CBS App coming to BlackBerry 10

CBS has just made their CBS App available to Android and Windows Phone 8 devices and will be bringing the fun to BlackBerry 10 in the US before the end of this year.
In a press release issued today, CBS announced that the full-streaming app is on its way to BlackBerry 10 and will offer streaming of full episodes, social features as well as some second screen action.
Users can take advantage of more in-depth features through the app while watching CBS shows live or hit up the social content for larger interaction.
NEW YORK – Oct. 4, 2013 – CBS Interactive today announced its popular CBS App, offering full-episode streaming of the CBS Television Network’s programming, is now available for Android and Windows 8* users and will be coming to BlackBerry 10 before the end of the year.
This fall, the app will also include full episodes of all the new fall entertainment series in CBS’s primetime lineup in addition to the CBS App’s newly introduced CBS Classics content.

BlackBerry Launches Documents To Go BES 10 Edition For Android And iOS

Now you can use Documents To Go BES 10 Edition on your Android or Iphone.
If you use BlackBerry Work Spaces this will be a nice addition.
The app description notes the importance of BES10: IMPORTANT NOTE: The Documents To Go for BES10 application WILL NOT OPERATE unless your organization has the necessary back-end BlackBerry Enterprise software.
In other words, they are saying you must already have BlackBerry Enterprise software or this won’t work properly.
This is only for the BES Editions because you can also get just regular Documents To Go.

BlackBerry's Developers Never Used BlackBerry 7

Sometimes when using BlackBerry 10 it feels like the developers at BlackBerry have never used a legacy BlackBerry 7 device.
I just get so frustrated when my old BlackBerry 7 device is more efficient at certain communication tasks than my top of the line OS 10.2 BlackBerry Q10.
The epitome of my frustration is best seen in the ridiculous animation blackberry has when you move in the hub between a newer and older email.
I know that when BlackBerry 10 was being first developed most of the core developers were outsiders from QNX, TAT, etc focused on touchscreens while the main BlackBerry developers were still fleshing out BlackBerry 7 and 7.1.
We love the new functionality you have brought us in BlackBerry 10 but don’t forget about the attention to detail and efficiency that made BlackBerry the top communications platform.

Good news for BlackBerry

BlackBerry may be having a torrid time of things, but there is, at last, some good news to report regarding the struggling company.
The NATO military alliance has given the company a vote of confidence by approving its BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 and BB10 smartphones for classified communications.
On hearing this rare bit of good news, the company’s senior vice president of security Scott Totzke must’ve cracked a smile so wide it wrapped around his head several times – and then some.
“We built the new BlackBerry 10 platform from the ground up with the highest security needs of our government and enterprise customers in mind,” Totzk said in a release.
It said the conclusions Gartner drew about the impact of recent developments concerning the mobile company were “purely speculative”.

BlackBerry stock driven up by reported interest

BlackBerry stock is rising after a report in the Wall Street Journal that the U.S. private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management LP has expressed interest in the failing Waterloo, Ont.-based smartphone maker.
BlackBerry stock closed at $8.26 in Toronto and $7.98 on the Nasdaq.
BlackBerry's stock had been driven down earlier this week amid reports the Fairfax offer overvalued BlackBerry at $9 a share.
Soon after, it reported a second-quarter loss of $965 million and revenues of $1.6 billion, a decline of 45 per cent from the same period last year.
The company said service revenue dropped about 27 per cent to $724 million in the three months ended Aug. 31.

Rogers lists BlackBerry OS 10.2 release date for late October

If things stay on track for BlackBerry OS 10.2 we may be seeing an update very soon.
As posted in the Rogers Community Forums, the BlackBerry Z10, Q10 and Q5 all show a tentative OS 10.2 update for "late October".
We can't say for sure if this will be the case, though from what we've seen and hear over the last few weeks it does seem to fit.
The BlackBerry Z30 is making it's way to more regions and is already running OS 10.2, so an update for other BlackBerry 10 devices shouldn't be too far off.
BlackBerry OS 10.2 brings some much awaited features that we've seen in the numerous leaks as of late, but many are holding out to get their hands on an official version.

Vine on BlackBerry 10

CrackBerry takes a look at a Vine app for BB10.

Over the weekend we got a look at the upcoming iGrann app for BlackBerry 10 that will finally bring Instagram users some relief. As if that wasn't cool enough, it appears that another app is in the works for the popular video sharing network Vine as well. 

A very quick preview of Whine turned up on Youtube and was posted to the forums. As it turns out the app is being developed by forums member knobtviker and is in the very early beta stages. Vine doesn't offer a public API so some magic has to be worked on the backend of things to get it all working.
It's still up in the air whether Whine will actually make it's way to BlackBerry World, but as knobtviker notes, it will be available to sideload regardless so that's a good thing.

http://crackberry.com/early-preview-whine-app-shows-vine-blackberry-10

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• iGrann Will Bring a Native Instagram Client to BlackBerry 10
• WordPress Native Cleint Comes to BlackBerry 10 in Beta Form

Download BlackBerry Bridge for BlackBerry 10

All PlayBook owners can rejoice today as BlackBerry Bridge has been updated to version 3.2.0.8 - bringing full support to BlackBerry 10 devices. Although long overdue, those of us that are still rocking our PlayBooks can now at least get the full features we were used to having on legacy devices.

