How can *you* help getting Maemo 5 in shape

[qgil]

The success of Maemo 5 depends a lot on the applications available for it. Imagine all these users that will get a maemo 5 device for their first time: what difference would it make if they would find plenty of cool apps ready to be downloaded, and for free!

You can help making this happen:

1 - Think of your preferred Maemo applications.

2 - Go to their related talk.maemo.org thread, or to their http://maemo.org/downloads page or to their details dialog in the Application Manager. Whatever is the best way to reach the developers of those applications.

3 - Contact the developers asking them to have their apps ready for Maemo 5, pointing them to this thread, to the instructions to upload packages to maemo.org extras-devel repository, and to the extras-testing info page (they might not be aware of it).

Or simply said: get the developers of your preferred applications to put their nose in Maemo 5 if they haven't done it yet. They won't regret.

[Peet]

Originally Posted by qgil

The success of Maemo 5 depends a lot on the applications available for it. Imagine all these users that will get a maemo 5 device for their first time: what difference would it make if they would find plenty of cool apps ready to be downloaded, and for free!
[...]
Or simply said: get the developers of your preferred applications to put their nose in Maemo 5 if they haven't done it yet. They won't regret.

Since this is in General and not Developers...

Pardon me for asking, but what's in it for us users of current (well, "past"...) Nokia Internet Tablets (i.e. all of us current NIT customers) who've stopped getting Maemo updates already since early to mid-2008?

Try motivating me.

(OTOH if/when Mer becomes usable and user-friendly enough for the existing customer-base, there should be interest in asking the developers to target that offshoot platform...)

[flareup]

First off, I really do like the community aspect to the NITs - the hard work of developers that have made various apps is one of the things that has kept my devices things of everyday use.

BUT, with the expected wider-market launch of Maemo 5 and its device(s), is it still a reasonable expectation that these people should be doing it for nothing? Surely one of the reasons that the apple store apps have taken off so much is the opportunity for the devs to make some money? So asking people to make cool apps to be given away free by nokia is maybe not the right way to do things - especially if it's based around getting users to hassle them into it!

Wouldn't it be better for an official Nokia approach to them? maybe with some kind of incentive?

(I'm not a developer so not angling for a free device!)

[flareup]

Originally Posted by Peet

Pardon me for asking, but what's in it for us users of current (well, "past"...) Nokia Internet Tablets (i.e. all of us current NIT customers) who've stopped getting Maemo updates already since early to mid-2008?

Try motivating me.

yes, agree with that too. It does kind of assume that we're all going to jump in on the new device, when it actually seems a lot of people here are in the same mind as me, ie passing on the phone and waiting to see if there's going to be a N8xx screen sized tablet or otherwise sticking with what we've got and waiting for mer...

[Jaffa]

Originally Posted by Peet

Pardon me for asking, but what's in it for us users of current (well, "past"...) Nokia Internet Tablets (i.e. all of us current NIT customers) who've stopped getting Maemo updates already since early to mid-2008?

1. A lot of Fremantle apps will work on Mer, since it has the new and updated APIs.
2. Because being active in the community helps the community, which in turn helps you.
3. Because being active in the community gets you rewards like possible future device discount vouchers, summit sponsorship.
4. Because the price of RX-51 might be so low as to entice you to buy one.
5. Because the features of RX-51 might be so mind-blowing you'll spend more money to buy one.
6. Because you don't want to spend all day trolling a forum like an arse? ;-)

(OTOH if/when Mer becomes usable and user-friendly enough for the existing customer-base, there should be interest in asking the developers to target that offshoot platform...)

For your average application developer, Mer isn't an offshoot.

[Jaffa]

Originally Posted by flareup

BUT, with the expected wider-market launch of Maemo 5 and its device(s), is it still a reasonable expectation that these people should be doing it for nothing? Surely one of the reasons that the apple store apps have taken off so much is the opportunity for the devs to make some money? So asking people to make cool apps to be given away free by nokia is maybe not the right way to do things - especially if it's based around getting users to hassle them into it!

Nokia aren't "giving cool apps away for free" - the authors are when they released it as open source. There have been recent discussions about monetary incentives thorugh an App Store-like approach here:

http://talk.maemo.org/showthread.php?t=30799

One thing which Nokia could do to help would be to clarify if the Ovi Store is going to target Maemo 5 devices as well.

Wouldn't it be better for an official Nokia approach to them? maybe with some kind of incentive?

Every little helps, and there are incentives (or have been in the past), like discounts programmes (not just limited to developers!), summit travel & accomodation sponsorship and you're name in lights.

