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Stack Overflow's New 'Developer Stories' Makes Creating a Compelling Resume Easier

 

HIGHLIGHTS

• The Developer Stories format highlights the developers achievements
• It can include projects worked on, apps created, languages known etc
• Developer Stories can also include what the user wants to work on next
• Stack Overflow, the popular website used by developers to seek assistance on issues related to programming, is giving a modern twist to the traditional resume for its members. The website has unveiled a new feature called Developer Stories, a new resume format that highlights developers’ projects and skills, rather than traditional educational qualifications.
  
  
  Stack Overflow’s Developer Stories comes with two viewing modes: one is a conventional resume format that employers are used to, and the other provides a timeline of the person’s achievements in the field.
• The timeline format can include a number of achievements, such as the projects they worked on at work, open source projects they contributed to, apps they created, skills they have, languages they know, etc. Developers can choose the accomplishments they wish to highlight in the timeline view, including questions they answered on the Stack Overflow website. The timeline can have embedded videos and images as well.
  
  
  
  
  “The Developer Story lets you share what you've worked on by linking to actual features you’ve worked on, blog posts, or public code. Those things shouldn’t be described in the second clause of a tiny bullet, or relegated to the ‘other interests’ section of a resume. The Developer Story puts the work you’re most proud of where it belongs: right alongside your roles or schools,” Jay Hanlon, Stack Overflow’s Vice President of Community Growth, wrote in a blog post.
  
  
  Apart from highlighting the projects and technologies the Stack Overflow members currently or previously worked on, the Developer Stories format also takes into account the technologies they would want to work on in the next job.
  
  While 15 percent of the community’s members are actively looking to change their jobs at any point of time, over 60 percent are open to exploring new job opportunities, says a new Stack Overflow survey. The new resume creation feature is free for the members of the Stack Overflow community. Stack Overflow’s new feature is accessible only to organisations or the hiring agencies they appoint, but not to individuals working in the field of recruitment.
  Hanlon’s post says that Developer Stories is not just for those looking to change the jobs, but can even be used by those not seeking a change. The post reads, “Like most people who make things, devs often like to share what they’ve built. So it’s designed so you can use it as your own ‘coding central,’ even if you’re not job hunting. Just create a Developer Story, but set your job preference to ‘Not Interested.’ You can share the features you’ve worked on, Github repos, blog posts, or even books you’d recommend.”
• 
  

Signal Private Messenger Gets Much-Requested 'Disappearing Messages' Feature

 

HIGHLIGHTS

• Company says feature will help in keeping chat history tidy
• Feature not introduced with aim to improve privacy
• Timer available from 5-seconds to one week

When Google launched its text-messaging app Allo last month, it received criticism from NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden for the lack of privacy offered by the app. He instead suggested people to use messaging apps like Signal, which use end-to-end encryption for all messages. This of course was not the first time that Snowden endorsed Signal, and it has gained quite a solid reputation for user privacy. Now, the app has added the Disappearing Messages feature that allows users to send ephemeral messages that self-destruct after a set duration.

Disappearing Messages feature lets you send the messages through the app that can be tagged with a timer ranging from 5 seconds to one week.

"With this update, any conversation can be configured to delete sent and received messages after a specified interval. The configuration applies to all parties of a conversation, and the clock starts ticking for each recipient once they've read their copy of the message," Open Whisper Systems said on its website.

The update is already available for Android, iOS, and desktop versions of the app. Open Whisper Systems has clarified that Disappearing Messages have been introduced to ensure tidiness of the chat conversations and not for security.

The company specifically points out that this feature is not meant for the situations where the contact that you are sending your messages to, is your adversary. This is because the recipient can always click a picture of the message before it disappears from the screen.

The update also brings along support for Signal Protocol's numeric fingerprint format, which are called "safety numbers" in Signal. The safety numbers can be verified by scanning a QR code or by reading a string aloud.

