Slashdot Mirror
Why Open Source Makes Sense For Handhelds
Guylhem writes "Are you still wondering why you should prefer an handheld running free software over one running Palm OS or Windows CE? Here's a short article to explain the main reasons you should consider.
The most important are sustainability and freedom: you don't want your applications to break when you update your handheld OS or hardware, and you certainly want to decide what *you* may do with your data. Palm and Pocket PC's DRM protected and obscure formats stand in your way. That's another good reason to prefer free software: you have the source code so you can develop plug ins to read such obscure formats. Even better - you can stick to standards formats such as divx which are poorly supported on handhelds running proprietary software." On the topic of handhelds, tanmay submits brighthand.com's small chart of some upcoming handhelds and smart phones that may be launched in the coming months.
Let's make a table: Handheld Platform: Porting Effort Linux/X11 (handhelds.org, Yopy): trivial (some layout changes) Linux-QPE (Zaurus): modest (reuse libraries, rewrite GUI) PocketPC: significant (lots of API limitations relative to XP) PalmOS: extreme (can't write all-native apps, memory limits, no file system, no resizeable windows, no layout manager, no multitasking, no standard APIs). Ironic, isn't it, that popularity is inversely proportional to difficulty of software development? Of course, that's a pretty general rule. Now, why is that? Well, look at this news item. When someone ports a Commodore 64 emulator to a Linux/X11 handheld, it's not news because it's so trivial. When someone ports it to PalmOS, it's big news. I once ported a web browser to a Linux/X11 handheld, and that wasn't news either. You still can't get anything of comparable quality for PalmOS, and so every junky PalmOS web browser is a news item. Bad OS platforms make for good press, lots of business opportunities, and lots of PR. Programmers feel proud when they have mastered a bad platform and managed to create the tiniest app for a bad platform. That's why PalmOS and Windows XP keep winning in the market. What to do about it, I don't know.
DivX is THE standard for pirated movies.
"Have you ever thought about just turning off the TV, sitting down with your kids, and hitting them?"
As the news story said obscure file formats are a big nuisance. Free and opensource on the handhelds will start great things into action. Easier to transport things from one to the other and eventually probably lead to handheld devices becoming more popular.
Not to mention DivX plays well on Palm and PPC. PocketMVP for Pocket PC and MMPlayer for PalmOS both play DivX just fine.
...arguments that apply equally to handhelds and to full-sized computers. Why should it be any more important that you have the extra control/privacy that OSS provides on your portable than on any other computer?
Nice plagarism of Guylhem Aznar's 1/29/04 article at linuxdevcenter!
This is slashdot...don't we all already think opensource is right for handhelds?
You're right - this is Slashdot, where we think open source is right for everything from servers through to electric can openers, from cellular phones to shoes.
Coming soon to Slashdot - the open source cravat.
I can hardly wait!
That's another good reason to prefer free software: you have the source code so you can develop plug ins to read such obscure formats.
Somehow I don't think that 99% of handheld users are developers (or at least develop software for handhelds). Whilst modification is a good reason to use open source for people like myself (who program for a living), it's probably the least compelling reason for most.
Go here for teh [sic] funny.
Just because a Linux-based PDA is not as "friendly" to newbies as PalmOS or Windows CE means nothing. "No software" is just a plain lie, btw. Look here for evidence.
You seem to forget the fact that PDA's are very open to development. There are Divx players for both Palm and PocketPCs. People have ported version's of GCC that run on the actual device. Open Source is one of the greatest achievements of PDAs, how do you think we got quake running on pocketpc's? You also seem to forget that if these closed source Operating Systems never existed, these PDA's would never exist either, You cant depend on Open Source nuts to develop an intuitive User Interface. Look at Mac OS X vs Linux. Yeah, both are just as powerful as each other, but Mac OS X's UI is light years ahead of any GUI for linux, and you know what, Aqua is a closed source GUI developed by a commercial company. For PDA's, The UI is even more important then the power of the OS, people want a UI that allows them to get their work done as efficiently as possible, they dont give a rat's ass if its open source or not. People wouldnt buy PDA's if they had clunky UI's, thankfully because of Palm, they managed to develop a GUI that is semi-decent, yet its not amazing yet. The good thing is though that these companies have money they can burn on R&D to develop the OS and make it more intuitive. Open Source is not the greatest thing for PDAs. Not to mention, there is a Linux port for some PocketPCs, and you know what? It sucks compared to Windows Mobile 2003, in every regard. Open Source this, Open Source that, you people forget why people actually use computers.
