MicroxWin Creates Linux Distribution That Runs Debian/Ubuntu & Android Apps

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

MicroxWin Creates Linux Distribution That Runs Debian/Ubuntu & Android Apps

Posted by samzenpus on Sunday July 20, 2014 @01:39AM from the all-in-one dept.

An anonymous reader writes VolksPC who developed MicroXwin as a lightweight X Window Server has come up with their own Linux distribution. Setting apart VolksPC's distribution from others is that it's based on both Debian and Android and has the capability to run Debian/Ubuntu/Android apps together in a native ARM experience. The implementation doesn't depend on VNC or other similar solutions of the past that have tried to join desktop apps with mobile Android apps. This distribution is also reportedly compatible with all Android applications. The distribution is expected to begin shipping on an ARM mini-PC stick.

30 of 42 comments (clear)

Min score:

Reason:

Sort:

Android on my pi? by johnsie · 2014-07-20 01:45 · Score: 4, Interesting

Apparently there are no stable releases of Android for the Raspberry PI. I would prefer to have the whole Android distro on my phone, but I guess this is the nexr best thing. Looking forward to testinging it.
1. Re:Android on my pi? by tepples · 2014-07-20 01:55 · Score: 1
  
  I wonder how much of that has to do with the tendency among Android app publishers to make their products exclusive to Google Play Store, which is (legally) available only on devices with preloaded Android OS. This makes AOSP distributions undesirable to end users.
2. Re:Android on my pi? by johnsie · 2014-07-20 02:24 · Score: 1
  
  Why did they use closed hardware? I think my next board is going to be a riotboard.
3. Re:Android on my pi? by johnsie · 2014-07-20 02:27 · Score: 1
  
  As an android developer I do the same. Google Play is very convenient for developers. Most of my apps seem to magically appear on other marketplaces anyway after they go on Play. I've heard it was because some of the broadcom components of the PI are closed source.
4. Re:Android on my pi? by Grench · 2014-07-20 02:28 · Score: 1
  
  Broadcom have open-sourced the chip used on the Pi now (as I recall, this is including the source for the Videocore GPU); I think that was always the RPi Foundation's intention, but it's only recently made it through the legal processes.
  Folk are working on Android for the Pi - it is coming. Personally, I hope this distro gets ported to the Pi, because having a full Debian instance, with the ability to run Android apps within a window (much like Wine does for Windows applications within Linux), gives users the best of both worlds.
  
  --
  He's Jesus, for Christ's sake.
5. Re:Android on my pi? by mpe · 2014-07-20 02:40 · Score: 1
  
  I wonder how much of that has to do with the tendency among Android app publishers to make their products exclusive to Google Play Store, which is (legally) available only on devices with preloaded Android OS. This makes AOSP distributions undesirable to end users.
  
  On the other hand any kind of "app store" in an "enterprise environment" where installing any kind of software is about the last thing "end users" should be doing.
6. Re:Android on my pi? by tepples · 2014-07-20 02:49 · Score: 1
  
  If you can't put your apps on Amazon for some of reason, why don't you make your apps available for sideloading from your own web site?
7. Re:Android on my pi? by dreamchaser · 2014-07-20 03:04 · Score: 1
  
  Unfortunately that cat has long escaped the bag. As a security professional I think that BYOD and the like is a horrible idea, but most organizations have shortsightedly embraced it because a) it's cheaper (no need to pay for mobile devices) and b) they got sick of the bitching and moaning. So now we have a bunch of people running around on the enterprise network with their own devices that they have full control of.
8. Re:Android on my pi? by Narishma · 2014-07-20 06:03 · Score: 3, Interesting
  
  They haven't opensource it. What they did is release documentation for it, and the RPi foundation has hired someone to work on an open source driver.
  
  --
  Mada mada dane.
9. Re:Android on my pi? by Grench · 2014-07-20 10:57 · Score: 1
  
  Ah, my mistake. Hopefully it won't be too long before there is no more reliance on a closed-source blob though.
  
  --
  He's Jesus, for Christ's sake.
10. Re: Android on my pi? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-20 12:03 · Score: 1
  
  The idea that you didn't have already is complete fantasy. In most enterprises you can just go to a random meeting room and plug in. In others, more advanced techniques would be needed but hardly something you could call "hacking". If you can't deal with BYOD then you aren't ready to deal with reality.
11. Re:Android on my pi? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-07-20 13:29 · Score: 1
  
  Apparently there are no stable releases of Android.
  Fixed That For You.
  Fixed that for your Apple-owned SMM sockpuppet handlers, you mean.
  Nearly three billion Android devices are currently active, compared to around 500 million of your adored iOS.
  That means there's more than enough data available to determine which is the more stable OS.
  And unsurprisingly to everyone except Apple shills, Crittercism has found that even though iOS 7.1 is Apple’s most stable release yet, the latest software still has a crash rate of 1.6%.
  On the other hand, Android versions KitKat, Ice Cream Sandwich and Jelly Bean all have crash rates of just 0.7%. Even Gingerbread appears to be more stable than any iOS version before 7.1. All in all, you're are significantly less likely to crash on an Android device than on an iPhone, iPad or iPod touch.
  http://pages.crittercism.com/m...
12. Re:Android on my pi? by johnsie · 2014-07-23 10:36 · Score: 1
  
