“We worked closely with Apple to bring Latitude to the iPhone in a way Apple thought would be best for iPhone users. After we developed a Latitude application for the iPhone, Apple requested we release Latitude as a web application in order to avoid confusion with Maps on the iPhone, which uses Google to serve maps tiles.”

Tech-experts look at this “avoid confusion with Maps” statement from Google as a bit strange as Google, if needed, could have found the means to build Latitude into Maps. Many in the Silicon Valley opine that Google might have built a native app for the iPhone, but since Apple did not want it, may have made a web one instead.

Google Latitude on the iPhone

So, it looks like Apple has dictated a decision to Google, and Google has listened to it. Maybe once-upon-a-time Apple board member and current Google CEO Eric Schmidt played a role in accepting Latitude as a web app. The very fact that it took such a long time for Google to enter the smartest smartphone in the market underscores the Apple-Google (rather iPhone-Android) hidden rivalry. However, with Apple talking about opening background tasks for the iPhone, we can expect instant messaging, location-based networking and other such services to run in the background soon.

Whatever be the case, native or browser-based, Google Latitude brings location-based networking (which is already on Android, BlackBerry, Symbian and Windows Mobile devices) to the iPhone now. As always, Google is concerned with privacy and has given the user full freedom to opt-in for levels of privacy.

A user can, through Google Latitude, choose to 1. Detect and share current location automatically, 2. Set location manually and 3. Hide location from friends. Since Latitude is a browser-based app on the iPhone, updates can happen only when the Latitude web page (http://google.com/latitude) is open on the Safari browser.

Though browser-based, Google Latitude runs well on the iPhone. It comes with a menu system that allows user to search for and see traffic on the map.

Zune HD maybe piping hot from Microsoft’s inventory, but it has arrived two years late compared to the iPod Touch. If rumors are true, Apple’s iPod Touches will have cameras soon. What will be Zune HD’s fate then? Difficult.

Zune HD vs. iPod Touch

However, all this does not rule out Zune’s advantages. Zune HD indeed scores higher in many things than the iPod Touch.

Zune HD’s Advantages
Zune HD is a sleek, portable media player with HD (High-Definition) Radio tuner and organic light-emitting touch screen. It has a version of Microsoft’s Internet Explorer as browser andl features HDMI connection for streaming videos to HDTV, Wi-Fi connectivity and HD video accelerator.

iPod Touch’s Advantages
iPod Touch is no slouch compared to Zune HD. It has a beautiful touch screen, Wi-Fi connectivity, a web browser and above all, direct access to the iTunes store. Though it does not have FM radio with a HD tag to boost it, it does have features that any music player can brag about.

Zune HD vs. iPod Touch
The Zune’s major selling point is its high definition radio. Though you have to bear the pain of ads in between songs, FM radio is never a bad idea in your portable music device. Another compelling feature is the HD’s video-out capability. You can run your HD video in a HDTV and enjoy the luxury of watching things on a bigger and better screen than the small Zune screen. Zune has also something which fits into the social media glove. It has ‘The Social’ – the online music community of Zune users via which you can connect to other users, share your likes and dislikes etc.

If Zune is the upstart new comer, iPod is the grand old sire of the portable music world. The iTunes store is a big plus point for the iPod. Though Zune’s The Social is appealing, it is not an extremely popular (a survey by NPD Group says 87% people who buy digital music in U.S. download tracks from the iTunes store), integrated digital music store like the iTunes. However, the icing on the cake is the Apple App store. There are more than 35,000 applications – ranging from social media apps to productivity and gaming tools – for the iPod Touch. Though Microsoft is coming up with an application store, it is still not as big as the Apple App store. Also, if predictions be true and if new iPods come with cameras, the Zunes maybe in for hard times.

Verdict: Though Zune HD may not become iPod Touch’s nemesis, it will still emerge as its most dangerous competitor. With its pricing unsure, it is still a competitor-in-waiting. But given Zune HD’s Microsoft app store, competitive pricing and unique features, it can surely spoil the party fun of the mighty iPod Touch for sometime.

Termed as the Next-Gen computing, Cloud services include Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS), Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS). This is otherwise called “Everything as a Service”.

Benefits of the Cloud Platform include:

• Shared, multi-tenant infrastructure
• Virtualized and dynamic
• Scalable and available
• Abstracted from infrastructure
• Higher-level services
• Pay-as-you-go facility

Cloud Computing can eliminate customers’ Capital Expenditure on hardware and software as most Cloud services are either utility-based or time-based.

Microsoft is introducing Cloud Computing through Azure.I will talk more about Azure in my next post.

For now, thank you and happy computing!