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Is there hope for Linux on smartphones? [video]

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Re: Is there hope for Linux on smartphones? [video]

#111

Post by seba_dos1 »

aquaduck wrote: post #58
makz wrote: post #24

Before answering that question I'd ask: why would we want that? My answer is no, it didn't work on the desktop, it won't work on the smartphone, for more or less the same reasons. As much as I like Linux and FOSS, Linux is just a bad OS for the average consumer. For hackers, makers, DYI enthusiasts, etc. Linux is wonderful, however, what's the market size for a Linux smart phone for this people? I bet it's tiny.

Didn't work on the desktop? I've been running Linux exclusively on my desktops for 15 years. Desktop Linux is better today than it's ever been. Why does every OS need to be suitable for average consumers? Librem and Pine64 are doing great work in the mobile Linux space on the hardware side, and projects like PostmarketOS are doing great work on the software side. These are niche products for motivated enthusiasts, as…

Not only I've been successfully running it on my desktops for about that long, but I also have been running it on my phones for not much shorter. It works.

Re: Is there hope for Linux on smartphones? [video]

#112

Post by seba_dos1 »

dimensionc132 wrote: post #102

A typical Linux distro ISO is about 2Gb in size and this distro has all the necessary drivers and hardware devices to run on thousands of different computers with different configurations. Android "AOSP" however has to be customized for every single cell phone model because it doesn't have the device drivers added but it does use the Linux kernel. Why can't AOSP just include all the necessary device drivers for all t…

The talk explains that - you could make an universal AOSP image that works on mainlined devices, so you could support the whole handful of them at this moment.

Re: Is there hope for Linux on smartphones? [video]

#113

Post by NotYourLawyer »

NuSkooler wrote: post #18

It's mentioned already, but: Android. Discounting Android as "Not Linux" enough is a mind boggle to me. Perhaps not "GNU" enough, but certainly the spirit of Linux -- customized for the particular needs, stable, fast, works on a plethora of hardware, etc.

Android is not an acceptable Linux.

Re: Is there hope for Linux on smartphones? [video]

#114

Post by seba_dos1 »

colordrops wrote: post #82
blendergeek wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is the license for the Android Open Source Project. Unfortunately, Google has spent the last fifteen years moving many parts of the stack and almost (if not) all the core apps to Google Proprietary versions. Most apps in AOSP no longer receive updates at all. The dream is here is not just that we would be running "an open source stack" but that the active development would be on the open source stack. Sure, ther…

Who cares about the google user space apps? There are viable open source alternatives for all of them. It's like saying Linux is not open source because Redhat bundles proprietary software with their distro.

This could have been a reasonable analogy if a very significant chunk of applications "for Linux" only worked (or offered its full functionality) if you had Red Hat's proprietary addons installed.

Re: Is there hope for Linux on smartphones? [video]

#115

Post by fractallyte »

dimensionc132 wrote: post #104
fractallyte wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just a datapoint: UK banking apps work perfectly on my Sailfish phone. Jolla's Android emulation is unreasonably excellent, one of their technological gems. If other Linux devices ever lift off, this will be one of the killer features that Jolla can license out. (And why not? I'm absolutely in favor of vendors selling Linux software.) As for Sailfish - it still offers the best, most consistent, simplest UI/UX of any…

what phone do you use?

Sony Xperia XA2

Re: Is there hope for Linux on smartphones? [video]

#116

Post by gsich »

NuSkooler wrote: post #18

It's mentioned already, but: Android. Discounting Android as "Not Linux" enough is a mind boggle to me. Perhaps not "GNU" enough, but certainly the spirit of Linux -- customized for the particular needs, stable, fast, works on a plethora of hardware, etc.

You don't interact with Linux by using Android, it's Java. Android could also have been based on FreeBSD, wouldn't have made a difference for the user.

Re: Is there hope for Linux on smartphones? [video]

#118

Post by jacooper »

yosito wrote: post #89
zamadatix wrote: post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Even just unlocking an Android device causes most to stop working. I can't even log into PayPal app, which I assume is mostly just a WebView, because my phone is unlocked. At the same time it is apparently fineI do the same thing from the browser on my phone?

I used an Android phone with CalyxOS and microG for a year and never had this problem. There were a few apps I had a hard time getting APKs for without the Play Store, but even those I found I could side load from other devices that had the Play Store.

Or just use Aurora store!

You dont have this problem because CalyxOS has a workaround for SafetyNet, i hear its pretty hacky, but it works.

Re: Is there hope for Linux on smartphones? [video]

#119

Post by chiefalchemist »

hrbf wrote: post #92
jnwatson wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You underestimate the size of the opportunity. The mobile game market was $119 billion in 2021.

Given the complexities involved in such an endeavor, I'm still confident in my assessment, especially when confronted with a one-liner just throwing a large number against the wall. If Microsoft couldn't get a mobile OS off the ground, despite trying, I don't see what the opportunity size has anything to do with it. Focusing on (even casual) gamers with specialized hardware works for a gaming-focused company, whereas…

Yes. But the gamer niche is just that. A niche. A toe hold. A position every up and coming brand / product dreams about. They can extend out from there.

MS on the other hand, drank its own Kool Aid, threw it's weight around, went all in...and walked away empty handed. There was little value add. There was zero coolness. Etc.

There are some similarities but that was then, this is now. A device that's "proven" - and some privacy tossed in - can probably find a market just beyond the gaming niche.

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