Re: Is Android the most open phone, yes according to Software Freedom Law Show podcast
 

Darn, I bought the N900 because I thought it was the most open...

Actually I'm very pleased with my choice, and I've no wish to depend heavily on the Google mothership for services anyway.

But, honestly, if I had heard the SFLS discussion a few months ago, there's a good chance I would have been persuaded to the other side.

Re: Is Android the most open phone, yes according to Software Freedom Law Show podcast
 

Am I wrong if I assume we're going to be running lots more userspace apps that are free software on Maemo than Android users? That isn't meaningless either, IMO.

Here's some more info on what exactly isn't free and where Maemo is trying to go with this, one of those wiki pages is outdated and the other definitely needs work to be a bit more clear:
http://maemo.org/community/maemo-dev...free_packages/

Re: Is Android the most open phone, yes according to Software Freedom Law Show podcast
 

guys - the N900 is not a phone - it is a computer so cant really be in the running...... *ROFL*

Re: Is Android the most open phone, yes according to Software Freedom Law Show podcast
 

Everyone saying that the n900 is not a phone seems like a bit of a cop-out to me. It is also a phone, so I'm looking forward to it being the best phone it can be. With all of it's computer-y goodness too.

Re: Is Android the most open phone, yes according to Software Freedom Law Show podcast
 

I agree - I was being sarcastic...

Re: Is Android the most open phone, yes according to Software Freedom Law Show podcast
 

Isn't Symbian also in process of becoming totally open? And it's also used by many companies

Re: Is Android the most open phone, yes according to Software Freedom Law Show podcast
 

Open aint just about code. Governance plays a big part, too, and Android falls flat on its face there.

Re: Is Android the most open phone, yes according to Software Freedom Law Show podcast
 

This I wholeheartedly agree with.

But they are both factors... so I can see why some people might call android "more open" than Maemo as a sales pitch just because the source is more open.

Android itself is not the problem.. but Google is in no way a Nokia. When Google starts allowing their phones to be rooted with an app in the official google market.... then we'd have something to truly discuss about "openness".

Re: Is Android the most open phone, yes according to Software Freedom Law Show podcast
 

I'm seriously having issues seeing Android as more Free... it uses Java if I'm not mistaken... and that last I checked still wasn't fully Freed from preprietary bits and pieces.

Re: Is Android the most open phone, yes according to Software Freedom Law Show podcast
 

Another factor when qualifying "openness" is compatibility and platform lock-in. With Android, you're using a completely custom Google application environment. No X, no recognizable desktop toolkits. Hell, the Java isn't even quite right. In sum, that means that applications you program for Android only run on Android (VM porting doesn't really count here).

Maemo's advantage here comes with its compatibility with desktop Linux. It has X, it has GTK+ and Qt. Applications you program for Maemo are easy to run on other platforms (especially with Qt)—Linux, OS X, Windows, Symbian—and applications for these platforms (especially Linux GTK+/Qt stuff) are easily ported to Maemo.

Tools you recognize on an ecosystem that isn't designed to lock you in to a vendor's platform.