Yeah Open Source is the ticket. Why would you want to be able to choose from some 17,000 PalmOS apps? Too many software choices, it's overwhelming! And PalmOS apps are designed for PalmOS. Why would you want purpose-designed handheld apps when you can get ports of apps designed for a 19" monitor? That's what scrollbars are for anyhow.
...breaks my other OSS all the time. Conflicting lib requirements/*.SOs, et al. I can't remember the last time some of my Windoze software broke because I installed something else or 'upgraded' or 'patched.'
Now, there's plenty of other reasons why you should use OSS over CSS, but 'breakage' usually isn't one of them unless you are running a machien that is dedicated to a particular task (i.e. web server)
Loading...
All the main advantages pointed out are irrelevent. I buy a new PDA every 2 years minimum and pass my old one to family or friends. They don't want to monkey around with open source. I don't need to be get their phone calls asking for help.
More to the point: How long do people actually plan on using a PDA? Who is still carrying around a five year old Palm?
This article is unabashed ideology over smart tech info. Just more incestous amplification for those socially clueless folk who occupy the open source echo chamber.
Though I can't say that I'm surprised, this story is 100% pure troll.
The article makes some legitimate arguments about the benefits of Linux on embedded devices (not Open Source in general), and though it's definitely written with a bias at least that's not disguised.
I don't think the poster even read the article however; the claim that you can't see the source code to WinCE is incorrect, thinking that your applications are any more likely to survive an upgrade intact is laughable (WinCE & PocketPC go through extensive AppCompat testing, who does that for embedded Linux?)
I know, I know, slow news day and a Pro-OSS post came up on the radar, but for cripes sake if you're going to be brutally biased at least try to hide it, you're making the cause look even worse!
Okay, I haven't yet RTFA but I do have a couple of comments. I went from Palm (a Palm III, then a Handspring Visor) over to a Zaurus and now back to Palm with my new Treo 600.
First off, I loved my Zaurus. Still do. I was a college student and it was like having a small laptop with me at all times. I could jump on WiFi networks, play games, listen to music, whatever. What I couldn't do very well was use the Zaurus as an organizer. Sync support varied and was often horrible for Linux. The standard PIM apps were poor and everyone knows it. It was great having tons of free software and even new operating systems to play around with (Opie and OpenZaurus were great), but the Zaurus ended up just being another hobby and toy, not a tool that I could consistently use and rely on.
I went back to a Palm and the Treo600 because I wanted something that would just work. I work on plenty of other open source software. I wanted something that did it's job well and the Treo is amazing. It doesn't have quite the power of the Zaurus or even the screen resolution, but I'm using it as an organizer more than I ever used the Zaurus.
So in the end, I personally think that open source PDA software is still only appropriate for a small niche of technically savvy users. There's nothing wrong with that, but I know when my sister asks me about a PDA for medical school, I'll be suggesting a Palm, not a Zaurus or other open source system.
Who said Freedom was Fair?
Even better - you can stick to standards formats such as divx which are poorly supported on handhelds running proprietary software.
Hardly. I have been playing DivX files flawlessly which were encoded with the latest codec off of divx.com on my Dell Axim handheld since PPC2002 and now I run it on 2003.
I watch full length movies on it all the time after encoding them for smaller resolution and transfering them to my SD memory card. Divx support? Its available for any pda running windows PPC2002 or 2003.
