Google phone OS to transform Linux netbooks, says researcher Google's Android will be the saviour of the Linux netbook, and we'll start to see small, cheap computers based on the phone-oriented operating system later this year. So suggested market watcher Ovum today after claiming that, despite the early sales successes of Linux-based netbooks, they're now being outsold by Windows- …
I have a G1 with Android on it. It runs on Linux, yet I had to root it to get normal Linux functionality. I have Eeebuntu on my EeePC, and I'm quite happy with it. My only complaint is with the way Gnome handles maximized windows. If the window's too big, clicking anywhere will scroll the window up/down, but that makes it difficult to actually click on buttons and checkboxes in the app. Thinking about trying KDE or Fluxbox on it, but I have limited hd space to work with. Anyhoo, why lock it down and limit functionality? What's next, adding a 3 app rule?
"Ovum said it expects "back-to-basics" netbooks to appear later this year at the $200 (£142/€154) mark"
How so? The linux-based netbooks are not $200, so what makes Ovum think Android versions will be any different? It's the hardware that's the limiting factor for the cost of a netbook and since they will almost certainly use Atom processors or the AMD equivalent, I doubt they'll sell for less.
I understand that the only development language available on Android based mobile phones is Android Java.
If it was possible to write C++ applications for a mobile phone then hackers could use them to hijack the phone. By limiting the phone user to Java applications it is possible to ensure that applications are suitably constrained by the Java vistual machine.
Unfortunately many users of Android based netbooks would want to write high performance C++ applications such as games. These users might be disapointed by the restrictions of running Android on their netbook.
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