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CrackBerry Live: Bringing Office 365 and SharePoint to BlackBerry 10

Simon Sage — Sun, 19 May 2013 06:36:04 GMT

We noticed the harmon.ie announcement at BlackBerry Live 2013 for Office 365 and SharePoint coming to BB10, so we met up with the co-founder and CEO Yaacov Cohen to get a closer look. Harmon.ie sits on BES 10.1, allowing its users to access all sorts of day-to-day Office 365 information securely, as well as tapping into the SharePoint cloud collaboration service. Harmon.ie also supports Android and iOS, plus Balance for BlackBerry, so it's perfectly suited to the mixed BYOD environment. SharePoint documents can be opened directly in the built-in Docs to Go suite, while search, contacts, and calendar are due for the next update.

The nice thing about harmon.ie is that though this is geared primarily as an enterprise product, they have a fully functioning free sample app available in BlackBerry World right now, so BES admins can figure out if this is right for them without having to make any initial investments. Once they're ready to go, harmon.ie costs $4 per user per month.

The most compelling part of my talk with Yaacov was when he said their aim was to make it so folks weren't just "bringing their device to work, they're bringing their devices for work." There are certainly some tasks in which a smartphone can replace a laptop in a pinch, but I would be hesitant to rely on one as much as I would on a laptop for some tasks, especially document editing.

Any of you guys currently using Office 365 or SharePoint at work? How badly are you hurting for a BlackBerry 10 client? For anyone interested, hit up harmon.ie for more details about their BES plans.

CrackBerry Live: Mippin takes aim at DIY enterprise apps for BlackBerry 10

Simon Sage — Sun, 19 May 2013 02:55:53 GMT

At BlackBerry Live 2013, the Mippin guys were talking up a potential enterprise application generator to follow up on their media-centered product that has already brought some 20,000 apps to BlackBerry World. They're still in talks with BlackBerry about getting this project going, but it would be built on top of BES, so employees could access corporate information that's behind the firewall through an application front-end. This kind of solution would be perfect for companies with plenty of remote workers and heavily-used shared databases, but shy on mobile developers able to create a custom app that handles it all. The BES component would be able to handle deployment of created apps as well, so new updates could be rolled out as needed, or the app could be remotely nuked if the device was lost.

In any case, the BlackBerry App Generator has done a lot so far for more consumer-facing brands - here's hoping the same tech can be used to enable higher mobility in enterprise as well. Be sure to check out our demo of the BlackBerry App Generator from Jam Asia to see what it's all about, or head on over to BlackBerryAppGenerator.com to start cooking up your own.

Cut The Rope updated with support for the BlackBerry Z10

Bla1ze — Sat, 18 May 2013 17:37:36 GMT

Om Nom is back! If you're a Cut The Rope fan, you've no doubt been wondering when the game would be updated with BlackBerry 10 compatibility and finally, the wait is over. Cut The Rope is available now in BlackBerry World for BlackBerry Z10. if you're new to the game, it's priced at $1.99 but if you previously purchased it on the BlackBerry PlayBook it's available for free.

Cut The Rope, in case you're not familiar, is a cute puzzle game where you have to swipe your finger across ropes to release the delicious bundles of candy into Om Nom's mouth while ensuring you collect stars along the way. Sounds easy but there's plenty of obstacles and situations arise that make feeding Om Nom just a tad bit difficult.

Learn more / Download Cut The Rope

CrackBerry Live: Interview with CB10's developer, Marcus Adolfsson

Kevin Michaluk — Sat, 18 May 2013 14:27:03 GMT

The CrackBerry team was super excited to have our very own CB10 app win Best Built for BlackBerry App in the BlackBerry Developer Community awards this week at BlackBerry Live.

Following up on our sweet, sweet victory, we got Marcus Adolfsson up on the CrackBerry Live stage the next day to talk about the coding the award-winning CB10 app and where it's going from here.

Behind the scenes of CrackBerry Live!

