Originally published on the AnyGeo blog... Ok, I’m going to come right out and share my blunt opinion on this one… So, it’s finally now official, the Nokia Microsoft partnership is done.
No shocker here as we’ve known all week this was coming and many have
been speculating on this for several weeks or even months now.. likely
back to when former Microsoft Exec (and Canadian) Stephen Elop took the
reigns at Nokia. From yours truly I’m still kind of baffled at all this…
I know here in North America the feeling of many has always been “Nokia
(and Symbian OS) simply doesn’t resonate with the consumer, however,
I’ve always been quick to point out that Nokia is the largest cell phone
maker in the World, outselling all others easily and Symbian, until
recently, has been the dominant mobile OS on the planet. Joe avg in the
USA always has a hard time grasping that, mainly because you simply
don’t seen Nokia smartphones on the street very often here, unless you
happen to be at a mobile developer event or other geek event in San Fran
or New York.
So now we have a North American calling the shots and now today’s
announcement that Nokia will be adopting Microsoft’s mobile OS… from the
PR “Windows Phone would serve as Nokia’s primary smartphone platform”.
Felling seem to be mixed around the Twittersphere, with many vocal
opinions coming out of the Global bloggosphere. Out of the gate I see
some branding issues that are already kind of confusing. First, the
name… Windows Phone 7 OS is really bizzare in my mind and I associate it
with a Windows Mobile Phone. Nokia is a brand of it’s own and has a
loyal following, to think of a little Windows inside sticker is just
down-right weird! Then there’s the developer community. Often hidden in
the background, the developers are truly the heart and sole behind the
success of any mobile brand and device… after all, if your device can’t
run those way cool apps then what good is it? Here in North America
developers have been schooling themselves on the iPhone OS and perhaps
more so with Android. Are these developers going to start flocking to Windows Phone? Wait and see I guess but if I
were a developer here looking for some success I’d jump on this one
really fast!
Finally, there’s the bloggosphere. Nokia has long relied on bloggers
and Word of Mouth marketing to get the word out about their devices,
cool apps, services, events and the like. I’m already seeing many
bloggers now praising Windows Phone OS which surprises me as this is
coming from people who in mind have no or little history, background, or
knowledge of the Win mobile environment, so to praise it and “kiss ass”
is such a way is almost humerous. I have to wonder how many Symbian
bloggers are now going to search and replace “symbian” for “Windows
Phone” and all of a sudden become self-proclaimed experts in the space. I
for one will be really curious and skeptical as I watch this unravel. On the upside, I am looking forward to some great stuff coming from some newly focused blogs and from some skilled and experienced minds in that space! Some words of wisdom, keep in mind where you get
your information before you re-tweet, re-post and praise what you hear,
read, and see.
The Really Big List of Mapping, Geo location Mobile developer resources, APIs and Tools - The Mobile Ecosystem... no question that mobile is huge and
the opportunity for developers, in particular, geo developers! There's
loads of developer resources on the web so to help the developer,
here's a listing of just some of the fine dev resources, blogs,
toolsets and more to consider when developing or porting your app to a
smartphone or Tablet.
Mobile Technology Feature - Top 10 Business Apps for Android - Android has become one of the most popular mobile operating systems
in the world due to advanced software, competitive manufacturers, and an
app market that is filled with exciting and useful applications. Read
on for this fine Top 10 List compiled by tech writer, Blake Sanders
ArcGIS.com Mashup Tutorial with Flickr and Foursquare data-
Here's a simple "how to" tutorial on working with the free ArcGIS.com
to easily import KML or RSS data from Flickr and foursquare into ArcGIS
to create your own custom map mashup.
Most Users of Free Photo Apps Say Adding Cool Effects is Most Useful - Adding cool effects
to photos was rated as the most useful thing by more than halfof
consumers surveyed using free online photography services, according to
CatchFree a free
online service that helps people find the best free mobile and web applications
to perform useful tasks.
Flickr GPS Photo Tag Tip - Here's a tip for Flickr users who want to share their GPS information
with their photos. note, in order to do this you'll need to be
capturing photos using a GPS-enabled or GPS-aware camera (see you're
smartphone hardware settings to ensure that GPS or location sharing is
turned "ON)".
Suggested Reading
The Underground Guide To The iPhone:
The iPhone is – if I may say so – one of the greatest mobile
revolutions of the past decade. More and more, mobile phones seem to
materialize out of our wildest dreams. Because of the tight integration
of third-party applications, you can do nearly everything with your
device — be it gaming, working, fooling around, and of course phoning.
Good Mobile Messaging: Executives and professional field forces spend an increasing amount of time on the road tending to business.
Mobile Apps - Native or Web?:
You probably have a plan to build a mobile app, but you've struggled
with the basic question - Should I build it using open web standards
such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, or should I build it as a native app
for the devices I want to target?
Location summit 2012 - Back for its third year, the Location Business Summit will bring
together senior level executives from across the whole breadth of the
location ecosystem to discuss strategies, form partnerships, compare
trends and forge new business ventures. May 22-23, 2012, Amsterdam
WhereCamp Berlin 2012 - For those passionate about geographical specialties, WhereCamp Berlin
is gathering its attendees on the 22nd and 23rd of June. Everyone is
free to present and share topics, news and trends