MSI Launches Powerful Intel Kaby Lake-Powered Laptops Starting at Rs. 1,29,000

HIGHLIGHTS

• All new laptops come with Intel Kaby Lake Core-i7 processors
• MSI GT83VR 7RE Titan SLI is company's first VR-optimised laptop
• MSI GT73VR 7RF Titan Pro 4K features a 4K display
• MSI, the company behind the gaming PCs and laptops, has announced a refreshed lineup of its gaming laptops in India that are powered by Intel's newly launched Kaby Lake processors. The new 7th-generation Intel Core i7-powered laptops also pack Nvidia's latest GTX 10 series GPUs that bring 4K support and an improved virtual reality performance. MSI's 7th-generation laptop lineup includes MSI GT83VR 7RE Titan SLI, GT73VR 7RF Titan Pro 4K, GS63VR 7RF Stealth Pro, GE62 7RE Apache Pro, and GP62 7RD Leopard.
• Talking about the specifications, MSI GT83VR 7RE Titan SLI is the company's first VR-optimised laptop with an IPS level screen. With VR optimisation, gamers will be able to experience games inside the VR headsets. This gaming laptop is powered by Intel Kaby Lake Core i7-7820HK+CM238 CPU and Nvidia's dual GTX 1080 8GB GDDR5X GPU for graphics performance.
  
  
  It runs Windows 10 on Super Raid 4-512GB NVMe SSD drive with 1TB 7200rpm hard drive. It is said to be the only laptop that features Cherry MX Speed Sliver RGB Switches and an ergonomic keyboard for best tactile feedback of 1.2mm mechanical actuation, light 45g key switches, and Gold contacts. The GT83VR 7RE Titan SLI comes with multi-color RGB backlighting and will be available at a price of Rs. 3,49,990.
  
  
  Coming to the second laptop, the GT73VR 7RF Titan Pro 4K, as the name suggests, sports a 4K LCD built-in display with a resolution of up to 3840x2160 pixels and support for 100 percent Adobe RGB colour gamut. The laptop runs Windows 10 on Super Raid 4-512GB NVMe SSD and a 1TB 7200rpm hard disk drive. It is powered by Intel's Core i7-7820HK that gives it power not only to run 4K games, but to edit 4K videos as well. The GT73VR 7RF Titan Pro 4K is priced at Rs. 3,34,990.
  
  
  The third laptop of the company's GS series is GS63VR 7RF Stealth Pro. It packs a 15.6-inch screen that has full-HD resolution, along with the anti-glare feature and 100 percent Adobe RGB colour gamut. The laptop is powered by a 7th gen Intel Core-i7 7700HQ+HM175 CPU, paired with a full desktop class Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 GPU and 6GB of GDDR5 graphics RAM. For storage, it houses a 256GB NVMe M.2 SSD that can give a speed up to 2,200MBps. MSI's GS63VR 7RF Stealth Proia will be available at Rs. 1,77,990.
  
  
  The final members of the refreshed laptop lineup are GE62 7RE Apache Pro and GP62 7RD Leopard. Both the laptops share similar specifications like the Intel Kaby Lake Core-i7 7700HQ+HM175 processor. The GE62 7RE Apache Pro is powered by the Nvidia GeForce 1050Ti GPU with 4GB of GDDR5 RAM while the GP62 7RD Leopard utilises the GTX 1050 with 2GB of GDDR5 RAM. The GE62 7RE Apache Pro is priced at Rs. 1,29,990, and the price of GP62 7RD Leopard has not been revealed yet.

