Google Releases Android 4.1 Source Code

Unlike previous releases, where months passed between Google announcing a new version and the code being released, Google has made good on their promise to release the source code to Jelly Bean in record time. Unfortunately, the gitweb instance on kernel.org is still down so you'll have to download the entire thing to take a peek. Hopefully the Cyanogenmod team will find time to start on a community enhanced version soon.

Comments

Number one thing i want from Cyanogen

[Daetrin]

Is an option to add back the settings/menu button. I like having the settings always in a known and easy to reach place rather than depending on the app author to place it someplace convenient. And i wouldn't mind having the search button back either. Really the bottom button bar ought to be much more configurable than it is.

Re:Number one thing i want from Cyanogen

[oakgrove]

CM9 has that option so I would imagine CM10 will have it as well. You can also add a persistent Search button on the bottom if that's your thing. Not that you'll need it with the up gesture on Jelly Bean for Google Now.

Re:Number one thing i want from Cyanogen

[Daetrin]

Thanks! That's good to know. I haven't actually experimented much with Cyanogen yet because i've never felt to need to install it on my Nexus One. (I'm trying to hold out until the rumored five new Nexus phones this fall.) But i'm definitely going to be looking into it once i get my Nexus 7.

Re:Number one thing i want from Cyanogen

[AbRASiON]

MOD THIS GUY TO THE 'N TOP.
TO.THE.TOP!

I've been ranting about this for months, it's difficult to put into words my thoughts on this without sounding like a raving lunatic or a badly broken record.
I am _sick_ of companies making stupid decisions with their user interfaces.

Why on EARTH would we want a nice, consistent location for a button to now become a random location on the screen? and what makes them think three odd little dots represents 'settings' or 'menu' clearly? WHAT?

I do not exaggerate when I say one of the PRIMARY reasons I switched from Apple to Android was the complete and utter logic of having nice, consistent buttons for routine functions. Back, menu, home seem logical to me. I also NEVER, EVER use the multi-task button, why would I? The OS handles it all perfectly for me, when I hit home it minimises the application (so to speak) and when I re-open the application, it's where I wanted it. Furthermore, holding down the home key (Samsung) seems logical to multi-tasking to me, not a dedicated button.

I am extremely, extremely baffled and pissed off at this completely and utterly idiotic move and it's also one of the primary reasons I got the Galaxy S3, possibly one of the last Android phones with a logical button scheme.
Sadly, I'm only one person whining about this but by god does the Google engineering group who decided on this change need a mighty fucking slap with the logic bat.

Re:Number one thing i want from Cyanogen

[geminidomino]

It's not just companies. Even FOSS projects are doing it.
I ran GIMP 2.8 for a whole 20 minutes before I uninstalled and put 2.6 back.

It's like there's some sort of computer programmer virus that makes you make idiotic un-usability decisions going around (pretty sure Ubuntu was patient zero)

Re:Number one thing i want from Cyanogen

[Auroch]

Thanks! That's good to know. I haven't actually experimented much with Cyanogen yet because i've never felt to need to install it on my Nexus One. (I'm trying to hold out until the rumored five new Nexus phones this fall.) But i'm definitely going to be looking into it once i get my Nexus 7.

You're missing out. Using vanilla android is THAT much better than most skinned versions, and using Cyanogen is THAT much better than vanilla. It's essentially ALL the options and customization you didn't realize you needed, but once you've got it, you'll never go back to vanilla.

Re:Number one thing i want from Cyanogen

[Anonymous Coward]

Your points are valid from your perspective...

My perspective, on the other hand:

The multitasking button has become probably my most used, and I'm happy they made a dedicated button for it. Next most used is Home, and that's increased with Jelly Bean making long-press home bring up Google Now with a swipe up (which actually makes more sense to me than that being multitasking). Back is used enough as well, of course. I almost never use the menu button on the bottom any more, though. The only apps that I find any use for that is... well... Facebook, but I've given up on even dealing with the Facebook app... and... honestly, I'm perfectly happy without the menu or the search buttons dedicated on the bottom. It took a little getting used to, but I don't miss those buttons at all any more...

Essentially, the new button configuration works better for me than the old button configurations ever did. I can understand it being more of a hassle for some people. That's essentially Google's thing though: the phone manufacturers can put whatever buttons they want on there and leave whatever buttons they don't off (hence CM9 allows you to fill the damn thing up with all 5 if you really want). The manufacturers are probably going to go to the ones that seem the most logical based on potential sales to put on there. Samsung thought it made sense to keep the menu button that people like yourself are so used to, so they did. And there you have it, you proved them right and bought the S3 for that reason. Maybe they'll do that with the S4 and beyond, and you can still keep your menu button and "logical button scheme". I'll stick to the new scheme that makes more sense to me. We'll both be happy (and I understand that's a big "if they go that way...").

