Jailbreaking is still frowned upon

In the past few years, BYOD has flourished and people have been unlocked from old, clunky Blackberries and attached to Apples and various candies. But with all this openness has come a problem – that of jailbreaking.

Jailbreaking the iOS or rooting your Android device are frowned upon by the enterprise because of the apparent security problems and the costs of supporting un-supported functions that these devices can do. In that sense, a new idea is emerging – that of Android being the standard. Android is open and allows anyone to pick it up and start modifying it to its needs. What does that drive companies to? Using Android as a standard and expecting their employees to do the same.

The main contention is that jailbreaking is in itself a security flaw. Thus, it’d be very easy for the employee to install the wrong tweak from the Cydia store and lose all the company’s vital data. Or, in case the employee is not careful, they can brick their device while jailbreaking and then expect the company’s IT department to support them.

Most of the problems that the enterprise quotes against jailbreaking is not valid anymore.

The process of jailbreaking is perhaps 99.9% safe now, with only every a couple of devices reporting bricking of devices due to unconventional installs. The mass of the common public just downloads a program, connects their device, clicks a button and they’re done. Also, this process is purely software based now, so the chances of really bricking your device? Zero. Why? Because if something goes wrong, you just start iTunes and hit “Restore”.

What about the security issues? Let’s talk about the jailbreak devs themselves. All of the devs involved are working for free. No one is truly paying them to do it, except the few donations they receive. That means that they do not have any hidden interests in the process. Do you trust OpenSource or software developers on Github and SourceForge to not steal your identity or corporate data? Do you use Ubuntu at home because, “hey, it’s free”? Then there’s no reason not to trust these devs to do the right thing and not use security flaws to steal your data. In fact, the iOS 3 hack involving jailbreaking the device simply by downloading a PDF file from the Internet helped Apple fixed a bug that could have been misused by anyone else. The devs welcomed Apple’s security update that fixed that jailbreak.

Finally, what about the tweaks that people install? Well, when it comes to getting the right installs with no bugs, I trust only one name – BigBoss. It is a repo hosting provider that hosts paid and free tweaks in Cydia. The point? It’s a safe environment where tweaks are tested before being allowed to go to the general public. And if a company is really serious about setting up a BYOD environment, they can work with these repository hosting providers to test and approve tweaks that work on the iOS.

There’s a general misconception in the public and in companies that since Android is open and so freely available, it’s easier to support Android. Not true. Android devices are heavily fragmented. Amazon’s Kindle Fire cannot do many things that an Asus tablet can. That functionality may also include SSL, Wireless security and other encrypted email. To support so many devices and so many versions of the same OS can be a much bigger pain for Enterprises.

Instead, if we look at iOS, non-jailbroken devices are freely supported by Apple (how do you un-jailbreak a device? Simply restore the OS, Apple has no way of verifying that it was ever jailbroken) and jailbroken devices will still have the same platform as the first one. There is no fragmentation in Apple devices, no multiple versions of their OS running on devices of varying hardware capabilities.

End Game? Apple devices are a lot easier to support, fix and troubleshoot than other options. Time to change your perception.

Tesla unveils the Super Charger Network

I just saw Elon Musk’s unveiling of the SuperCharger network of electric recharging stations. I’m mighty impressed by the tech and the possibilities. But not impressed by the man. They call him the Steve Jobs of “everything else” but the charisma is missing.

Elon Musk has seen a lot of ups and downs in his career and by now, he should learn that to wow the audience and to make sure they love your product, you have to get the little things right. Midway in the presentation, when he’s about to unveil the SuperCharger, the curtain doesn’t fall as it should and when it does, it’s revealed with a big cloud of smoke and what sounds to be Skrillex music. Not an impressive reveal to me when you’re talking about a consumer good. All this while, Musk stands on the side like a bystander.

Come on Mr. Musk, you’re better than that! I know you’re a busy man. But take the time to rehearse these presentations. Command the stage and above all, Never stand on the side like you’re just looking at something happening. Make it happen.

Edit: I’m not saying Elon Musk comes off as aloof. In fact, he’s a God to me. He is a true Tony Stark (but, of course, he built his empire himself) to me. It’s just that he’s so amazingly modest on the stage that I was thrown. I get it that you’re just one of many and you’re trying to keep a level head perhaps. But you’re Elon Musk dammit! Be that man!

Oh, and free charging for life? Welcome to a new age of travel. Good bye Gasoline. This cannot be overstated.

The entire video sits here

iPhone 5 – conflict

Every year, when the new iOS comes around, major Cydia tweak hosting provider BigBoss provides a severe warning to all its users. This message, carried across all of Cydia, is an important reminder to noobs that they shouldn’t upgrade to the latest iOS before it gets jailbroken in order to preserve their tweaks. However, this time around, it seems that the warning comes with added weight –

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Year of Social

The season is changing and here, in Boulder, Colorado, it means colder nights and shorter days. It’s time for animals to wrap up their food gathering operations and finish working on cozy homes for the all too familiar winter.

 

This hibernation is also coming to a very important aspect of my life. Last year, at about the same time, I dumped Facebook in favor of Twitter. I had been inactive on the micro blog since long and returned to it, only to discover so many new and amazing connections and services. I found people worth talking to and got help where I needed it. I also posted a lot on this blog here, taking it through many iterations, themes and (free) hosting providers. Now I’ve moved it to a paid provider – NearlyFreeSpeech in order to maintain a better uptime ratio.

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The thing about Shoes.

Today, after I came back from office, I took out my wallet and keys and kept them on the side table. Then, as I was about to take off my shoes, I realized something – I realized the value of wearing shoes. You see, whenever we have a long or an important task ahead of us, we get ready. If it is a mental task like an interview or an exam, we cool our minds and prepare for the next few hours. When we are going for a trek or for camping, we pack the right gear and wear the right kind of boots. Yes, boots.

I realized that to me, wearing shoes means that I am ready for action. Many people in my family and even in my friends often tell me that my practice of wearing shoes in the house long after the day has ended, is kind of irritating. Well, I got this habit from my Dad and as I come to think of it, he is also always prepared for action. 🙂

Being prepared for anything is always important. It is not necessary to wear shoes in your sleep, but mentally, your shoes should always be on and ready for action, because in life, preparation could mean survival.

An iPhone 5 video

Here’s an article I found on iClarified that shows the iPhone 5 being compared to a puny 4S and then being booted up. The metallic sides of the phone have given way to a more subtle look and the audio port has been moved to the bottom of the phone.

Interesting… 🙂

Here’s the actual video…
http://youtu.be/kaVzt-_zajE