Kevin Michaluk — Sat, 18 May 2013 13:47:40 GMT

When BlackBerry announced they were rebranding BlackBerry World to BlackBerry Live for 2013, we just knew we had to kick up our coverage for the annual event to include a live component. Hence, the idea for CrackBerry Live was born.

Doing live video content is a challenge on many fronts, but thanks to our friends at GeekBeat.TV, we pulled it off without a hiccup. Where we were lacking on the gear and experience front, John P. and Kien Tran were not and they helped pull it all together and kept us on track all week long.

We've been receiving great feedback on all of our CrackBerry Live content. In the video above we take a behind the scenes look at the entire setup and what it took to produce to CrackBerry Live this year. Enjoy!

One app three devices: Helping webworks developers build applications for multiple form factors

Alicia Erlich — Sat, 18 May 2013 12:18:40 GMT

Cross platform support for BlackBerry WebWorks application developers

If you are a developer attending BlackBerry Jam one question you may have is how to launch your application across multiple platforms without building multiple bar or bundle files. During one of the Webworks sessions I attended here at Jam, they discussed different techniques that can be implemented to target multiple platforms running BB10 with only one application. There was a Cascades version of this session running concurrently at Jam as well, however, my background is in Webworks so I chose to attend this one.

CrackBerry Live: We talk BlackBerry with ING DIRECT Canada

Adam Zeis — Sat, 18 May 2013 12:10:10 GMT

Chatting with the BlackBerry Achievement Award winners, we took some time to talk to Vinay Venugopal who is the Director of IT Strategy at ING DIRECT Canada. A winner in the category of Putting Customers First, ING makes it secure and easy for customers to conduct transactions using BlackBerry 10. The app allows for easy banking that includes "orange alerts" and even integrates with the BlackBerry Hub,

Vinay explained how BlackBerry is used throughout ING as well as how it helps them give amazing service to their customers.

CrackBerry Live: Mobile Innovation of the Year Winner DIRECTV

Adam Zeis — Sat, 18 May 2013 11:57:08 GMT

The BlackBerry Achievement awards were announced during BlackBerry Live 2013 and we had a chance to chat with a few of the winners, one of which being DIRECTV. A winner in the category of Mobile Innovation of the Year, DIRECTV has deployed their app to the over 4,000 employees in the company. The app allows technicians to manage an entire service call and work order process from their phones, and supports Bluetooth technology to validate and adjust satellite signal strength.

We talked to Javier of DIRECTV who told us a bit about the app and how it helps the technicians greatly by cutting down on paperwork and providing tools to better complete their tasks in the field.

The Michaluk Virus is still going strong in The Becoming: Revelations

Michelle Haag — Sat, 18 May 2013 10:03:07 GMT

Need to get your zombie fix while The Walking Dead is on break? Check out The Becoming series by CrackBerry member Jessica Meigs!

Back in 2010, CrackBerry member Jessica Meigs wrote a zombie book called The Becoming: Outbreak, and she did it all on her BlackBerry. Over the course of two years, using a variety of BlackBerry smartphones (BlackBerry Bold 9000, the BlackBerry Curve 8900, the BlackBerry Bold 9700, and the BlackBerry Torch 9800), Jessica penned her first novel, which quickly grew into a series of novels.

Leaked OS 10.1.0.1880 for the BlackBerry Z10 STL100-2 & 3

Michelle Haag — Sat, 18 May 2013 01:18:15 GMT

If you're feeling the blues now that BlackBerry Live is over and looking for a bit of excitement for the weekend, you can check out this freshly leaked BlackBerry Z10 OS from lbfe!

Please note, this leak is not for all devices. This time it's just the STL100-2 & 3 getting some love so if you don't have one of those then you'll want to move along. This leak bumps the OS version up to 10.1.0.1880, and some people are already reporting improved performance and battery life. If you install this please be sure to share your findings in the comments below or in the forums.

