Google Posts Images, Binaries For New Nexus 7

In the wake of AOSP maintainer Jean-Baptiste Quéru's resignation, there was speculation that there would be no factory images or binary drivers released for Google's new Nexus 7 tablet. Happily, that's not the case — whatever other open source gaps there are in the Android world, Ars reports that those images and binaries have been released for the Nexus 7.

Comments

you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Anonymous Coward]

Get an iPad instead, there's more apps and the ecosystem is far far more secure anyway.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Anonymous Coward]

Get an iPad instead, there's more apps and the ecosystem is far far more secure anyway.

I'll take neither. Apple is one of the few companies I trust less than Google.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[SnapperHead]

I am a long time Apple fanboy, really love the iPad. But honestly, I am starting to get annoyed with some missing customizations that Android has had for ages. Not talking themes.

For example: Intents. iOS 6 looked like Apple was headed that way with the way you share pictures or links. However, only a few select companies are integrated with it. I want to be able to add a screenshot right into Evernote. Use a different "read later" provider. I use Chrome on the desktop, which doesn't integrate with iCloud reader. Same thing goes for bookmarks. I use xmarks for syncing across multiple machines and I primarily use Chrome. Xmarks is also awesome for having work profiles. iOS xmarks integration is very limited because of Apple.

Widgets: I can't believe that after all these years of widgets in OS X they haven't brought them over to iOS. It would be very nice to have a dashboard for lets say system status at work. I don't want anything too abusive on system resources, but allowing one of these widgets to update in the background or via notifications would be awesome.

I was honestly considering picking up a Nexus 7 once the LTE version is announced. The announcement of factory images for the Nexus 7 has sealed the deal for me. Will I customize it to that level ? Not sure. But I would like the option.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Anonymous Coward]

Could you possibly get any more deluded than being able to say this with a straight face? I'm not saying Google's any better, but holy moly. Enjoy your perceived security, and your inability to see past your obvious bias.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[erroneus]

Oh why am I responding to this? Dumb I guess.

The whoie thing about Google devices and the AOSP is that people can get the source and make their own custom (filtered and examined) system load. And the reason many of us will use the Google devices at all is because of AOSP. AOSP gives us the chance to trust the platform a little more than we would if it were completely closed.

Now there are lots of binary blobs in this and that's disturbing enough, but at least it narrows down potential sources of any compromises of unwanted data movement and such. (And there are definitely people who are watching the data I/O from their devices. We've had some stories right here on Slashdot on that very topic.)

But the other thing I wanted to add to this is that while "the drama is over" the damage is still done. We lost a guy with much experience on the matter. (I don't know the guy personally. Was he good at his job? Don't know... but who is doing it now?)

Trusting Google is a hard thing to do. It's getting harder and harder. But trusitng Microsoft and Apple is even harder still. So there just aren't so many options.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Anonymous Coward]

It's worth noting that there is a difference between factory images and the actual driver blobs necessary to build your own, fully functional device using AOSP code. Fortunately in this case, both have been provided.

Binary drivers: https://developers.google.com/android/nexus/drivers#razor
Factory images: https://developers.google.com/android/nexus/images#razor

Sure, you can probably pull the drivers from the factory images with enough effort, but it's probably illegal and definitely inconvenient. It is a shame that Qualcomm seems to be making this so difficult for the community though.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Nerdfest]

Respond all you want, until you start paying, these FUD attacks will continue. FaceBook was caught funding them, and there's almost zero reason to believe others aren't still.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Anonymous Coward]

Add to that: NFC, one click toggling, multi-user profiles, etc. It's really getting hard to see Apple as a market leader anymore. It's almost like they are asleep at the wheel. Come on Apple, lift your game! Makes you wonder about this supposed 5 year plan that Jobsy talked about in his bio. I always thought that was BS, and i'm almost certain it was.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[93 Escort Wagon]

Add to that: NFC, one click toggling, multi-user profiles, etc.

I've yet to see NFC used in the wild; but in the last six months several of the businesses I frequent (including the grocery store we shop at) have adopted Apple's Passbook.

