Microsoft's 'Project Latte' is about bringing Android apps to the Microsoft Store and Windows 10. But why?
A couple of weeks ago, Windows Central reported that Microsoft is working on a way to run Android apps on Windows 10 and make them available in the Microsoft app store. The effort has a codename - Project Latte - and seemingly the goal of providing an Android subsystem for Linux, akin to the Windows Subsystem for Linux.
Since that initial report, I've been mulling the why question. Why is Microsoft doing this? I keep coming up blank.
There's history here. Microsoft did get Android apps working on Windows 10 a number of years ago via its "Astoria" bridge project. The goal of these bridges (there were ones for iOS, Web, and Win32, too) was to try to get developers on these other platforms to adapt their apps to work on Windows 10.
The Astoria Android project worked too well, so the story goes, in that it enabled Android apps to work on Windows 10 without any adaptations or developer intervention/approval. At the time, this thwarted Microsoft's goal of trying to get more Universal Windows Platform (UWP) apps in its Store, and so Astoria was canceled in 2015 and the team disbanded.
These days, Microsoft cares a lot less about trying to get developers, including its own first-party developers inside Microsoft, to create UWP apps. Project Reunion is Microsoft's current attempt to try to fix its fragmented Windows developer story and get more Windows apps in the Microsoft Store.
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There's also parallel work happening on the virtualization front with Windows 10X and the still-unannounced Cloud PC service. In Windows 10X, the variant of Windows 10 that has a much different UI/UX and is meant to be simpler and cleaner, various containers will enable users to run their MSIX-packaged apps, UWP apps, and, ultimately, Win32 apps. Cloud PC, Microsoft's coming desktop-as-a-service offering due out in the spring of 2021 (last I heard) is all about bringing Office and other apps to users via a Windows Virtual Desktop-based service. Could any of this work also involve supporting Android apps on Windows? I'm not sure.
And then there's the Microsoft Your Phone app. On a very small subset of Samsung phones, users already can run and manipulate their Android apps that are installed on their phones on their Windows 10 desktops via Your Phone. It's a buggy experience, at best, and one which, so far, Microsoft hasn't enabled for the majority of Android users.
So back to Latte. Why is Microsoft considering making Android apps available on Windows via this approach?
On Windows 10X, there's a marketing/strategy answer: To compete with Chromebooks. Though Microsoft officials almost never talk about Chromebook Compete publicly, they are obsessed with the growing share of Chromebooks in education and enterprises, especially among first-line workers. Windows 10X is a big piece of Microsoft's Chromebook Compete strategy. And since Chromebooks can run Android apps, so, too should/must Windows 10X PCs to stay competitive.
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But what about other flavors of Windows 10? There are emulation offerings like BlueStacks that already enable users who want Android apps to run on their PCs. Are there actually a lot of users - consumers, SMBs, and/or enterprise customers - who have Android apps that they really, really want to run on Windows 10? And if so, which apps?
One of my Twitter pals, Robert Brand, said he'd like to run some home-automation apps that aren't available natively on Windows 10 but are on Android. And on Reddit, I saw a user say he'd like to run WhatsApp Server on Windows 10. But otherwise? Chime in if you have an example of an Android app you'd like to use on Windows. I don't have any, myself, as I just use things like Instagram in a browser if and when I ever need to access it on my PC.
My ZDNet colleague Ross Rubin posited a theory that Microsoft might be looking at support for Google Play services as a way to try to grow the number of touch-optimized apps. After ill-advisedly over-emphasizing touch with Windows 8, Microsoft did a 180 and ended up backing away from making touch a first-class way to interact with apps…
Some have suggested Microsoft's goal with Latte is not simply to run Android apps on Windows 10; it's to try to compete with Google head-on. The original Windows Central report claimed that Android apps delivered to Windows via Latte wouldn't support Google Play services, including the Store. A big reason Android has been successful is because of the many apps available for it in the Play Store. Amazon has tried and failed to gain traction for Android apps that don't use the Google Play service and Store. Heck, Microsoft itself supported Google Play services and the Store on its Surface Duo Android device.
And then, of course, there are already cries from the Windows Phone never-give-up camp that Microsoft is angling to make a comeback in the mobile phone space with a Windows-based phone running Android apps. I believe that ship has sailed and Microsoft has moved on. The Surface Duo, which works as a phone, runs Android, not Windows, for a reason. Andromeda - the dual-screen Windows phone - was tabled.
Windows Central said Android apps on Windows 10 could be a 21H2 (or later) feature, if and when it ever comes to market. What's your take: Will and should Latte make it to market?
Update: Readers on Twitter are weighing in and saying a lot of the consumer-focused apps they use are not available on Windows. The Web versions of these apps are too basic and don't include all the features they want, they say. Among the Android apps listed by various respondents: Roomba, Tuya, Smart Life, Ecobee, Ring, Venmo, Uber, Eero, Pokemon Go, and Snapchat. Some of these are apps I wouldn't even think about using on a laptop or desktop. But maybe that's the point: What will the computing devices of choice look like in the coming years? Are smaller dual-screen devices "PCs"? Keep the suggestions and thoughts coming!
The best chess games and trainers for iOS and Android
From time to time it happens that a production in the form of a film or series rekindles the desire to enroll in certain disciplines, and it is not the first nor the last time that will happen with the chess. The last responsible has been the Netflix series Gambito de Dama, which has caused around 20 million extra players to sign up in their respective federations.
