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Google Targets Android Fragmentation With Updated Terms For SDK
SternisheFan writes "Google has expanded its legal agreement with developers working on Android applications to specifically prohibit them from taking any action that could lead to a fragmentation of the operating system. The prohibition was added to the terms and conditions for Google's Android SDK (software development kit), which developers must accept before using the software to build Android apps. The previous version of the terms of service, published in April 2009, didn't address the issue, but the new terms published on Tuesday include this new paragraph: 'You agree that you will not take any actions that may cause or result in the fragmentation of Android, including but not limited to distributing, participating in the creation of, or promoting in any way a software development kit derived from the SDK.' Google did not respond to several requests for comment. The issue of Android fragmentation has been gaining increased attention, but it's happened largely as a result of actions taken by Google and Android handset makers, not developers. It's a problem because it means that Android applications may not run properly across all Android devices. 'It continues to be a problem, both on smartphones and tablets,' said Avi Greengart, research director at Consumer Devices. 'Google has talked about multiple initiatives for dealing with it, but none of them have successfully addressed it.'"
Will this stop handset makers from bundling crap UIs (I'm talking about you, HTC) with their Android handsets? One step further, will it stop carriers from bundling crap software on the Android handsets they sell?
Of course, the obvious solution to Android fragmentation is an updated EULA! That will fix everything!
Wouldn't that prohibit forking? If so, they can't claim it's open source.
There's no -1 for "I don't get it."
wouldn't updating all phones to the latest android version be a better solution ?
How the hell does a contract prevent you from PROMOTING something? This would be a scummy move by Apple standards, and you had better damn well hope Google gets slapped HARD for this, or you will soon be seeing every SDK demanding you not support their competitors products, ie, porting.
Since some moron modded my on-topic comment down as "Overrated" when it had the default score of 1, I am posting this comment just so another mod will waste her/his mod point just to mark my comment as -1, off-topic. At least this time, it will be deserved.
Prohibits distributions of software libraries? Possibly. Prohibits custom UIs like Swype? Possibly. Who can really say? Anything that causes one person's "experience" of Android to be different from another person's could be termed "fragmentation". All you can hope is that Google Won't Be Evil, whatever their lawyers are now saying.
That language is so flexible and so abstract that a good lawyer could use it to justify practically any kind of prohibition.
Well, of course the Android has a problem with all the different flavors. Fragmentation is a problem for Google's baby.
Buuuuuuut, if Android is open, of course people are free to fork it, expand it, trim it, and do whatever they want with it. Any action which restricts our ability to do that is... well... wrong.
If they wanted there to be a clear winner, they should just you know, pick one and publicly say "HERE. THIS ONE. THIS GUY RIGHT HERE. HE'S HAS JUST WON THE INTERNET AND HIS VERSION OF THE ANDROID IS THE ONE TRUE FLAVOR! We're not going to give two shits about anyone else's version and we're throwing our weight behind this one. (or two, or twelve, whatever)". And just kind of hope that everyone picks it and a de-facto standard emerges. But the whole "constructive competition" thing is kind of important for the open source.
We certainly would not want to create any non-standard forks now would we? **Cough** **Java** **cough**
Then you can't get kickbacks from hardware makers for helping them sell new phones and tablets.
Yes, but the carriers rely on withholding updates to enslave you to the Two Year Contract.
is to set minimum spec's for the devices that are supported by the Google Market. They should have required a minimum discrete GPU if they wanted to guarantee minimum operating performance, but that didn't align with their needs...
All google cares about is maintaining the quality of their advertising platform, Android. Yes, a free phone OS sounds nice, until you realize that they store every action you perform on that device, or everywhere you go with that device. While databases like this have existed before (carriers can easily keep track of where you are via cell towers), what makes google so nefarious, is that they are so good at it.
Imagine every strange search query being saved (including all characters until you finally pressed enter), your exact picture being saved, every email you have ever sent being saved. It's a one stop shop for all the data that is you (well, need to stop by facebook as well). You give one company that power, for what?
The fragmentation problem is because there are so many different versions of Android still out there, with different screen sizes, hardware capabilities, sensor availability, etc.
I don't really see how this is going to change much.
wouldn't updating all phones to the latest android version be a better solution ?
Perhaps, but one of those things is within their power to do and the other isn't.
what happened to the write-once, run anywhere concept?
See, if Google made Android as part OS features, part Java API, then you could run an updated app against an old phone and the new features you expect to be present would simply not work - it'd throw an exception at runtime if the user attempted to use the missing API call (assuming the dev didn't look for and hide that option).
Android fragmentation isn't any more of a problem than the existing problem of having lots of phones running different stock Android versions.