I agree that toggles are very handy - that was one thing I missed when I switched from an Android phone to an iPhone. SBSettings is great, but we shouldn't have to jailbreak for the feature. I'm looking forward to seeing how the toggles they demoed in iOS 7 work.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Aranykai]

I have a tag in my car dock that turns on GPS, bluetooth and maxes screen brightness(It could set car mode, but I don't like it). Use it multiple times a day, but I guess that's not in the wild enough for some people.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[beanpoppa]

Every supermarket, drug store, most modern gas station pumps, etc, all use NFC readers on their credit card machines, and I use them all the time with Google wallet on my GS3. You see, unlike Apple which requires merchants to adopt something special to work with their walled garden, Google wallet with NFC works with the eco system that's already out there.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[93 Escort Wagon]

Every grocery store loyalty card I've seen uses a bar code scanner - not NFC.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[phantomfive]

I am starting to get annoyed with some missing customizations that Android has had for ages. Not talking themes. For example: Intents.

Heh, a few years ago I did a job interview with Apple and suggested intents as a way that Android was more flexible than Cocoa Touch (and I really like Cocoa). Bad idea, not only was I unable to explain it in a way they understood, I also didn't get any more interviews.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[swillden]

Trusting Google is a hard thing to do.

The really funny thing is that this conversation about it being hard to trust Google is in response to an article disclosing that Google has fulfilled its promises and, indeed, been trustworthy.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Anonymous Coward]

I see NFC used all the time in the wild. A good 20-40% of the stores I visit accept Visa PayWave or similar.

On the flipside, I have seen 0 PB.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[ppanon]

Every grocery store loyalty card I've seen uses a bar code scanner - not NFC.

That's because they're loyalty cards. They don't really care about security and they want something that's cheap for them and which doesn't require their customers to own a smartphone. But as of a year+ ago, all new/renewed Visa and Mastercard plastic in Canada comes with "contact" transaction capability. Unfortunately, NFC also happens to be fundamentally insecure and makes it easy for somebody to charge up to $100 on your card elsewhere. I have a Faraday cage wallet because I've been burned once and the last thing I want is the same thing on my phone.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[AmiMoJo]

That's how iOS is designed to be. It's pretty much all-or-nothing, you use Apple products for everything or you can't integrate/sync your stuff.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Anonymous Coward]

Your environment is not the one everybody else's. Where I leave merchants, banks and public government institutions don't even know what NFC is nor how would you know how to use it. Spain, after all, is a 4th world country, far behind Africa where they pay with their mobiles.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Raenex]

Google has fulfilled its promises and, indeed, been trustworthy.

If Google was trustworthy we'd have the source for blobs and there wouldn't have been a delay in the first place, and the Google employee in change of AOSP wouldn't have resigned from the project.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[drinkypoo]

Are you also doing wireless charging? Otherwise there is zero benefit to your example... even in that case, the device ought to be able to detect that it is charging without NFC

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[swillden]

LOL

Nothing short of perfection is acceptable. Well, go buy that other tablet that satisfies all of your requirements then.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[drinkypoo]

If Google was trustworthy we'd have the source for blobs and there wouldn't have been a delay in the first place

Google still doesn't own all that source. And you really can't expect the source to Google Apps themselves. You get source to everything you need to run the device, except for drivers. That's not up to Google.

I have my own concerns about Google but your objections aren't among them, because they are nonsensical.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Raenex]

Nothing short of perfection is acceptable.

There's a huge gap between perfection, simply following the basic principles of open source, and what Google does. Google could follow the basic principles of open source and release all their source at the same time as they distribute their product. They could do this while being less-than-perfect by giving their "partners" a head start before making releases, like they do now.

Well, go buy that other tablet that satisfies all of your requirements then.

Keep on being an apologist and toady. In the meantime, it's good that others complain when they lapse. Ultimately you will benefit.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Raenex]

Google still doesn't own all that source.

They are in charge. They make the choices about who to partner with and under what agreements.

And you really can't expect the source to Google Apps themselves.

Then they shouldn't use GPL components. At least Apple got it right and went with BSD.

I have my own concerns about Google but your objections aren't among them, because they are nonsensical.

Fuck you too.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[drinkypoo]

Google still doesn't own all that source.

They are in charge. They make the choices about who to partner with and under what agreements.

No, no they don't. Google selects from the available choices. They don't get to write their own ticket. None of the available choices provides what you want. nVidia is beginning to, so you will have a valid complaint eventually.

And you really can't expect the source to Google Apps themselves.

Then they shouldn't use GPL components. At least Apple got it right and went with BSD.