PS4 and PS3 Exclusive Persona 5 Not Coming to India

PS4 and PS3 Exclusive Persona 5 Not Coming to India

HIGHLIGHTS

• Persona 5 will be available worldwide on April 4
• India is not getting a retail release for the game
• It's the rare title Gadgets 360 has labelled as an essential purchase
• Persona 5 for the PS3 and PS4 is not getting a retail release in India. The game’s distributor Sunder Electronics confirmed this to us. No reason for Persona 5’s no show was given by the company.
  However, retail sources have told Gadgets 360 that the game will not be making it to stores in the country because Sunder Electronics did not place orders for it with Deep Silver, the game’s European publisher. Sunder Electronics represents Deep Silver - the game’s European publisher in India.
• For most game companies, the price and availability of games in India is tied to what European territories get. It also explains why Sega - the game’s publisher in the US, isn’t bringing it in through its Indian distributor E-xpress.
  
  
  So what does this mean for you? If you want to play Persona 5, you’re options include buying it digitallyfor Rs. 3,999 or through the grey market — which has had the game for sale for over a week now at around Rs. 4,300. Or you can, much like some rabid Indian gamers did back in 2011 for The Witcher 2, get in touch with the game’s developer to force a change of heart.
• For what it’s worth, we found Persona 5 to be an essential purchase. If you own a PS3 or PS4, you owe it to yourself to play Persona 5. From its presentation to gameplay systems and its many plot twists, there isn’t quite anything like it. A must-play for fans of the series and newcomers alike.

Samsung's Assistant Bixby in Tough Challenge to Rivals

Samsung's Assistant Bixby in Tough Challenge to Rivals

Samsung's Bixby is the new kid on the block of personal digital assistants and is likely to face a rough reception in a neighborhood dominated by tech sector rivals.

Bixby - introduced at Samsung's unveiling of Galaxy S8 smartphones - aims to help the South Korean giant break into a surging market for voice-activated virtual assistants, which includes Apple's Siri, Amazon's Alexa, Google's Assistant and Microsoft's Cortana.

The latest personal digital assistant distinguishes itself from competitors by using voice commands rather than touch to control handsets or applications, factoring in location awareness and image recognition.

The integrated camera function allows users to identify buildings, such as popular tourist sites, to access their websites and other information simply by snapping a photo.

The photo recognition technology can also help users decipher menus in foreign languages, or find places to shop for specific items they photograph.

"It impressed me that they were doing image recognition and context awareness," said Bob O'Donnell, analyst and consultant with Technalysis Research, who attended the presentation.

"It adds some new twists we haven't seen before," he said, noting Bixby's ability to make recommendations.

Yet Bixby is still a work in progress - the virtual entity did not speak at the New York demonstration. It has yet to be infused with technology from Samsung's recently acquired Viv, a company founded by creators of Apple's Siri.

"It's not talking yet," O'Donnell said. "They have room to expand and grow."

Tough competitors
Bixby will face competition from established players - even from Samsung's own phones, where users can choose to use Assistant, Cortana or Alexa.

Richard Windsor, an independent analyst who writes the Radio Free Mobile blog, said Bixby may face problems because the "best-in-class Google Assistant" will be on the home button of the new phone, which is powered by Google-backed Android software.

That means Bixby has a "fearsome competitor" on its own flagship device, according to the analyst.

"Bixby is trying to do things a little differently but careful assessment of what Samsung demonstrated shows a service that has very little intelligence at all," Windsor said.

Roger Kay of Endpoint Technologies Associates said Bixby might face challenges catching up with its rivals, which have been deployed for some time.

"You can't build these things overnight," Kay said. "It would take years to create something as developed as Siri."

Still, he noted, it is important for Samsung to be in the game.

"These are table stakes," Kay said. "You can't not deal with voice. It's hands-free and can summarise a lot of things quickly."

Amazon appears to have impacted the sector the most with its connected speakers using Alexa. The service allows users a wide range of voice interactions for music, news, purchases and connects with smart home devices.

"Alexa is the top dog," Kay said. "Amazon has done the best work from a commercial perspective. They took it out of the theoretical to put it to work for things people want to do."

Beyond the phone
Samsung has also promoted Bixby as a remote hub for connected devices, which is another challenge as it takes the software beyond the smartphone.

