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I think this is bad for WebOS myself. Look at Linux - I love it to bits, but it has terrible traction because there's KDE, Gnome, XFCE, etc etc. It's so cust

I think this is bad for WebOS myself. Look at Linux - I love it to bits, but it has terrible traction because there's KDE, Gnome, XFCE, etc etc. It's so customisable and fragmented that it's totally confusing for novice users. That's not even to mention Debian, Ubuntu, CentOS etc. So much choice is great for the niche user, but has gone a long way (in my opinion, of course) to stopping widespread adoption of Linux as an OS. I worry this'll happen to WebOS, each tablet maker will release their take on it, app stores will be different etc and it'll be relegated to that Tablet OS only nerds use.

firefoxman1 15y ago
It already is the Tablet OS only nerds use, so there's nowhere to go but up. If you look at the hugely popular DROID franchise, perhaps each vendor putting their own spin on the OS isn't a bad thing?
- muppetman 15y ago
  You raise a good point (that it already is nerds only) - I hadn't thought of it that way. I do hope it does see some increase in deployment, having used a WebOS device it really is quite nice.
dman 15y ago
Such rich choice along with tinkerability will create the next generation of nerds :)
nknight 15y ago
Yes, look at Linux. Most servers run on it, most smartphones run on it, an ever-growing number of home electronics such as TVs run on it... Oh, by the way, "most smartphones" includes the ones running WebOS. That Linux isn't widely used in desktop PC operating systems is a point of ever-shrinking interest and of little economic relevance.
- muppetman 15y ago
  Right - and show me the app I can install on all those various places Linux is deployed. Show me the consistent UI experience across them all. It's not there. You can't. My point isn't about the the underlying OS (the kernel) itself, which has gained huge traction. It's about an experience to the end-user and the developers that's consistent. Not having to pick a .deb, .rpm, to know what libraries are/aren't available etc. That's my fear for WebOS - that many different versions will get built. Some will support WebGL, some HTML5 etc. (These are examples, please don't tell me the do/don't exist already - I wouldn't know). The whole fragmentation thing people talk about with Android, but to a much greater and detrimental degree.
  - deleted 15y ago
    [deleted]
tikhonj 15y ago
The rich configurability and diversity inherent to Linux have not done much against simply because they are optional--if you're confused and don't care, you can simply get Ubuntu and not worry about it. The real problem, for the "common user", is that you cannot waltz into your neighborhood Best Buy and get a Linux laptop. To run Linux, you have to realize that the operating system is not part of the computer, care enough to install another one and spend a bit of effort getting it to work with whatever computer you have. If half the $500 laptops at Staples, for example, came with Linux, it would be much more popular. There are, I think, two core reasons people cannot easily buy a laptop with Linux: Microsoft and Apple. Microsoft for its anti-competitive behavior and virtual monopoly; both companies for unrelenting marketing that presents only two options--the patently false Mac vs PC dichotomy being a perfect example. I know from experience that completely technologically inexperienced people are perfectly happy with Linux as long as they're not the ones installing it. The fact that they could possibly be running KDE instead of Unity does not worry them in the slightest; in fact, particularly with Ubuntu, very little does worry them. My roommate, for example, has had fewer problems with Ubuntu than with Windows, and they were easier to handle. In short, Linux adoption is not limited by any inherent qualities. In fact, if we just look at the sort of people who would install any OS at all, it controls a large part of the market; however, this is just an unfair a comparison as looking at the market in general.
- muppetman 15y ago
  I understand what you're saying and as I've just realised in another reply, I wasn't really that clear. Linux the kernel is widely adopted and a huge sucess. But the GUI aspect, the bit the user actually interacts with, isn't. There's so many choices. A vendor can't just built a single binary easily like they can for Windows/MacOS. It's this, the fragmentation of the user-space that's my concern. WebOS is built on Linux anyway, that'll never be a problem. You can "can simply get Ubuntu and not worry about it". I know that, you know that, most technical people know that. I guess it's not too hard for most non-technical people to figure that out, but look at Linux Mint. It's suddenly taking off in a big way. How do I know which one to pick? Which one is going to run the apps I need etc? It's that - the confusion - that I worry might also happen to WebOS if 10 different builds are released.
kermitthehermit 15y ago
You've failed to understand the fundamental differences between Android and WebOS. The proof is that you said that multiple app stores will cause troubles to WebOS. If WebOS will be 100% open, HP won't be giving unfair advantage to some vendors like Google does with Android, then all will be much better. Yes, there's fragmentation in the Linux world, but it's not like you can't get started as a novice. I've helped people who switched to Linux and said "fuck windows". They were persons who don't have any kind of formal IT training. This really looks like one huge rant along the same lines as the article itself.