And in this case, you'll have a point when you can show that the Google Apps contain GPL code. You don't understand the licenses you're complaining about.

Fuck you too.

You'd need a ladder.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Anonymous Coward]

I'll take neither. Apple is one of the few companies I trust less than Google because i have the IQ of a donkey.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Anonymous Coward]

Just because a murderer lets occasional victim live, that doesn't suddenly make them a saint.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Pathwalker]

I see NFC used all the time; mainly by people checking the balance of transit cards.

It's really handy to be able to check how much you have left on a card, without waiting in line for one of the machines.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Raenex]

Google selects from the available choices. They don't get to write their own ticket. None of the available choices provides what you want. nVidia is beginning to, so you will have a valid complaint eventually.

So how is it a couple of days after bad press and their employee resigning from the project, the binaries magically get released? Google has bought entire companies to get their way. I find it absurd to think that they really couldn't find somebody to make a chip that didn't have proprietary drivers. They took the easy route.

And in this case, you'll have a point when you can show that the Google Apps contain GPL code. You don't understand the licenses you're complaining about.

I understand just fine. It's that their is a myth that a single line about aggregation invalidates what clearly applies:

" If identifiable sections of that work are not derived from the Program, and can be reasonably considered independent and separate works in themselves, then this License, and its terms, do not apply to those sections when you distribute them as separate works. But when you distribute the same sections as part of a whole which is a work based on the Program, the distribution of the whole must be on the terms of this License, whose permissions for other licensees extend to the entire whole, and thus to each and every part regardless of who wrote it. "

Now idiots like you will tell me that Google Apps aren't being distributed as part of a whole because they aren't linked by a compiler, despite the fact that the GPLv2 contains no such verbiage, and it's obvious that Google is selling a whole product, and not mere aggregation. Take away either the Google Apps or the Linux kernel and the device either loses all its value for Google or doesn't function.

You'd need a ladder.

Yes, that's quite a pedestal you put yourself on.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[drinkypoo]

Now idiots like you will tell me that Google Apps aren't being distributed as part of a whole because they aren't linked by a compiler,

No, idiots like me will tell you that Google Apps aren't being distributed as part of the whole because there are Android devices which are shipped without the Google Apps, and those devices are working fine. The Google Apps are distributed as separate works which are bundled along with the operating system. If your read of the license were correct, no Linux distribution would ever be able to include any non-GPL packages.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Raenex]

No, idiots like me will tell you that Google Apps aren't being distributed as part of the whole because there are Android devices which are shipped without the Google Apps, and those devices are working fine.

That others sell devices without them does not mean it isn't part of the whole package being sold. People buy cars without all kind of optional features, but that doesn't mean the feature isn't part of the car when it is included.

The Google Apps are distributed as separate works which are bundled along with the operating system.

They are bundled as apps that perform an expected function of the device. It's the kind of functionality that users want from mobile devices, and they are essential for Google to make money on the device.

If your read of the license were correct, no Linux distribution would ever be able to include any non-GPL packages.

It's up to copyright holders to enforce their copyright. Most people either don't care or accept the static linking myth. Most distributions ignore trademark issues too, but sometimes they are enforced, as in the Debian vs. Mozilla dispute (which is why I'm typing this comment in "Iceweasel" instead of "Firefox").

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[mjwx]

Trusting Google is a hard thing to do.

The really funny thing is that this conversation about it being hard to trust Google is in response to an article disclosing that Google has fulfilled its promises and, indeed, been trustworthy.

True,

But AOSP means I dont have to trust Google if I dont want to.

Using Occams razor, there are enough skilled people in the community to know if there is any malicious code maintained by Google and that its not possible that all of them are in on the conspiracy (the more people in a conspiracy the less secret it is, the whole "information wants to be free" thing).

People complain that google wants to sell ads and collect some personal information (to sell presumably), Apple and Microsoft are doing the same thing (read the Itunes EULA, Apple reserves the right to sell your information to third parties) however the big difference between Google and Apple/Microsoft is that Google are honest about doing it.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Namarrgon]

I have a similar NFC tag in my car. And yeah, I could get Tasker to use non-data charging as a trigger instead, but I also do non-data charging by my bedside. And since I have a different bluetooth radio there and don't want GPS or max brightness, I use a second NFC tag for that with silent profile, no notification lights and screen dimming instead.

