[LINK] itNews: 'Ubuntu goes mobile'

[Tom Worthington]

On 07/01/13 07:32, Roger Clarke wrote:

> ... re-open all those closed phones and tablets ...

This is not the first attempt at an open Linux based smart phone 
operating system. There was Openmoko Linux: 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Openmoko_Linux

This ran on the Openmoko open access hardware design for a smart phone, 
as implemented in the Neo 1973: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Openmoko

I tried Openmoko on the Neo 1973 in 2007, when it was still under 
development: 
http://blog.tomw.net.au/2007/09/first-experiences-neo-1973-open-source.html

> ... practicable, non-proprietary, non-consumer-manipulation alternative
> in my lifetime?

Ubuntu is not entirely free of commercial considerations. I switched to 
Mint Linux recently, because Ubuntu had become too commercial looking. 
But that concentration on commercial success might give the mobile 
project more chance of success.

Also of interest and perhaps even less proprietary (with less chance of 
success), is Firefox OS, an open source operating system being developed 
by Mozilla: 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firefox_OS#Open_web_technologies_stack

The aim with Firefox OS is to use HTML, CSS, and JS for the user 
interface. That will make it smaller and more portable for phones and 
tablets, but limit its value as a full version of Linux. Perhaps Mozilla 
would be better off producing an environment within Firefox which would 
allow "Apps" to run unaltered on desktop, laptop, tablets and smart phones.


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Tom Worthington FACS CP, TomW Communications Pty Ltd. t: 0419496150
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Adjunct Lecturer, Research School of Computer Science,
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