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Ubuntu Powered Tablet Spotted!
dkd903 writes "The year 2010 had been all buzz with tablets and a similar trend is expected during the year 2011 too. We have already seen a lot of Android powered tablets. But how does a tablet powered by Ubuntu sound? A Chinese manufacturer TENQ has launched a tablet called P07. The device is said to be running Ubuntu 10.10 Netbook Edition and the boot time reported to be almost instant."
Uhhhh...it sounds like about half the stuff on your tablets does not work but "other than that" it runs pretty well? It is THIS, this "it is free so you should put up with it" attitude that keeps FLOSS from taking off on mainstream PC devices like netbook/nettops, laptops, desktops, etc.
Another perfect example: Remember how everyone was touting when Dell started selling Ubuntu on select netbooks? Ever look at one? Notice anything....funny...about them? Like the fact that Dell removes ALL Canonical repos and has to run their own? Why is that? Is it because Dell is pushing crapware on them like on the Windows boxes? Nope, it is due to the fact that even with such a limited amount of hardware to support Canonical can't be bothered to do actual QA before release and if you use the regular repos it breaks the Ethernet and sound! Oh joy, oh happy day!
Now damn it, I KNOW good quality FOSS software CAN be done. Hell Jobs took BSD and built an empire with it that has even surpassed MSFT in market cap so it CAN be done! But it will NOT ever be done with this "oh well, it kinda sorta works" attitude. If Apple pushed out an update that broke half the Macs don't you think people would have a fit? If MSFT broke half the new Dells out there? Hell yes, heads would roll! So why this "shit sandwich" attitude? It is like someone saying "Free meal!" and when you sit down they hand you a shit sandwich and say "hey it's free, you've no right to complain" well bullshit, we have EVERY right!
As a retailer I WANT to be able to sell Linux boxes, and not just "hey lets put it on the shitty hardware" boxes like what Walmart tried, but actual good quality machines! I WANT to have nice Ubuntu boxes right beside the Windows ones, and know that for at least 5 years after I sold it that it will keep running, even after updating! But right now frankly I can't. I can't because there is no hardware ABI, every damned upgrade which at 6 months is ridiculous, breaks two things while fixing one. I can't because I can't even expect it to go a full year without "update foo broke my driver" bullshit thanks to lousy QA, it is just a mess!
So while I wish these Chinese luck, I'll think they'll find out the same thing I and every other retailer I've talked to found out, that Linux ends up costing MORE money than Windows. How could that be? Simple figure in the returns when updates break crap, which by law then have to be sold as used, usually at a loss, figure in the amount of time required to fix all those breaks, and it quickly becomes MORE expensive than simply slapping an OEM Windows Home license and calling it a day. I'm sure I'll get hate for saying the emperor has no clothes, but he is wearing his birthday suit and his willie is waving in the breeze.
The average Joe, the ones you HAVE TO sell to to gain critical mass, ain't messing with CLI, ain't gonna deal with "update foo broke my drivers" or trawl forums for fixes. If a box leaves the store working it needs to STAY working as long as the user follows basic best practices. That simply isn't the case with Linux, as by following best practices the user will BREAK the machine by updating! So I have the choice of either pulling a Dell and repackaging everything and running my own repo (too expensive), turning off updates and leaving the machine vulnerable (unacceptable), fixing every update fuckup for life for free (too expensive) or just slapping a Windows License and an AV and AntiMal and calling it a day. Which do you think in the end I'm gonna choose?
So please don't settle for this "it kinda sorta works" shit sandwich mentality, demand real progress! Demand either a stable ABI, or if Linux guys hate those so much, even though Solaris, BSD, Windows, hell just about every OS other than Linux, has had them for over a decade? Fine, tell us of another way to INSURE that drivers continue working across releases and DO THAT. None of this "let the kernel devs" handle it BS, If a driver works now it should work five years from now AS IS PERIOD. Make it easy, make it reliable, and guys like me will be happy to sell your product and display it proudly on our shelves. Hell you think we spend all that extra money in Windows licenses because we LIKE to add that to our final cost?
ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.