NFC isn't the answer to everything, but it's occasionally quite handy, such as sharing youtube or map links with a quick tap, no app required.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[swillden]

Using Occams razor, there are enough skilled people in the community to know if there is any malicious code maintained by Google and that its not possible that all of them are in on the conspiracy (the more people in a conspiracy the less secret it is, the whole "information wants to be free" thing).

That's a valid point. Another to consider is that Google's culture and the type of people that Google hires accomplish the same thing, even more so than Apple or Microsoft, though honestly the same dynamic occurs there. If your focus is on hiring the brightest and you don't much care if they're particularly housebroken, you'd better not have any deep secrets you want kept. For that matter, the (semi-serious) joke inside Google is that if you're doing anything nefarious you'd better keep it secret from Sergey as well, because he's not particularly housebroken.

People complain that google wants to sell ads and collect some personal information (to sell presumably)

Actually, Google doesn't sell personal information. Google just uses it to target ads, and if you don't want to be targeted you can opt out.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[gweilo8888]

And I've yet to see Passbook in the wild, but NFC is used by my TV (hold my phone or tablet next to a tag and whatever content it is displaying will near-instantly appear on my TV), it is used by every phone and tablet in my house apart from one intended for kids and one made by Apple (and makes transfer of data between phone and tablet ludicrously simple), and it is also used by the Octopus cards that are ubiquitous in Hong Kong (so when I travel in Hong Kong I can monitor my car balance, track recent purchases, etc. simply by holding the card next to my phone). Add to that many other recently-announced devices such as cameras supporting NFC as a seamless, intuitive way to establish a Wi-Fi connection with no user action required beyond simply holding two devices next to each other, and I think you'll agree Apple are onto a non-starter by refusing to adopt NFC. Eventually, they'll come around, because it is a superb technology in terms of ease of use, and adoption is growing extremely quickly.

Re: you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Gen_Music]

No they don't. They are not Apple and are not Gatekeepers to the OS. Anyone can make Android hardware. As for their choices with the Nexus, I sincerely hope they cared more about performance, reliability and breadth of features. I would much rather a product I own have those instead of some paper stating a bunch of legal rights that I might not actually violate. (Because these days there's no recourse for doing something illegal or against this TOS as long as you aren't caught.)

Re: you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Raenex]

No they don't. They are not Apple and are not Gatekeepers to the OS. Anyone can make Android hardware. As for their choices with the Nexus [..]

Since we are talking about the Nexus, which Google controls, your first three sentences are pointless.

I sincerely hope they cared more about performance, reliability and breadth of features. I would much rather a product I own have those instead of some paper stating a bunch of legal rights that I might not actually violate. (Because these days there's no recourse for doing something illegal or against this TOS as long as you aren't caught.)

It's about being able to run the open source Android version on the device by being given the tools to do so. Google likes to wrap itself in the open source flag for publicity and other benefits, but then ignores open source principles as they please.

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[tlhIngan]

And I've yet to see Passbook in the wild

That's the beauty of it - passbook works because you don't need new equipment to handle it - your existing scanners should "just work" with it.

Scan a barcode that passbook displays and you're done.

Of course, I wonder how good NFC is at longer distances (anything RF can be came to work at longer than designed for distances). I mean, if you have an NFC reader, can you extend the field somewhat so you can track people using NFC? I mean, I'm presuming there's at least an ID aspect to it...

If not, bumping into people's butts and purses would be a swell way to read dozens of credit card information (you get all the track 2 data via NFC).

Re:you know what they say: you cant trust google

[gweilo8888]

No, that's not the beauty of it. Allow me to repeat: I have not seen anybody using it or even providing the ability to use it locally. And far from my "existing scanners ... just [working] with it", I would need to replace almost anything I own to get any real use out of it even at home, let alone in the real world. It's a minority app designed for a minority operating system.

Re: you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Gen_Music]

1. It's extremely relevant. The same anyone that can make the hardware for a Android device will also be making the driver for each subset of hardware, or provide blueprints of the hardware for Google (or ASUS) to build drivers from. They will have made those drivers long before Google ever came to cherry-pick it's hardware in the first place and demanding that they FOSS their drivers is something I'm quite sure many device manufacturers would flat out say no to. In the Nexus' example ASUS definitely would not have made the hardware drivers for the Tegra, because there is simply too many trade secrets to be lost fronm Nvidia in giving them the blueprints and a JTAG'd dev device.