So, Amazon can't create an SDK for Kindles based on Google's SDK that better targets their App Store. If they do, then developers that use it could be accused of participating in the "fragmentation"
Problem is, not only would Google have to do that work themselves, they probably would even have to pay some OEMs and carriers for the privilege of doing so. Everything that makes their customers happy with the phone they have is bad for profits, after all.
The N4 is a far better approach IMO. Its feature/price ratio together with the promise of timely updates puts enough pressure on OEMs and carriers while the "accidential" release fuckup makes it a warning shot and not a declaration of war.
I thought android was OSS and as such the code was available. What is to keep people from using the old libraries, developing them as they wish, and then just interfacing with what other tools they need?
"She's a scientist and a lesbian. She's not going to let it slide." Orphan Black
will forever reinvent it. Poorly.
Yes, but this is almost certainly just a shot at Amazon (and a preemptive shot at Samsung). It doesn't do anything to address the real fragmentation problem: hardware and other issues causing manufacturers to abandon OS updates a few months after launching phones
Only if "updating" also includes new hardware. The multitude of aspect ratios and screen resolutions is a UI nightmare for anything more complex than angry birds or the start menu for doom / quake. Virtual vs. Physical keyboard brings additional considerations when doing layout design.
Why does fragmentation matter on Android devices? They all use Flash RAM drives, so its not spending time seeking like the old physical hard drives
It limits the use of the SDK in the process of creating non-Android-branded Android-like OS's, which is one aspect of fragmentation.
Google more aggressively pursuing and releasing updates for Google-branded (e.g., Nexus) devices would, for example, be a means of creating pressure on other Android device makers to be better at updating devices and reducing that aspect of fragmentation. (Which is, though, less of a problem for Google than the previously-mentioned kind of fragmentation.)
Fragmentation is multidimensional.
And the manufacturers are all too happy to support this, as it means they have a pretty solid stream of new sales in the pipeline. Once you get people into your ecosystem, you just give them "slightly better" features every two years while guaranteeing that the phone is just crippled enough to not be easily upgraded from the version of Android it ships with. Nothing says "open" like forcing you to upgrade your hardware every two years to get the latest version of the software!
Can't wait for that fabled Android openness to really take off and revolutionize the industry!
THIS is what this SDK EULA change is about. Google wants to throttle unauthorized Android work-alikes in the cradle. It probably sticks in their craws that legally anyone can build an AOSP-based phone, but there isn't much they can do about that. But completely non-Android systems with Android (Dalvik) runtime capability? Hells, no. You have to use the SDK to develop to that environment, so that's where we'll hit it... no SDK for you!
Welcome to the Panopticon. Used to be a prison, now it's your home.
and this is worth 3 !!!
sheesh
Haha... maybe that's why Android's market share has increase. People need to by multiple phones for different apps.
Maybe fragmentation isn't so bad after all.
The real Sig captains the Northwestern. This one captains
Anyone being able to build AOSP-based devices was kind of one of the original points of the OS. You're right about the rest, though.
APK quotes people (including myself) without context and should not be trusted. Just thought you should know.
I thought the Fire was basically a forked version of Android. So this would seem to say, if you want to publish with Google you could not also publish for Amazon.
Perhaps I am misreading this, but it seems like the only way it could actually have an effect on fragmentation.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
Uhhh... I have a Defy as well (Defy+ actually but the difference is negligible). It runs Jelly Bean (4.1.2). There is now an early demo of Jelly Bean 4.2, the version just launched with the new Nexus 4 and Nexus 10.
You don't need to replace your Defy. Just root it if you haven't already, and install one of the many available roms on it - everything from Gingerbread through ICS and JB 4.1.2. The Defy is actually a good example of how futile those locked boot loaders and restricted systems really are: the latest Jelly Bean versions run a custom kernel.
--frank[at]unternet.org
Well technically you could develop for the "real" and "hijacked" android OS's at the same time if the hijacked one really did run regular android apps. You wouldn't have to admit (or even care) what phones you're targeting.
... Google failed to appreciate how popular its new terms would be, and sold out in less than an hour, so it will take 3 more weeks until the next shipment of terms arrives.
I pity Amazon, having to wait 3 more weeks for terms.
[No, not bitter at all about being backordered, why do you ask...]
I like android devices. I like to be able to just drag any music or file over from any computer.
I like that it gets a lot of tech before the iPhone
I like that I can switch to a different manufacture and have it largely be the same. Some manufactures may radically change it, but that's rare.
Clearly, not an Android haters.
However there is a problem.
I got the Nexus S at best buy. And I got the replacement warranty.
After a year I dropped my phone and broke it. My fault.
So I take it to best buy for a replacement, and get a new Nexus S.
The problem was, it had 2.3 on it.
So, how do I get it updated?
