3 ms·

Because you need app support. Not even Microsoft could pull that off.

by Gigachad 2mo ago

inigyou 2mo ago
Doesn't windows run android apps natively now?
- dzikimarian 2mo ago
  It doesn't. There was a plan, but Microsoft abandoned it.
  - AstralSerenity 2mo ago
    They did end up releasing Windows Subsystem for Android via the Windows Insider Program, which was enough for the OSS community to take it over after it was abandoned. It still exists and has worked quite well for my use case: https://github.com/MustardChef/WSABuilds https://github.com/MustardChef/WSABuilds
nextaccountic 2mo ago
What about running the whole Android infrastructure, but on top of a non-Android Linux distro? And this, on top of a Android kernel (otherwise you won't have the drivers yo uneed) The advantage being, we can manage packages using a regular Linux distro
- tfrancisl 2mo ago
  This is exactly where my head goes. There's nothing special about this hardware other than its small form factor. Sure, some desktop apps would likely want a different skin, but thats hardly limiting.
- saidinesh5 2mo ago
  A lot of "non Android Linux distributions" like sailfish os actually use a lot of Android infrastructure to keep working. Drivers doesn't just mean the kernel. It's the user space binary blobs and services that need to talk to the kernel to enable the hardware. Other than that there's waydroid, alien dalvik etc.. that run another Android instance in a container. The thing is a lot of Android applications use safety net/other methods to make sure they only run on. "Approved"/stock hardware.
- realusername 2mo ago
  You can't because a lot of apps check that the phone is controlled by Google with Play Integrity. Google thought about this, don't worry. They learned their lesson after CyanogenMod tried to compete by offering an alternative. Non-Google Android are now dead except in China.
  - imthatsteve 2mo ago
    CyanogenMod became LineageOS and its still going strong, im typing this on an unofficial lineageOS build right now.
    - realusername 2mo ago
      It still exists yes but Google tightened the screws to make sure it just keeps to be an hobbist project and not a competitor
  - arxari 2mo ago
    Well for me I use Lineage without even MicroG and everything I need works - yes even banking
    - opan 2mo ago
      Same here. Banking works in a browser, don't need GAPPs for any apps I use either.
- bri3d 2mo ago
  Android has a proprietary HAL on both ends; the userspace interfaces to drivers are not the same as on "normal" Linux for almost any devices (baseband, video acceleration although this is at least EGL based, cameras, sensors, audio DSP, hardware media codecs, etc.), so by the time you replace every component of the OS, you've just made AOSP without the useful security parts. > The advantage being, we can manage packages using a regular Linux distro It's much easier, more plausible, and more logical to sandbox a regular Linux package-managed distro inside of Android, which numerous solutions exist for.
puzzlingcaptcha 2mo ago
App support, stable ABI, uniform UI/UX, hardware vendor cooperation...
tfrancisl 2mo ago
I dont think app support is all that important. Most apps are garbage as they are ime, so rebuilding from scratch, or using existing software that runs fine on linux, would keep me happy.
jorvi 2mo ago
You mean Microsoft proactively kept shooting devs in the kneecaps? Leaving phones behind on old incompatible OS versions 2 times in 3 years and switching app frameworks 3 times in 4 years does not a good app developer experience make. Piled on top of that, Google became actively hostile to 3rd party developers building support for YouTube (and Gmail and Gmaps, but those had workarounds / alternatives).
- Yokolos 2mo ago
  What a colossal disaster. I was a huge Windows Phone fan, so their yearly missteps were quite painful to watch. I was especially annoyed when my first gen WP wasn't going to get an upgrade to WP8. My HTC 7 Pro is still my favourite phone I've ever owned, but after that I finally gave up and switched to Android.
tcfhgj 2mo ago
Microsoft could, but abandoned just as they gained traction in Europe
- sunaookami 2mo ago
  I miss my Windows Phone...
deaton 2mo ago
Microsoft can barely pull off their flagship desktop operating system, so that doesn't say much.