The same secrets that could be lost in giving them unblobbed drivers. Hell, Nvidia don't even give Linux unblobbed drivers and if they did it would be a nerfed version with all of their speed trickery removed so as not to give ground to AMD.

2. Google has done everything it safely can. EVERYTHING. The only thing it could do more is open source the Play market, and if it did you'd have cracked markets appearing in days. All of your directed complaints are actually the fault of others, and even then are done within good reason so I think your idealism is a little flawed.

Re: you know what they say: you cant trust google

[Raenex]

They will have made those drivers long before Google ever came to cherry-pick it's hardware in the first place and demanding that they FOSS their drivers is something I'm quite sure many device manufacturers would flat out say no to.

I repeat again, it's Google's choice who to partner with. AMD bought ATI out flat and have gone the open source route. Intel has gone the open source route. You're telling me that a company with the size and weight of Google had no choice but to pick a blob graphics chip, and even the blob was held up by lawyers until some bad press hit.

Google has done everything it safely can. EVERYTHING.

Putting your excuse in caps doesn't make it true.

Apple is EVIL

[Anonymous Coward]

Jumping from frying pan to fire is stupid. Not saying other companies aren't, but Apple is EVIL. I will boycott Apple forever!

Re:Apple is EVIL

[Anonymous Coward]

Google and apple are evil on the same level. If you think either are better than th other you are fooling yourself.

Re:Apple is EVIL

[Anonymous Coward]

Google and apple are evil on the same level. If you think either are better than th other you are fooling yourself.

In the same sense that China and the United States are evil on the same level, I agree.

Re:Apple is EVIL

[Anonymous Coward]

Google and apple are evil on the same level. If you think either are better than th other you are fooling yourself.

In the same sense that China and the United States are evil on the same level, I agree.

13 years ago that would have presented quite a dichotomy. Now China and the US are just about the same when it comes to evil, which gives me great sadness.

Re:Apple is EVIL

[fredprado]

That only means you are able to see it now. US wasn't purer or better 13 years ago, nor China was more wicked.

Re:Apple is EVIL

[petermgreen]

They are "evil" in different ways.

Apple is strongly pushing locked down "curated computing" devices where you have little choice* but to buy all your apps from their appstore

Google is providing devices where there are officially allowed (i.e. unlikely to dissapear) ways to unlock the bootloader and do whatever you like to the device and are releasing the sourcecode for their OS (minus a handful of third party blobs). OTOH they are also pushing software as a service and all the crap that brings with it (features you need can dissapear at any time and you have no recourse, your data is far more readilly available to the spooks than it would be on your own machines). Then there is the whole fiasco of replacing talk (open federated platform) with hangouts (closed platform).

* You can register as a developer for an annual fee or you can hack the device in ways that are unsupported and may become unusable at any time.

Re:Apple is EVIL

[Anonymous Coward]

Apple's curated computing is a blessing to less-technical computing. For all it's faults, Apple really does put forward a very easy and very useful computing platform for people that don't care to use computers.

Apple goes to bat against other more consumer-hostile orgs and, for a price, brings their users quite a bit of benefit. It's easy to take it for granted but for those that remember Apple really brought a lot of things that we now consider standard:

Music - There were online music stores before itunes, but apple through their weight against record companies and made it easy and reasonable to buy music online, and easy to get it on to a music player. They were not the first, but they were the first worth using.

Smart phones - Windows mobile was king. It was nice. I had a really great HTC wizard, but it was still a half-assed version of windows turned half-assed phone. (We browsing was a novelty and not really useful. Apps were.. Well, if you've ever loaded an app on to a CE based device you'll know the pain I'm talking about) The iphone obliterated all of that. More importantly they stood up to wireless cariers and forced a consistent and clean end-user experience. No carrier crapware on iphones. No nickle and diming for standard features. The iphone is an apple experience, not a carrier experience. (Carriers are scum. Anyone who pays a cell phone bill knows this)

Smart phone apps - Simple, unified, easy. Payment is easy. Selling is easy. Everything works. This was a novelty back then.

I own an ipad. I've handed it to so many people that "hate computers" only to see them buy one of their own within a week. It's that good.

