Stskeeps | # 1 | 2009-05-20, 18:38 | Report

Mer for X86, Nokia N8x0 and SmartQ version 0.13

Information about Mer can be found at http://wiki.maemo.org/Mer and everything you need to know about the release on http://wiki.maemo.org/Mer/Releases/0.13. It also has a list of known issues so please read them through first before installing.

We have also put up some general installation information and those with clone-to-SD Maemo will find this good to read through.

There will be a Maemo/Mozilla hackfest in Copenhagen (Mozilla Maemo Danish Weekend), Saturday-Sunday 30-31 May 2009 (with party Friday 29 May), where Mer is one of the focus areas as well. As it is a hackfest the focus will be more on coding than on presentations. If you are able to show up and you are willing to help out with Mer, you're more than encouraged to do so Focus of the Mer part will be bringing Mer to 1.0 (day-to-day usable on N8x0s).

Highlights of this release:
* We have moved away from Jaiku for microblogging, please see http://wiki.maemo.org/Mer/Awareness for more information
* We have now 100% moved Mer to being built in OpenSUSE Build Service, which means no more Scratchbox.
* Nokia has sponsored several of the Mer team members making them able to show up at the Mozilla Maemo Danish Weekend - thanks!!
* We began to include Fremantle beta sources
* Left handed scroll bars setting in themes control panel
* There will be discussions on UDS Karmic about [https://blueprints.launchpad.net/ubu...karmic-use-mer Mer as Ubuntu MID], and we look forward to working together with them to improve Mer packages and spread the Maemo platform to more users.
* Qt for Maemo framework compiled
* Now using fbdev instead of omapfb as X driver on N8x0
* Midori now has webkit by Bundyo, hns, with HIM support.
* For v0.13 only X86, N8x0, SmartQ5 is supported. Rest will come (770, Beagleboard, Pocket Loox) once we can build their kernels in OBS.
* Our sprints now last a month - and we've put a guide up on how to participate in Mer in a structured manner

Next release is 15 June 2009 (0.14). Mer is still a work in progress and as such you should not expect too much of it (note long list of known issues). We are in dire need of hands, both coders, architects/designers, testers, or anyone passionate about mobile development, so if you think you can contribute, you're more than welcome to join us in this community effort.

If you would like to participate, read through http://wiki.maemo.org/Mer/People and http://wiki.maemo.org/Mer/Sprints (this includes a guide on how to participate actively - simple procedures!) and see if there's anything you can help out with. We're on #mer on FreeNode, IRC, if you'd like to hang out and discuss.

Thanks to all the people helping out with testing, development, design, etc. This community project wouldn't move ahead without you (you're far too many to list by now, but see mer-chatter archives for those active on there).

Obligatory screenshots (The biggest part of 0.13 is us moving to OpenSUSE Build Service), so here's the 0.12 screenshots):

















and Meizirkki's video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSJ82NywcJE

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Last edited by Stskeeps; 2009-05-21 at 07:13. Reason: Gah, can't add a poll.

Bundyo | # 2 | 2009-05-20, 18:43 | Report

Btw, the HIM support is by hns

qole | # 3 | 2009-05-20, 19:02 | Report

Wonderful! I think the month-long sprints are better, and I'm really happy about the Ubuntu MID discussions and the Copenhagen weekend. I would love to go too, but I know that I would mostly stand around looking stupid.

ARJWright | # 4 | 2009-05-20, 19:45 | Report

Blah... and here I just posted about .12 and hadn't even gotten all my points down yet :P

Nice work... will have to play with it at some point in the next week (traveling a bit though).

Really small, but totally valuable feature request: can the EchoWeb skin (the one that makes all scroll bars and many default buttons finger friendly in Diablo/Chinook) be somehow added to Mer. It throws me for all kinds of loops when I see the small scrollbar (I've not seen that in ages on my N800).

b-man | # 5 | 2009-05-20, 21:09 | Report

Excellent work!

I'm looking forward to trying out the improved video playback support with the new fbdev driver

[[ cold ]] | # 6 | 2009-05-20, 21:29 | Report

im using http://wiki.maemo.org/Mer/Documentation/Installation N8x0 install file.. but says i got the latest one and dont need to update (i currently have 2.0.0-mer9)
can u check it please?

paulkoan | # 7 | 2009-05-21, 00:04 | Report

I have .12 installed, and apt-get update; apt-get dist-upgrade returns no packages to update.

What is the right way to upgrade?

Stskeeps | # 8 | 2009-05-21, 04:25 | Report

Yes, I screwed up mer10 should point to the right one now.

Stskeeps | # 9 | 2009-05-21, 04:26 | Report

When 0.12 was released we stated we wouldn't put any more updates into the old repositories as we moved to OBS - so you will sadly have to reinstall as the upgrades are not clean.

paulkoan | # 10 | 2009-05-21, 04:30 | Report

Oh right cool. I didn't get what it meant. No problem.