Patrick Moorhead, analyst with Moor Insights & Strategy, said Bixby's success in the connected home may depend on how much data it can collect.

"Machine learning gets better the more training it gets and the more data it gets," Moorhead said.

While Bixby cannot benefit from the large databases of competitors Apple and Windows, it could potentially sync with Samsung electronics and smart home appliances through Samsung's SmartThings platform.

"Samsung ships so many devices from phones to Chromebooks to washing machines, it is picking up a different set of information, so it might end up being smarter than Siri," he said.

"Siri doesn't know what's in your refrigerator, Samsung does."

The app faces an uphill battle in a fragmented market where competing platforms don't always work together.

Moorhead said tech companies are jockeying for a position in order to "get access to data - by using this interface they can build detailed profiles on you."

 Samsung Galaxy 8+

• REVIEW
• KEY SPECS
• NEWS

Display

6.20-inch

Processor

1.9GHz octa-core

Front Camera

8-megapixel

Resolution

1440x2960 pixels

RAM

4GB

OS

Android 7.0

Storage

64GB

Rear Camera

12-megapixel

Battery Capacity

3500mAh

Samsung Galaxy S8

• REVIEW
• KEY SPECS
• NEWS

Display

5.80-inch

Processor

1.9GHz octa-core

Front Camera

8-megapixel

Resolution

1440x2960 pixels

RAM

4GB

OS

Android 7.0

Storage

64GB

Rear Camera

12-megapixel

Battery Capacity

3000mAh

Google Analytics Desktop Version Gets Material Design UI Refresh and New Features Rohan Naravane, 12 October 2016

Google Analytics Desktop Version Gets Material Design UI Refresh and New Features

 

HIGHLIGHTS

• Google Analytics is the most used web analytics service
• It received a visual overhaul in accordance to Google's Material Design
• Along with UX improvements, some legacy features were replaced as well

Google Analytics, the ubiquitous usage analytics service for the Web and apps, is getting a much-needed user interface overhaul for its desktop version. Launched in the November of 2005, this ten-year-old service has received a facelift in accordance with Material Design; Google’s design language introduced along with Android 5.0 Lollipop in 2014, that most Google already apps use. A blog post on the matter suggests that along with the attempt to make the UI simpler, efforts have been taken to “retain the key functionality that people still use”.

Among improvements include the uncluttering of the ‘Customisation’ tab, which now brings the dashboard, custom reports, custom alerts combined into one tab, instead of individual items on the left pane. Clicking the top header now lets you quickly switch views from any page you're on. Logging into Google Analytics now takes you to the view you were looking at the last time, saving an additional click when compared to the previous iteration. Users can also change the default date range that Google Analytics loads with; so if a user prefers loading a 7 day report on every login instead of the typical 30 day report, one can do so from the user settings.

Along with adding new features, a few others have been given the boot as well. For instance Automatic Intelligence Events have been removed from Google Analytics. It will be replaced with the automated insights delivered by the Analytics Assistant, akin to the Google Assistant feature available on the Google Photos or Allo apps, that suggests actionable insights based on the data. Also chucked from the updated version is In-Page Analytics, but the feature is still accessible using the company’s Chrome Extension.

It is also suggested that there are other improvements not mentioned that will roll out subsequently to users in the coming months.

Google Assistant vs Apple's Siri: The Voice-Based Virtual Assistants Face Off on Video

