Kuneri bloggy

Nokia today released Qt 4.6, the latest version of the cross-platform application and UI framework. Featuring new platform support, powerful new graphical capabilities and support for multi-touch and gestures, Qt 4.6 makes developing advanced applications and devices easier and more enjoyable.

Highlights

• More eye candy

New animation framework – new advanced graphics effects like opacity, drop shadows, glow, and filtering are supported.

• More fingers

Ability to create multi-touch applications with new multi-touch and gestures, such as flicking and kinetic scrolling.

• More horsepower

More performance to deliver the “wow” effects.

• Updated tools

Qt Creator tool coming with SDK has been updated.

Cool!

Qt for Symbian is no more technology preview stage, according to videos the performance seems to vary between adequate to excellent.

Qt appears now to be much more tempting for mobile developers demanding better UX. For Nokia devices, with Qt technology you can create applications besides for S60, also for Maemo in future, perhaps for S40 as well.

Sources :

http://qt.nokia.com/about/news/nokia-releases-qt-4.6
http://qt.nokia.com/whatsnew
http://qt.nokia.com/products/platform/symbian

When working on Sudoku Master Example for Nokia, I designed a simple touch keypad for number entry to Sudoku cells. In the design, touch keypad highlighted the number ‘over’ the touch point with a zoom effect. Many thought I got ‘inspired’ from iPhone, and questioned the design. However, the reason was simple (so I thought):

The reason for the decision to zoom above the finger is simply because it is the only way to make the number visible for both right- and left-handed people.

Today, I was watching Android G2 video review; and saw that a guy was typing on a virtual keypad and complains (00:45) there is no key highlight at all (which is weird). When I watched little carefully, I could see the highlights popping up on the ‘left’ side of keys. This was a perfect real life example that the key highlights should be on top of a key, not on left, right or bottom. And that’s not because Apple iPhone does it so; but that’s the only right way to avoid such a big FAIL when a left handed guy shoots one of the first reviews of your product :)

PS. Phone definitely looks cool