Tmobile wouldn't update it, Google won't update it, Best Buy won't update it. It's stupid. While I am comfortable manually doing it, not a lot of consumers are.
I have to find the right version for my deice, and manually updated it to 4.0.4
Of course, now I need to manually update it to 4.1.2 This update risks bricking the phone and I have to violate my warranty to do it.
So Google, Fix this problem. It should detect it's out of data, up autoupdate when I boot it up fore the first time.
I have put off buying a tablet becasue of this, and I am seriously considering getting an iPad even though it has fewer features.
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
How will this affect the replacement images developed by the user community? I've been running community offshoots of Android for years now and I would hate that ecosystem hit by this.
It might not be a walled garden but you best believe that this move will be used liberally by Google to stifle innovation with companies that aren't on friendly terms. Try to make up whatever bullshit you want to explain it away but I assure you this is the beginning of the end of the culture of innovation for Android. At least innovation that isn't bought or produced by Google.
We seen something in a similar nature a few years ago when Google nixed a bunch of experimental technologies that they were funding. Google grew up and became a suit and tie firm even if their outward appearance doesn't show it. Android will become part of the 9-5 business culture as well. Google would probably have done this 2 years ago if they had the marketshare and the foresight into RIM that they have today.
Which I believe is the point. As long as your stuff will work on regular mainstream Android you're fine. This gives an incentive for actors like Amazon, RIM and so on to kep their stuff fully compatible.
Trust the Computer. The Computer is your friend.
>The issue of Android fragmentation has been gaining increased attention, but it's happened largely as a result of actions taken by Google and Android handset makers, not developers. It's a problem because it means that Android applications may not run properly across all Android devices.
Really? Because I have seen two main causes:
1. CARRIERS hold up updates that the handset makers release, so lots of people are running old versions of their phone's OS. Sure, it might take the maker some time to port the new version of Android to their phone, but what really takes time is the carriers porting their crapware. f.e. Sharp bundles dictionaries, an improved Japanese input system, and lots of other useful stuff to their phone. They also add support and drivers for built-in hardware like TV Receiver, JApan specific NFC type stuff, pedometer, etc. What do the carriers add? Stupid shit nobody wants, that's what - and it takes them 6 months to do it. F.e. the global model my Sony Xperia Acro HD S was updated months ago by Sony. For my phone, though, NTT Docomo has to release the update...
2.. Software makers sometimes purposely only support certain phones. Hulu is a big example here. It would probably work on the Samsung Note, but it immediately pops up a message saying "this device is not supported". (Acro HD S used to do that too until one day they added support). If the program is written "normally" and it doesn't work, I might forgive them, but if it purposely white-lists supported devices, I view that as a "fuck you" from the developers.
The reality is that in the beginning of November 2012, Virgin Mobile USA was still selling phones that come with Android 2.x, and owners of those phones expect to run applications advertised as compatible with Android.
Where "openness" is "doing only what Google says you're allowed to do"
You cant call it android unless it is the current version or the previous version. Anything older can NOT be called or branded android in any way.
Suddenly the Lazy bums at HTC and Sony will actually use the latest OS for their phones and push out updates.
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
The Chrome browser doesn't work on 2.x, and the browser that comes with 2.x can't see SSL sites that use SNI.
Now all you need to do is follow up on your "swift updates for all devices" promise from 18 months ago and we'll be all set!
Dear Slashdot: next time you want to mess with the site, add a rich-text editor for comments.
Apple has the new two year contract (optionally now), but updates the iPhones for at least a few years for each model.
Just HTC and sony? Is there ANYONE that pushes updates in a reasonable manner?
Samsung took quite a while to upgrade to their version ICS. ICS was released in october 2011, it didn't come to the note or skyrocket until July 2012. Which is weird, because they seemed to have done very little aside from changing the graphics. They broke "unauthorized" tethering, maybe that counts as a feature. I guess they figured everyone who would bother upgrading had already installed cyanogenmod.
That's actually part of the Open Handset Alliance agreement, and has been from the get-go. Carriers can change things to an extent, but can't mess with the APIs... all Android devices are supposed to be compatible at the app level. And they largely are -- the fragmentation thing has been blown way out of proportion, mostly by Apple fans as they ran out of other arguments as to why their iOS wasn't better than Android.
There are two problems Google needs to address. One is the initial OS in a device: you have had developers releasing devices on 2.2 even, well after Android 4.0 was out. Google needs to address that.
The second problem is getting the new OS out in the first place. An ordinary development model for an OS will have early releases available to developers long before the new version ships. This gets them an early start on porting and testing, etc. Google's current M.O. is to select one vendor and one device to work on (usually a Nexus device these days), then work intensely with that partner. The new OS version isn't released to other OEMs until that new device ships. This is a big delay in getting the new OS adopted. And it results in far less testing than would otherwise take place. Maybe this is needed for Google's two-release-per-year schedule to be kept, but that, too, is part of the reason new devices don't always have new OSs.
