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Linux now on 42% of consumer computing devices

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Re: Linux now on 42% of consumer computing devices

#31

Post by guard-of-terra »

recoiledsnake wrote: post #17

>For Microsoft the situation is not as good. The combined share of Redmond’s different operating systems fell from 97% in 2000 to an estimated 20% in 2012. Apple, with OS X and iOS, grabs a 24% share. So does this mean anti-monopoly restrictions must be lifted on Microsoft in the US and the EU? Why is Microsoft being unfairly targeted by, for example, being forced to include a browser choosing dialog in the EU while…

They might be. I don't see the point of forced browser choosing given that the browser market is very competitive right now.

Re: Linux now on 42% of consumer computing devices

#32

Post by pepr »

betterunix wrote: post #11
ivix wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not "technically" running the Linux kernel, it IS running the linux kernel. It's also using most of the standard GNU tools - bash, etc. You can open a shell on a rooted android device and use it much like any other distribution. This is a huge win for Linux.

"You can open a shell on a rooted android device and use it much like any other distribution" Assuming, of course, that you can actually root it. "This is a huge win for Linux." Is it? What was won, exactly? If we are not seeing a more vibrant free software ecosystem as a result, then we did not really win anything. The prevalence of app stores, the number of Android devices that are difficult to jailbreak or for whi…

Well, I think we all agree that this isn't what RMS imagined (by a LONG shot). This is a kind of compromise, a merging of Free Software ideals with practical implementation how to translate Linux into a "consumer OS".

The sad fact is that you simply cannot handle root shell to an average consumer. The only result of that is a security hole because the user is grossly uneducated (the question whether he should be educated is for another time).

Regarding the bootloader lock/root, you have to commend Google for offering great, and easy to unlock & root phones off the shelf. The fact that US cellular market is screwed with subsidies and carriers making it hard to root phones is a whole different issue - that's really not Google's fault. It's also definitely not the case elsewhere (e.g. in Europe, where my experience comes from).

And I also think this is a much better state than if all those phones run Windows ;)

Re: Linux now on 42% of consumer computing devices

#33

Post by ako »

ivix wrote: post #9
TallGuyShort wrote: post #5

Although it's technically running the Linux kernel, I personally would not consider it a free (libre) operating system as sold on most of those devices. I'm sure Linus is proud, but this seems like more of a win for Google than for the Linux community or free software in general.

It's not "technically" running the Linux kernel, it IS running the linux kernel. It's also using most of the standard GNU tools - bash, etc. You can open a shell on a rooted android device and use it much like any other distribution. This is a huge win for Linux.

I though android was completely free of anything GNU, but according to the GNU website, there is very little GNU in android: http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/android-and-users-freedom.html

Re: Linux now on 42% of consumer computing devices

#34

Post by ttuominen »

ivix wrote: post #9
TallGuyShort wrote: post #5

Although it's technically running the Linux kernel, I personally would not consider it a free (libre) operating system as sold on most of those devices. I'm sure Linus is proud, but this seems like more of a win for Google than for the Linux community or free software in general.

It's not "technically" running the Linux kernel, it IS running the linux kernel. It's also using most of the standard GNU tools - bash, etc. You can open a shell on a rooted android device and use it much like any other distribution. This is a huge win for Linux.

Android is far from a typical Linux distribution. In addition to custom kernel features (see https://lwn.net/Articles/514901/ ), most of the rest of the system hasn't got anything to do with GNU or GPL and is structured very differently from a typical distribution. O'Reilly's "Embedded Android" is a great source on Android internals.

I'm not saying Android isn't good for Linux. I also do appreciate the ability to read and learn from the source code and modify it.

Re: Linux now on 42% of consumer computing devices

#35

Post by vidarh »

recoiledsnake wrote: post #17

>For Microsoft the situation is not as good. The combined share of Redmond’s different operating systems fell from 97% in 2000 to an estimated 20% in 2012. Apple, with OS X and iOS, grabs a 24% share. So does this mean anti-monopoly restrictions must be lifted on Microsoft in the US and the EU? Why is Microsoft being unfairly targeted by, for example, being forced to include a browser choosing dialog in the EU while…

The anti-trust restrictions on Microsoft have always specifically targeted their behaviour in the desktop PC market.

