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They've already replaced Dalvik with ART for bytecode and it was mostly transparent from what I understood. But popping up with a completely new platform API w
by rdtsc 10y ago
They've already replaced Dalvik with ART for bytecode and it was mostly transparent from what I understood.
But popping up with a completely new platform API without any backwards compatibility would be very bold and risky. There would have to be a good compatibility story there.
Also there is talk in the article about a POSIX layer. Now that's easier said than done. But it is Google we are talking about so they certainly have the manpower and resources to try.
- loeg 10y agoIt isn't too hard to do Linux ABI emulation. The interface there has mostly been stable for the last several years. That would enable just using the same userspace as Linux distributions like Android.
- relics443 10y agoA new runtime is very different then a new framework/API/OS. The former doesn't necessarily require code changes (dalvik -> ART did not), the latter requires new everything.
- techenthusiast 10y agoThe Android API wouldn't be going anywhere. That's what I say in the article - Fuchsia would continue to support the Android API seamlessly.
- Aissen 10y agoThey did not. ART is here on-device architecture-specific and version-specific; Dalvik bytecode is still the portable bytecode used in all APKs. If they had replaced it, we wouldn't still be dealing with the 65k methods limit for example.