Javascript

The overweight web: Average web page size is up 15% in 2014

Let's blame cat pictures

Bigger isn’t better when it comes to web pages, but the internet has continued to put on weight this year. According to…

by Biz Carson Dec 29, 2014 - 4:57 PM PST

Datafiniti re-architects its web-crawler engine and moves to the cloud

With 70,000 machines available in the cloud and on volunteer computers around the globe, Datafiniti claims that its customers are scanning 648 million URLs each month.

by Jonathan Vanian Oct 1, 2014 - 11:00 AM PST

Google’s two-way app strategy: Android apps on Chrome and new APIs for Chrome apps on Android

With recent news of Android apps on Chrome, you might think that Google is placing more emphasis on its mobile app platform. That’s not the case as Chrome apps on Android gain new APIs and a better workflow in Google’s one-two app punch.

by Kevin C. Tofel Sep 22, 2014 - 11:57 AM PST

Cosmos Browser uses SMS to provide web access without Wi-Fi or mobile broadband

In regions without mobile broadband, or where it’s still too expensive to have a data plan, other ways to connect to the web are…

by Kevin C. Tofel Sep 11, 2014 - 1:32 PM PST

Want to build Chrome or Android apps from a Chromebook? Now you can

Google’s Chrome Dev Editor is available in developer preview and runs on any computer with Chrome installed, which includes Chrome OS devices. With the software, you can write a Chrome app that can also be deployed to an Android device.

by Kevin C. Tofel Jul 1, 2014 - 8:59 AM PST

Non-Safari iPhone browsers will soon have access to Apple’s full-speed Javascript engine

One of the most obvious drawbacks of Apple’s(s appl) approach to iOS development has been the fact that no browser except for Safari…

by Kif Leswing Jun 4, 2014 - 1:30 PM PST

Web gaming future: 3-D graphics games in the browser without plug-ins

If you’ve ever played Dead Trigger 2 on a phone or tablet, you have to try it in a browser. It can be done thanks to a technical demo from Unity which is using WebGL and JavaScript for the game.

by Kevin C. Tofel May 4, 2014 - 7:00 AM PST

Forget Flappy Bird, this robot is awesome at playing Leap Sheep on iPad

Why bother getting low scores on an addictive iPad game when you can build a robot to play — likely better — for you? That’s what Tom Randle did for Leap Sheep using an iPad, Arduino board, sensors and tablet styli.

by Kevin C. Tofel Feb 19, 2014 - 12:02 PM PST

Google turns to Middle Earth and Hobbits to show off Chrome’s magic

Want to safely explore Middle Earth from the comfort of your phone or tablet? You’ll avoid dragons and get a taste of new web technologies at the same time: Google’s latest Chrome Experiment showcases off new web technologies for mobile devices.

by Kevin C. Tofel Nov 20, 2013 - 11:31 AM PST

Google launches Portable Native Client, eliminating chip fragmentation in Chrome

Chromebook owners shouldn’t have to worry much longer if an app will work on their device: Google unveiled Portable Native Client, which lets developers code once in C or C++ and then compile the app for Chrome on x86, ARM or MIPS hardware.

by Kevin C. Tofel Nov 12, 2013 - 11:23 AM PST

NoFlo turns to Kickstarter to expand program to help non-techies read code

Flow-based programming environment NoFlo is raising 100,000ドル to bring its efficient coding to the cloud — and help non-technical people read the code their engineers write.

by Lauren Hockenson Aug 1, 2013 - 7:44 AM PST

Facebook acquires mobile development platform Parse

Facebook has acquired Parse, the company that helps developers write mobile apps in the cloud.

by Eliza Kern Apr 25, 2013 - 2:20 PM PST

HTML5 lovers rejoice: Famo.us to make its platform free for developers

Famo.us, a San Francisco-based HTML5 platform maker, is making its platform free for developers and has new technology that makes its HTML5 platform even more robust.

by Om Malik Apr 1, 2013 - 11:08 AM PST

Want to build a better Twitter? Here’s a framework for you

Developers over at Twitter have open sourced the code for Flight, a JavaScript framework for web applications.

by Barb Darrow Jan 31, 2013 - 10:58 AM PST

Meteor fortifies framework with authentication, user account controls

When it comes to realtime JavaScript frameworks, developers love Meteor. But they want better security features and user controls. With Meteor 0.5.0, it looks like they’re getting what they asked for.

