A while ago somebody here posted a method or a URL about backing up user installed applications on the 770. Like many here, I have installed many applications, and would not want to have to download and re-install them when the new OS comes out.

If you know the method, or post a link, it would be greatly appreciated.

From what I understand, none of the present applications will work with the 2006 software. If you still want to backup, you can use rsync to backup your /var/lib/install directories.

Is it really so? I have 10 extra applications and there are more than 100 (?) in Maemo Application Catalogue. What a tremendous work to rewrite them! Very bad if so!

I understand that probably some extra programming - may be complicated - work is needed to preserve Extra Applications in memory during the re-flash. Safer too?
I think it's not too heavy to store those deb-files somewhere and re-install them when you see that the new firmware itself works as expected.

OK, since this keeps cropping up I'll try and give some clear, definitive answers (AIUI):

No 2005 OS application will work on the 2006 OS (due to a move to the EABI)

No 2005 OS package will work on the 2006 OS (due to a move to proper package management).

Putting stuff in /var/lib/install on the 2006 OS will have no effect (due to extra applications now being stored within the root filesystem "proper" - a side effect of proper package management).

Yes, all the applications in the ApplicationCatalog will have to be either rewritten, reported or recompiled. Command line programs should just need recompiling and repackaging; GUI programs have a slightly new (but much better) API to use.

HTH,

Andrew

So, all the "extra"applications we use now and indend to use later, need to be reworked. So, at the release time of OS-2006 we may have no "extras" if we are unlucky though happy about Nokia-release.
Who knows how long to wait for the reworks of "extras"? Should we - endusers - be worried?

Indeed.

Developers are hoping that Nokia will be able to release an SDK with which we can recompile and test our applications on desktop PCs - although even then we won't be able to test on devices until they release the OS.

It's a pain, but the change to EABI is worth it - in particular the speed boost from being able to use soft floats (alongside hard floats).

Cheers,

Andrew

Well, this EABI thing better be *really* worthwhile !

I can understand changing the packaging format and updater -- it was really broken anyway, and repackaging is tedious but not difficult.

I can understand evolving the API of a first-generation platform, that was evidently needed, and it only concerns Hidonized GUI apps, of which there are not many yet, so it's the right time to do it.

But *binary incompatibility* ? That sounds like a major sin. I'm willing to bet that a lot, if not most, of the (console) software used by tinkerers and hackers on the 770 was never packaged, much less *ported*, specifically for it. It was just snatched, as a binary arm package, from a debian or slackware or whatever distribution. Like I did for Privoxy.

Now, manually unpacking an incompatible .deb, copying things around and editing a config file, that is one thing, even I can do that. But compiling from sources on a PC for an arm target with a cross-platform toolchain ? I don't know how to do this and I'm not sure I want to spend the time learning.

So if and when I upgrade to 2006 I will be totally dependent on what the 770 user base chooses to recompile or not ? That sounds like a definite step backwards to me, speed boost or not...