HIGHLIGHTS

• Pixel and Pixel XL smartphones comes built-in with Assistant
• Google's Assistant is conversational as well as understands context
• Siri at times relies more on third party search services including Bing
• Google Assistant made its voice-based virtual assistant debut on the company's Pixel and Pixel XLsmartphones, and has been marketed as the biggest highlight of the new hardware. Since its debut, the new Assistant has been promoted as a voice assistant that ups the competition against the likes of Apple's Siri, which arguably has improved over steadily the years. While Google Assistant, very much like Google Now, is present on the home screen and can be launched by a long-press on the home button. It comes with AI (artificial intelligence) smarts and will be able to contextualise the information it digs up through earlier interactions with the user.
• Now, YouTuber Marques Brownlee has done an extensive comparison video where Google Assistant and Apple's Siri have been in an actual face-off. The YouTube video shows the Google Pixel XL featuring Assistant and iPhone 7 Plus with Siri. Brownlee in a series of questions shows various use cases in the video.
• Both Assistant and Siri end up with correct answers most of the time though one can notice split second difference between the two at times. The video also shows how Google's Assistant is conversational as well as understands context while Siri sticks with results from third-party search engines such as Bing. One of the biggest advantages Google's Assistant is that it is able to tap into the company's Knowledge Graph and also takes benefit of its AI learning that comes handy in results.
  
  
  In the video, Brownlee shows how Assistant and Siri are able to control various apps apart from setting an alarm or reminder directly from the voice assistants. Brownlee during the comparison video points out that Apple's Siri is funny and is more "likely a thing to talk to" while the Assistant at times feels more "robotic."
  
  
  Brownlee adds, "Google tends to read out the answers a lot while Siri will just say "Here you go" and then display the results."

Best Phones Under Rs. 15,000: Which is the Best Mobile in Under-15000 Segment?

 

HIGHLIGHTS

• The Moto G5 is a great value for money option
• Redmi Note 4 remains one of our top picks
• Lenovo P2 & Honor 6X also make the list of best phones under Rs. 15,000
• Looking to buy a new phone? We have another list if you're interested in the under Rs. 10,000 segmentwith plenty of great picks, but if you're willing to open up your budget a little, then there are a bunch of other phones that we think are totally worth buying in the sub-Rs. 15,000 price segment. By spending a little extra, you get smartphones that may not be perfect, but they make fewer compromises, which means you can buy some really good phones in the under Rs. 15,000 price segment today, something that wasn’t the case just a couple of years go.
  
  
  In our view, these seven phones are worth putting that extra cash down on, and you won't be disappointed if you choose one of these. As always, we've restricted the list of best mobiles under Rs. 15,000 to phones that we have reviewed ourselves, as our in-depth review process makes it possible to directly compare phones and give them a relative ranking. This means some phones that might look good on paper but haven’t been tested by us yet will not make it to our list.
  
  
  Beyond that, we've also stuck to phones that are not more than a year old to make sure that the ratings aren't skewed by a changing baseline. With that out of the way, these seven phones are our picks for the best phones under Rs. 15,000.
  
  

  Best phones under Rs. 15,000

  Mobile under Rs. 15,000	Gadgets 360 rating
  Moto G5	7/10
  Xiaomi Redmi Note 4	8/10
  Honor 6X	7/10
  Lenovo P2	7/10
  Lenovo Z2 Plus	8/10
  Coolpad Max	8/10
  Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime	8/10

  
  
  
  
  1. Moto G5 (3GB)
  Launched in February, the Moto G5 (3GB variant) is a great value for money option in the under Rs. 15,000 price category that really delivers in terms of software and is otherwise a solid all-rounder on all fronts.
  
  

A really nice feature is that you get free full-resolution image backups via Google Photos for two years, and apart from that, the light and comfortable design of the phone is a big selling point as well. It does heat a little though, which is obviously not great.

Display

5.00-inch

Processor

1.4GHz octa-core

Front Camera

5-megapixel

Resolution

1080x1920 pixels

RAM

3GB

OS

Android 7.0

Storage

16GB


2. Xiaomi Redmi Note 4
Like its smaller cousin, the Redmi 4, Xiaomi's Redmi Note 4 is also a really great budget pick. It's competitively priced, and has great battery performance, along with pretty decent overall performance.
The camera is its weakest point, which is a common complaint we have against many budget smartphones, but it's decent enough, and in terms of value for money, this phone is one of our top picks.