They are so damn cool.
My C750 Zaurus is one of the best looking PDAs out there (the rest all being Sharp ones too) - miles ahead of any Palm, Sony or HP offering.
As well as being so goddam sexy, it has a much easier to use (for mobile computing purposes) interface than the PocketPC as well as one that is more flexible than the Palm which I find to restrictive. (Since mine is more than a productiviy tool, I use it more like a mini laptop.)
Throw in Bluetooth and WiFi (which you can use at the same time _as well_ as a SD memory card - try that with another device) for less than $600, all in a box that fits in a pocket and is reasonably robust, with 5 hours battery life... it's hard to say no.
Beep beep.
PDAs are all about the UI. Once certain other standards are met (i.e. not losing data, synching ok) then everything else is secondary.
...not sure how the Opensource options are doing, I'm not sure I've ever even seen one in the wild, come to think of it.
Palm realized this, and built a very friendly UI from the ground up. Microsoft tried to capitalize on its desktop monopoly and scaledown its desktop interface, which was a disaster. I think Microsoft finally started doing a bit better by copying Palm...
SO YOU'RE GOING TO DIE: The Comic for Dealing with Death
No they won't put the girls off. My girlfriend stole my Zaurus SL5500 and refuses to give it back, so I had to go out and buy a C750 instead. Oh the pain.
Beep beep.
No, I can't. I do not "code apps", "develop plug-ins", or otherwise design or build software. Nor do I "compile from source". I, like most of the market, am strictly a consumer.
If you would like to see OSS thrive, you do the work. I guarantee that you will get satisfaction. Double, in fact, because not only will your OSS thrive in a competitive market and reduce the power of CSS, but you and people like you will be able to earn a comfortable living along with a well-earned sense of pride.
Go for it. Just don't expect the Great Unwashed like me to be able to code along with you.From the article:
It sells for less than Palms..
What Zaurus is he talking about? The cheapest one is an SL-5500 on Pricewatch for about $350. You can get a Palm Zire for $70 retail. More featured color Palms are $100 more. Granted, SL5500 vs entry level Zire is like a Lexus sedan compared to a 2 door Kia, but since there is no low end Zaurus unit, the statement should have been qualified. I bought a low end Zire because I won't kick myself if I bust it like I did when I stepped on my Palm V 4 years ago. I'd love a Zire but price does play a role in my purchase decisions too.
Freedom of choice is always better, Dude (or Dudette).
I just bought the Sharp Zaurus SL-5600 and it kicks the snot out of my Palm Pilot. It's a few years newer but is still a better machine than the most recent Palms. And when I get the addons sneaked in past the lovely but untrusting Morticia, then I will have far more than had I upgraded the Palm.
Mine came from Amazon.com @ $300.00 - new in the box. This is the best techno trinket I've had years.
Original poster has to be a troll - or his significant other won't let him get the better toy and it's just sour grapes talking.
Too lazy to create a sig...
How easy would it be to get a real standardisation body to draw up a standard for Open Source software?
.....
Obviously, ISO would be the biggie, but maybe it would be more realistic to begin with a national standards body {German DIN [?] for instance} first, even if only to give the others something to use as a template?
What I'm thinking of is a standard literally for openness of source; so claiming compliance with the standard would oblige vendors to certify that they were giving you permission to copy and modify. Standards bodies themselves do not necessarily do the testing {though many will rent you testing facilities}; but rather, publish the specifications -- and a list of approved test procedures -- and anyone can test and certify their own products, though in doing so they are accepting responsibility for the consequences. The standardisation body gets the right to sue you {for misappropriation of trademarks} if you apply its mark to products that do not meet the standard.
A "standards-compliant" sticker on Open Source software might carry some clout with purchasing authorities, too
Je fume. Tu fumes. Nous fûmes!