  If people sideload my app they wont receive automatic updates. I guess I could put an update downloader into the app though. I regularly update my apps.
13. Re: Android on my pi? by dreamchaser · 2014-07-24 14:01 · Score: 1
  
  Bullshit. In many enterprises that I've done work with there is 802.1x in place. You do *not* have the ability to just plug in anywhere.
Sailfish could do this as well by CRCulver · 2014-07-20 01:54 · Score: 4, Interesting

Nokia N900 owners can tell you of installing EasyDebian on their phones to run e.g. desktop Firefox and LibreOffice. As Sailfish inherits much of the same functionality, and it can run Android apps, I imagine that we might see EasyDebian on Jolla phones eventually. Apparently the only obstacle is that EasyDebian requires X11, but Sailfish doesn't have it, but this may be resolved with increasing uptake of Wayland within the Debian project.
RPI by wb8nbs · 2014-07-20 02:11 · Score: 1

Somebody try this on a Raspberry Pi!
1. Re:RPI by johnsie · 2014-07-20 02:20 · Score: 1
  
  No download available on their site.
"Just another WordPress site" by Bing+Tsher+E · 2014-07-20 02:40 · Score: 3, Informative

When I go to the main volkspc.org url, it's titled 'Just another WordPress site". When I look at all the links on the page, it's essentially several categories of vapor. Some photoshopped images of 'hardware' and even a 'software' page with a single YouTube video to watch, and no links whatsoever to any software. The only link on the FAQ page is titled 'unified distribution' but just loops back to the 'sofware' page with it's YouTube video.
It certainly looks like 'just another WordPress site' to me.
Can't await by angel'o'sphere · 2014-07-20 02:59 · Score: 1

Something like this should run on ebook readers like the Nook or the Kobo.
That would be something!

--
Cost free eBook I read (by iBook/Kobo/Amazon/ObookO/Gutenberg etc.): "The Green Odyssey" by Philip Jose Farmer.
Move along by emblemparade · 2014-07-20 03:43 · Score: 3, Informative

No software downloads, and apparently not open source nor free software. And also their hardware is not yet available.
Who tagged this "Ubuntu"? No relation.
1. Re:Move along by vandamme · 2014-07-21 04:36 · Score: 1
  
  Maybe they learned promotion from Mark Shuttlesworth.
Re:"here on the Android side" by ray-auch · 2014-07-20 04:35 · Score: 1

AC above beat me to it - my thoughts exactly.
Take designed-for-desktop/laptop-mouse+keyboard Linux stuff and bolt it together with designed-for-mobile+touch+one-app-fullscreen Android stuff on the same device.
Nope, can't see what could possibly go wrong, sure it will be entirely intuitive and seamless... after all Win 8 was.
Re:"here on the Android side" by Rob+Y. · 2014-07-20 06:59 · Score: 1

You have a point. Of course, there are differences. This gives you desktop apps on ARM, unlike Windows RT. And the mobile apps you get are Android ones - i.e., there are mobile apps. The joining of the two is just as awkward (perhaps even more so) than in windows 8. But at least you're getting the apps you want - and oh, by the way, it's all free. It would be nicer if they somehow managed to run Android apps windowed on the Debian side - kind of like Windows 9 is promising to do...

--
Posted from my Android phone. Oh, I can change this? There, that's better...
Re:"here on the Android side" by jedidiah · 2014-07-20 06:59 · Score: 1

In other words: "because Microsoft can't do then no one can".
The entire history of computing pretty much points out how wrong that proposition is. It's more like "If Micrososft can't do it then EVERYONE ELSE can, will, and have done it for 10 years prior".
Just use a little intelligence or barring that, allow the end user to decide which mode to operate. Also don't GUT one of the modes in question while you're at it.

--
A Pirate and a Puritan look the same on a balance sheet.
Re:Drivel by Runaway1956 · 2014-07-20 06:59 · Score: 1

Unfortunately not. What is going to happen is, a bunch of marketing clowns are going to latch onto that term, and publicize it far and wide before the year is out.

--
"Windows is like the faint smell of piss in a subway: it's there, and there's nothing you can do about it." - Charlie Br
Re:"here on the Android side" by exomondo · 2014-07-20 11:17 · Score: 1

In other words: "because Microsoft can't do then no one can".
It's not just Microsoft there's also Ubuntu's Unity and the pretty much universally unused Launchpad in OSX then you have this VolksPC implementation which if anything is even more jarring than Windows 8. There's been hardware to do it with for years now, even Microsoft's own Surface Pro line can run Linux and Android. I'm not saying it's impossible just because nobody has done it, but there's been ample time and still nobody has got it even close yet.

It's more like "If Micrososft can't do it then EVERYONE ELSE can, will, and have done it for 10 years prior".
So where is it then?
Re:Drivel by goarilla · 2014-07-20 21:54 · Score: 1

I guess it means that the apk's run on Dalvik or Art straight on the machine instead of in the emulator.
Re:Drivel by ahaweb · 2014-07-21 06:34 · Score: 1

What about the NDK, which most apps use?
Two words: No Fuck! by Optali · 2014-07-21 07:39 · Score: 1

I need it !! Mate, I'm totally going to install that on my ancient Acer ONE!!!

--
-- 29A the number of the Beast
Amazon Appstore updates itself by tepples · 2014-07-23 10:45 · Score: 1

That'd be something consider. Amazon, for comparison, had to make its own updater for Amazon Appstore.