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IPhone 3G Jailbreak Released, Paves Way For Open Source Apps
PainMeds writes "iPhone Atlas is reporting that the first jailbreak for the iPhone 3G has been released, and includes the popular Cydia community installer for distributing free games and applications. Since Apple's SDK was released, web sites have criticized Apple for the restrictions placed on both what developers could write and what APIs they were allowed to use. Others have noted the SDK's incompatibility with the GPL. The Cydia installer has provided a distribution channel for both open source software and software that would otherwise be impossible to build using the restricted SDK. A few applications are already out, including MobileTerminal and NES.app, a Nintendo game console emulator. In just over a week, open development is finally here for the iPhone 3G!"
Because OpenMoko looks like the iPhone's ugly cousin from Kentucky? How about the fact that the iPhone already has numerous apps and a lot of momentum in app development? How about the fact that the standard software on the iPhone is much more polished than anything the OpenMoko will produce?
I'm more interested in Android and very interested in what platforms may support it. (You know if, if it gets out of Beta(tm) stage)
Flamebait? By pointing out the OpenMoko's obvious downsides to the iPhone? Are you kidding me? The overzealous sensitive mods are out in force!
Don't get me wrong, I love the idea of the OpenMoko, but the execution is poor considering the considerable competition. People are developing plenty of apps for the iPhone because it is popular and it does have a very polished user interface. The iPhone has staying power. The OpenMoko? Not so much.
Because they can. Isn't that like the official motto of geeks everywhere?
Even without it being, it jailbroken, it is an enjoyable phone to use. Much more so than any Nokia / Samsung / Sony-Ericsson I've had over the years. And compared to WinCE it's a godsend, a Start menu on a phone? Seriously? Maybe the Blackberry is more functional... However I think that UI and aesthetics are a large part of functionality. The touch keyboard interface is good enough to write emails and I find it just as easy to use as a tinny qwerty keyboard.
At the end of the day I would have an iPhone regardless of whether I could jailbreak it or not. I've had some expensive phones in my time and this is the only one I've actually ever played with.
It's a well designed piece of hardware and I hope it spurs other companies and perhaps the next rethink of the OpenMoko into developing something better.
The reasoning is not very difficult:
1) I like the hardware
2) I don't like the software
If the cost of fixing 2 is less than the value of 1, then you buy the device.
I don't have an iPhone either, but I don't act like people with a different opinion are drooling morons.
If you mod me Overrated, you are admitting that you have no penis.
The mods aren't overzealous, they're from Kentucky.
Posting on Slashdot must automatically remove all of your ability to sympathize with other human beings too.
Let's go through why most people don't care about the stuff you raised.
1) Most people don't do anything that's restricted anyway. This is less true of being restricted to a single carrier, but people generally have very little loyalty toward an individual carrier.
2) People really do not feel that it's a big deal to connect their phone to their computer one time in the 2+ years that they will own it.
3) People don't have "many different types of media", they have MP3s. The iPhone plays MP3s.
4) $200 US does not seem overpriced to me. As for overhyped, most people don't have this weird reaction where they feel that they are obligated to dislike anything that's popular.
5) Most people simply don't care about replacing their battery.
6) Most people simply don't care about storage expansion.
Your complains are all legitimate and it's fine that you don't like the thing (I don't own one either), but it's silly to act as though the device has no merit whatsoever.
If you mod me Overrated, you are admitting that you have no penis.
(picture in TFA)
On Mac, even exploits have user-friendly GUIs!
Those who would give up liberty to obtain working drivers, deserve neither liberty nor working drivers.
Really? I applied as an individual developer without any released Apple products, and have paid my $99 and got in. They were very restrictive until release day, but at this point I don't know anyone who's applied who hasn't gotten the invitation email. I got my email the day after the App Store was opened, and am halfway done with my first app.
And as there are enough applications in the Apple Store already that it's hard to track them all, I don't think lack of apps is anything anyone's worrying about. Jailbreaking will definitely be good for GPL fanatics (as that's the only one of the open source licenses that's incompatible), but I suspect 99% of the users won't care and will stick with the convenience, support, and variety of the official store.
E pluribus unum
The SDK is XCode and GCC. Neither one cares which license you use. Apple's iPhone app store requires signing, which conflicts withe the GPLv3, but it doesn't prevent using the GPLv2 or other open source licenses and it doesn't prevent you from distributing the code (or binaries).
