Google Launches Private Android App Stores 86
Trailrunner7 writes "Malicious apps have emerged as perhaps the most serious threat to mobile devices at the moment, and the major players, such as Apple and Google, have tried several different methods of preventing them from getting into their app stores and into the hands of users. Now, Google is taking one more step with the launch of a new service called the Private Channel for Google Apps, which gives enterprises and other organizations the ability to create private app stores and control the apps their users can download. Private Channel is essentially a way for organizations to stand up their own miniature app stores inside of Google Play--the main app store for Android devices--and publish apps to it. That gives these organizations the ability to point their users directly to the apps they want users to download for their Android devices. The new service will include some of the security features built into Google Play, most notably the anti-malware system and the ability to authenticate users."
Watch out Google, Facebook might sue! (Score:2, Troll)
This is Facebook's idea. It might sue. Just saying.
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More like "Watch out Microsoft".
This looks like the start of a push to replace Windows on enterprise desktops.
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How? This is not related at all to desktops. It looks more like a maneuver to keep MS out of the enterprise mobile market.
Re:Watch out Google, Facebook might sue! (Score:5, Interesting)
How? This is not related at all to desktops.
I'm seeing it happen already.
There are plenty of SMEs in Asia using tiny Android PC-on-a-stick computers as basic office desktops. Clipped to the back of a HDMI screen and plugged into a USB hub along with a mouse & keyboard, they're cheap, low overhead and easy to use.
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How about some names or links to these mini-marvels? Have not heard or seen anything like this.
Re:Watch out Google, Facebook might sue! (Score:5, Informative)
Plenty on AliExpress: http://www.aliexpress.com/wholesale?SearchText=android+mini+pc&catId=0&manual=y [aliexpress.com]
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That's why I keep coming back to this place. After wading though piles of trolls, fanbois and nerds bitching about everything and nothing, someone makes a more or less offhand comment that leads to me discovering something new, and possibly hours of tinkering.
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Those same companies were probably never MS clients, so I don't see anyone being displaced.
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While they might not have been Microsoft Clients, it is now unlikely that they every will be.
What would worry Microsoft (and investors) is that this significantly reduces the growth potential for Microsoft in one of the few areas in the world where the economy is growing. For linux it is great news, because a more diverse eco-system reduces vendor lock in and the same devices could easily run a linux distribution.
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Microsoft abandoned their enterprise desktop market with Windows 8.
You do know the main focus of enterprise is getting the servers to run Windows? Once you do that, the clients follow automatically.
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Why don't you try one and learn for yourself?
The more recent versions with Rockchip 3066 and similar dual-core CPUs are very competent machines. Most are running Android 4.1, drive 1080p screens and can dock to external USB drives.
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No they won't (Score:2)
This is Facebook's idea. It might sue. Just saying.
I read your post, and thought "idiot", on reflection...and its off-topic. Facebook and Google are an inevitable clash. Google+ Continues to grow [500 million people have upgraded, 235 million are active], and Facebook is reportedly in talks to buy Microsoft's Atlas ad technology. They are very much in each others faces.
Cool idea... (Score:1)
Re:Cool idea... (Score:5, Funny)
Now we'll be able to get enterprise-grade fart apps.
Re:Cool idea... (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Cool idea... (Score:4, Informative)
In other news they Axe the Free Google Apps. (Score:3, Informative)
Google Apps Free Edition
Starting on December 6, 2012, Google will no longer offer new accounts for the free edition of Google Apps. Google Apps free edition is sometimes referred to as "Standard Edition."
If you already have the free edition, you can continue to use it for free. This change has no impact on existing users of the free edition.
Please see the Google Enterprise Blog for additional details.
http://googleenterprise.blogspot.com.au/ [blogspot.com.au]
http://support.google.com/a/bin/answer.py?answer=2855120 [google.com]
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I was just about to transfer a couple of domains over ... damn.
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It doesn't look like this will affect individuals who just want to use Google's services, only business users.
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Gmail/Google consumer accounts remain. Google Apps no longer has a free version which was very popular with individuals wanting a personalise email/web , and small businesses / non-profits outside the US of 10 users.
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They've already stopped anyone without a Google+ account rating or commenting on apps.
I could even see them requiring a Google+ account for downloading apps. They do appear to be THAT desperate to make G+ work.
So like BlackBerry but not as sophisticated (Score:5, Informative)
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They did have a later start. They should have those features, and would guess they'd be easy to implement on their own. The trick is getting all of the different app store behaviours (public store, private stores, alternate stores, and side-loading) working together well and controllable with some sort of device policy. The more open a device is, the more things it has to take into account. It sounds like they could use some of things that BlackBerry has learned though.
