Opinion: Better systems, better DevOps

DevOps is not simply a set of tools or systems, but rather a methodology requiring stakeholder buy-in for successful execution. DevOps is based on collaboration—using operations, best practices, and organizational culture to streamline and connect development teams and IT operations.

The better the system design, the better the DevOps implementation could be. Deriving the best value from DevOps requires agility many legacy systems can’t deliver. To maximize efficiency, DevOps must operate on a flexible system such as one running microservices and containers in a cloud environment.

CCI probe into Android: Anti-trust regulator seeks details of agreements between phone makers and Google

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has asked handset companies the details of their agreements with Google or its group companies as the anti-trust regulator expands the scope of its investigation into the accusations of abuse of market power by the Android Operating System (OS).

Android as of March 2019 held 99% share of the Indian market.This move by the investigation wing of the CCI follows the European Union's decision to slap Google with a fine of $5 billion (4.3 billion euros) for misuse of Android's market dominance last year.

The European Commission found Google had abused its market dominance since 2011 with practices such as forcing manufacturers to pre-install Google Search and its Chrome browser, together with its Google Play app store on Android devices.

The CCI director general has reportedly sent letters to several smartphone makers comprising Samsung, Xiaomi, Karbonn and Lava and has sought details on the terms and conditions of their agreements with Google, the Economic Times reported.

Most organisations experience business acceleration by using cloud services: McAfee

A new survey by cybersecurity firm McAfee found that 87% organisations experience business acceleration by using cloud services. The Cloud and Risk Adoption Report was conducted across 1000 companies globally, along with insights from billions of anonymized cloud events seen every month by McAfee’s CASB, MVISION Cloud. 

“This research shines a light on organizations who are leading the charge in cloud adoption, prioritizing the security of their data as they roll out new cloud services and winning in the market because of the actions they are taking,” said Rajiv Gupta, senior vice president, Cloud Security, McAfee 

Apple will force app developers to include ‘Sign in with Apple’

Apple is forcing app developers using third-party sign-ins to adopt its 'Sign in with Apple' alternative.

The new button was debuted at this year’s WWDC and offers an innovative solution to a serious problem. Rather than sign-in via a service which collects data – like those from Facebook, Twitter, and Google – users can benefit from the convenience of such logins but also protect their privacy.

Rather than provide a user’s actual email address, Apple’s sign-in button generates a randomised email address which forwards on to the real account. This ensures the user’s email is kept private and they have full control over who it’s shared with and the messages they receive, while  also enabling developers to provide important updates.

TikTok overtakes Facebook as most downloaded app

The adage 'good news comes in threes' certainly holds true for social video app TikTok, owned by Chinese startup ByteDance. In February, the wildly popular app announced crossing the one billion mark for worldwide installs on the App Store and Google Play, including its lite versions and regional variations. Then, on April 24, the Madras High Court lifted its three-week interim ban on TikTok, a significant break for the player since it has made no bones about its bullish intentions in India. And now comes news that it has overtaken US social media giant Facebook in terms of the number of downloads.

According to market intelligence firm Sensor Tower, TikTok recorded its best first quarter yet for new users in the quarter ended March, with 188 million new installs between January 1 and March 31. That's a whopping 70% increase year-on-year. On its blog, the app analytics platform added that TikTok's growth was "largely driven by India, where an estimated 88.6 million new users flocked to the app", posting an over eight-fold increase over the same quarter last year. So India accounted for over 47% of its downloads in Q1. In comparison, TikTok added approximately 13.2 million new users in the United States during the period, up 2.8 times over Q1 FY18.

Facebook, which is also used extensively on the desktop, came in second with 176 million new downloads in the same period, The Economic Times reported, adding that the largest chunk (21%) came from India. At the end of 2018, Facebook had been the most downloaded application globally.

"What we see is going to be unique in the Indian market is that the next wave of 200-400 million joining the internet might experience TikTok as their first social media platform where they can share special moments of their lives with not only friends and family, but also with a global audience with similar interests," TikTok told the daily.

Dropbox focuses on collaboration with major app redesign

Dropbox has given its file-sharing software a major overhaul in an effort to reposition itself as a hub for workplace collaboration and productivity.

The company's aim is to combine various fragmented digital workplace tools into one place. "It's a single workspace to organize your content, connect your tools, and bring everyone together, wherever you are," the company said in a blog post Monday.

Three main components of the new Dropbox app aim to achieve this goal.

First, it combines documents from a range of sources, including Google Docs, Sheets and Slides and Microsoft Office files, making them accessible in one place. Users can create, organize and share content direct from Dropbox, the company said, while bookmark shortcuts for webpages and other SaaS tools can also be stored. There is also an improved search interface to find documents.

Second, integrations with collaboration and communication tools, including Slack and Zoom, make it easier to chat with co-workers about work under way without leaving Dropbox.