Re:Number one thing i want from Cyanogen

[TheInternetGuy]

It's essentially ALL the options and customization you didn't realize you needed, but once you've got it, you'll never go back to vanilla.

But will my camera work?

Re:Number one thing i want from Cyanogen

[oakgrove]

That depends on your device. Get an officially supported by AOSP device like the Nexus or WiFi Xoom and you're golden. Otherwise you takes your chances.

Re:Number one thing i want from Cyanogen

[bemymonkey]

If I remember correctly, the issue was that app developers were hiding vital functions behind the menu button, and there was no way to know whether the menu button actually worked on certain screens. Take the Android WiFi settings as a prime example - to enter the advanced WiFi settings, you had to press Menu and then Advanced, even though there was no indication to the user, and there is no menu as such (i.e. the menu button does nothing) in any of the other Android settings dialogs - how is the user supposed to know that he can access a whole other dialog by pressing Menu and hitting "Advanced"? The only way to find out (unless someone tells you) is to go through every single screen of a new app and press the menu button on each one, to see if a different menu pops up somewhere - and this really was the case on MANY Android apps... you'd get access to an entirely different menu from screen A than from screen B, and certain settings would only be available by pressing menu when already in the settings dialog - very confusing for end users.

I do agree that they should have kept the menu button in the same place though. Maybe just make the backlight (on devices where applicable) only light up when there's actually a menu available... and a better icon would have been nice... but tbh - I don't think I could have thought up a better one...

Re:Number one thing i want from Cyanogen

[humanrev]

Could you be more specific? Is it because of the (optional) single-window mode in 2.8? The only reason I can stand to use GIMP now is BECAUSE of the single-window mode, but there's no reason to flame given it's still optional, and not even the default.

Apart from that 2.8 seems to only have improvements and greater functionality from what I've seen, but I'd be interested to read what it has which got under your skin so I can either sympathize or deride you. :)

P.S. Agreed with Ubuntu - Mint is the current distro of choice if I have to use Linux.

Re:Number one thing i want from Cyanogen

[SurfaceMount]

I am _sick_ of companies making stupid decisions with their user interfaces. Why on EARTH would we want a nice, consistent location for a button to now become a random location on the screen?

Apple probably has a patent for "buttons in a consistent location on a device with round corners" so Android had to remove that feature to avoid spending years in court.

Re:Number one thing i want from Cyanogen

[Tapewolf]

Number one thing i want in CM. Is for them to stop overlooking legacy devices like the nexus one.

If that's the G1, the base code is too bloaty and slow to run nicely on the hardware now. The G1 has limited RAM and flash space, sadly and there's a limit to how much you can optimise someone else's code like that.

Re:Number one thing i want from Cyanogen

[thegarbz]

It's not just companies. Even FOSS projects are doing it.

Doing what, experimenting with changes in new major versions that may give them a boost in popularity as they introduce changes to usability which make the product easier to use?

You've stated your opinion, now here's mine. GIMP 2.8 is usable, previous versions were a window management nightmare. Especially on dual monitors with tool palates disappearing and generally not acting like any other single application on my system. I like it. I like it a lot. Others seem to like it too. This is also the first version of GIMP I consider recommending to other less ... patient computer users.

Re:Number one thing i want from Cyanogen

[IamTheRealMike]

Yes, it's exactly for that reason. The fact that the dots appear to wander randomly around the screen is irritating for sure, but is more a transitional period. They appear in the bottom bar if the app is not set to "target" the latest OS version. They appear in the top bar if the app has been ported to use the ICS/Honeycomb UI classes, and irritatingly, they can appear in BOTH places if the app is using a backport of the ActionBar class and has not set their API target version correctly. I've been told that there are some odd issues that can occur when you target the latest SDK, but I don't know if that's really true. Anyway, it's a bit of a mess, but as the backport libraries get improved and people work through the complexities of supporting both ICS+ and Gingerbread the dots will get more consistent with time, either appearing in the bottom bar for older apps that expect a menu button, or typically in the top right for newer apps that use an action bar.

Having said all that, settings/menu buttons and even the back button are pretty inconsistent on iOS too, so it's not like this is an achilles heel or anything.