The Zaurus was an amazing critter; but most of its value was in pure Geek Factor. In Windows or in Linux, the Zaurus was interesting but plagued by ongoing random minor issues with synchronization, what version of QPE I was using, what the date was, and how I held my mouth. In Windows or in Linux, the Palm is nearly effortless.
The Zaurus had many neat things. I could log in to it over the network (wireless); I could run a webserver on it; I could do all kinds of system things. But in the end, the actual D of the PDA is much more usable in the Palm. I'd love to have the time and the money to develop replacements for the Palm software to run on the Zaurus, but I simply don't; I need something that works, and works well, right now.
Not to mention the fact that, comparitively, the Zaurus is enormous. It's easily half again as heavy, and an inch longer, and a little thicker, than the tungsten E.
If you go with the commercial QPE (that synchronizes well) functionality is low; if you go with the free embedded GUIs, functionality is high, but interoperability (in the form of synchronization with outlook and evolution) is low. Even with all the objections fielded in this discussion, the Palm is like a Sound Blaster - it just works.
And it's sad, too. I love Linux, I love free software, I love the entire Opensource movement, and I wanted to be much more pleased with the Zaurus. I would say, all in all, PDA linux is where desktop linux was at RedHat 5.2. It will get there, eventually.
Thinking outside my Head
Microsoft's approach to PocketPC is completely the opposite of how they established DOS and cornered the PC market. DOS was sold as an operating system that would run on anybody's PC, regardless of manufacture. It wasn't what you'd call "open source" but it did open up the hardware platform and provide a common reference point we could build on.
PocketPC, on the other hand, takes an entirely different approach. You're stuck with MS-imposed limitations like a chunky 320x240 screen size and you can't break out of the Windows shell to the underlying lower-level functions. Working with PocketPC has been very frustrating for me; it's got vendor lock-in coming at you from two angles (MS and whichever OEM branded the unit).
With PocketPC, Microsoft has torn a page from Apple's playbook when it comes to product positioning and the complete lack of "freedom to innovate." Unfortunately their design ideas aren't any better than Apple's were a decade ago with the Newton.
If Microsoft truly wanted to compete in the PDA realm, what they need to do is come up with a DOS-equivalent that will run on a Palm or Clie or even a PocketPC. Indeed it's clever how they're pushing the commodity hardware costs onto the OEMs, and all they have to do is come up with the software. (A bit reminiscent of Dell's JIT manufacturing.) But in the long run I think a product that has both a closed software architecture and a closed hardware spec isn't going to fly.
And there's also the bloatware problem. Why should a PocketPC need a 406MHz CPU? A Clie with twice the pixels gets by on a much leaner chip.
I can't remember the last time some of my Windoze software broke because I installed something else or 'upgraded' or 'patched.'
It used to happen all the time with Microsoft Windows systems. But Linux came along and challanged Microsoft in terms of reliability. Microsoft scrambled and came up with Windows 2000 as their response. It's far, far, more stable than older MS offerings.
Problem is, many of the most frentic Open Source advocates haven't used a Microsoft OS since before W2K so their experience of 'buggy easily-broken' Microsoft OSes is dated and no longer the case.
---
Not ironic at all. When designing for a system with constraints (limited MIPs and RAM for early mainframes and PC's, mAH of battery and viewable kilopixels in handhelds, etc.), a developer who is capable of hand crafting an application to fit in that environment will be able to produce something far more usable than a trivial port of some bloatware meant for a system many times larger.
Technology advances will help out some types of bloatware (e.g. Mr. Gates depends on Intel keeping up with Moore's law). But advances in battery energy density are very slow; so, in some ways, the constraints for optimal applications for handhelds will always be different than for PCs.
One of the main failings of PocketPC handhelds is that a large portion of the applications for it are ports of applications meant for hardware with bigger displays, larger caches, and unlimited power (AC wall plug plus noisy fans).
Palm's file formats are far from protected and closed. The basic PDB and PRC formats are well-documented, and there's lots of open-source software to create both executable programs and PDB's.
