Thread: Is the N900 yet another user acceptance test device?
View Single Post
DaveP1 is offline DaveP1
2009-10-07 , 17:42
Posts: 607 | Thanked: 450 times | Joined on Sep 2009 @ Washington, DC
#34
Originally Posted by Mandibela View Post
No. The N900's kernel is the full, 'desktop-grade' Linux. Everything else you see and have on the device, is 'addons' to make it more useable. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linux - Linux IS the kernel, the addons make it a distro/flavor. Even though the kernel can also have different 'addons' in it, it doesn't change the principle behind it.

Might I ask what you consider 'Linux'?
I'm a user. I consider Linux a distribution. I know there is a Linux kernel and below that there is a CPU instruction set. When I programmed, I could read the machine language in a core dump. Now I don't program and I don't care what is under the UI.

Maemo is normally described as a modified version of the Debian Linux distribution The modifications are a result of paring it down to mobile device size. To go back to the OP's terms, a real freaking computer doesn't need it pared down.

I also understand that there are those who have installed the full Debian on NITs which would allow you to install apps such as Firefox and OpenOffice. However I would question the usability of the device it you tried it.

There's nothing wrong with not being a full-fledged computer. The N900 is, by all accounts, a very impressive piece of hardware. But it is not anywhere near as powerful as my OQO 02 which fits in my shirt pocket and runs Windows Vista along with Firefox, OpenOffice, and anything else I want to throw at it. OTOH, my OQO weighs twice as much, has a fraction of the battery life, and didn't sell enough to keep the company in business.