by Barb Darrow Oct 19, 2012 - 1:40 AM PST

Microsoft attacks JavaScript scaling with TypeScript

Javascript is wildly popular but needs enterprise-class capabilities if it’s going to continue to be used to build business applications. That’s why Microsoft is offering TypeScript a superset of JavaScript that adds these needed perks available as a download.

by Barb Darrow Oct 1, 2012 - 1:33 PM PST

Want to be a reporter? Learn to code

Journalism schools have to do a much better job teaching prospective reporters about the programming skills needed to tell data-driven, visual stories on web pages, not front pages, says the executive director of Northwestern University’s Knight News Innovation Lab.

by Barb Darrow Sep 5, 2012 - 8:56 PM PST

Software coding: not just for programmers anymore

The thought that everyone should write software is gaining steam. The reasoning is that if all the people who use software actually understand how to build software, everyone’s better off. But if everyone codes, what’s that mean for the professionals?

by Barb Darrow Jul 16, 2012 - 7:16 AM PST

MLstate’s OPA: A better way to build cloud apps

Paris is for lovers and programming language startups. MLstate is trying to get backers for its Opa language, which hopes to automate a lot of busy work for programmers and was a finalist at the Launchpad competition during GigaOM Structure last week.

by Barb Darrow Jun 27, 2012 - 12:00 PM PST

Parse lets mobile app developers write server code without servers

Most mobile app developers hate dealing with the nitty-gritty of server-side programming, but most of them need to do some of it. Those server-squeamish developers are the target market for Parse’s new JavaScript SDK, based on Backbone.js. The SDK is downloadable as of today.

by Barb Darrow May 30, 2012 - 9:00 AM PST

Does your Facebook mobile app suck? Here’s why

Is your Facebook mobile app slow to update or showing old data on Android or iOS? If so, you’re not alone. I’ve noticed a degradation in the mobile application’s performance for months but I never knew exactly why it was. Until now.

by Kevin C. Tofel May 15, 2012 - 2:19 PM PST

Cubism.js: a cool new way to display timeline data

With Square Inc.’s new open-source Cubism.js library, developers can devise complex timeline visualizations that tap into multiple data backends. Think Yahoo Finance stock charts only more dynamic and interactive. Cubism.js is available under the Apache license from Github.

by Barb Darrow Apr 26, 2012 - 5:17 AM PST

Web developers: Watch out for Meteor!

Meteor, a new real-time JavaScript framework targeting web app developers, is causing quite a stir on Twitter and Hacker News. One of the company’s biggest claims is that its open-source technology will enable hot code updates that won’t disturb app users.

by Barb Darrow Apr 11, 2012 - 6:03 AM PST

Benchmarks: Galaxy Tab 7.7 vs Transformer Prime

Now that Samsung offers the Galaxy Tab 7.7, my patience to upgrade the old Galaxy Tab has paid off: This small slate with high-def display offers big performance. Here are benchmarks compared to other tablets like the Transformer Prime; both are solid performers in real life.

by Kevin C. Tofel Jan 31, 2012 - 8:56 AM PST

Are Yahoo Cocktails the answer for cross-platform apps?

Yahoo’s magic elixir for web developers frustrated by writing web applications that display on multiple devices is Mojito, a “100 percent” JavaScript application framework and Manhattan, a cloud-based Mojito hosted environment that layers higher-level services atop a basic Node.js server execution engine.

by Barb Darrow Nov 3, 2011 - 12:36 PM PST

Microsoft Lets Hotmail Turns Select E-mails Into Apps

Microsoft is rolling out a new feature in Hotmail that creates interactive e-mails that bring the Web into messages. The update allows companies to send e-mails that allow users to fill out forms and conducts searches without having to leave Hotmail.

by Ryan Kim Dec 16, 2010 - 11:01 AM PST

Want to See the Future of Mobile Web Apps? Just Watch Google

Google improved the web version of its Gmail application for Apple iPhone and iPod touch devices, further blending the lines between web and native applications. Client apps are still hot, but developers should look to Google for examples of a mobile future filled with web apps.

by Kevin C. Tofel Oct 28, 2010 - 8:00 AM PST