PDT Drives Android Mobile Development for the Military

 

PRESS RELEASE: "As the Android platform expands its hardware and software presence by offering customizable options for every taste, specialized military initiatives are befitting," says Jim Curtin, PDT Defense Systems Program Manager. "This shift to a sustainable, open source mobile platform in the public sector has provided us with the capacity to assist critical battlefield operations and develop relationships to enhance our offerings going forward."

 

Why Android Will be a Military Force in 2011:

 

1. It's an open source platform: Android's flexible Linux underpinnings have allowed developers to program powerful applications that can support a variety of interfaces and anything from disaster relief optimization to supplier integration and wartime navigation. A forthcoming government-sponsored application marketplace emphasizes user interface controls and minimal bandwidth usage on network-dependent applications, areas in which the platform itself and PDT both excel.

 

2. It's designed for control: The smartphone revolution has taken hold, and with it has come a consumer desire for absolute control over every aspect of their digital lives. The absence of a closed-vendor application distribution system, along with the ability to apply modifications to program source code at will, has made Android the most transparent platform available. Additionally, potential government cost savings realized from the transition could see reinvestment in ground support where our troops need it most.

 

3. It's adaptive to military concerns: The increasing scope and complexity of military software over the last decade had previously made it almost impossible to port existing methods to mobile environments. With its comprehensive framework of potential modifications suiting nearly every need, Android has reinvented the concept of the digital military exercise and could foster a truly wireless battlefield support infrastructure in the near future.

 

4. Hardware is catching up to software: A major concern in recent years has been the exposure of such fragile components to extreme weather environments and terrain, staples of military life. With the recent introduction of the first Android handsets that match military specifications, however, such worry is a thing of the past.