Subscribe free to our newsletters via your
. Space Industry and Business News .




TECH SPACE
Russia unveils own 'almost Android' system
by Staff Writers
Moscow (AFP) Aug 31, 2012


It seems that Russia's defence ministry has little faith in Google's operating systems: it has just unveiled its own encrypted version that has the remarkably familiar feel of an Android.

Russia's very first smart prototype was presented on the sidelines of a Berlin electronics show this week to Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin -- an avowed nationalist who oversees the military's technological innovation.

A slimmed down version of the operating system in computer tablet form is actually meant to go public by the end of the year at a cost of 15,000 rubles ($460) a pop.

But it would hardly be a defence gadget with consumer appeal. Developers at the ministry's Central Scientific Research Institute said their main client is -- and will probably always be -- the state and its top brass.

"The military version will be shock- and water-proof," Russian media quoted production unit director Andrei Starikovsky as telling Rogozin at the presentation.

"The operating system has all the functional capabilities of an Android operating system but none of its hidden features that send users' private data to Google headquarters," the researcher stressed.

Russia's top officials have been unnerved by the idea that data collected and stored for years in Google databases could slip into the hands of the US government and expose some of their most secret and sensitive communications.

Similar fears have already driven other expensive military projects with rewards for the masses that come primarily as an afterthought.

One such invention is GLONASS -- a rival of the Global Position System (GPS) meant to help generals train their missiles on targets without relying on a US system that could be shut down as a precaution at any point.

GLONASS suffered through initial delays and some satellite crashes but was eventually included in the software of Apple's latest iPhone.

But the latest defence project is not entirely an echo of the Cold War.

It is run out of a military research facility but privately funded.

And its developers say that the operating system has been in the works for five whole years for the simple reason that Russians -- mostly those who run ministries and firms such as the state energy behemoth Gazprom -- have little trust in Google's security.

"They are not afraid of Google or the US government stealing things per se. They are afraid of leaks in general," the operating system's project manager Dmitry Mikhailov told AFP.

"There is nothing like this operating system on the market. It is hack-proof," Mikhailov claimed. "There are people who are clamouring for this."

Analysts question whether Russia has enough super-wealthy clients that treasure their records so much they are willing to pay premium prices for a services that in some cases are available elsewhere for free.

"The devil is in the details. If this is purely a defence ministry project, it is doomed," said Russian parliament member and professional IT specialist Ilya Ponomaryov.

"But if this is a completely new operating system made by and for the market, its prospects are as good as anyone else's," Ponomaryov told AFP.

Dmitry Konovalov of the Institute of Strategic Assessment said simply that he thought the tablet "only makes military sense. It makes no commercial sense at all."

But project manager Mikhailov said his company had plenty of pre-orders ahead of the system's release date that promised profits down the line.

"It can go on smartphones as well," he added.

.


Related Links
Space Technology News - Applications and Research






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle








TECH SPACE
Japan court rejects patent claims against Samsung as Apple files More US actions
Tokyo (AFP) Aug 31, 2012
A Japanese court Friday rejected Apple's claim that Samsung stole its technology, dealing a blow to the iPhone maker which last week won more than $1 billion in damages in the US from its bitter rival. The ruling by the Tokyo District Court is the latest chapter in a long-running global patent war between the smartphone giants which have accused each other of stealing intellectual property f ... read more


TECH SPACE
Russia unveils own 'almost Android' system

China's Baidu to invest $1.6 bn in cloud computing

Samsung violates Chinese workers' rights: report

Apple event invites hint at iPhone 5 debut

TECH SPACE
Smartphone App Can Track Objects On the Battlefield as Well as On the Sports Field

Lockheed Martin Wins Role on Defense Information Systems Agency Program

Raytheon unveils cross domain strategy to securely access information via mobile devices

NATO Special Forces Taps Mutualink for Global Cross Coalition Communications

TECH SPACE
First-Stage Fuel Loaded; Launch Weather Forecast Improves

NASA launches mission to explore radiation belts

ISRO to score 100 with a cooperative mission Sep 9

NASA Administrator Announces New Commercial Crew And Cargo Milestones

TECH SPACE
CTrack Launches Lone Worker Device To Boost Protection And Peace Of Mind

Spirent Redefines Leadership in Location Testing with Solution for Hybrid Location Technology

Robbers nabbed thanks to GPS phone in loot

Fourth Galileo satellite reaches French Guiana launch site

TECH SPACE
Arrest after China flight threat: state media

Airbus says Chinese-built planes to be sold only in China

Australia buys Growler systems for Hornets

Boeing to Provide PBL for USAF F-15 Radars

TECH SPACE
More than 70 percent of electronic waste management is uncontrolled

Researchers measure photonic interactions at the atomic level

Wayne State's new flexible electronics technology may lead to new medical uses

Magnetic Vortex Reveals Key to Spintronic Speed Limit

TECH SPACE
Suomi NPP Captures Smoke Plume Images from Russian and African Fires

Remote Sensing Satellite Sends First Earth Imagery

Proba-2's espresso-cup microcamera snaps Hurricane Isaac

$3.7 Billion Reasons Why GIS Technology is The Future

TECH SPACE
Philippine gold mine struggles to plug waste spill

Oil spilling from Turkish bulk carrier wreck off Cape Town

Wind concentrates pollutants with unexpected order in an urban environment

China wrestles with acid rain threat




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement