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This is why Google is devoting more and more resources to the Fuchsia project: to replace Android with an operating system that supports over-the-air (or WiFi)

by mikece 8y ago

This is why Google is devoting more and more resources to the Fuchsia project: to replace Android with an operating system that supports over-the-air (or WiFi) updates like iOS does and Windows Mobile did. It's the only way Google can effectively fight their fragmentation issue: get everyone to upgrade to the latest OS version.

boramalper 8y ago
Doesn’t Android already support OTA upgrades?
- oropolo 8y ago
  Google can't make it happen unilaterally other than the Pixel phones. Without both the carrier and the handset maker putting work into the upgrade it won't happen. And the handset makers like Samsung don't want to cannibalize sales or spend resources allowing us to upgrade our Galaxy S5 handsets to Android P and Q.
  - moviuro 8y ago
    Don't forget Android One which is a pretty decent initiative. My updates happen within ~30 days https://android.com/one https://android.com/one
  - Double_a_92 8y ago
    Why though? If I run Windows on a Lenovo laptop, Lenovo doesn't have to vet the updates first... What are the carriers actually doing that safety updates or other GUI-related updates can't be just "added".
    - oblio 8y ago
      Actively blocking updates because they can sell more phones or they can just save money by avoiding absolutely all the hassles from updates (they don't care about security issues, they'll just blame Google).
discreditable 8y ago
As long as OEMs can customize the OS, upgrades will suck. OEMs have proven time and time again they do not care about upgrades.
swiley 8y ago
Fuscha is a kernel and has absolutely nothing to do with this. There are plenty of Linux based Oses that don’t have this problem. (This is even more the case with android since the really hairy stuff like GPU drivers aren’t even part of the kernel.) The problem is that the entire android user space is built as a single monolithic project that gets forked and closed by the OEM and all of the components have to be updated at once. IMHO: fuscha will probably make things worse: at least with Linux the code needed to boot the device gets published due to the GPL combined with the monolithic kernel architecture making community projects like cyanogenmod (or whatever it’s called now) possible. I seriously doubt that will be the case with fuscha, it will just get forked and closed like the AOSP components do now (which have the same license.)
- tssva 8y ago
  Fuchsia is a full operating system and not just a kernel. The Fuchsia OS uses the Zircon kernel.
Double_a_92 8y ago
Or they should go the "Windows way" with Android 10. Make it the last Android version forever and add security updates and features with small digestable patches.

by mikece 8y ago

boramalper 8y ago

Doesn’t Android already support OTA upgrades?

oropolo 8y ago
Google can't make it happen unilaterally other than the Pixel phones. Without both the carrier and the handset maker putting work into the upgrade it won't happen. And the handset makers like Samsung don't want to cannibalize sales or spend resources allowing us to upgrade our Galaxy S5 handsets to Android P and Q.
- moviuro 8y ago
  Don't forget Android One which is a pretty decent initiative. My updates happen within ~30 days https://android.com/one https://android.com/one
- Double_a_92 8y ago
  Why though? If I run Windows on a Lenovo laptop, Lenovo doesn't have to vet the updates first... What are the carriers actually doing that safety updates or other GUI-related updates can't be just "added".
  - oblio 8y ago
    Actively blocking updates because they can sell more phones or they can just save money by avoiding absolutely all the hassles from updates (they don't care about security issues, they'll just blame Google).

discreditable 8y ago

As long as OEMs can customize the OS, upgrades will suck. OEMs have proven time and time again they do not care about upgrades.

swiley 8y ago

Fuscha is a kernel and has absolutely nothing to do with this. There are plenty of Linux based Oses that don’t have this problem. (This is even more the case with android since the really hairy stuff like GPU drivers aren’t even part of the kernel.) The problem is that the entire android user space is built as a single monolithic project that gets forked and closed by the OEM and all of the components have to be updated at once. IMHO: fuscha will probably make things worse: at least with Linux the code needed to boot the device gets published due to the GPL combined with the monolithic kernel architecture making community projects like cyanogenmod (or whatever it’s called now) possible. I seriously doubt that will be the case with fuscha, it will just get forked and closed like the AOSP components do now (which have the same license.)

tssva 8y ago
Fuchsia is a full operating system and not just a kernel. The Fuchsia OS uses the Zircon kernel.

Double_a_92 8y ago

Or they should go the "Windows way" with Android 10. Make it the last Android version forever and add security updates and features with small digestable patches.