Just like every other time - be sure to read over the instructions before you get going. You'll need a Windows PC to run the autoloader and you'll want to perform a full backup of your device first. If anything goes bad - don't blame us. Remember you can always reload your Z10 OS if something gets borked.

Grab the OS for your device at the link below then head into the forums for more help and discussion.

Download OS 10.1.0.1880 for the STL100-2 / STL100-3

CrackBerry Live: New Rubik's Cube game for BlackBerry 10 kicking classic puzzle up a notch

Simon Sage — Fri, 17 May 2013 17:45:57 GMT

The Rubik's cube is one of those timeless, classic toys that you don't expect one can mess around with much, but you may change your mind after seeing Magmic's treatment on BlackBerry 10. We talked with Phil Giroux from Magmic at BlackBerry Live 2013 about their upcoming adaptation which has the standard 3 x 3 x 3 puzzle mode we're all familiar with, but they've also tossed in a 4 x 4 x 4 and a 5 x 5 x 5 cube to mix things up. There's also a 2 x 2 x 2 if you need to start off slow. Speaking of which, they've got a dedicated teacher section which offers newbies some starting strategies for figuring Rubik's cubes. This is great, because personally, I've only ever fiddled randomly with the things and never got very far.

Beyond that, you've got some visual enhancements, such as a picture mode which swaps out colors each side for an image of your chosing. Then there's 3D mode, so you can pop on your dorky glasses and be totally blown away by the cube's intense realism. Rubik's Cube is coming soon to BlackBerry World, but in the meantime, take a look at the new NFC capabilities of their hugely popular Texas Hold 'Em game.

CrackBerry Live: Scoping out new games coming from the maker of Alpha Zero

Simon Sage — Fri, 17 May 2013 16:47:05 GMT

3 Little Kingdoms recently launched for strategy lovers, while Eyebert is on the way for those looking for twitchy platforming goodness.

We got to check out some new games from Funkoi at BlackBerry Live 2013 this week, and they're a decidedly different direction than what they currently offer with Alpha Zero.

3 Little Kingdoms launched not too long ago, which is a base defense game where players have to produce and command waves of troops to clash against an opposing side. For all of its 2D graphics, there are some very polished perspective effects with the foreground, plus the strategic elements look solid. A brand new game getting its first look at the show is Eyebert, which takes a tried-and-true runner formula and tosses in some Mario-style platforming and a lot of colorful artwork.

Now, even with the new games, Funkoi's not leaving Alpha Zero in the dust. They showed us the awesome multitouch space shooter running on the Q10 for the first time, and let us know that they've recently added Bluetooth controller support. Be sure to check out Funkoi's current apps in BlackBerry World. If you haven't tried Alpha Zero yet, it's definitely worth a go.

CrackBerry Live: Scoping out new games coming from the maker of Alpha Zero

Simon Sage — Fri, 17 May 2013 16:46:17 GMT

3 Little Kingdoms recently launched for strategy lovers, while Eyebert is on the

We got check out some new games from Funkoi at BlackBerry Live 2013 this week, and they're a decidedly different direction than what they currently offer with Alpha Zero.

Download the NY Times app and get full access free through June

DJ Reyes — Fri, 17 May 2013 16:18:21 GMT

The New York Times app has been available since the BlackBerry 10 launch. It's free to download and there are free articles that you can browse and then you had to subscribe to get access to other content like videos and slides. It's a pretty decent app built natively and also allows you to easily share articles to your favorite social media sites. It even includes push notifications.

Right now, the New York Times is offering up full free access to all content to all users who download the app. Free access is being given as of now and will continue until June 26, 2013.

Features include:

Access to all the articles, blogs, videos and more from the world's finest journalists
Flow from section to section, article to article
Peek at the next article without leaving the current one
Share favorite content with friends and dedicated BlackBerry Groups
Create your own library to read whenever you like on any device

If you haven't gotten the app already, check it out now and make use of this neat offer.