Do you even lift?
These aren't the 'roids you're looking for.
The same way you'd buy an HP and throw Ubuntu on it. You like the hardware, but despise the software (or part of it), so you do what you can to change that.
I don't think anyone is going to get through to you though, you've apparently already convinced yourself that the only reason to own an iPhone is for superficial trendy reasons. Personally, I feel that the UI is far superior to any other phone on the market, particularly when compared to similar smartphones that run Windows Mobile. Let's not talk Blackberry, their UI is so woefully behind both WM and iPhone that it's really a bit pathetic.
I jailbreak mine because I like the responsiveness of the OS, I like the UI, I like how many things are taken for granted (the media capabilities out of the box are excellent, as opposed to other smartphones, where they feel grafted on, and do not integrate well with other apps). I also want to run 3rd party software on it, because there's some really good stuff out there.
Awesome, so you're buying a product and deliberately cutting yourself off from software updates for it.
What could possibly go wrong?
How we know is more important than what we know.
Apple has said that they won't make updates intentionally defeat jailbreakers. I was jailbroken from 1.0.2 all the way through 2.0. And if you need Apple's help, backup and restore your phone with the stock firmware.
http://www.infopackets.com/news/security/2008/20080417_vista_security_update_bricks_usb_devices.htm
Lots! Automatically downloading and installing code from an untrusted party is pretty much the only way to make sure your software continues working as expected.
DRM: Terminator crops for your mind!
I had my first experience being denied the privilege to purchase a product yesterday. I called the Apple store at the nearest mall to verify they had units in stock, which they did. I then drove the two hours to said mall, in all eagerness to buy the product. After 30 minutes in line, and 20 minutes in angry negotiation with the Apple employee, I walked out of the store without an iPhone. They were in stock; I am an AT&T customer with an existing iPhone and eligible for an upgrade; and my account is in good standing. Unfortunately for me, there is a mysterious IFU tag on my account, which AT&T later explained means one of lines has a discount or special promotion on it, rendering me ineligible to purchase in an Apple store. As Apple refused to sell me the phone, I asked if I could bring an AT&T employee from their kiosk (literally a few dozen meters from the Apple store) to assist with the purchase. Impossible, said Apple. I asked if they could sell the unit to the AT&T kiosk to let AT&T then sell it to me or arrange some such similar inventory transfer. Impossible, Apple said. I asked if there were any way to broker a deal in the Apple store by including an AT&T employee. No, they said, and they asked me to leave. I was, admittedly, very angry. It's the prerogative of the company to choose how and to whom they sell their products, but it seems in infinitely bad taste to do either in so far as you are able. In fact, it seems like unmitigated arrogance to deny such a sale based on some vainglorious corporate policy to lock your device to a vendor and a service provider. I've never been disappointed by Apple before now in my last 2 years of Apple fanboydom. But.. hot apple sauce. I still can't believe I don't currently own an iPhone 3G.
If it looks like a duck, let's call it a moose.
Not buying a great product you can easily crack is even more retarded. If you limit your options only to fully supported models of distribution you'll never have anything. You'll also face a life of being totally ripped off by the people that have you at the mercy of limited options.
The car dealer recommends you change the oil at the dealership, do you do that every tie as well?
We live in the hackers age. Embrace that, and win.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
There's nothing irrational about hating Apple. They are the kings of the proprietary and I like being in control of my own hardware.
And yes, buying an Xbox so you can hack it is also retarded.
Support the suppliers who are not trying to lock down the hardware.
How we know is more important than what we know.
Hatred is always irrational. It doesn't arise from reason, it arises from emotion.
I personally save my emotion for people. Spending it on companies and computers seems like a horrible waste to me.
Get on with the news, zealots: the final SDK has been released July 11, so the NDA has been lifted for more than a week now.
You'd think so, but no. If you check Apple's Cocoa mailing lists you'll see multiple nastygrams from the moderators stating that the iPhone SDK is still under NDA. It's an exceptionally stupid situation where anybody in the world can download the SDK, but nobody can talk about it, and presumably publicly posting code that uses it would be in violation.
How to solve most of our problems: 1.Lots of nuclear plants. 2.Cure aging.