Samsung Galaxy S III

[Enderandrew]

This is already a really fast phone with ICS, and the Samsung touches are actually pretty nice, but I want to remove the ChatOn service (I'm getting spam messages) and I want Jelly Bean. I'm assuming Cynaogen will give me that option before Samsung/Sprint goes.

Re:Samsung Galaxy S III

[ozmanjusri]

There's a CM9/Jelly Bean ROM out already. It's not suitable for real use, but I don't think it'll take long.

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1737449

Re:Samsung Galaxy S III

[Mr0bvious]

Before Samsung? I'd say certainly. I'm still waiting for ICS on my Galaxy Tab 10.1 and JB is already out. I wouldn't be overly surprised if Cyanogenmod supported JB for the Galaxy Tab before Samsung roll out ICS.

I know there are rumours of ICS being released for the Galaxy Tab 10.1 over July/August but I'm not holding my breath until I have it.

But really Samsung why are you playing games with releasing ICS for us? I like your products, but your lack of willingness to provide timely updates makes me question if I will buy from you again. /rant

Re:Samsung Galaxy S III

[Mr0bvious]

Yes that's why I referred to them 'playing games'.

But it may not work in their favour, instead of me buying a new device from them I'm actually less likely to every buy their devices.

What's more (and supports your assertion) is their current replacement offering (Galaxy Tab 2 10.1) has little to offer over the previous version other than the OS version - so there's no way I'm forking out for a new device just for an OS upgrade. Yes there are other differences, but not enough to warrant another purchase.

Re:Samsung Galaxy S III

[oakgrove]

I realize your money's already spent but the WiFi Motorola Xoom is the only 10 inch tablet with AOSP support. Samsung should be ashamed of themselves for not updating your device in a timely manner but in the future, I'd at least have a peek at that page I linked before putting money down.

No kidding

[Jethro]

CM9 just took sooo long. In fact the final release isn't out yet.

I just couldn't resist and put Jellybean on my Galaxy Nexus. But CyanogenMod still has a few features that are not incorporated into plain Android, nor are there apps for them. Not that I could find anyway. For example I want the battery in the status bar to show a percent number (there are apps that add that, but IN ADDITION to the regular battery), and I /love/ the Volume-Button-Long-Press-Skips-Tracks. Very very very useful while jogging. Oh and the power widgets in the pull-down, way better than the Power Control Widget.

CM9 took so long because they had to start from scratch. They are saying that CM10 should not be NEARLY as big a deal, so here's hoping!

Re:No kidding

[Jethro]

That's why I always buy Nexus phones. Unlocked. Costs more but I keep 'em going for a few years.

Re:Yet

[DeathFromSomewhere]

Tell that to the Nexus S owners who had to wait over 6 months for 4.0 to land on their phones. Owning a Nexus phone is not a guarantee of timely updates.

Kill The Beast

[SuperKendall]

Slashdot, why is there no way to mark other users as spammers? It's really frustrating to have people like this pollute the message stream.

Re:Kill The Beast

[geminidomino]

Unless slashdot's doing something weird (never!) with your theming, or you have javascript turned off/NoScripted (who can blame you?), you should be able to use the little flag at the bottom right of the post.

Whether or not anyone does anything about it is another matter, entirely.

stupid repo script is broken

[Skapare]

It seems to make assumptions that are not valid, such as the host name being a valid RHS of email.

Google support of third party mods

[toejam13]

I am actually surprised that Google does not have a dedicated development team working in co-operation with an independent mod group such as Cyanogenmod.

It is fairly clear that one of the greatest problems with Android is with version fragmentation. Mobile carriers have been very sluggish or outright hostile regarding major firmware upgrades on their handsets. It would be preferable for Google to ensure that carriers are contractually obligated to support OS upgrades for at least four or five years. But until that happens, throwing resources at the issue through a back door would be a nice thing.

Re:Google support of third party mods

[phantomfive]

It is fairly clear that one of the greatest problems with Android is with version fragmentation

Is it really? As a mobile developer, I find that it's a simple problem to deal with by just coding to an older API. I haven't found any problem with it not being backwards compatible, and the older APIs are good enough for most things.

A much bigger problem I've had is with different hardware platforms being different, with sometimes bizarre issues like the Kyocera Milano having a clock that goes backwards from time to time. This is a problem on iPhone too, but since there are fewer iphone platforms, it's easier...

Re:Google support of third party mods

[Anonymous Coward]

"As a mobile developer, I find that it's a simple problem to deal with by just coding to an older API."

