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The future of computing: Android Everywhere

googletvGOOGLE I/O 2004, SAN FRANCISCO — What is Android? It’s hard to know these days, and I’m not sure if that’s good or not. We all know what happened when Microsoft began seeing Windows as a common operating system for everything from embedded systems to desktops to phones to servers. By trying to be reasonably good at everything, Windows lost its way and ceased being the best platform for anything.

Once upon a time, Android was a free operating system for smartphones, conceived of as a rival for Symbian and (believe it or not) Windows Mobile. Google purchased Android Inc. in 2005; the Open Handset Alliance launched in 2007; and the first smartphone running Android appeared in 2008. Today, Android-based phones dominate the market, with the most visible handset makers being Samsung and LG. Some estimates show that at the end of 2013, more than 81% of all smartphones were running Android.

From its origins in smartphones, it was natural that Android would expand to tablets. Although no Android tablet has emerged as a clear market leader, there are many manufacturers, from Samsung to Amazon to Google to Asus. While Android has decisively eclipsed Apple’s iPhone in the smartphone market, the iPad still defines tablets.

What else? Android is now an operating system for head-mounted displays, smartwatches, wearables, televisions and automotive entertainment systems.

We’re all familiar with Google Glass, which is based on Android. The company is working hard to recruit developers to build Glassware. This spring, Android announced Android Wear, which is described as “your key to a multiscreen world,” especially if one of those screens will be a smart watch. A few companies, including LG, Samsung and Motorola, have announced watches.

Remember Google TV? It was not a success in the market. The replacement, announced this week here at the annual Google I/O developer conference, is called Android TV. According to Google, “Thousands of apps in the Google Play Store are already optimized for TVs.”

Google is clearly interested in cars, and not only because it wants to build self-driving vehicles. A few aftermarket audio system makers have used off-the-shelf Android as the driver in replacement automotive head units. This week, Google announced Android Autoas a competitor to Apple’s iOS-focused CarPlay. As with smartphones, Google set up a vendor alliance — in this case, the Open Automotive Alliance — to developer industry specifications and to drive alliances with car manufacturers.

From the looks of things, Android is now intended to become a general-purpose operating system. Good for embedded, small-footprint, app-based, highly connected devices.

Google’s emphasis, though, isn’t on the hardware, but on that increasingly multiscreen world. With screens spanning the wrist, phone, tablet, head-mounted displays and televisions, Android looks to be everywhere. And that means that Google Play will be everywhere. Thus Google advertisements everywhere too. I mean, duh.

I guess that’s the future of computing: Android Everywhere.

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Don’t sign the non-compete agreement

gold-handcuffAre you covered by a non-compete agreement at your current employer? Are your workers covered by a non-compete? While non-competes may make your executives (and their attorneys) feel good, they may not be good for your company.

Non-compete agreements restrict where you can work after you leave your current employer. They might lock you out of taking another job in your industry for years—agreements of even up to five years are not uncommon. Of course, non-competes can dissuade competitors from recruiting you while you are still working. That’s not all: They could also scare away potential employers even if you lose your job due to a layoff or involuntary termination.

By restricting the free flow of employees from company to company, non-compete agreements limit employment options. They also can cut down on a vibrant culture of innovation and startups.

Why have non-compete agreements? One argument is that employers invest in hiring and training their employees, and don’t want to have those employees, once trained, snatched up by competitors. Another is that by virtue of their jobs, employees have access to intellectual property, and that the non-compete stops competitors from gaining ready access to that IP.

As you can imagine, information technology workers, including software developers, are often seen as key strategic assets and may find non-compete agreements a necessary evil. Programmers aren’t the only folks locked in by non-competes, though. A recent story by Steven Greenhouse in the New York Times, “Noncompete Clauses Increasingly Pop Up in Array of Jobs,” talked about a Boston-area teenager who couldn’t work at a summer camp in 2014 because the camp she worked at in 2013 had a 12-month non-compete agreement. Ugh.

Some states, including California, give more protections to employees than to employers, and non-compete agreements are often unenforceable. Some analysts believe that this worker-friendly environment contributes to the vitality of the area’s tech economy—see Sharon Wienbar’s blog post, “The Power of a Fluid Market: Employee Mobility Makes Silicon Valley Flow.”

