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On Mon, 31 May 2010 12:41:55 +0100 Simon Williams <simon@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote: > On 27/04/10 18:03, Julian Hall wrote: > > 'The first handset to use the Symbian operating system since it became > > open source has been announced by Nokia.' > > > > http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8646715.stm > > Important question to ask before buying an open source phone. Can I just > read the code or can I actually get modifications onto my device? You're assuming that the on-phone distro is compatible with your desktop distro so that you can build modifications without requiring a whole new SDK. The two usage models are too far apart in most cases. It's not just an issue of cross-building (which is hard enough), it's switching the fundamental system from an overly complex desktop multi-user configuration to a minimal single-user configuration. In Debian, that often means removing coreutils and using busybox. > I started asking this on the symbian forums when it went open source. > The resounding answer was no. You need a developer version. Yes, because running a desktop system on a phone is insane. The developer version (or SDK) is just an environment which isolates the build from the unwanted complications of your desktop system. > So afaik, the N900 is the only consumer phone which is truly open (it's > possible that Nokia will use the N900 ideal on Symbian phones, but I > don't hold out a lot of hope). All other devices are closed for business > without serious hackery or a developer version. This is why I wish the > Linux kernel was GPLv3. That would make absolutely no difference what so ever. None. This isn't about licences, it is about configuration and dependencies. -- Neil Williams ============= http://www.data-freedom.org/ http://www.nosoftwarepatents.com/ http://www.linux.codehelp.co.uk/
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