Google offers new collaboration tools for app designers

Google has released a slew of tools that designers and developers can use to build app interfaces. While they appear to be tied to the company’s Material Design language, which it launched in 2014, it looks like you’ll be able to use them regardless of what design principles you choose to follow.

Gallery lets you upload, share and comment on designs. It offers version control as well as a way to present your work without the need to attach PDFs or slide decks. If you’ve used collaboration tools like InVision, Gallery might seem familiar to you.

Remixer and Stage allow you to create interactive app prototypes for iOS, Androidand the Web. They also let you tweak visual elements on-the-fly and even test movement and animations.

In addition, Google has collated all its Material Design resources – from guidelines to icons – and put them all on a new site, material.io.

This isn’t the first time Google has made resources available to the community in recent history. In March, it released Resizer, which is meant to test breakpoints, responsive grids and surface behaviors and UI patterns for Material Design on the Web.

The company hopes that these new tools and content will help more designers adopt Material Design in their work. You can sign up to get early access to Gallery and Stage here, and try Remixer by grabbing it from this GitHub repository. Let us know what you think of them in the comments.

Red Alert 2 in VR looks like the trippiest way to play the legendary game

Red Alert 2 will forever be one of the best real-time strategy games. Even if you weren’t a fan of the timeless gameplay, the ridiculous cinematic cutscenes will be forever stuck in your mind.Even though the workings might not have aged much 16 years after its release, the visuals definitely have. And what better way to bring a game back into the current day, than to re-imagine it in VR?

Gamer and developer Ádám Horváth took up the project after having recently realized a virtual mirror to try on clothes. By creating a version of the game that runs in Unreal Engine 4, he was able to integrate VR-based gameplay. By putting on a HTC Vive, you can lose yourself in Yuri’s dimension.

The player is presented with a virtual tablet-like device that can be used to select buildings and other units that then can be placed on the game map with a laser pointer on the right-hand side. All this happens while you’re flying overhead, which makes for a great view of the playing field.

The game unfortunately only serves as a proof-of-concept for now, so there’s no guarantee we’ll see a full version anytime soon — but it does offer an exciting look at the possible future of strategy games.

Samsung Galaxy S8 might come with a new pressure-sensitive display

According to South Korean outlet The Investor, Samsung is considering adopting an innovative pressure-sensitive display technology for its new line of flagship devices, including the upcoming S8.

The publication claims the report has been corroborated by “multiple industry sources” who’ve asked to remain anonymous.

Here’s what the sources said:

Samsung is mulling to adopt the force touch technology partially from the S8 but the full adoption qill (sic) come in one or two years… It is a matter of time before other major Android smartphone makers deploy the technology that will help enhance user interface.

While The Investor was scarce with details, the pressure-sensitive display will likely work in a similar way to Apple’s 3D Touch technology.

Pressure-sensitive screens aren’t entirely new in the smartphone market. Huaweirecently introduced its own ‘hard press’ pressure-sensitive functionality with the debut of its Mate S smartphone. In fact, it was precisely Samsung that manufactured the force touch screens Huawei used for the Mate S.

The Investor has been spewing S8 rumors left and right over the past few weeks. Previously, the South Korean website speculated Samsung’s upcoming flagship device will don a killer edge-to-edge OLED display that will come in two sizes – a 5.2-inch as well as a 6.2-inch version.

Among other things, the new and improved Galaxy S8 is expected to feature aboosted camera as well as a smarter virtual assistant. It might also ditch the iconichome button.

Skype now lets you make calls without an account

Microsoft has updated Skype with a much-needed feature: A Web-based guest interface that lets you make and receive calls without the need to download the desktop app or register for an account.

To make a call, all you need to do is point your browser to skype.com and enter a handle. You’ll receive a link that you can share with anyone, and you can then start a voice or video call, group chat, and share files.

Google isn't happy about how some Android phones do fast charging

In the race for the fastest-charging battery in the Android world, Google just declared its own role in the competition: It will be the one to set the rules and control the playing field.

The latest version of Google's Android Compatibility Definition Document (CDD), which outlines the requirements hardware makers must follow to keep devices compatible with Android OS, included some interesting new language . David Ruddock of Android Police was the first to note the final bullet point of the section regarding USB peripheral mode, which is buried on page 70 of the 85 page report: 

While the first all-capped suggestion that sticking to the default levels of voltage are "STRONGLY RECOMMENDED" really jumps off the page, the real news comes with the insinuation made by the second one and what exactly it means to "REQUIRE."

Essentially, this means that Google is declaring the definitive voltage level and manner of delivery for the charging of Android devices. If a manufacturer dares to go beyond that threshold in pursuit of speedier charge times, like those promised by proprietary tech likeQualcomm's Quick Charge 3.0, they'd better think twice — or they might be locked out of the OS entirely. If that's the case, the fast-acting chips and chargers would go from an added perk to the handset to a death sentence. 

The defaults and methods Google references are set by the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) in order to better standardize "all of the functional benefits of USB that form the basis for this most popular of computing device interconnects." 

Importantly, this move is made for greater uniformity, not over any concerns of unstable batteries and over-powering. This is not what caused Samsung Galaxy Note7 battery woes. Instead, look at this as Google tightening its grip on Android and telling manufacturers that they're free to innovate with their hardware... just as long as they do it in the Google way.

Adobe will buy advertising company TubeMogul for $540 million

Photoshop software maker Adobe Systems Inc said on Thursday it would buy advertising company TubeMogul Inc for about $540 million, net of debt and cash, giving it a bigger presence in the rapidly growing online video market. Adobe’s $14 per share cash offer represents an 82.5 percent premium to TubeMogul’s Wednesday close.

Shares of TubeMogul, which allows advertisers to buy video ad space using its software, jumped to $13.95 in early trading on Thursday. The deal will help Adobe add an ad buying platform to its digital marketing unit, which offers tools for businesses to analyse customer interactions and manage social media content.

Advertising technology firms such as TubeMogul, Rocket Fuel Inc and Tremor Video Inc face fierce competition from online advertising giants Facebook Inc and Alphabet Inc’s Google. Up to Wednesday’s close, TubeMogul’s shares had fallen nearly 44 percent this year.

Facebook, Google and Twitter Inc have all been betting big on video over the past year, a format where advertisers are willing to pay a premium for a few seconds of users’ undivided attention.

“Whether it’s episodic TV, indie films or Hollywood blockbusters, video consumption is exploding across every device and brands are following those eyeballs,” said Brad Rencher, Adobe’s executive vice president of digital marketing. Adobe said the acquisition would not have an impact on its adjusted earnings in the year ending December 2017.