Now on the other hand, individual application file formats may be hidden by the vendors. Don't like it? Write your own PIM software, text-editor, etc. etc.
To me, open source is less critical than open-exchangability. Palm's conduits are a little obtuse to create and set up. I'd like to see the PIM data (contacts, e-mail and calendar) have higher-level API's to insert new conduits to work other apps.
Design for Use, not Construction!
You may even find some more arguments (not only from the end-users point of view) in my presentation slides about Linux on PDAs. For example a very important argument for manufacturers to use Open Source software on PDAs and mobile (cell) phones are the costs of operating system licenses.
I've already solved this problem with SuperWaba. It runs on PalmOS, WinCE, PocketPC, Win32 and Java with more to come. Open Source, supports native libraries, fast VM. Works a treat.
:v)
If someone designed a nice launcher for it you could have a consistent user interface across PDAs, even when you upgrade.
Vik
I have a Palm Pilot - specifically, a Tungsten E, their newest low end model, which I got for $170.
So far, I've gotten movies to play in divx format with mmplayer (which means they're about 1/10 the size they were with the included app); 15 books to be stored in 3MB with plucker; a better light dimming system (you could hardly affect the light before) with dimmer, a NES emulator from nesem, and a remote control system (using your palm as a remote) through Omniremote.
It also comes with Documents-to-Go, which can read and write word, excel and powerpoint documents (the same kind you find on the PC, not an import).
What exactly am I missing in freedom of choice? All the stuff I chose didn't come with my Palm device, with the exception of Documents-to-Go, and one app is even GPL (plucker).
I think I'm limited only by the speed of the processor, and for wireless stuff. I could have gotten the faster ones, or wireless, but I'd have paid more for those. I got a lot of bang for my buck, without paying the extra $130 that you did.
Mod me down and I will become more powerful than you can possibly imagine!
I guess this story is true. It explains why the Palm and the Pocket PC have had no luck with sales, and the Zaurus has done so well. /sarcasm
People want something that is easy to use, has lots of add of parts (camera, CF readers, network cards), and runs the software they want.
I don't see any reason anyone should buy an OSS handheld, unless they hate MS and Palm that much, or are going to port some of their apps to the device.
I look at what this article and the resulting discussion are talking about, and I can't help but think that I must be crazy. Everyone else seems to want a completely different device than I do.
Playing movies on a PDA? Browsing the Web from it? MP3s? Who cares!? I don't even want to read stuff on a PDA. If I want a book, I'll buy a book. If I want to do just about anything else computer-related, I'll use my computer.
What I want a PDA to do is to remember my contacts, appointments, and lists of stuff (movies I want to see, etc.). THAT IS ALL. I don't want color, sound, video, Bluetooth, or anything like that, and I probably don't even want a keyboard. I just want something with its own rechargable battery that lasts a good long while between charges and syncs to Linux reasonably well.
From what I've seen, I'm going to need to buy an old refurbished Visor Edge, because absolutely no one makes a PDA like this anymore.
WMBC freeform/independent online radio.
Honestly, I think the *real* question is more about the quality of the "user experience" with a given PDA. On a device that's under $500 or so, and used as a glorified calendar/contact list/address book + way to play with assorted games, calculators, and misc. applets - I'm looking for ease of use, above all else.
If it's open source and has a great user interface, then that's awesome! If it's some commercial, closed-source OS, but still offers the easy to use and friendly UI, plus all the little apps and applets I want, then that's awesome too!
Right now, I find the Windows CE based handhelds to be less desirable than the PalmOS counterparts, but that's really because I've grown so familiar with the PalmOS interface. It does what I want, keeps getting refreshed with new versions, but doesn't make me relearn everything to use the updated devices. If all I owned was WinCE stuff, I'd probably be just as biased towards it.
I'm not opposed to alternatives - but on a PDA, I'm not switching products simply because it offers more "potential" by being "open source". I have to see concrete improvements that are immediately there for me.