There are a few things Google could do. Ideally, they could re-engineer the basis of Android, and build a hardware abstraction layer under Linux. Android/Linux would have class-drivers (display, touchscreen, keyboard, etc) that hit the vendor-supplies HAL layer. The HAL layer would contain all hardware dependencies, cell phone baseband, etc. This would basically allow any new version of Android to run on any device without the need for the manufacturer or cellular provider (argh!) to be involved. In short, just what PCs do.
-Dave Haynie
Providers are.
Fragmentation is multidimensional.
No freedom without fragmentation.
I'm pretty sure you're talking out of your ass. If Google was upset about AOSP-based phones, they could simply cut off the oxygen and end AOSP.
I have absolutely no idea what the write-up is about. At a guess, I'd assume they're concerned about "cross platform" crap that isn't, but I'll wait for Google to actually state their intentions. What I can absolutely rule out is the notion that this is about Android being FLOSS (Google could end this at any time), or about sticking it to Amazon (the Fire's OS is OSS Android (ie just Android, not Android+Google proprietary apps) with a custom launcher and a few custom apps, it's not in any way a fork, or any of the other nonsense people here are speculating on.
You are not alone. This is not normal. None of this is normal.
Is there any evidence that that is happening?
"Is there ANYONE that pushes updates in a reasonable manner?"
Yes, My Nexus HSPA+, my new Nexus 4, and My Nexus 7 get updates instantly.
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
no. kindle is 100% android so it runs all android apps (theoretically).
Just because it runs all Android apps does not mean it is not a modified version of Android. It has for example a very revised home screen, and a whole different app store.
What if you wanted to write an Android app that modified the Fire home screen when present? That would seem to be against the new Google TOS.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
Not just the carriers. Phone manufacturers do it too. According to samsung my GS1 based phone which is currently running JB CM10 is incapable of running JB. Last official update for my phone was 2.2. Yet the Nexus S with identical internals got the update. Samsung wants me to buy a GS2 or GS3.
"Pure Google" Nexus devices also get updated for good long while. My partner is running official JB on his Nexus S and that device is a good few years old. (I on the other hand had to root and install CM10 on my GS1 variant to get JB). I do agree Apple is good about updates, though. I have a spare 3GS i use for iOS games and i'm able to upgrade to iOS6 even though the device is several generations behind. Apple and Google seem to support their devices legitimately as long as the hardware will support it (and sometimes even too far, as I don't think the iPad 1, with it's extremely limited ram, should have ever gotten iOS5).
Everyone talks about fragmentation without defining what it really means, so the actual consequences get used to back irrelevant pet-peeve prescriptions.
Fragmentation can be the skins manufacturers use to differentiate themselves in a crowded market.
Fragmentation can be the blocks and tweaks Google and Apple do to the app Stores at carrier request, pushing carrier-branded apps you didn't ask for, blocking apps that displease the carrier like tethering or Wallet, building undeletable apps into the ROM that spy on you.
Fragmentation can be geo-blocking, dividing customers into "markets" to facilitate negotiations with content owners or regulators, which all these DRM middlemen do.
Fragmentation can be old versions of Android, since the hardware itself is excessively different and requires a fork for each device, and proprietary drivers and carrier approval worsen this, and no one puts up the funding to keep device forks up to date for every phone in the field until the end of its two-year lease the way Apple does, except cyanogen, but they don't really actually do the work because their stuff is full of regressions, but when I've tried to use it the broken pieces are less annoying than the outdated pieces in the native rom, which is telling for the size of the problem.
Fragmentation can be old ARM cpu's that don't support new instructions required for video or other native apps, camera hardware that doesn't do enough preprocessing for the photosphere thingy, touch hardware that garbles multitouch so some gestures don't work, microphones that aren't clear enough for speech recognition, or GTalk video that's disabled because you don't have a front-facing camera. Both Apple and Android face this. Do you still call it fragmentation if all the developer has to do is disable the feature? They still have to "test", though, and do we are about fragmentation from the developer's perspective or the user's?
Fragmentation can even be "inbox fragmentation," what the blackberry didn't have: GTalk, G+ Messenger, GVoice SMS, and GMail are separate inboxes on Android, while on the desktop web client you can read all of them from one GMail inbox. That shows the "pet peeve prescription" angle of fragmentation ranting.
so, are they talking about yet another kind of fragmentation, or trying to solve one of these?
Please demand that people be more specific when you hear "fragmentation."
???
Yep, I just got an update for my Nexus 7 yesterday.