[ILUG] Android gone Free

[Michael Watterson]

FRLinux wrote:
> On Wed, Oct 29, 2008 at 8:23 AM, Michael Watterson <watty at eircom.net> wrote:
>   
>> If you want an Open phone build your own or buy OpenMoko. A Symbian phone is
>> more open than Android.
>>     
>
> That's funny, last time I checked Nokia was not part of the open
> handsets alliance, I have great difficulty to understand how Symbian
> could be more open... There's talks for Symbian opening but right now,
> Android is the one you can download. Not feeding the troll, just
> stating facts.
>
> Steph
>
>
>
>
>   
You're confusing the  open-ness of the  Software Source and the 
Open-ness of the Platform.

Yes you can get the Android source. But it's not very useful.  An 
Andriod *phone* you will find is more closed than a Nokia one.

You can get the Open Source Linux for a Dlink 3G  Router or  Archos 
605WiFi too (free Download). You can't load your own build of Linux our 
your own Apps on either of those. I had expected Android to be the same. 
The T-Mobile G1 certainly is no more an Open Platform than iPhone.

Open Source without an inexpensive Open HW platform is an academic 
curiosity. It's of little practical  value. Unless you want to try an 
put Android on an OpenMoko or Pandora. Though I can't think why.

Android thus is about Google. It's only incidental that it uses Linux 
and is Open Source.

-- 
Mike