Re:Apple is EVIL

[Anonymous Coward]

Google...OTOH they are also pushing software as a service and all the crap that brings with it...your data is far more readilly available to the spooks than it would be on your own machines

I take it you've never heard of iCloud.

Google:

[Anonymous Coward]

"Yeah, we really just wanted that dick to quit."

Same moronic moaning

[Anonymous Coward]

Every season the usual idiots tell us Google won't release the source and binaries for new, proper Android devices, and every season the usual idiots are proven wrong. Why does Slashdot keep dribbling this same old rubbish?

There is ZERO mystery as to what Android is, or what strategy it is pursuing. Too many cretins who claim some expertise in computing actually don't know the first thing about the subject. Look at all the morons who claim 'protected path' for DRM video rendering in Android somehow "locks the device down". One minute of research explains exactly what the 'protected path' initiative actually is, and how it will NEVER infringe on the ability to decode non-DRM video.

The REAL question about Google's relationship with Android is when they will finally release the DESKTOP version, and provide a free alternative to XP, Vista, Win7, Win8 and all the funny Linux distributions no-one wants to use that way. Most Android hardware is already far better than the first PCs that ran XP. Google merely has to choose a windows interface and shell, and stand behind that choice. The current Android kernel and API sets are already good enough (although they can always be improved for the coming muti-core 64-bit ARM parts).

In the meantime, the new Nexus 7 is a killer tablet that shames Apple, Microsoft, Intel and Nvidia. It projects Qualcomm to the top of the game as the 'new' Intel. And this is before Qualcomm even goes A15 or one of the new 64-bit cores. And worse for Intel, Qualcomm has the leading GPU solution in its space.

Again, for those to thick to get it- Google is NOT going to close source Android. It is NOT going to prevent you from watching your own videos, or reading your own books, regardless of the source or the file format. This would be technically impossible, since by design Android gives apps access to their own rendering surface, just like Windows. Now, if only Google would make the new Android (desktop version) as much like XP on the surface, a true workhorse desktop/laptop OS for people who need to get things done, we could actually move into a true post-Microsoft era.

Re:Same moronic moaning

[whoop]

... but they could.

That's the entirety of every fear-mongering article of anything in the tech sector. Sure, right now DOOM is the latest awesomeness in graphics, but they could release their next game as a text adventure. That will be the end of graphics entirely. We cannot stand for this! We must revolt now, before the end is here!! Aaaaarrrrrgggghhhhhh.

Re:Same moronic moaning

[phantomfive]

The REAL question about Google's relationship with Android is when they will finally release the DESKTOP version,

They're waiting until they can license the patents and source from SCO......

Re:Same moronic moaning

[Anonymous Coward]

Thank you for the posting, Google employee.

Re:Same moronic moaning

[Raenex]

Every season the usual idiots tell us Google won't release the source and binaries for new, proper Android devices, and every season the usual idiots are proven wrong. Why does Slashdot keep dribbling this same old rubbish?

Yeah, that idiot employee at Google, the one in charge of their open source release, resigned from the project because he couldn't do his job, and then miraculously a couple of days later the binaries get released.

Nope, nobody should ever complain. We should all trust Google and their partners to eventually release the goods when the time is right.

Re:Same moronic moaning

[Anonymous Coward]

The REAL question about Google's relationship with Android is when they will finally release the DESKTOP version, and provide a free alternative to XP, Vista, Win7, Win8 and all the funny Linux distributions no-one wants to use that way.

Once the remaining game development shops adopt modern OpenGL and continue to ditch DirectX since you have to write for both right now anyway. At least if you are a big commercial games shop. Once that is in play and there is a resealable amount of software for people will start to focus on it.

So soon, very soon!

I'm not a Microsoft hater either, very much the opposite. So to me it's still just hardware running software but I'm ready!

Re:Same moronic moaning

[vomitology]

While it's true that Google is "NOT going to prevent you from watching your own videos, or reading your own books, regardless of the source or the file format", it does seem to treat user-provided content like a second-class citizen compared to Play content. When I added a few video files to my Nexus 7, it took me almost 10 minutes to figure out how to actually play them, and when I did find them, they showed up as nameless video thumbnails.

Android or Chrome OS

[tepples]

The REAL question about Google's relationship with Android is when they will finally release the DESKTOP version

I was under the impression that Google intended to segment the market into Chrome OS for laptops and desktops and Android for tablets and phones.

Re:Android or Chrome OS

[ifiwereasculptor]

That seems to be the case. Non-Google Android sticks that plug into TVs are sort of desktops, though, and have been around for some time. The newer ones, based on RK3188, are quite powerful. It's gaining ground faster than Android x86 and, as soon as some company makes an ARM processor that focuses on speed over power consumption, perhaps with active cooling, we'll have proper desktop Android, regardless of Google's plans.

Re:Android or Chrome OS

[aNonnyMouseCowered]

..."as soon as some company makes an ARM processor that focuses on speed over power consumption, perhaps with active cooling"...

No, no, please, not another hornet in the room. A couple more watts to push the performance envelope are okay for a non-mobile system, but active cooling is the one evil in personal computing I wish would die a quick death. Typed from my buzzing AMD HTPC.

Re:Android or Chrome OS

[Tough Love]

I was under the impression that Google intended to segment the market into Chrome OS for laptops and desktops and Android for tablets and phones.

Another way of segmenting the market is: products people want and products people do not want. The market has sent Google a clear message that if the gadget looks like a laptop then it better act like a laptop. As it stands, Chromebook sells only a bit better than Surface RT. Well, they make pretty good Linux laptops so from that point of view I hope Google keeps selling them. But if Google really wants an entry point to the "real computer" market then they would be better off playing the Android card. Of course that would mean adding a real window manager. Mandatory full screen is just not something laptop users are ever going to accept.

My prediction: Google is just going to keep beating this dead horse because if there is one thing Google has more of than anything else, it's hubris.

Re:Android or Chrome OS

[drinkypoo]

I was under the impression that Google intended to segment the market into Chrome OS for laptops and desktops and Android for tablets and phones.

What gave you that impression? I see no evidence that Google even wants to be involved with desktops. (On the other hand, Mobile Firefox 23 for Android has mouse-over support... I will have to fire up my full desktop just that much less now.)

Re: Android or Chrome OS

[Gen_Music]

ARM is flawed in a way that lends well to efficiency and terribly to raw speed. Trying to make a 35 or evenis 100 watt ARM chip to compete with even a low clocked i3 will yield embarrassing results

No changes

[Anonymous Coward]

Tablets and smartphones are still useless crap that hurts the users stupid enough to buy them. (same goes for Google and even more for Apple).

Sell a product on which i can insert a Debian business card install disk and i may consider buying it. The bootloader and gpu driver would have to be open sourced too though.

And concerning all the retards filming in public by brandishing their tablet over their heads, sometimes i dream i could just walk down the streets and shoot them on the spot or decapitate them by the swing of a shovel.

Re:No changes

[Anonymous Coward]

don't forget the retards that make films in portait mode as they don't realise you need to turn the ipad sideways

Re:No changes

[wjcofkc]

You can still find n900 Nokia phones. They run Debian, X, you can even run a terminal as root. It's pretty much a full Linux install on a phone. It's only 3g and the keyboard is only 3 rows, but the screen is nice enough that running full applications like Open Office is not a bad experience. Admittedly, I know nothing about what carriers might support them though.

Re:No changes

[Anonymous Coward]

That phone has the same major problem as any other phone/tablet - the drivers (especially for the PowerVR SGX530 GPU) are binary-only limiting the available Linux kernel version to the exact version of every official Maemo/Meego release. That is 2.6.2x if I remember correctly.

Re:No changes

[Anonymous Coward]

I wish you would have logged in, or at least signed your name, so we could let you know when we were done redefining our business plans and product development to meet your specific requirements and tastes. Alas, we'll have to keep slogging along the path we're on with no way to get your final approval of our efforts. Maybe next time.

Sincerely,
The Entire Fucking Technology Sector

Re:No changes

[Anonymous Coward]

Sorry for not being an ignorant and a slave.

You can't even possibly satisfy me until i can download the whole cpu sources from opencores to build my own secure clone anyway.

I would at least have expected from the people on the oldest tech site i know not to be on that side of the sheep fence.

If some have to stand up against the whole angry birds and 150chars limited keyboardless brainless puking debilitation then it should be "us".

I don't own one of those products as i consider it useless (as in "not efficient for any productive purpose") and damageable nor do i plan plan on buying one during the next decade.