Download the NY Times app from BlackBerry World

Load up on some great apps and themes with MMMOOO's Mega Sale (select regions)

Alicia Erlich — Fri, 17 May 2013 15:59:31 GMT

Rocking a legacy BlackBerry device in Asia Pacific, Africa, or the Middle East? This one is for you!

Popular theme and application developer MMMOOO let us know that from now until May 22 they are holding their Mega Sale. They have chosen eight of their best selling apps and themes to be offered at the low price of $0.99. Unfortunately, there is one caveat to this sale. The promotion is only available in the Asia Pacific, Africa (except South Africa), and Middle Eastern Regions for compatible BBOS devices.

BlackBerry Jam: Build a native application in under an hour

Alicia Erlich — Fri, 17 May 2013 15:31:51 GMT

Heading in BlackBerry Live and the subsequent Jam Sessions I was a bit nervous. One of the reasons I made the trek from New York all the way down to Florida was to expand my coding skills and try my hand at learning Cascades. Now I had never used C++ or QML before nor did I have any experience with JavaScript so it did seem a bit intimidating going into the Cascades 101 sessions. However, all that changed when attending the App in Sixty Minutes session hosted by David Clayworth and Mattias Öhman. They would be compiling a native Cascades application in less than an hour.

Deal of the Day: Save 69% on the BlackBerry Rapid Wall Charger for PlayBook

ShopCrackBerry — Fri, 17 May 2013 14:01:58 GMT

Today Only: Buy the BlackBerry Rapid Wall Charger for PlayBook and save $47.99!

The BlackBerry Rapid Wall Charger is made for maximum reliability and portability. Use one at home, or take it with you to the office, to the airport, or virtually anywhere. The cable is 3 ft. long to maximize your flexibility. And, like other BlackBerry chargers, it charges your PlayBook rapidly and helps preserve the life of your battery.

List Price: $69.99 Today Only: $22.00

Deal also available in the Canada store

Learn More and Buy Now

Never miss a deal. Sign up for Daily Deal alerts!

Time to announce the winner of the BlackBerry Q10 from @RogersBuzz and CrackBerry!

Michelle Haag — Fri, 17 May 2013 06:26:01 GMT

With BlackBerry Live 2013 underway this week, there was a bit of delay in getting this contest sorted, but here is the big announcement our Canadian readers have been waiting for. It's time to reveal the winner of the BlackBerry Q10 from @RogersBuzz and CrackBerry! If you see your name below then congratulations and watch your email as we will be in touch soon with information on claiming your prize.

BlackBerry 10.1 OS now available in Australia

Michelle Haag — Fri, 17 May 2013 01:27:16 GMT

That's right Australians, you should now be able to download and install the BlackBerry 10.1 update on your BlackBerry Z10! As announced earlier this week at the BlackBerry Live 2013 keynote, the update is rolling out around the world, with many people already seeing the update on their devices. Keep reading to see what changes and updates you can expect to find in this new version of BlackBerry 10, and be sure to let us know in the comments below if you're seeing the update down under.

CrackBerry Live: Checking out the latest BB10 game from the creator of Pixelated

Simon Sage — Thu, 16 May 2013 20:12:17 GMT

Pixelated fans will want to check out the next game from creator Ebscer. Eric Harty was showing off Starbeams at BlackBerry Live 2013, a simple yet challenging puzzle game where players have to assign colors to points in a shape so that no two of them connected by a line are the same. It's pretty hard once you get to the later levels. We also chatted with Eric about his general impressions of the show from the perspective of an independent developer.

Ebscer has a bunch of other games in BlackBerry World, so go ahead and take a look at what's there. There's still plenty more of our CrackBerry Live footage to see, so keep that CB browser tab open!

CrackBerry Live: PriceCheck Mobile - Winners of the app of the year award

Bla1ze — Thu, 16 May 2013 19:56:07 GMT

After the announcement of the BlackBerry Achievement Award winners, PriceCheck Mobile, who took home the app of the year award swung by CrackBerry Live to give us a walkthrough of their offerings. Andre W. de Wet, General Manager, PriceCheck guided us through it all and explained why their app is doing so well in South Africa, possible expansion plans and and winning the BlackBerry Achievement Awards. If you're not familiar with PriceCheck, give the video a look and if you're interested in grabbing the app, the link is below for you all.

Download PriceCheck Mobile for BlackBerry 10

Tour of the awesome BlackBerry Keep Moving Van

Adam Zeis — Thu, 16 May 2013 19:36:22 GMT

The BlackBerry Keep Moving Tour is in full swing, bring BlackBerry 10 love to everyone across the globe. The most notable and high-profile vessel for the tour are those awesome vans that we've seen more than a few times now. They are popping up all over major cities in the US and showing off the BlackBerry Z10. Manned with a staff of BlackBerry experts, anyone can jump in the van and learn all about BlackBerry 10 from top to bottom.

So far we've seen the vans in places like Toronto for the Z10 launch, Alicia Keys shows in various cities and here at BlackBerry Live 2013.

If you haven't checked one out in person, sit back as Kevin runs us through the ins and outs of the BlackBerry Keep Moving Van.

Learn more about the BlackBerry Keep Moving Tour

CrackBerry Live: Talking faxes and VoIP on BlackBerry 10 with Jim Courtney

Simon Sage — Thu, 16 May 2013 19:18:59 GMT

Faxing is still a thing!

As it turns out, sometimes people still need to send a fax. Luckily, there's a mobile app out there for BlackBerry 10 called PamFax which lets you handle it without all of the fuss of a bulky machine. Users can pay a subscription fee for an inbound line, or get a bucket of credit for outbound faxes, which can be pulled in from on-device images and documents.

We met up with Jim Courtney at BlackBerry Live 2013, who had helped roll out PamFax to BlackBerry World, but he also has a history with VoIP going waaaaaay back. We chat a bit about Skype on BlackBerry 10, and he goes so far as to say that it's the best implementation of a mobile Skype solution to date, even though it's an Android port. Those are some bold words - do you guys agree?

We've got plenty more CrackBerry Live content to get up, including more interviews and product demos. Oh, and if you're interested in PamFax, you can find it here in BlackBerry World. Be sure to check out Voice on the Web for more from Jim.

Need a reference tool for web development? Check out Web Design Cheat Sheet

James Richardson — Thu, 16 May 2013 19:02:16 GMT

This one will appeal to a niche market, but if you are looking to get into web development then it's well worth checking out. The application is essentially a Web Design Cheat Sheet which is a reference tool for HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript which gives:

Useful Information
Syntax
Examples
Documentation
Site Feeds

I must admit that my experience and knowledge of development is extremely limited but Web Design Cheat Sheet looks to be the perfect tool to help get you into developing and finding out what's what. Built using Cascades - the app is a perfect example of how wonderful BlackBerry 10 apps can be. It's user friendly with an attractive, yet simple user interface.

Features of the app include:

BBM Connected
Reader Mode
Share Functionality
Request Additional Site Feeds
App Cover When Minimized
Sort by Letter

More information/Download Web Design Cheat Sheet for BlackBerry 10

CrackBerry Live: Hands-on with Samadhi relaxation apps

Bla1ze — Thu, 16 May 2013 18:38:50 GMT

Everyone has stress in their lives and for some folks listening to some soothing sounds helps relax situations. Stopping by CrackBerry Live was Till Adam, Services Director at KDAB, to show us some apps he's been working on with Samadhi Group and Tasia Valenza. The apps are beautifully designed and if you enjoy tuning out the world in an attempt to regain some sanity, they should do the trick.

Right now, all of the apps are on sale for $0.99 and can be found in BlackBerry World. Check out the video above and be sure to stick around until the end -- there's an epic Star Trek tie in from Till and Kevin.

View all the Samadhi Group apps in BlackBerry World