Wienbar writes

A non-compete isn’t the only reason why the abundance of VC $$ remain in Silicon Valley but it is an important item to consider. In the technology landscape, talent can make or break a business and the more fluid the resources, the better the chance of building a viable business.

Other states are friendlier to business and uphold non-compete agreements. I would not like to work in that environment, personally. I’m not a fan of non-compete agreements and have never signed one or asked an employee to sign one. However, I recognize that in some locations, and in some companies, that’s the only way to get the job you want at the company you want.

Compelling arguments against such agreements are plentiful. Read Jeff Haden’s, “The Case Against Non-Compete Agreements,” published in Inc.; “Time to get rid of ‘noncompete’ agreements” by the Boston Globe’s Scott Kirshner; and Jon Zemke’s “To Compete or Non-Compete: Contracts That Make Michigan Less Competitive,” in Concentrate.

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Forget Big Data and worry about Bad Data

bad-dataTwo consulting projects this year have involved lots and lots of data. One was the migration of a very complex customer database and transaction logging system to a cloud-based CRM platform from a homegrown system. The other involved performing serious analytics on a non-profit’s membership system that had data spanning decades.

Both projects required incredible manual intervention in the data processing. Data came from different original sources and had wildly varying schemas. Some data was relational, and some was flat-file. Some of the data was clearly contradictory. Timestamps were missing on records. Valuable data was stored in comment fields. Documentation didn’t exist. Keys were lost. Fields were abandoned. Live data was mixed with archival data.

Both systems were a mess—but that wasn’t the problem. The issues I’m describing are the everyday result of messy software, evolving databases and the real world. Solving those challenges takes some effort, but we all know the importance of factoring data cleansing into any type of migration or analytics project, both in terms of time and of finances.

The real challenge is that most of the data was totally wrong. No resemblance to reality. That person never lived at that address. The relationships in the SQL database were not correct. Conventions were nonexistent. When data is being collected by many systems—and stored in many systems—over years and decades, this is what happens.

Yes, both projects were successful. However, we had to throw away a lot of data that would have added value to the organizations and their customers or members. Worse, we learned that both organizations had been using bad data for years, resulting in missed opportunities, less-than-ideal customer service, and flawed business planning.

Garbage in, garbage out. After all, if you are thinking about offering a new product or service, and are basing your decisions on bad data, you aren’t making a good decision. You are guessing.

What went wrong? It wasn’t in the migration and analytics projects. We went in, cleaned up the data best we could, and got out. It was a finite task and went as well as could be expected.

The root causes weren’t bad programming either, or poor database administration. In many IT shops, schemas change. Documents are lost. Corruption happens. Ideas are tried and abandoned. That’s simply what happens when data is kept past its sell-by data.

The failure is that nobody regularly (or ever) checked the data to make sure that it’s still good. Nobody performs period data hygiene. Nobody tested addresses, or eyeballed records to see if they made sense, or validated the databases against other sources (or even against themselves).

Data is a valuable corporate asset. In fact, when it comes to customer data and transaction records, data may be the single biggest asset of your company. Most companies work hard to ensure that their assets are solid. A manufacturer checks its raw materials and finished goods to ensure that they are as expected. Materials in warehouses are inventoried. Random samples are pulled from time to time, tested, and examined carefully.

When it comes to data, long-term quality is rarely a consideration. Data is stored and used. Is it checked? Rarely, if ever. We all know the benefits of Big Data for our business. What about the costs of Bad Data? Unknown, but real. I’ve seen this time and again. As Bad Data is used and reused, it will only get worse.

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It’s time to learn Swift

swift-chris-lattnerSAN FRANCISCO — I expected a new version of OS X, the operating system for Mac desktops and notebooks. I expected a new version of iOS, the operating system for iPhones and iPads. I did not expect a new programming language. Yet that’s what we got at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference, held here this week. And I’m delighted.

Along with the previews of OS X 10.10 “Yosemite” and iOS 8, Apple showed Swift, a language that runs inside its familiar Xcode integrated development environment.