Those devices and their capabilities reflect the un-users buying it: ignorant, lazy, worthless, narrow minded, helpless.

Sorry but i have to poop and i'm not even aware on how to put the seat down so i might just crap on the floor instead. And don't try to tell me it's disgusting because: "The Entire Fucking Floor Technology Sector" is releasing expensive floors for ignorant people to shit on.

Re:No changes

[Anonymous Coward]

what in the fuck are you talking about?

I'll still take my chances with Tizen on Samsung,

[Anonymous Coward]

thank you very much.

Google's Andoid is an abuse of open source by people who still live in the world of organized crime, with the schizophrenic mindset of obsessively trying to control a piece of software just so they can act like one could "own" information, while at the same time handing a copy to literally everyone without any possibility of control or oversight, *proving* how utterly impossible that is.
I cannot trust people with that kind of cognitive dissonance. Let alone that kind of power greed and insecurity.

My hopes lie with Samsung's announcement to gain independence from Google, by focusing on Tizen as their main OS in the future, and that giving us proper Linux drivers so I can roll my own system using Gentoo. But I don't even need phone call functionality. Data connections suffice, as I'm gonna rely solely on XMPP/Jingle with a Skype/SIP/ISDN gateway on my server for the transition time. (If Jitsi can do it, so can my app. Thanks to open source.)

Re: I'll still take my chances with Tizen on Samsu

[Anonymous Coward]

Good luck. I thought OS/2 was going to save the world, then I had my hopes on BeOS, then Linux. Hurd is what people should be working on, GPL3 stuff.

Google is infarctioning GPL time to sic the lawers

[Anonymous Coward]

Sick up with the lamos that put up binaries with no source. Call the lawers out to get them. G.P.P. must not stand by this episode of malaysensce. Wo is in agreemnet.?

Quite literally killer tablet

[Anonymous Coward]

In the meantime, the new Nexus 7 is a killer tablet that shames Apple, Microsoft, Intel and Nvidia.

Yes, it's a killer tablet for sure. Most companies though that providing GPS services on demand all the time was sufficient, but the Nexus7 has shown the world how superior a tablet can be by taking away that GPS crutch after ten minutes or so and letting you "man up" in terms of finding your way around without electronic assistance.

  Just hope you are not lost in a desert with only a Nexus 7 unless you have a really good sense of direction.

The only thing I like about the Google devices

[aNonnyMouseCowered]

Amazingly while we hear the usual moaning about the lack of downloadable firmware Google is actually among the fastest to release factory images for their products. No, I'm not talking about Google having a first shot at compiling the latest Android sources for Nexus X Y or Z. I'm talking about companies not releasing firmware for products that are already being sold with that firmware installed. What's preventing these companies from making available a freely downloadable backup of firmware that's already in the device anyway?

Also, the Google firmware update process is among the friendliest for people who don't own Windows computers. Upgrading most China-branded tablets require the use of a special USB "burning" tool that simply does the GUI'fied equivalent of "dd of=image_file if=some_device". A few tablet models give you the option to copy the upgrade files to an sdcard that you can then boot up using a special hardware button combination (e.g. Power Button + Volume Button Up or Down).

Is a Windows-free upgrade really that hard to implement? OTA or at least internal device-based upgrades should be a feature burned into the DNA of the next Android version and not implemented as an afterthought by companies whose idea of product support is uploading a rar file to Baidu.com.

Re:The only thing I like about the Google devices

[rmcd]

Did you get your dd command backwards? Shouldn't it be "dd if=image_file of=some_device"?

I realize you weren't writing a dd howto, but it's a potentially dangerous utility.

Re:I'll still take my chances with Tizen on Samsun

[MrHanky]

What makes you believe Samsung will be any more open source friendly than Google? They have no history of that, quite the contrary. Also, https://developer.tizen.org/forums/sdk-ide/tizen-sdk-licensing-makes-whole-tizen-not-open-source

Is there a point of posting images of the phone?

[mapkinase]

Is there a point of posting images of the phone nowadays? They all look the same.

Re:Is there a point of posting images of the phone

[Anonymous Coward]

Is there a point of posting images of the phone nowadays? They all look the same.

You might think they look the same, but you need to look closer. They must not look the same, because if they did look the same apple would sue them.

Re:Is there a point of posting images of the phone

[leptechie]

You do realise this article is about a tablet, right?