Ubuntu Touch/Tablet Is Using SurfaceFlinger

[Figueiredo]

It's funny how people in these forums start to moan and complain about things that are only in their own heads.

According to this post ubuntu touch *does not use bionic*, it uses libhybris which allows the use of android drivers with glibc.

So ubuntu touch is not that much of android, but not that much of GNU either, it is its own thing. With regard to the push for SurfaceFlinger on the desktop, we will have to wait and see. But the desktop and touch interfaces will most probably remain very different beasts for quite some time. Since X is all the desktop blobs support right now.

Before moaning about whatever display server canonical might be pushing, remember this one thing: *it must be supported by the blobs*. The only GPU more or less well supported by open drivers is intel's. All the other ARM SoCs or desktop GPUs require blobs, end of story. Consumers mostly buy notebooks, which should not melt when ubuntu is installed.

Either ubuntu gets big enough so that canonical can convince GPU makers to write drivers for their own display server, or they are bound to use the display servers (or a fork thereof) that is already supported by GPU makers.

That said, I do believe it would be easier to convince AMD/nVidia to support SurfaceFlinger than to convince *everyone* to support wayland (how are they so much different anyway?). If someone else does that or manages to write good open drivers for every GPU under the sun, then I'm sure canonical would reconsider.

[dnebdal]

I'll tell you the same when every single Linux desktop app runs on Wayland and not on some crap from android.

Is there anything objectively wrong with SurfaceFlinger, or is it just that you don't happen to like the project it's from?

[blackout23]

WAHAHAHA.

Tell me that again when Canonical successfully modifies and recompiles every single Linux desktop app that relies on X to run on SurfaceFlinger.

Everyone has the right to talk some bullshit.

WAHAHAHA.

Tell me that again when Canonical successfully modifies and recompiles every single Linux desktop app that relies on X to run on SurfaceFlinger.

I'll tell you the same when every single Linux desktop app runs on Wayland and not on some crap from android.

[Sonadow]

I think they'll use SurfaceFlinger for desktop as well and this is the reason I won't support Ubuntu anymore.

WAHAHAHA.

Tell me that again when Canonical successfully modifies and recompiles every single Linux desktop app that relies on X to run on SurfaceFlinger.

[blackout23]

Then again, if you glue the ubuntu front-end on top of a different (but related) back-end, the result will still feel like ubuntu in most ways.
It's basically a philosophical question: Is the essence of ubuntu in the user experience, or in the underlying platform?

If it doesn't use Dalvik it isn't Android or just a theme for CynaogenMod.

[dnebdal]

Chip vendors will make it if they'll feel compelled enough. Without the push - they won't move. And Ubuntu runs away from pushing - that was my point. Using Surface Flinger isn't good, since it means sticking with bionic libc. I.e. Ubuntu on mobile basically will be a separate thing, much closer to Android, than to normal Linux. Mer, Plasma Active and Sailfish in this context look much better and are pushing the stack which shares the effort with desktop Linux. Wayland will eventually come on mobile. Just probably without Canonical's help.

How hard would it be to port surfaceFlinger to gnu (or, just for the hell of it, FreeBSD) libc? I'm only guessing, but it seems like the complexity lies in the driver interactions, not in the libc calls - and porting from one libc to another ought to be surmountable anyway.

[dnebdal]

So basically this whole thing is just android with unity interface on top of it? This isn't actually Ubuntu, more like android with ubuntu themes.

Then again, if you glue the ubuntu front-end on top of a different (but related) back-end, the result will still feel like ubuntu in most ways.
It's basically a philosophical question: Is the essence of ubuntu in the user experience, or in the underlying platform?

At least they apparently decided not to roll their own display server. That would have been much much worse.

And I don't see anything wrong with SurfaceFlinger since it's already optimized for mobile. Wayland can stay on desktops and notebooks. AMD's Bridgman already claimed that the OSS graphics drivers should be workable on any display server.

I think they'll use SurfaceFlinger for desktop as well and this is the reason I won't support Ubuntu anymore.

[blackout23]

Chip vendors will make it if they'll feel compelled enough. Without the push - they won't move. And Ubuntu runs away from pushing - that was my point. Using Surface Flinger isn't good, since it means sticking with bionic libc. I.e. Ubuntu on mobile basically will be a separate thing, much closer to Android, than to normal Linux. Mer, Plasma Active and Sailfish in this context look much better and are pushing the stack which shares the effort with desktop Linux. Wayland will eventually come on mobile. Just probably without Canonical's help.

How is Canonical supposed to push Wayland on the mobile when there is simply no wait they can use it at this point?!