This article is conflating whistleblowing with leaking internal product information. The latter should not be done and Google seems to have implemented a means to curb it.
Now if the system is actually being used to curb whistleblowing as well then we have a problem. But nothing the article states even remotely indicates that this is indeed how the system is being misused.
Misleading headline aside, I doubt he will have much impact in terms of revamping Google's social platform. 4chan became a thing because of the community it attracted (and then evolved into), combined with the preservation of anonymity in a world becoming less anonymous. The site's success is not due to some crazy genius foresight, just a matter of supplying a need for an insanely niche community and then becoming a space for all sorts of inside jokes and (not so decent?) content to reside, again all catering to a niche community.
As much as I enjoyed lurking 4chan back in the day, it's very difficult for me to see most of its innovations or ideas actually transfer to the mainstream. Google may have been better off buying Digg and turning it into a more accessible version of Reddit, and even that's a terrible idea.
I don't believe we really use cordless phones in the 900MHz anymore and I believe the consortiums determine which spectrums are sufficiently unused before targeting them.
Verizon and T-Mobile have some LTE spectrum in the 700MHz range for building penetration and range so I expect to see great things at the 900MHz range for lower power devices.
I don't see an issue with having more available options, especially in the fast moving JS world.
I think it's more important to consider the support behind a technology vital to your stack so you can expect to regularly integrate improvements, security fixes, etc.
Spotify has used Greco-Roman Pantheon names in its technology stack. I don't know all of the exact details for Apollo in this context but I assume similarities to existing tech is coincidental.
We already have the "specialized device used in software development": the laptop (read: MacBook). No longer do we need to be tethered to wires and the grid in order to get meaningful work done as laptop battery efficiency, processing power, and mobile internet connectivity is substantially better than it was ten years, even five years ago. With dedicated cloud servers we do a lot of the compiling and automated test running and deployment on machines other than our personal ones while simultaneously writing new fixes and features ready for the next cycle of server-side code building.
Ten years ago we were in the middle of switching from wired desktops to laptops, but laptops just weren't portable enough due to weight and longevity when disconnected from the wall. Today this is still there case as our processing needs have increased as our laptops have become more formidable. I expect in ten years we'll still be in the same position.
What has been happening on the phone/tablet/watch/etc side of things however is that we're able to do all of our non coding tasks on the go in a less distracting way, such as responding to emails, retriggering failed code builds, or even reviewing code and merging pull requests. But actual programming will be crazy slow without a tactile full sized keyboard, things we've relied on to code with since the dawn of calculators/computers, and that won't change until we're programming software graphically, i.e. as if we were using Origami with Quartz Composer or RelativeWave Form, as opposed to textually.
In my eyes the two biggest CSS frameworks would be Bootstrap (obviously) and to a much lesser degree Foundation. Fortunately these two are almost exactly the same in terms of what they achieve and how you integrate them into your app. The decision you have to make is whether you prefer LESS or SASS for a CSS pre-processing language, whether you like the saturated gradients and rounded shapes of Bootstrap or the boxy but shinier theme of Foundation, and other quality of life (for the developer) and aesthetic preferences.
I prefer Foundation due to my preference of SASS over LESS (I was also personally convinced of the benefits of SASS and Compass over LESS by Brandon Mathis and Chris Eppstein) and because it also looks unique in an online world plastered in Bootstrap and other similar-looking frameworks.
Neither side is flush on the 4/4S. By making only one side flush on the 5 it's easier to tell which side you grabbed as you pull it out of your pocket/purse/bag so you know to flip it the correct orientation before you ready the device in front of your chest/face.
Every Android phone I've owned is similar in this respect (as are the 3GS and below) but my 4S not so much. This move is for the best.
I do sort of agree with the try/catch criticism. I know what it achieves and why we need it but I don't agree that it's the best or even most intuitive error handling mechanism. I personally prefer returning error messages in place of or alongside expected data structure outputs, such as the common paradigm in JavaScript where async functions return error info (or null) as the first parameter in the supplied callback before returning the actual data (if no error) in the subsequent parameters.
I do somewhat agree with the OOP criticism as well. I find the best programming achievable is by mixing strategies and not adhering strictly to any one philosophy. Java's OOP is so inflexible and limiting that it takes a significant amount more effort to get basic work done. It may lead to a somewhat more manageable codebase at first, but I feel experience in your language of choice can bridge the gap between such a strict static-typed language vs a more elegant but potentially messier dynamic-typed language in this respect.
Finally I do agree that C should be taught before you learn any other programming language...but not to such a degree that you need to be able to build the best Javascript engine in the world from scratch before you move onto another programming language. The goal of programming is to build software that saves you time, after all - you aren't saving much time with as high a barrier to entry as mastering the fundamentals of C. It is important for theory discussion as well as learning the best way to code a lot of logic in many other languages, but I feel an abstracted language has failed if it hasn't done enough of the work for you to refactor your code properly in the first place. Loop unrolling, seriously? I like that I learned why it's important...but I shouldn't ever have to do that in any decently programmed higher level language.
One of the most important things for any technologist should be to try anything and everything. You never know what great things you are missing out on by buying into any one ecosystem.
PHP has its merits for sure, but so does Python, Ruby, node.js and even vert.x. You don't need to be a master to implement a solution using a new toolset; you just need ambition, passion, and perseverance.
As someone who hates being pigeonholed or locked into any set of ideas or methodologies, I could never settle with any one technology and blindly dismiss competitive products and services. I've coded in Ruby, Python, and node.js all in the last 12 months and I own both a Galaxy Nexus and an iPhone. I believe my view on technology as a whole has greatly broadened as a result so I can make more intelligent and informed decisions as to where my time and money belongs in the future.
While third-party browsers won't be able to compete with Safari on iOS due to the technical limitations, I still prefer Chrome on my iPhone because it ties in with my Google account, syncing everything for me. The loss in per-page performance is somewhat mitigated by the fact that I have to load fewer pages than before thanks to features such as Chrome to Mobile and syncing of tabs, bookmarks, and passwords.
Also, Chrome is so well designed for mobile as on my Galaxy Nexus that it is difficult to switch to any other browser. The way they handle tabs is the best I've seen. Incognito mode also offers an easy way to simulate a second browser session without switching to another browser app, something I as a web developer cannot live without.
Now if the system is actually being used to curb whistleblowing as well then we have a problem. But nothing the article states even remotely indicates that this is indeed how the system is being misused.