Swift is designed primarily for safety. As Apple puts it:

Swift eliminates entire classes of unsafe code. Variables are always initialized before use, arrays and integers are checked for overflow, and memory is managed automatically. Syntax is tuned to make it easy to define your intent—for example, simple three-character keywords define a variable (var) or constant (let). The safe patterns in Swift are tuned for the powerful Cocoa and Cocoa Touch APIs. Understanding and properly handling cases where objects are nil is fundamental to the frameworks, and Swift code makes this extremely easy. Adding a single character can replace what used to be an entire line of code in Objective-C. This all works together to make building iOS and Mac apps easier and safer than ever before.

Obviously we have not had a chance to work with Swift directly. However, it appears to be a very easy language to learn, especially for developers who are used to Objective-C. It’s designed for Apple’s Cocoa and Cocoa Touch libraries, is built with the familiar and stable LLVM compiler, and creates the same runtime as Objective-C.

Apple says Swift programs are fast. The company claims that a complex object sort will run in Objective-C about 2.8x faster than in Python. But if you use Swift, it runs 3.9x faster.

Learn more about the Swift announcement, as well as a ton of new APIs, in Rob Marvin’s article, “Apple announces Swift programming language, new SDK and developer features at WWDC.”

A neat feature of Swift is what Apple calls “playgrounds,” where you can see how the code runs as you write it—without building a new version. That’s cool. Swift isn’t ready yet, but you can check out Apple’s preliminary documentation, including a tour and language guide.

Swift is a cross-platform language, if you define “cross platform” to mean “both of Apple’s platforms.” Yes, you can use Swift to write apps for OS X and for iOS, and because it creates the same runtimes as Objective-C, you should be able to run Swift applications on older versions of those operating systems, not only OS X 10.10 and iOS 8. What you can’t do, and probably never will do, is run Swift apps on competing platforms. No Android, no Windows Phone. Given that the language does target the Cocoa and Cocoa Touch libraries, that’s clearly no surprise.

Most mobile app developers already target iOS first, even though there are more Android devices than iPhones and iPads. Swift won’t change that, and in fact it will likely make iOS development even more attractive.

On the desktop/notebook side, developers writing native software probably target Windows first because of the huge installed base of machines. It’s unlikely that Swift will change behaviors there. But then again, writing desktop/notebook software truly is becoming a niche activity.

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Liminal moments

This is one of a series of articles I wrote for the monthly Bulletin of Peninsula Temple Sholom in Burlingame, Calif.

The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ,
Moves on: nor all thy Piety nor Wit,
Shall lure it back to cancel half a Line,  
Nor all thy Tears wash out a Word of it.
— Omar Khayyám (1048-1131)

My favorite part of the b’nai mitzvah ceremony at PTS is the l’dor vador presentation of the sacred Torah. From grandparent to grandparent, from grandparent to parent, from parent to parent, from parent to child, we pass down our most treasured symbol, and with it, we pass along our hopes, our dreams and our roles. The l’dor vador is beautiful to watch. It’s even more beautiful, and even more touching, when you receive the Torah from your parents, and then hand it off to your own child, as Carole and I did in December 2006.

Michael’s becoming a bar mitzvah, a son of the commandment, was truly a liminal moment. A time of significant change. An inflection point. Our lives would never be the same after that.

We are at another inflection point, probably one that means more to me than to you. My term as President of the Board of Trustees ends on June 30. Wow. So much has changed and evolved in this kehila kedosha, this blessed community. As the torch of lay leadership moves on, we are experiencing many liminal moments at Peninsula Temple Sholom. Let me share some of them with you.

Changes to our clergy team. As you know, Rabbi Rebekah Stern heads across the Bay on July 1. The hard-working Rabbinic Search Committee, co-chaired by past president Keith Tandowsky and by board vice-president Lauren Schlezinger, remains hard at work. As of this column due date (early May), the search is still ongoing. Like you, I am a little antsy, but am confident that the process will result in an excellent clergy plan for our PTS community.

A new title for Allison Steckley. Allison’s first year at PTS as a preschool teacher was the same year that Michael started preschool. Allison followed Cindy Common and Bobbie Goldstein as Preschool Director – and the board recently upgraded Allison’s title to Director of Early Childhood Education. Under Allison’s leadership, and thanks to her vision, the Preschool goes from strength to strength.

Transitioning of Brotherhood. It’s a sad reality, but congregational participation in Brotherhood has declined significantly over the past few years. In April, the Brotherhood board voted to suspend activities as a Temple auxiliary as of June 30. Let me thank everyone who participated in Brotherhood for their myriad contributions to PTS, and especially acknowledge president Alex Wilkas, treasurer Michael Battat and immediate past president Habib Lichaa for their incredible hard work, commitment and leadership.

Creation of a new Caring Community program. We heard many messages in our Kolot conversations, and one is that many congregants need more personal support from the PTS than the leadership has realized. I am thrilled that board member Linda Korth is heading a task force to reimagine the Caring Community at PTS as part of our Sukkat Shalom. Linda is working closely with Rabbi Dan Feder, executive director Sandy Silverstein, and many others. Look for exciting news to come out about Caring Community over the past year, along with ways for you to participate.

Spiritual Center and Chapel renovation. The new Jack & Candee Klein Spiritual Center, will be a complete reinvention of three rooms, currently known as the chapel, the corner room and the computer lab. (The corner room will be remodeled and become the new Lent Chapel.) This miracle is due to the incredible generosity of the Jack and Elisa Klein Foundation – thank you! The construction will happen this summer and the new space will completed before Preschool and Religious School open in the fall. Let me thank past president Diane Goldman, who is chairing the project, and everyone involved, for their amazing work.

Continuing evolution of Kolot. The Kolot Steering Committee, co-chaired by board member Heidi Schell and by Neal Tandowsky, has already launched Phase II of the Kolot (“Voices”) project. Working together with Sister Judy Donovan and Joaquin Sanchez from the Industrial Areas Foundation, we are becoming closer as a community — and discovering what our common values are. (See the comments above about the Caring Community as one of the first fruits of Kolot.) We are going places, and we will make a difference.

Fresh lay leadership for PTS. The 2014-2015 Board of Trustees takes office on July 1 under incoming president April Glatt. This temple has an incredibly wonderful and dedicated board, and April is a blessing. It been an honor to contribute to the PTS board, which I joined 2007, under presidents Karen Wisialowski, Keith Tandowsky and Brian Hafter. All three have been my mentors and my role models. Thank you, Karen, Keith and Brian, for your leadership, and for providing me with this opportunity to serve.

Transitions for the Zeichick family. In July, Carole and I will move to Phoenix. This brings us much closer to our son Michael (who is stationed at Twentynine Palms, Calif.) and to our many cousins who live in the area. After 25 years in the Bay Area, we are ready for new adventures and for high-temperature fog-free living. We aren’t disappearing entirely: Carole and I will visit PTS whenever we come back for business and pleasure. We also hope to see you when you go to Scottsdale for Giants spring training or otherwise visit the Valley of the Sun.

Thank you, thank you, dear friends

This is where I say thank you to all the past presidents, who have shown us so much kindness; to everyone I have served with on the board; to Rabbi Dan Feder, Rabbi Rebekah Stern and Cantor Barry Reich; to Sandy Silverstein, Allison Steckley and Eran Vaisben; to all the hard-working Temple staff; to all committee chairs and members; to every volunteer and donor; and to everyone Carole and I have prayed with, studied with, worked with, shared a meal with, mourned with and laughed with. You are all b’tzelem elohim, created in the image of God.

Dear friends, Peninsula Temple Sholom has been our spiritual home for many years. You have provided us with a shelter of peace, and given Michael a wonderful Jewish education and solid moral center. For that we shall always be grateful. Our love for this sacred community will endure forever.

Yevarechecha adonai veyishmerecha. Ya’er adonai panav elecha veyichunecha. Yisa adonai panav elecha veyasem lecha shalom.

May God bless you and keep you. May the light of God shine on you and be gracious to you. May the presence of God be lifted over you and may God bless you with peace.