Don't underestimate the lure to a developer of having ones app and name up in lights.

[livefreeordie]

This thread made me register. I do not have the time to develop apps, but I would love to submit patches to Nokia. Ever since I moved from s40 to s60, I've constantly felt like I want to make small improvements to some of the more unpolished applications.

Here's my suggestion:

1) When you finally reveal the device and its UI, immediately release the code for the newest versions of the applications. Then let us submit patches, accept the best ones fast, and recompile the standard image before you start shipping devices. If you attract talented developers (I'm not saying I'm one of them), you will have a much more mature platform with extra polish and neat small features on day one. The developers get to have a better platform as users. Make sure reviewers get the final product.

2) For all the patches you don't accept due to being too complicated for the average user, implement them as compile time options and create a single separate repository that advanced users can activate. As an advanced user, I understand the necessity for easy to use defaults, but absolutely hate how I have to manually change hundreds of things to customize apps. Maybe then I'll only need to change ten (no one will ever agree on everything). I think it's really important for you to cater to advanced users this time, because they shape opinions, and many of the less ethical ones are currently backing a certain closed as hell platform...

[andy80]

Originally Posted by qgil

The success of Maemo 5 depends a lot on the applications available for it. Imagine all these users that will get a maemo 5 device for their first time: what difference would it make if they would find plenty of cool apps ready to be downloaded, and for free!

You can help making this happen:

1 - Think of your preferred Maemo applications.

2 - Go to their related talk.maemo.org thread, or to their http://maemo.org/downloads page or to their details dialog in the Application Manager. Whatever is the best way to reach the developers of those applications.

3 - Contact the developers asking them to have their apps ready for Maemo 5, pointing them to this thread, to the instructions to upload packages to maemo.org extras-devel repository, and to the extras-testing info page (they might not be aware of it).

Or simply said: get the developers of your preferred applications to put their nose in Maemo 5 if they haven't done it yet. They won't regret.

Quim, the point is that there are a LOT of applications that I would like to see on Maemo Fremantle and they don't exist for N810 too.

Some of them are on the way (as far as I know), but we need stuff that doesn't exist yet. Do you want a short list? Ok.

1) A working, complete, easy to use and fast Facebook Client: not just a feed reader and status updater. Something that allow me to see comments, reply comment, post new photos (taken directly from the camera), post videos ecc... I don't mind if we don't have support for Facebook Applications (I hate them :P ) but at least the main features: status, feed reader, groups, photos, videos ecc...

2) Full integration of Flash Plugin with most famous websites: UStream.tv, Justin.tv, TinyChat.com ecc.... flash plugin must see the front camera and let us to use it for this services.

3) Supposing I can do a VOIP call with Nxxx, I really would like to have the possibility to record it to listen to it later.

4) Compare Everywhere app: an app similar to the one on Android: you take a picture of the barcode, the app check online and show you all the prices of that object so you know where is cheaper.

5) (I know this is a dream, but) native clients for: GMail, Google Maps, Google Talk (with audio/video support this time).

6) Possibility to upload our media to most know services (Youtube, Google Video, Flickr, Picasa, ecc...), not only to Ovi :P

Another point: leaving the door open to ALL developers, we should at least give more visibility (in the Application Manager) to "Freemantle Stars" application. Give a look at the current applications available for N810: there a lot of good apps, but there is also a lot of sh** :P

If a end-user who has never user a tablet, gives a look to all of those... well... I don't think it would me much impressed.

n.b: how to choose "Fremantle Stars"? Of course letting the community choose them (voting, sending feedback ecc...).

I'ts important that all developers can push their apps to Maemo respository, but we should give more visibility to "stars" and good one only, not to all.

That's all for the moment

[lardman]

4) Compare Everywhere app: an app similar to the one on Android: you take a picture of the barcode, the app check online and show you all the prices of that object so you know where is cheaper.

This is work in progress, see Shop-Mate and Maemo-Barcode.

[Jaffa]

Originally Posted by andy80

the point is that there are a LOT of applications that I would like to see on Maemo Fremantle and they don't exist for N810 too.

Well, that's not the intent of this thread; but in its spirit, perhaps contact the authors of those apps and point them in the direction of the SDK, the RX-51 rumours and praise them to the hilt. A high-level wishlist is pretty much off-topic on this thread, though, I think.

I'ts important that all developers can push their apps to Maemo respository, but we should give more visibility to "stars" and good one only, not to all.

The QA process will stop anything which is properly rubbish (rather than just not very interesting) from getting to Extras. The new "app karma" (to go with "news karma" and "user karma") will also help highlight the currently trending apps.