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The Opportunity of Mobile Linux in Danger
Eugenia writes "I just posted an editorial on the state of Linux for cellphones. Currently, there are 6 different initiatives and alliances, all completely incompatible between them, and in my opinion this kills a great opportunity for a unified 'Linux platform' that can compete with Windows Mobile and Symbian S60. As for the existing released Linux phones, only MiZi Research has an SDK freely available to create a GUI application for it. Motorola sells thousands more handsets than MiZi does through Samsung, and yet they don't release their EZX SDK. C|Net also wrote today: 'while Linux had a lot to offer in comparison with proprietary systems, such as improved scalability and flexibility, it is lacking in other areas, industry watchers said. Ovum telecommunications analyst Tony Cripps said that Linux-based smart phones are currently inhibited by the lack of a standardized application environment for third parties to write to, unlike Symbian's offerings.'"
The reason linux distros are so different, on PCs or on cell phones, is that open source apps don't need a standardized environment and linux is made to work with open source apps. If your application uses autoconf, it's pretty darn easy to port to any distro. But have you ever tried installing matlab, lexmark printer drivers, or games? Closed source software like that has arcane installers that only work on red hat and have to be reverse engineered for other distros. The people who want linux to "standardize" are the people who want to sell closed source apps. "Standardization" would hurt those who use only FOSS because it would greatly reduce choice in your distros. FOSS is the core function of linux (that's the GNU in GNU/Linux). Linux should not cripple itself to make room for non-free software.