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Thanks for the reply and the explanation. As far as I can see, that makes the Android about as open as Windows Mobile (with the exception of building it) and

by trezor 17y ago

Thanks for the reply and the explanation. As far as I can see, that makes the Android about as open as Windows Mobile (with the exception of building it) and really nothing to get overly excited about. But really, I'm the kind of guy who runs stock, distro-supplied, Linux kernels and don't mind hacking around in user-space only.

nuclear_eclipse 17y ago
Android is certainly more open than Windows Mobile. Do you have have access to source code for Windows? Is Windows source code licensed under a copyleft license, allowing anyone the freedom to modify and redistribute Windows as they please? In this case, really the only thing "preventing" Android from being truly open and free/libre is the mobile carriers and their handset manufacturers. It's just a matter of an open operating system being distributed on closed devices, a la TiVo. The fact that I can build and install Android on my Openmoko FreeRunner, but not on my T-Mobile G1, proves that fact.