[Superfly_FR]

We all have tons of questions in mind regarding the next 2.0 upgrade of the Playbook.
While all of them may be as many good evolutions (stand alone clients, USB connectivity ...), each time I read these requests, the same word pops in my mind : security. I know, I'm a parrot ... but this time I'll write about this on another angle.

Historically, what make PB come late, was its U.S FIPS certification; RIM's hobbyhorse .
What does it (roughly) means, in terms of constraints :

1/ Offer an initial bullet proof environment, including networking (incl. authentication), messaging (in general) and storage.
2/ Keep this global chain bullet proof, and obtain new cert each time it may be considered as un-tightened (read: each time it changes).

Tic-tac-ti-tac ... the wheel is turning and mass market is turning its eyes elsewhere.
But on another hand, robust privacy and security will be the real challenge of tomorrow.

So what T* are they doing ?
There's a main feature no one is writing about ... it's called BALANCE.
(hopefully, some does: there's an explanatory post about it on this highly recommended site )

Balance in brief :
Both personal and professional environments on the same machine.
One "mostly open" for common usages as FB or whatever, the other for enterprise, as secured and "closed" cost-killing one.
No gap or channel between the two; what you do in private is not scanned by your enterprise and what you do for business remains strictly confidential and traceable. Two environments, isolated, on the same tablet or phone : this is what I call a brilliant vision of what a multi-purpose tool should offer.

Once Balance will be operating (and probably the BES/BIS administration tools that goes accordingly, letting the enterprise decide what can or can't be done in the business side) ... I guess things will go much, I mean MUCH, faster. Isolated, constraints over the "personal environment" will lower at other's sea level: now you CAN have fun!

Sure this is a crystal ball vision, I've no particular or disclosed information about this, but it is mostly credible that Balance will join the dance of the 2.0, and I wondered why nobody was echoing this revolutionary global feature ...

RIM marketing is bad; while others communicate and demonstrate (6 months is not enough for a concurrent product road-map to change), RIM's policy of secret deserves the brilliant idea and completive products they have.
I live in France, and only the press unanimously demonstrate how PBook is promising, while others hassle-advertise with "you can do it" or "simply the best" args.
Please RIM: spread the beta around and let the buzz go. This a non-costing measure, and Santa Claus won't wait for you.

And you, do you have any spots in your crystal ball too ?

[lnichols]

They've been talking about Balance forever, both on phones and the Playbook, but have yet to deliver on either. You would think that since they have so much riding on QNX, and since the Playbook is a huge financial drag on RIM at the moment due to extremely week sales, that they would have put way more resources behind it to hit deadlines and deliver. Apparently the internals operations up there in Waterloo are very inefficient.

[pelletizer]

I believe you have hit the nail on the head.
Being retired the business portion of your comments do not reflect directly on my day to
day computing.My personal security is.When that balance is struck,and it will,look out stock price. QNX is new to this space but it is not new to security and delicate environments.

[CrackedBarry]

Balance? A nifty idea, that already partly exits in different implementations. The biggest problem for RIM is, that A: It's a solution to a problem few people/corporations care about, (concerns about mixing private/corporate acoounts certainly hasn't stopped the businessworlds exodus from Blackberries, so far has it?) and B: It's dependent on BES/BIS, something that the enterprise is increasingly moving away from.

If FIPS really caused delays for the Playbook, then RIM should be kicking themselves for letting it come to that. If they really believed that FIPS certification will give them a major competitive advantage, than its just another recent example of RIM misreading and misunderstanding where the market is going.

Placing too much emphasis on security is really a fundamental mistake they seem to be making. RIM doesn't understand that security is just one among many priorities for the enterprise. And they just need their mobile solutions to be secure ENOUGH, for the most part. That's why RIM is losing ground to Android and especially Apple in the enterprise. Does Blackberries have better security than iPhones? Sure. But iPhones are secure enough, and that's what matters.

[Superfly_FR]

They've been talking about Balance forever, both on phones and the Playbook, but have yet to deliver on either. You would think that since they have so much riding on QNX, and since the Playbook is a huge financial drag on RIM at the moment due to extremely week sales, that they would have put way more resources behind it to hit deadlines and deliver. Apparently the internals operations up there in Waterloo are very inefficient.

Yes they did ... and the most funny part of the story is that: this may be the secret weapon they have to sharpen, that much it will liberate tons of constraints both for developers (opening the apps to a bazaar market like Andro�d is as promising than scary to me) and the mass market, fond of blinking apps.

While bending nose to deeply reform a product logic by opening it to "whatever" (i.e an kind of layered OS "for that" (1)) is quite easy, it become a headache when you're tied to standards, moreover when they are security one's.

(1) Just as a side reflection (not an attack anyhow), I think printing is a good example of what I call "layered OS". Until the release of the second Ios, printing was just a chimera with Ipads. Then Apps (mainly offered by printer manufacturers) came around and finally, they upgraded their OS. Bingo.

[shootsscores]

In the digital age, security should be foremost among people's concerns.

[Superfly_FR]

@ CrackedBarry:

I do get you point of view. This is why, despite the numerous jailbreaks of Ios, people still think their tools are safe (missing the "enough for me" at the end of the sentence, unlike you perfectly did).

I'm a French European and this makes probably my point of view slightly different.
Just two examples :
As a mass-user, I don't want my boss to see where and who are my contacts, neither than if I browse politically, religiously or any oriented site.
As a director, I don't want my employees to send their whole business contact book to a social network (nor FB than LI) neither than to anyone, at least without me being capable to find it out.

If balance tight to FIPS ? I can't see the problem ... RES/RIS BBBridge does the (certified) stuff already via BB Phones.

As a result : mass-user for the show ... companies for the doe (hope this golfer's proverb fits here).

Thank for your input

[Superfly_FR]

Looks like balance is going to be released with 2.0. "Robust enterprise features like BlackBerry Balance" is printed in the source article ...
Wondering what are the others Robust enterprise features ...

Source : BlackBerry PlayBook Tablet OS 2.0 Details Confirmed During RIM Earnings Conference Call | BlackBerryRocks.com