Display

5.50-inch

Processor

2GHz octa-core

Front Camera

5-megapixel

Resolution

1080x1920 pixels

RAM

4GB

OS

Android 6.0

Storage

64GB

Rear Camera

13-megapixel

Battery Capacity

4100mAh

3. Honor 6X
Launched in January, the Honor 6X is a good all-rounder with a couple of high notes that make it a solid choice at this price point. Its camera performance is the one weakness, but even there it's not bad - just not great.

On the other hand, it has a good build quality and performance, a bright display and long battery life as well. A reliable fingerprint sensor rounds out the package, and it has all the specs you expect, with a 5.5-inch full-HD display, 4GB RAM and 64GB storage, and a 3340mAh battery.

Display

5.50-inch

Processor

1.7GHz octa-core

Front Camera

8-megapixel

Resolution

1080x1920 pixels

RAM

4GB

OS

Android 6.0

Storage

64GB

Rear Camera

12-megapixel

Battery Capacity

3340mAh
4. Lenovo P2
A powerful phone at a reasonable price, the Lenovo P2 delivers good performance, great battery life, and is absolutely value for money, all in a premium feeling metal body.
Lenovo has a good history with its battery-focused smartphones, and the P2 continues that tradition, with fast charging support to top up that big battery, but as a result, the phone does feel heavy - but considering there's a massive 5100mAh battery in there, many will be willing to overlook that. Overall, it’s a very solid pick in the under Rs. 15,000 segment.

Display

5.50-inch

Processor

2GHz octa-core

Front Camera

5-megapixel

Resolution

1080x1920 pixels

RAM

3GB

OS

Android 6.0

Storage

32GB

Rear Camera

13-megapixel

Battery Capacity

5100mAh

5. Lenovo Z2 Plus
Lenovo's second phone on this list, the Lenovo Z2 Plus is a trooper that delivers on almost all fronts except the camera. It's a good looking phone as well, and as is par for course for Lenovo, has solid battery life.
Good overall performance and interesting software tweaks all at an affordable price make this phone a really good pick in the best mobiles under Rs. 15,000 category, but the phone ships without a fast-charger, and doesn't support expandable storage, which will be an issue for some.

Display

5.00-inch

Processor

2.15GHz quad-core

Front Camera

8-megapixel

Resolution

1080x1920 pixels

RAM

3GB

OS

Android 6.0.1

Storage

32GB

Rear Camera

13-megapixel

Battery Capacity

3500mAh

6. Coolpad Max
Although the Coolpad Max is slightly older than our cut-off date, we held on to it for our list because it was a little ahead of its time in some ways, and thanks to price drops, remains a competitive option even today. The phone remains well worth buying with a premium metal body and good camera performance.

The custom software is a bit of a let down, but it's got a good battery and decent performance, making it a good option if your budget is capped at Rs. 15,000.

Display

5.50-inch

Processor

1.5GHz octa-core

Front Camera

5-megapixel

Resolution

1080x1920 pixels

RAM

4GB

OS

Android 5.1

Storage

64GB

Rear Camera

13-megapixel

Battery Capacity

2800mAh
7. Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime
Launched at just under Rs. 20,000, the Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime has now dipped below the Rs. 15,000 price, making it a great pick for this category as well. The phone boasts great specs and looks good too, so it's a really good option.

On the flip side, the fingerprint sensor can be finicky, and the low-light camera performance is disappointing. That being said, the screen is excellent, and the battery life is good too, so if you like Samsung's design, it's a solid contender.

Display

5.50-inch

Processor

1.6GHz octa-core

Front Camera

8-megapixel

Resolution

1080x1920 pixels

RAM

3GB

OS

Android 6.0

Storage

16GB

Rear Camera

13-megapixel

Battery Capacity

3300mAh

Rear Camera

13-megapixel

Battery Capacity

2800mAh