Now, we are transferring this fury to our field, that of mobile phones. It has been a long time since it was necessary to sit in front of a physical board to play chess, either professionally or amateur, and of course we can play with our pocket computer. We bring you what we consider to be the best chess games for mobile phones, either on iOS with iPhone or on any Android. And not only games, also 'coaches'.
Chess
That's how simple is the name of our first choice, the chess game developed by AI Factory Limited and which, among other things, won the Google Play Outstanding Developer Award in 2013. We are not talking about a free game as access the it will cost us 1.99 euros, but we are talking about one of the best chess games that we can find on mobile. 12 game levels, professional mode and all kinds of statistics to improve our game, all powered by Microsoft's Treebeard chess engine. Worth.
Chess
Lichess
In second place we find Lichess, another chess game for mobile phones present in both iOS and Android and which is not only free but is developed in open source with FOSS license. As in the previous title, we have solo play against the app's AI and also against other players.
Lichess
Chess.com
Another of the great highlights among mobile chess games is the one offered by Chess.com. We also have the possibility to learn and develop our skills both by playing against the game's artificial intelligence and against other online players, as it has a very powerful social aspect. We also find puzzles that will help us develop more skills, and we have videos in the app itself to progress. Also, the Chess.com chess game is available for both iOS and Android.
Chess.com
Chess problems (puzzles)
Here we are not facing the classic chess game but one whose function is that we learn through puzzles. The game presents us with games that have already started in which we have to perform certain movements such as catching a specific piece, managing to flee and another series of dilemmas. All of them can be solved on a chess board and following its rules. The game is free although it contains ads and purchases inside, it will depend on us how far we want to go. We have it for both iOS and Android.
Chess problems
Chess Opening Trainer Pro
Another game more focused on learning how to play better, in this case focused on improving our openings at the beginning of each game, whether it is our turn or whether we must react to our opponent's opening. However, we also have intermediate plays and closings. The game has a cost of 3.99 euros but we will not have to pay anything more inside. In addition, we can export and import games with PGN format.
Chess Openings Trainer Pro
Chess Opening Pro
Since the previous title is only found on Android, we have selected one with an identical philosophy for iOS. It is Chess Opening Pro, in this case developed by Tom Ashmore, and it has the same cost as the option proposed for Android. We will be able to consult statistics and probabilities at any time of each approach on the board and thus be able to master the simple, and at the same time tremendously complex, world of chess.
Use Google's 'Look to Speak' App to Talk With Your Eyes
Many people require the aid of specialized speech devices to communicate with their family, friends, and caregivers. Some of these machines are operated through eye-tracking, which allows the users to quickly "type" sentences or select phrases without touch or voice controls - but not everyone has access to such devices.
Google and speech and language therapist Richard Cave have teamed up to try to change that, launching a free Android app called Look to Speak. It's designed to improve the communicative capabilities of non-verbal people using a device nearly everyone has: a smartphone.
As with other eye-tracking communication software, users control Look to Speak by looking off-screen to the left or right to filter through a menu of predetermined phrases and select the one they want. Typically it takes only a few eye movements to select the desired sentence.
The Look to Speak app is available from Google Play for all Android smartphones and tablets running Android 9.0 or higher, as well as Android One devices. The device being used must also have a front-facing camera.
Screenshot: Brendan Hesse
How to setup Look to Speak on Android
Look to Speak is simple to set up and to use. The first time you open the app, you'll be greeted by a tutorial screen that will walk you through the process, which includes finding the right mounting location and viewing angle, calibrating the eye tracking settings, and taking a few tests to get a feel for how the app works. The setup helper uses the touch screen, though alternative interface devices you're already using should also work to move you through the process.
You can also repeat the setup process or adjust the app's behavior in the settings menu, which we'll cover in the sections below.
I tried out the app on a Pixel 3a XL and it was immediately responsive. I've never controlled a piece of technology using just eye movements, so it took some time (and fiddling with the app's settings) before I got used to it. However, it works very well. I tried it in multiple rooms with different lighting, and had success each time - once I found the right angle, that is. Surprisingly, the app registered every eye movement correctly even though my selfie camera has a crack running across it that normally makes photos blurry.
Screenshot: Brendan Hesse
Adjusting Look to Speak's settings
Access the three-line "hamburger" button in the upper-right of the app to open Look to Speak's side menu. From here you can replay the setup helper, video tutorial, or practice screens.
You can also tap Edit phrasebook to add, remove, and revise the phrases and their on-screen layout.
Tap Settings to adjust how far off-screen your eyes must look and how long you'll need to hold your gaze before the app registers the movement. You can also use this screen to adjust snooze and visual feedback behaviors.
If you're feeling stuck, Google offers an online help pamphlet and that covers Look to Speak's numerous settings in greater detail and includes tips and some basic troubleshooting.
Jiggle Physics 60: Video Game Lore; Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity
Source: Jiggle Physics Art
The team dive into the lore of Assassin's Creed and other video game franchises along with a review of Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, Game & Watch, and much more.
Hosted by: Jennifer Locke, Carli Velocci, and Rebecca Spear
Got feedback? Hit up [email protected] and tell us something!