Google Releases the Pixel 2
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Google released the Pixel 2 in October 2017 with a strong emphasis on computational photography. The phone used only one rear camera while several competitors were adding dual-camera systems. Read more
Blog Posts
Welcome to Our Department
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If you are beginning Computer Engineering in 2017, you are joining the field at an interesting time. Mobile applications, cloud platforms, artificial intelligence, connected devices, and open-source software are becoming increasingly important. Read more
Apple Introduces Face ID with the iPhone X
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Apple introduced Face ID with the iPhone X in September 2017, replacing Touch ID on its new edge-to-edge-screen design. The system used a “TrueDepth” camera array rather than ordinary 2D face recognition. Read more
Why Choose Computer Engineering in 2017?
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In 2017, choosing Computer Engineering means entering a field that is expanding far beyond traditional software development. Read more
AMD Launches the Threadripper Platform
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AMD released the first Ryzen Threadripper processors in August 2017, bringing up to sixteen Zen cores and thirty-two threads to high-end desktop systems. Read more
How To Study To Be A Good Software Developer
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Learning software development can easily become overwhelming because there is always another topic to study. A programming language leads to a framework. The framework leads to databases, networking, testing, operating systems, design, security, and many other areas. Read more
Intel Launches the Skylake-X Platform
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Intel launched Skylake-X processors in 2017 for its high-end desktop platform, offering far more cores than mainstream consumer chips. The Core i9-7900X started the line with ten cores, and Intel later announced models reaching eighteen cores. Read more
Apple Introduces the Core ML Framework
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Apple introduced Core ML at WWDC 2017 to make trained machine-learning models easier to run inside iPhone, iPad, and Mac applications. Developers could convert models from common frameworks into Apple’s format and execute inference through a high-level API. Read more
Google Announces Kotlin Support for Android
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Google announced first-class support for Kotlin on Android at I/O in May 2017. Kotlin, created by JetBrains, ran on the Java Virtual Machine and could interoperate directly with existing Java classes and Android APIs. Read more
Kotlin Arrives On Android
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Java has been the main language of Android development for years, but Kotlin is becoming difficult to ignore. JetBrains designed Kotlin to work well with Java while removing some of the language features that developers often find repetitive or unsafe. Read more
Docker Introduces the Moby Project
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Docker announced the Moby Project in April 2017 to separate the open-source building blocks of its container platform from the commercially packaged Docker product. Read more
Serverless Computing And The Idea Of Less Maintenance
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The word “serverless” is a little funny because the servers do not actually disappear. They simply become less visible to the developer. Read more
AMD Launches Ryzen
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AMD launched the first Ryzen desktop processors in March 2017, introducing the Zen microarchitecture and ending years in which Intel had faced relatively weak competition in high-performance x86 CPUs. Read more
Cloudflare Discloses the Cloudbleed Bug
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Cloudflare disclosed a serious memory-leak bug in February 2017 that became known as Cloudbleed. Under unusual combinations of HTML parsing features, parts of Cloudflare’s edge software could read past the end of a buffer and include unrelated memory in HTTP responses. Read more
GitLab Faces a Major Database Incident and Shares the Recovery Publicly
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GitLab suffered a serious database incident in January 2017 after production data was accidentally deleted during troubleshooting. The event became famous because the company documented the recovery process publicly in real time instead of hiding the failure. Read more
About Semantic Web Technologies
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The traditional web is very good at presenting information to people. The Semantic Web asks another question: can web data also be described in a way that machines can understand more clearly? Read more
Amazon Opens Its First Checkout-Free Store Concept
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Amazon publicly revealed Amazon Go in December 2016, presenting a small grocery store where shoppers could pick up items and leave without a traditional checkout line. The first store initially opened to Amazon employees before a broader public launch later. Read more
Why Two Factor Authentication Is Worth The Extra Step
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Passwords are a weak part of modern security because people have too many of them. We reuse passwords, choose memorable patterns, and sometimes keep the same password for years. Large data breaches make this more dangerous because one stolen password can be tested on many unrelated services. Read more
The Value Of Walking Away From The Screen
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Programmers have a strange relationship with difficult problems. When something does not work, our first instinct is often to stay. Read more
Google Home and Modern Voice Assistants Expand
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Google Home reached consumers in November 2016, placing Google Assistant into an always-available smart speaker. The product competed directly with Amazon Echo and helped turn voice interfaces into a new platform category. Read more