Google has released Update Engine, an open source (released under the Apache license) software update framework for Mac OS X.
Of course, there’s already a very successful software update framework known as Sparkle, developed by Andy Matuschak. Judging by this comment in his Twitter stream (“Update Engine looks much better-designed and engineered than Sparkle, though a little clunkier in a few minor ways”), he’s already impressed with what he sees.
In an announcement on the Google Mac Blog, engineer Greg Miller says: “Update Engine can update all the usual suspects, like Cocoa apps, preference panes, and screen savers. But it can also update oddballs like arbitrary files, and even things that require root–like kernel extensions. On top of that, it can update multiple products as easily as it can update one.”
So what’s the difference between this and Sparkle? As I understand things (someone correct me if I’m wrong), Sparkle sits inside each app that uses it, and is used by that app to update itself. Update Engine runs separately and independently, and uses a system of tickets to remember which apps it should monitor and when they should be updated. And, as Miller explains, it can be used to update anything, not just apps but also prefpanes and the like.
4 responses to “Google’s answer to Sparkle”
I don’t trust admin access to Google. It is being open source makes no difference at all. Look at Google Chrome with default settings on.
It seems Google has been infected by MS disease. Re-inventing wheel it is.
As much as i like google and their attend to organise the worlds data i am always worried that they are doing too many things too well that we’re relying on them as the de facto. I will go with richard stallman when he talked about cloud computing being a very stupid idea and even though this is not necessarily cloud computing it just goes to show how one company is affecting all our lives and they will continue until they control everything and we are at their mercy. Call me a doomsday prophet but it will happen