Could A New Linux Base For Tablets/Smartphones Succeed In 2017?

[darkcoder]

It's all about the apps. They need to provide a way for famous apps to be run or converted to the new platform. Without apps, is just a fancy tech toy. That's why even Windows 10 mobile has barely made a dent in the mobile market.

[stevecrox]

Hopefully they will work with Gnome too, because right now Gnome Shell is only DE that is usable on x86 tablets (while it's usable, it's need a lot of love too: https://wiki.gnome.org/Design/OS/Touchscreen) and I think Gnome can only win from standardisation and serious discussion among Gnome developers about current tablet issues.

As someone responding on his Asus T100 undocked from the keyboard running KDE on Debian Stretch I disagree. Its actually easier to use KDE in desktop mode via a touchscreen than Unity 7 as the controls shrink too much in Unity 7, never bothered to try Gnome.

To me this idea makes sense, if I had the opportunity I'd love to take Debian and produce a distribution based on each Debian release but with the KDE packages taken from testing at regular intervals and put through release..Using a stable fixed base helps reduce the various complexities.

[Nille_kungen]

There's to many projects so lets start a new one to rule them all.
I think Mer does the job just fine and Jolla contributes to Mer.
Sailfish OS builds on top of Merproject.

https://git.merproject.org/groups/mer-core/activity

[GreatEmerald]

Hm, interesting, this is quite relevant to my question on what's the best option for using Linux on a touch-based device: https://www.phoronix.com/forums/foru...st-for-tablets

Though their idea, like Michael stated, sounds just like Mer. So, why not just use Mer? It seems like it could use some help (an amd64 port would be nice, for one).

And Michael is also right in pointing out that the current mobile initiatives are stagnating, which is quite unfortunate for those who just want to run an honest GNU/Linux on a mobile device.

[duby229]

Hm, interesting, this is quite relevant to my question on what's the best option for using Linux on a touch-based device: https://www.phoronix.com/forums/foru...st-for-tablets

Though their idea, like Michael stated, sounds just like Mer. So, why not just use Mer? It seems like it could use some help (an amd64 port would be nice, for one).

And Michael is also right in pointing out that the current mobile initiatives are stagnating, which is quite unfortunate for those who just want to run an honest GNU/Linux on a mobile device.

There are already plenty of options for GNU/Linux. I've been using gentoo for quite a while on most of my phones. Nowadays I usually wait to buy a phone until I know I can boot a custom kernel on it, even if it may not be a stock vanilla kernel.

[GreatEmerald]

There are already plenty of options for GNU/Linux. I've been using gentoo for quite a while on most of my phones. Nowadays I usually wait to buy a phone until I know I can boot a custom kernel on it, even if it may not be a stock vanilla kernel.

That's why I created the thread there... If there are indeed plenty of options, I'm not aware of them. Please elaborate.

[IreMinMon]

I don't know about competing with Android/iOS - but we could make it as popular as Linux distribution for sure.

1. Forget usual tablets/smartphones - trying to get desktop Linux working with libhybris and other workarounds is a waste of time. That should come later. Either get actual drivers that work with the current DRM infrastructure, or use properly supported hardware like Intel Baytrail/Cherrytrail tablets, and hardware with AMD GPU. Adreno with Freedreno is a possibility, and anything powered by VC4 GPU (since you have proper support there). Otherwise Intel/AMD hardware is the least painful path.

What about the intel chip in Asus Zenfone 2? Wasn't that supposed to be an x86 processor? Is this supposed to work out of the box then?

[Jumbotron]

Please note: the studies tell us how the average (fucking dumbass) Joe acts, not how EVERYONE acts.

The entire existence of Linux Desktop does show that there is people that want choice.

Yeah, as it caters a market niche that is different from the one of Windows or Apple users.
Is that even wrong? Linux does not need to dominate, only to get recognized enough. Apple is recognized enough and it is at like 3% at most of marketshare (PC).

They don't want to compete with Android, they just want to cater to the same kind of niche market that is using Linux Desktop.

Nope. See above. The idea is to provide the same base for 2-3 different UIs.
Anbox will deal with this for Android apps, I assume this will be enough.

Unifying the stacks is not possible on Desktop as each distro has its own agenda and values and so on. If you unify stacks you basically kill them all and make a single OS.

Quite frankly, it's not better, and it won't help Linux adoption. What would help Linux adoption is some company that starts selling PCs with their Linux distro on it.

Ahhh....spoken like a true TALIBAN religious Linux Phreak and Geek. Look....if marginalization is so attractive to you go work on HaikuOS. You'll be "really cool" then.

Linux needs to be adopted by the wider computing audience. The moms and dads and uncles and aunts and grandmas and grandpas and basic folk who don't give a shit about how cool and "unmainstream" they are simply because they use Linux and know the "command line". Linux folk like you are actually a hinderance.

[Jumbotron]

What about the intel chip in Asus Zenfone 2? Wasn't that supposed to be an x86 processor? Is this supposed to work out of the box then?

Uhhhh.....you do know that Intel has exited the tablet and phone market ?

ARM has overwhelmingly won the day in the mobile market. Intel is out. AMD has no plans for mobile x86 and they even threw in the towel on their ARM based server systems much less mobile.

This mythical Linux mobile OS is going to HAVE to be ARM based. Period....end of story. And they will have to have full Android app compatibility or perfect Linux ports of Android and iOS apps or the whole thing is just another excercise in futility.

[duby229]

That's why I created the thread there... If there are indeed plenty of options, I'm not aware of them. Please elaborate.

Well, you need a bootloader unlocked device, patched kernel sources for that device, fingers crossed. Usually the kernel sources provided by the manufacturer are gonna have compile errors and/or missing hardware support. So the trick really is buying a phone that other people already have working kernels for.