Re: Linux now on 42% of consumer computing devices

#36

Post by Codhisattva »

brudgers wrote: post #12

My cars have computers which are not running Linux. Same for my microwave oven. A smartphone more closely approximates their level of end user programmability than it approximates that of an iMac. The article splits the world in a way which justifies the desired conclusion. It reminds me of the way the Amiga press used to hype even the most indirect cultural references as evidence of its impending success (yes, I kno…

Good point. Consumer computing is a much large category and QNX shouldn't be left out.

But considering the source (Gartner) it's not surprise really.

Re: Linux now on 42% of consumer computing devices

#37

Post by jcfrei »

lucian303 wrote: post #15

Linux is NOT an OS and Linus did not create the OS. The OS is GNU the kernel is Linux. Thus you are comparing numbers for a kernel (Linux in Android OS versions) vs. numbers of OS's (Windows, OSX, iOS). This isn't a technicality either. Get it straight because as the article stands, it's unresearched garbage.

ugh, here they come again, the idealistic free software guys who couldn't get their own kernel together. nobody gives a shit whether it's called GNU/Linux or just Linux and whether a kernel gives the operating system its name or whether its name is derived from a combination of underlying tools + kernel. The rise of Linux is a fantastic testament for the power of open source operating systems and let's leave it at that.

Re: Linux now on 42% of consumer computing devices

#38

Post by cageface »

betterunix wrote: post #11
ivix wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not "technically" running the Linux kernel, it IS running the linux kernel. It's also using most of the standard GNU tools - bash, etc. You can open a shell on a rooted android device and use it much like any other distribution. This is a huge win for Linux.

"You can open a shell on a rooted android device and use it much like any other distribution" Assuming, of course, that you can actually root it. "This is a huge win for Linux." Is it? What was won, exactly? If we are not seeing a more vibrant free software ecosystem as a result, then we did not really win anything. The prevalence of app stores, the number of Android devices that are difficult to jailbreak or for whi…

What was won, exactly

Consider a world without Android, in which the new, dominant computing platform is an Apple monoculture far more locked down and exclusionary than Microsoft ever dreamed of being in their desktop heyday.

Maybe Android is not ideal, but life tends to involve a lot of messy choices. The fact that they are messy doesn't mean that there aren't still important distinctions to be made.

Re: Linux now on 42% of consumer computing devices

#39

Post by chimeracoder »

ivix wrote: post #9
TallGuyShort wrote: post #5

Although it's technically running the Linux kernel, I personally would not consider it a free (libre) operating system as sold on most of those devices. I'm sure Linus is proud, but this seems like more of a win for Google than for the Linux community or free software in general.

It's not "technically" running the Linux kernel, it IS running the linux kernel. It's also using most of the standard GNU tools - bash, etc. You can open a shell on a rooted android device and use it much like any other distribution. This is a huge win for Linux.

> It's also using most of the standard GNU tools - bash, etc.

Actually, I'm pretty sure it uses Busybox tools with ash, not GNU with bash.

http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/android-and-users-freedom.html

Re: Linux now on 42% of consumer computing devices

#40

Post by cameronh90 »

rayiner wrote: post #25
brudgers wrote: post #12

My cars have computers which are not running Linux. Same for my microwave oven. A smartphone more closely approximates their level of end user programmability than it approximates that of an iMac. The article splits the world in a way which justifies the desired conclusion. It reminds me of the way the Amiga press used to hype even the most indirect cultural references as evidence of its impending success (yes, I kno…

Comparing a smart phone to a microwave oven is disingenuous. I'm HN-ing on my smart phone right now, which is something I used to schlep out of bed and plop myself in front of my PC to do.

Maybe we should measure in terms of time spent using the device rather than just raw device count. I have a suspicion that if you did that, Windows would come off a lot stronger due to time spent at work, and even if you factored in microwaves, they wouldn't be a big slice of the pie.
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