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A private repository! In the cloud! (Score:1)
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So can we finally have... (Score:1)
So what? (Score:1, Informative)
I'm not sure why this is interesting. Apple has offered companies a way to upload their own private apps to IOS for years. Slightly different to this mechanism, but the same result.
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I'm not sure why this is interesting. Apple has offered companies a way to upload their own private apps to IOS for years. Slightly different to this mechanism, but the same result.
Obviously any company, just like anyone else, can load their own apps to their own device. That's hardly the same thing as providing a central repository for employees to pull from.
Enterprise deployment means an app from any server (Score:3)
Obviously any company, just like anyone else, can load their own apps to their own device.
That is not what enterprise deployment is.
That's hardly the same thing as providing a central repository for employees to pull from.
In fact it is. With an enterprise signed app, you can put an IPA file anywhere you like, and have someone just point any iOS device at it to download and install. There is no need to know the device UDID ahead of time.
The restriction on this from Apple's end is that the people downloadin
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In fact it is. With an enterprise signed app, you can put an IPA file anywhere you like, and have someone just point any iOS device at it to download and install. There is no need to know the device UDID ahead of time.
I'm aware of this as we are developing an iPad app at the moment, but it's not really the same is it? I mean, should there be a new version of the app, the users must download the new version (and know about its existence in the first place). As far as I can tell, this "private app store" allows notifications of updates like Google Play does. This really doesn't concern us as the actual iOS app changes very seldom, we're able to update the data separately (TouchDB <-> CouchDB rocks), but I think the G
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I'm aware of this as we are developing an iPad app at the moment, but it's not really the same is it? I mean, should there be a new version of the app, the users must download the new version (and know about its existence in the first place).
They would have to download the app no matter what app store it was from.
As for auto-notification of updates, HockeyKit can handle that if needed, but an email to users with the update link also works.
this "private app store" allows notifications of updates like Google
EFF / FSF Channel? (Score:5, Interesting)
Might be cool if the EFF or FSF put up a channel. EFF could identify apps that don't spy on you. FSF could list apps that offer their source code under a F/LOSS license. Either one could also create an "Approved by EFF" (or FSF) logo program to generate revenue to fund the channel administration.
Malicious apps have emerged as perhaps the most serious threat to mobile devices at the moment
It is true that I am much more likely to install software I believe I can trust,. For me, the EFF and FSF are organizations that I would trust to make the call, not a corporation like Google, Apple, MS, or Amazon. But Google does make it easy to get the software onto my rooted and rom'd Galaxy, and pay the programmers for their work.
It may not have mass market appeal, but it doesn't have to. It only needs to appeal to the hundreds of thousands of technophiles who know about the EFF and FSF; that's enough to make a successful channel. There'd be some decent revenue there, and it would raise the public image of the EFF and FSF as defenders of digital liberty.
Obviously there are EULA, DRM, and walled garden questions that must be contemplated, but there seems to be enough upside to at least go through the thought process and see if it can be reconciled.
Re:EFF / FSF Channel? (Score:5, Informative)
F-Droid [f-droid.org] is almost that "FSF channel": only free software built from source. Apps that spy on you are marked as such and aren't shown by default.
(Disclosure: I contributed translations to the project.)
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F-Droid is a very good thing. Nowadays, I'm disinclined to use an app that isn't available on F-Droid. I've been weeding out non F-Droid apps, and am down to one or two.
(I don't have a Google account, so Google Play has never been available to me.)
Best wishes,
Bob
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The idea of custom channels sounds very appealing. especially channels curated by well known identities. Apps are currently promoted by blogs etc. and the effect of a channel would be to provide a list of all the Apps recommended by someone. Although this might also be covered better by "recommended" lists, which to some extent could be implemented by a hooks to Google+.
How funny and great to see. (Score:2)
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I guess it's due to the exclamation mark in the middle of the word. If you look for "O!Play" (with the quotes), it works.
Sent From Android Phone (Score:1)
I don't why everyone is up in arms saying Android is insecure I am running Android 2.3 on my phone I am sending this from and I have no problems what so ever. I can download anything I want and not get any virus or malware. Heck I don't even feel the need to use common sense like I do on a PC to stay protected.
Hay have you heard if you go to thebigmoneymakingwebsitetotallynotascam.com you can make $120 an hour just browsing the web. My Aunt who has been unimployed for 10months make $27194 last month alone.
It was bound to happen (Score:2, Interesting)
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ignorant troll
Brilliant (Score:1)
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Bad Apps (Score:2)
Next annoyance is apps that have intrusive advertising. Google doesn't warn about this. You find out when you download. Download. Delete. Do
Now only authorized (Score:2)
malware and malicious apps will be availlable.....
meh (Score:2)
Not so private then (Score:2)
if it got on slashdot.
Aptoide ? :-) (Score:1)