firefoxman1 15y ago

It already is the Tablet OS only nerds use, so there's nowhere to go but up. If you look at the hugely popular DROID franchise, perhaps each vendor putting their own spin on the OS isn't a bad thing?

muppetman 15y ago
You raise a good point (that it already is nerds only) - I hadn't thought of it that way. I do hope it does see some increase in deployment, having used a WebOS device it really is quite nice.

dman 15y ago

Such rich choice along with tinkerability will create the next generation of nerds :)

nknight 15y ago

Yes, look at Linux. Most servers run on it, most smartphones run on it, an ever-growing number of home electronics such as TVs run on it... Oh, by the way, "most smartphones" includes the ones running WebOS. That Linux isn't widely used in desktop PC operating systems is a point of ever-shrinking interest and of little economic relevance.

muppetman 15y ago
Right - and show me the app I can install on all those various places Linux is deployed. Show me the consistent UI experience across them all. It's not there. You can't. My point isn't about the the underlying OS (the kernel) itself, which has gained huge traction. It's about an experience to the end-user and the developers that's consistent. Not having to pick a .deb, .rpm, to know what libraries are/aren't available etc. That's my fear for WebOS - that many different versions will get built. Some will support WebGL, some HTML5 etc. (These are examples, please don't tell me the do/don't exist already - I wouldn't know). The whole fragmentation thing people talk about with Android, but to a much greater and detrimental degree.
- deleted 15y ago
  [deleted]

tikhonj 15y ago

The rich configurability and diversity inherent to Linux have not done much against simply because they are optional--if you're confused and don't care, you can simply get Ubuntu and not worry about it. The real problem, for the "common user", is that you cannot waltz into your neighborhood Best Buy and get a Linux laptop. To run Linux, you have to realize that the operating system is not part of the computer, care enough to install another one and spend a bit of effort getting it to work with whatever computer you have. If half the $500 laptops at Staples, for example, came with Linux, it would be much more popular. There are, I think, two core reasons people cannot easily buy a laptop with Linux: Microsoft and Apple. Microsoft for its anti-competitive behavior and virtual monopoly; both companies for unrelenting marketing that presents only two options--the patently false Mac vs PC dichotomy being a perfect example. I know from experience that completely technologically inexperienced people are perfectly happy with Linux as long as they're not the ones installing it. The fact that they could possibly be running KDE instead of Unity does not worry them in the slightest; in fact, particularly with Ubuntu, very little does worry them. My roommate, for example, has had fewer problems with Ubuntu than with Windows, and they were easier to handle. In short, Linux adoption is not limited by any inherent qualities. In fact, if we just look at the sort of people who would install any OS at all, it controls a large part of the market; however, this is just an unfair a comparison as looking at the market in general.

muppetman 15y ago
I understand what you're saying and as I've just realised in another reply, I wasn't really that clear. Linux the kernel is widely adopted and a huge sucess. But the GUI aspect, the bit the user actually interacts with, isn't. There's so many choices. A vendor can't just built a single binary easily like they can for Windows/MacOS. It's this, the fragmentation of the user-space that's my concern. WebOS is built on Linux anyway, that'll never be a problem. You can "can simply get Ubuntu and not worry about it". I know that, you know that, most technical people know that. I guess it's not too hard for most non-technical people to figure that out, but look at Linux Mint. It's suddenly taking off in a big way. How do I know which one to pick? Which one is going to run the apps I need etc? It's that - the confusion - that I worry might also happen to WebOS if 10 different builds are released.

kermitthehermit 15y ago

You've failed to understand the fundamental differences between Android and WebOS. The proof is that you said that multiple app stores will cause troubles to WebOS. If WebOS will be 100% open, HP won't be giving unfair advantage to some vendors like Google does with Android, then all will be much better. Yes, there's fragmentation in the Linux world, but it's not like you can't get started as a novice. I've helped people who switched to Linux and said "fuck windows". They were persons who don't have any kind of formal IT training. This really looks like one huge rant along the same lines as the article itself.