverge.com/2019/3/4/18246182/usb-4-thunderbolt-3-specs-features-release-date
Hot on the heels of USB 3.2 receiving a confusing Gen 2×2 suffix, the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) has today announced USB 4, the next version of the ubiquitous connector. Although the draft specification won’t become official until it’s published later this year, the standard is expected to increase its maximum speed to 40 Gbps over the 20 Gbps offered by its current version, USB 3.2.
If that speed sounds familiar, then that’s because it’s already offered by the Thunderbolt 3 specification
If you’re familiar with Thunderbolt 3 then you’ll already know a lot of the specs of USB 4. It will still be able to deliver up to 100W of power, and has enough data throughput for the use of external graphics cards, and to power two 4K displays, or a single 5K display. You’ll need to use cables that are capable of 40 Gbps speeds to enjoy the standard’s full benefits, but any existing Thunderbolt 3 cables (and, for that matter, accessories) you have should work with the new port.
Outside of its specs, the USB-IF is also hoping to use the USB 4 standard as a means of simplifying the USB ecosystem. Rather than each USB device picking and choosing which aspects of the standard it supports, the group wants to produce a list of features each kind of USB 4 device will have to offer
Other confusing aspects of the standard could also stick around.
Although USB 4 will integrate Thunderbolt 3’s features, Intel says that the two standards will coexist. While USB 4 is open, Thunderbolt 3 is not, and Intel requires manufacturers to be certified to use it.
The publication of the full USB 4 specification is currently due to arrive in the second half of this year,
Tomi Engdahl says:
Microsoft’s new Edge browser looks a lot like Chrome in leaked screenshots
Microsoft is still testing its Chromium-powered browser internally
https://www.theverge.com/2019/3/5/18251263/microsoft-edge-chromium-screenshots-leak-browser
Tomi Engdahl says:
Microsoft is creating Windows Lite for dual-screen and Chromebook-like devices
Microsoft is making a Chrome OS-like version of Windows
https://www.theverge.com/2019/3/4/18249679/microsoft-windows-lite-dual-screen-devices-chromebooks-report
Microsoft is preparing a new lightweight version of Windows for dual-screen devices and Chromebook competitors.
“Windows Lite,” as it’s codenamed internally, is a more stripped-down version of Windows that is initially being prioritized for dual-screen devices. Intel has been pushing OEMs to create this new hardware category, and machines could appear much like Microsoft’s Courier concept, dual-screen laptops, or even foldable displays in the future. Either way, Microsoft wants Windows to be ready for PC makers to take advantage of it.