Because you need app support. Not even Microsoft could pull that off.

inigyou 2mo ago

Doesn't windows run android apps natively now?

dzikimarian 2mo ago
It doesn't. There was a plan, but Microsoft abandoned it.
- AstralSerenity 2mo ago
  They did end up releasing Windows Subsystem for Android via the Windows Insider Program, which was enough for the OSS community to take it over after it was abandoned. It still exists and has worked quite well for my use case: https://github.com/MustardChef/WSABuilds https://github.com/MustardChef/WSABuilds

nextaccountic 2mo ago

What about running the whole Android infrastructure, but on top of a non-Android Linux distro? And this, on top of a Android kernel (otherwise you won't have the drivers yo uneed) The advantage being, we can manage packages using a regular Linux distro

tfrancisl 2mo ago
This is exactly where my head goes. There's nothing special about this hardware other than its small form factor. Sure, some desktop apps would likely want a different skin, but thats hardly limiting.
saidinesh5 2mo ago
A lot of "non Android Linux distributions" like sailfish os actually use a lot of Android infrastructure to keep working. Drivers doesn't just mean the kernel. It's the user space binary blobs and services that need to talk to the kernel to enable the hardware. Other than that there's waydroid, alien dalvik etc.. that run another Android instance in a container. The thing is a lot of Android applications use safety net/other methods to make sure they only run on. "Approved"/stock hardware.
realusername 2mo ago
You can't because a lot of apps check that the phone is controlled by Google with Play Integrity. Google thought about this, don't worry. They learned their lesson after CyanogenMod tried to compete by offering an alternative. Non-Google Android are now dead except in China.
- imthatsteve 2mo ago
  CyanogenMod became LineageOS and its still going strong, im typing this on an unofficial lineageOS build right now.
  - realusername 2mo ago
    It still exists yes but Google tightened the screws to make sure it just keeps to be an hobbist project and not a competitor
- arxari 2mo ago
  Well for me I use Lineage without even MicroG and everything I need works - yes even banking
  - opan 2mo ago
    Same here. Banking works in a browser, don't need GAPPs for any apps I use either.
bri3d 2mo ago
Android has a proprietary HAL on both ends; the userspace interfaces to drivers are not the same as on "normal" Linux for almost any devices (baseband, video acceleration although this is at least EGL based, cameras, sensors, audio DSP, hardware media codecs, etc.), so by the time you replace every component of the OS, you've just made AOSP without the useful security parts. > The advantage being, we can manage packages using a regular Linux distro It's much easier, more plausible, and more logical to sandbox a regular Linux package-managed distro inside of Android, which numerous solutions exist for.

puzzlingcaptcha 2mo ago

App support, stable ABI, uniform UI/UX, hardware vendor cooperation...

tfrancisl 2mo ago

I dont think app support is all that important. Most apps are garbage as they are ime, so rebuilding from scratch, or using existing software that runs fine on linux, would keep me happy.

jorvi 2mo ago

You mean Microsoft proactively kept shooting devs in the kneecaps? Leaving phones behind on old incompatible OS versions 2 times in 3 years and switching app frameworks 3 times in 4 years does not a good app developer experience make. Piled on top of that, Google became actively hostile to 3rd party developers building support for YouTube (and Gmail and Gmaps, but those had workarounds / alternatives).

Yokolos 2mo ago
What a colossal disaster. I was a huge Windows Phone fan, so their yearly missteps were quite painful to watch. I was especially annoyed when my first gen WP wasn't going to get an upgrade to WP8. My HTC 7 Pro is still my favourite phone I've ever owned, but after that I finally gave up and switched to Android.

tcfhgj 2mo ago

Microsoft could, but abandoned just as they gained traction in Europe

sunaookami 2mo ago
I miss my Windows Phone...

deaton 2mo ago

Microsoft can barely pull off their flagship desktop operating system, so that doesn't say much.