That's exactly the problem. People having to code with older APIs due to platform fragmentation means that new features of the OS have far lower adoption rates even for the devices that can handle them.

Re:Google support of third party mods

[Hast]

It's also worth mentioning that Google has done some work to help developers with compatability. There was a talk about it on IO this year as well: Google I/O 2012 - Multi-Versioning Android User Interfaces (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amZM8oZBgfk).

Re:Google support of third party mods

[Andy Dodd]

Wrong. It's pretty clear that the carriers are the major blocker for updates.

For example, the Samsung Infuse 4G was originally released with Android 2.2. Canadian devices on Rogers received Gingerbread (Android 2.3) in late July/early August 2011. AT&T devices did not see Gingerbread until February 2012.

The Samsung Captivate was nearly identical to the original Samsung Galaxy S. The similarities were enough that community developers were able to have the I9000 Gingerbread release fully functional within weeks of Gingerbread for the I9000 becoming available. The Captivate did not receive an official upgrade through AT&T for NINE MONTHS.

The AT&T variant of the Samsung Galaxy S II (SGH-I777) is nearly identical to the international version (GT-I9100). As a result, there are only a handful of software differences required between the two handsets:
1) Change the digital I/O settings for the audio chip to a different sample rate - this was included in the GT-I9100 source code release
2) Change the keymap for the touchkeys - This was also included in the GT-I9100 source code release
3) Unmap the GPIO line for the HOME key which doesn't exist on the device - This was missing from the GT-I9100 source code release, but took less than a week to identify and fix
4) Swap the audio channels for the noise cancelling and main microphones - This took me a single Saturday to reverse engineer and fix

Despite these minor changes, the AT&T ICS release was delayed for more than three months, and was of worse quality than some of the early I9100 ICS leak builds. In addition to poor battery performance, frequent crashes, and other bugs not present in the initial I9100 ICS release, the SGH-I777 official release contains a severe bug that can permanently damage the device's eMMC storage if the user performs a factory reset.

If carriers didn't get in the way, the SGH-I777 would not exist - users would have received the GT-I9100 and would have received a high-quality ICS build in mid-March instead of an awful hackjob in late June.

FYI, the official rationale:

[Anonymous Coward]

http://android-developers.blogspot.com/2012/01/say-goodbye-to-menu-button.html

Re:FYI, the official rationale:

[h4rr4r]

Press the recent applications button, and slide the tile off the screen.

Re:Yet

[oakgrove]

Wasn't that the CDMA Nexus S though? For anybody that doesn't know, not only do you need to have a Nexus device to be assured of updates, that Nexus device needs to not be CDMA. Even the Galaxy Nexus from Verizon is unsupported by AOSP.

Not for Nexus S and Xoom

[gparent]

The binaries for the Nexus S and Xoom are not available yet and won't be until the OTA update.

I tried compiling AOSP with android 4.1.1r1 checked out, adding the 4.0.4 vendor proprietary files, putting it on my phone, then flashing the ICS kernel, but it did not work.

Oh well. I'll be waiting.

Re:looking forward to it, and to the tablet

[oakgrove]

AOSP has the proprietary binaries necessary for a from source build of Android for the Nexus 7 which would be kind of pointless if the boot loader wasn't unlockable so you're probably safe.

Re:Yet

[Per Abrahamsen]

The GSM Nexus S started OTA updating in December, then stopped with no explanation when the majority still haven't received an update, and finally restarted in March with the 4.0.4 update. The rumours were that the OTA update was suspended because of poor battery performance, which was only fixed in 4.0.4. Fair enough, but Google could have been more open about it.

Installation instructions? Where are they?

[G3ckoG33k]

I tried to find the installation instructions but could not find any on the CyanogenMod website. I found them on other sites but would rather find them next to the source.

Anyone with a link?

Re:Number one thing i want.

[RoboRay]

If you are volunteering to help with the Nexus One project, I'm sure they'll be happy to have you on board.

Unlike previous releases? Jesus Christ

[Flipao]

The Honeycomb source wasn't released because it was a mess, it's been explained to death. Every other version had its source code released in record time.

Months passed? WTF are you smoking?

[Andy Dodd]

ICS was announced on October 19, 2012.
ICS source was released on November 14, 2012. LESS THAN A MONTH.

In addition - the first device to actually RECEIVE ICS did not become available until NOVEMBER 17. Yes, that's right, source was released THREE DAYS BEFORE the first device to receive ICS became available.