These features include the use of BBM on the PlayBook (the perfect weekend for it) as well as using our BlackBerry 10 handset as a remote control - great for when the PlayBook is connected to the TV via HDMI. Being able to use the BlackBerry 10 devices cellular connection will be the most used feature - bringing the PlayBook back to life for many folk.

The update is rolling out as we speak so if you can't see the new version just yet give it a bit of time and try again.

Download BlackBerry Bridge for BlackBerry 10 smartphones

Sideload Apps to BlackBerry 10 that use Google Maps API

The new adventure of “sideloading” has certainly taken on quite an evolution:

• Back since OS 2 of the Playbook and the early days of BB10, we were able to quickly sideload simple apps – but not apps using Android native code.
• Along came what has become known as “the xsacha method ” to use the DebugToken to sideload apps that use native code, such as Angry Birds
• For me, there were still a bunch of apps that didn’t work until AT&T graced me with the OS 10.1 upgrade
• Along came the solid 10.2 leak which suddenly opened the door to even more Android apps that required a higher version of the Android OS than the Gingerbread that 10.1 had to offer, e.g. Feedly

But there has still always been a tremendous void. A whole handful of simple apps just would not work. Using Catlog (when it still worked – I believe tighter security in Jelly Bean blocks it from reading logs in 10.2 without root) it was apparent that the failure was due to the apps expecting the Google Maps API which is not baked into BB10′s Android runtime. I had simply resigned myself to the reality that those apps would just never work.

…Until now! I stumbled upon yet another CrackBerry Forum post  which lead me to a solution. In a nutshell, the AndroidManifest.xml file contains directives as to which libraries to expect and, more importantly, whether or not they are required. I will document the steps to modify the APK file so that the missing libraries are no longer required. For the purposes of keeping this as brief as possible, I will have to assume you are already familiar with how to obtain an APK  and “the xsacha method .”

• First, download and unpack the APKTool application
• Place the APK you want to modify in the same directory. Let’s call the APK Foo.apk
• Get a Command Prompt in that directory (Shift+Right-click, Open Command Window Here should work in recent versions of Windows)
• Type the following command:

  apktool d Foo.apk Foo

  This will create a sub-directory called Foo and decode the APK contents into it. Don’t close the Command Prompt just yet.
• Go into the Foo directory and open the AndroidManifest.xml file in your favourite text editor
• If the Google Maps API is the only problem, you are looking for the following line:
  <uses-library android:name=“com.google.android.maps”/>
• Modify it to look like so:
  <uses-library android:name=“com.google.android.maps” android:required=“false”/>
  (Repeat this process for any other required library which might be causing problems.)
• After saving the XML file, go back to the Command Prompt. Type the following command to repackage the APK to Foo2.apk:

  apktool b Foo Foo2.apk

• I wish I could say we were done. But unfortunately, I’ve found that since the resulting, modified APK is not signed, it will fail when you try to convert it to a .BAR
• The simplest way around I found, based on this YouTube video  was the SignAPK app. Follow the instructions in the video description to download and unpack the utility.
• Place Foo2.bar in the same directory and run the following command in a Command Prompt:

  java -jar signapk.jar certificate.pem key.pk8 Foo2.apk Foo2-signed.apk

• (Obviously, you need to have Java on the machine for that to work but anyone who’s come this far almost certainly does.)

That’s pretty much it! Foo2-signed.apk is now ready to run through the standard APK-to-BAR conversion process and sideload to your device. I’ve used this method to successfully sideload and run apps such as Dunkin Donuts, 7-Eleven and Geico. It should be noted that these apps do contain functionality that relies on Google Maps (such as “Find the nearest …”) and if you try those, the app will crash. Have fun!

BlackBerry might be broken up into two parts: OS and patents

BlackBerry has “narrowed its list of potential bidders ” and reportedly pushing for a quick sale – potentially as early as November. Rumours around the web are that private equity firm Fairfax Financial Holdings , which owns a 10% stake in the business, is interested in scooping up BlackBerry. In addition, Microsoft is ‘keeping an eye’ on what the Waterloo-based manufacturer is up to.

For several years many investors have been pushing BlackBerry to be split up into several parts : network, device and patents. Unfortunately, something of this nature just might happen.

According to a report in Reuters, several unknown bidders have signed confidentiality agreements and are looking into ways to break the company up into two parts – operating system (BlackBerry 10 and the network assets) and its vast collection of patents, specifically highlighting its keyboard. Possibly vanishing from the plan is its hardware production. However, there is a glimmer of hope as the report states there might be interest from “a Canadian pension fund to team up with an investor to buy the whole company, which is currently worth a little more than $5 billion.”

Reuters notes that “According to analysts, BlackBerry’s assets include a shrinking, yet well-regarded services business that powers its security-focused messaging system, worth $3 billion to $4.5 billion; a collection of patents that could be worth $2 billion to $3 billion; and $3.1 billion in cash and investments. Even at a conservative estimate, that is more than the company’s $5.4 billion market value. Analysts said the smartphones that bear its name have little or no value and it might cost $2 billion to shut the unit that makes them.”

BlackBerry clearly declined to comment the speculation. In the near future, BlackBerry is focussed on delivering BBM to iPhone and Android users, plus planning to launch the 5-inch BlackBerry Z30 in the coming weeks.