4 ms·

"The fact is, Android's openness does not make it to the end user." Android's openness has made it to those who want the openness. The fact that my phone OS i

• andreyf 16y ago
  Even ignoring that 99.9% of users don't know the meaning of "open source", I'll believe Android is truly open in the FSF sense I care about when RMS uses one. Until then, I have trouble as seeing it as much more than rhetoric. Sure, you can compile and put your own OS on your phone, but I don't know of anyone who's actually done it (and nodata points out in an uncle to this post that you can't actually do it on some of the popular phones). I do know a lot more people that have extended both iOS and Android using the developer API's, so all the evidence I see is that even technical users don't care about RMS's "freedoms", except the one to extend the software running on their devices, and the market response indicates all many care about the "integrated system" Steve wants to focus on, even when AT&T service sucks ass (just today, I got two voicemails without the phone ringing (granted, this is in NYC)). (disclaimer: everything stated is my own opinion, not representative of employers past or present, etc.)
  • adbge 16y ago
    > I'll believe Android is truly open in the FSF sense I care about when RMS uses one. I don't think you appreciate how restrictive that is. The only example of open hardware is the Yeelong, since that's what Stallman uses. The only open source distro is gNewsense, etc.
  • guelo 16y ago
    Look up Cyanogenmod.
  • biafra 16y ago
    So Linux is not considered open anymore because you cannot install your own modified version on your Tivo?
• rufo 16y ago
  That's great for now, but phone manufacturers seem to be trying to close down holes as fast as they can - see the Droid X and G2. (Not that people won't figure out ways around them, but if Android were truly open to users you wouldn't need exploits to get around limitations...)
  • daten 16y ago
    I think it's inaccurate to say "Android" isn't "truly open". It's open when it leaves Google and the code is still out there. I can still benefit from that openness even on a phone that carriers added some restrictions to. The blame should rest entirely with the carriers. This isn't "Apple vs Android" this is "Apple vs Carriers".
    • danilocampos 16y ago
      > This isn't "Apple vs Android" this is "Apple vs Carriers". That's an academic distinction, though, wouldn't you agree? Android as software is perhaps "truly open" but what about Android as a user experience? Android, from the perspective of the vast majority of people who will interact with it, is what the carriers say it is.
  • AndrewDucker 16y ago
    So get a Nexus One. The fact that there are multiple suppliers give the user choice. They can include how locked down a phone is in their criteria for making that choice, and buy one direct if they wish to have a phone that's not locked down by a middleman.
    • masklinn 16y ago
      > So get a Nexus One. That phone is not publicly available unless you're a dev.
      • robin_reala 16y ago
        Looks publicly available where I’m sitting: http://shop.vodafone.co.uk/shop/mobile-phone/google-nexus-one http://shop.vodafone.co.uk/shop/mobile-phone/google-nexus-on... http://www.expansys.com/google-nexus-one-android-smartphone-uk-english-black-wi-fi-gps-197497/ http://www.expansys.com/google-nexus-one-android-smartphone-...
• steveklabnik 16y ago
  How is rooting your Android phone any different than jailbreaking your iPhone?
  • sjs382 16y ago
    You don't have the source to iOS.