Folks looking for an alternative Linux platform after the WP7 announcement
 

might find something interesting in this blog post by Rasterman (head developer of the Enlightenment WM, worked for OpenMoko for a little bit, recently went to work for Samsung):

http://www.rasterman.com/index.php?page=News

Re: Folks looking for an alternative Linux platform after the WP7 announcement
 

Rasterman (if it was him) dropped into the freenode meego channel. If Samsung plays nice and does what he says, then they'll be winners, IMO.

But they need to do. So far they haven't. But hell, I'd put my money where my mouth is and buy a device that meets my specs if it's actually as open as he says, and works FULLY.

Re: Folks looking for an alternative Linux platform after the WP7 announcement
 

standard Glibc, I like it.

Re: Folks looking for an alternative Linux platform after the WP7 announcement
 

now we can reevaluate the true gnu/unix platform openmoko ?

Re: Folks looking for an alternative Linux platform after the WP7 announcement
 

Sounds promising , we'll see.

Re: Folks looking for an alternative Linux platform after the WP7 announcement
 

Wow. I have disliked Samsung for some time (bad experience with reliability of hardware), but this could turn me around.

Re: Folks looking for an alternative Linux platform after the WP7 announcement
 

He says all the right words, but we've seen this from Nokia before too. Let's see how well they put these words to execution. Despite my glowingly positive experiences with my Samsung Galaxy Tab, there is still much there to criticize that makes me somewhat skeptical.

Re: Folks looking for an alternative Linux platform after the WP7 announcement
 

I'll keep an eye on this as well.

Yet another ranty post. I bought a n900 after Motorola locked down my Milestone's firmware. Now, Nokia will (effectively) abandon Linux for Windows.

Back to Android it is. It's too bad. I really like the n900 and I'll certainly keep it around. There's been quite a bit of progress getting Android 2.2 and 2.3 kernels shoehorned into ROMs for the Milestone while I've been playing in Nokia-land.

It looks like a good time to go back. I'm intrigued by Samsung. The Samsung Galaxy line was looking sharp (if problematic with GPS driver bugginess), and it becomes more appealing now that there's a chroot Ubuntu for it. Then again, there's also chroot Ubuntu for the Milestone.

After two burns in close succession, I think it's time to take a "wait and see" attitude. I'm two for two with companies deciding to sh*t all over the loyal customers doing the legwork for their products. After spending $1000 on two phones in the past two years, it's time to back off and let someone else buy the turkeys.

Sorry to rant in this thread, back to your regularly scheduled discussion about Samsung as an alternative....

Re: Folks looking for an alternative Linux platform after the WP7 announcement
 

@eachna,

I'm with you on Samsung, by the way.

I bought a Galaxy S and had to return it after a week because of all the bugs (the GPS issue being one of them). The story at the time was that they were going to push an update "any day now"; but 7 months later, they haven't fixed anything.

I returned it because I just felt deep down that they weren't going to fix things in a decent time frame (I'm glad to see I was vindicated).

I feel like Samsung is definitely on the way up, so I'm hoping they make better inroads to not dicking over their customers.

Re: Folks looking for an alternative Linux platform after the WP7 announcement
 

PalmHP webOS? Linux distro by and large.

May even have a future... "if HP pulls it off".

Given the fighting words HP has quetly been chanting I do not see them abandoning the mobile device market before they even got a chance to play...unlike someone we know...

Re: Folks looking for an alternative Linux platform after the WP7 announcement
 

I'm with you guys. I got my Galaxy Tab and I'm pleased as punch so far--and despite some minor missteps so far, they've at least acknowledged and are working TOWARD a good open platform, even if they're not quite there yet. I get the sense that they're dancing between vendor demands and customer demands... so, although I'm skeptical, I'm intrigued. Here's hoping we don't get fooled again. Cheers!

Re: Folks looking for an alternative Linux platform after the WP7 announcement
 

I've suddenly gotten interested in the Veer, which seems to be supported by Sprint and TMobile among others. But my N900 still has a long ways to go, and my current monthly payout of $15 is hard to beat, while it lasts.

Re: Folks looking for an alternative Linux platform after the WP7 announcement
 

IIRC, the think the Galaxy had two things in its favor (other than shiny hardware specs):

1) Easily root-able.

2) An "official" stock android ROM for all the smart modders to turn into something really beautiful.

It also had a big strike against it:

1) Samsung had their head up their nether ends and couldn't be bothered to release properly working drivers.

If Samsung could have just released good, solid drivers, Google could have done the "hard work" with the stock Android release and geeks could have felt secure flocking to it.

I'm not sure what to do, now (other than go back to my old Milestone and wait for at least a year). I won't buy another phone with iffy closed-source components "no one" is supporting.

That leaves out anything Nokia may possibly release with Meego, and the Galaxy line (at least until Samsung stops focusing only on the Tab).

I wonder what HTC is up to. They've been open to having their devices fiddled with from the beginning. My G1 had rock-solid drivers. My husband still uses it. Back then the problems were with Android, not the drivers.

Now Android is robust and so any high-end hardware with solid drivers and a stock ROM should be good-to-go.

Re: Folks looking for an alternative Linux platform after the WP7 announcement
 

Wow, so Samsung are actually doing what Nokia has been fruitlessly promising since N770 and never came through on.

Not to mention Intel, another much mouth and no trousers outfit. Watch this from the IDF April 2008 and all the waffle on Moblin, MID's, Linsoft and the rest. What happened to that all of that?
http://software.intel.com/en-us/vide...moblin-at-idf/

Keep in mind that this is the same Intel that has just announced “this is by no means the end of MeeGo or the end to Intel’s commitment”
http://appdeveloper.intel.com/en-us/...ntel-and-meego