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Mobile Linux Group Releases First Specification

Posted by kdawson on Tue Dec 11, 2007 04:45 PM
from the competition-aplenty dept.
Communications Cellphones Software Linux
narramissic writes "Google's Android may be getting all the headlines, but the venerable LiPS (Linux Phone Standards Forum), which launched to much fanfare in 2005, is rolling out the specs. The group, comprised of companies including Orange, France Telecom, MontaVista, and Access, announced Monday that it has completed the first release of its mobile Linux specification, adding components including APIs for telephony, messaging, calendar, instant messaging, and presence functions, as well as new user interface components."
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[+] Google's Open Source Mobile Platform 199 comments
As expected, today Google took the wraps off of the gPhone (as the media have for months been referring to the rumored project). Google is "leading a broad industry alliance to transform mobile phones into powerful mobile computers," and will be licensing its software to all comers on an open source basis under the Apache license. (The Wall Street Journal's Ben Worthen demonstrates a miserable grasp of what "open source" means.) Google's US partners include Nextel and Sprint, but not AT&T nor Verizon. Phones will be available in the second half of 2008 — not the spring as earlier reports had speculated. News.com's analysis warns that Google won't take over the mobile market overnight, though they quote Forrester in the opinion that Google may be one of the three biggest mobile players after several years of shakeout.
Submission: Mobile Linux Group Releases First Specification by narramissic (997261)
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  • Cool (Score:1, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward
    It only took 3 years to get the standards out? Well, it looks like 2012 will be the year of both the linux desktop and the linux phone.

  • Orange is France Telecom (Score:5, Informative)

    by Firefalcon (7323) on Tuesday December 11 2007, @04:52PM (#21663103) Homepage Journal
    Orange is a brand of France Telecom, not two separate entities:

    http://www.orange.com/english/access/aboutUs.php [orange.com]
    • And, if I may give an opinion on a troll-generating subject, this entity is well know for its repeated abuses of dominant position in the telephone market. I would be very careful about their specification.
    • Not really. I'd rather program for linux than some wierd Java API any day of the week. Hell, all they have to do is provide a C++ API and there's a huge pool of developers who'd use it over Android due to language alone.
      • Well, me... I'm personally holding out for a Python API. Python is really good for RAD work, and well, I gotta tell you, I don't have time for traditional development methods these days. Python is easy and quick. And that's how mobile app development should be -- you should be able to write apps on the go!

        • Python is good for beginners but a bit mainstream for my tastes.

          I prefer BrainFuck [wikipedia.org].

        • Well, me... I'm personally holding out for a Python API. Python is really good for RAD work, and well, I gotta tell you, I don't have time for traditional development methods these days. Python is easy and quick. And that's how mobile app development should be -- you should be able to write apps on the go!

          If Python had a decent native code compiler I would consider it for more applications. It is good for rapid development, yes I've experienced that, but it is cryingly, mind numbingly slow, which really hurts in any application that needs to think the slightest bit hard.

          • If Python had a decent native code compiler I would consider it for more applications. It is good for rapid development, yes I've experienced that, but it is cryingly, mind numbingly slow, which really hurts in any application that needs to think the slightest bit hard.

            You're not going to write the latest FPS in Python, no. But it still is good for a lots and lots of things. There are even interfaces to streaming media libraries and the like -- you can even write a media player in Python (in fact, I think someone did [sourceforge.net]). It's also the perfect language for writing GUI frontends to things. Write your backend in C and frontend in Python, and you get the best of both worlds. As far as 'mind numblingly slow' -- well, it's all relative isn't it? Modern CPUs and memory size

            • Modern CPUs and memory sizes mean that the vast majority of apps can -- and probably should -- be written in interpreted languages.

              Anyway, I think a Python API would be cool for phones.

              For the record, an average phone would have 200 to 400 MHZ and about 64 to 128 RAM (Discounting the slow flash memory). Developers are already thinking of ways to squeeze as much performance out of those devices and here comes an interpreter which hogs a part of the resources (not much, but still significant) and an application which sits on top of the interpreter which hogs MORE resources. Oh, and don't forget the battery too. Python has its place and it's not for mobile phones IMHO. But your statemen

          • If Python had a decent native code compiler I would consider it for more applications. It is good for rapid development, yes I've experienced that, but it is cryingly, mind numbingly slow, which really hurts in any application that needs to think the slightest bit hard.

            Troll? How is living in dreamland? It is a fact that Python is dirt slow. Of the popular interpreters, bash is slower and that is about it. Please do not kid yourself.

            That said, I like Python a lot. I just will not use it for many applications because of performance problems. Pity.

      • Have you done a lot of development work in C++ and Java? Say what you want about Java performance, but it's a far cleaner syntax than C++ resulting in much cleaner APIs. I don't know the details surrounding Android, but (assuming it is) a Java OS is going to invite quite a lot of developer effort simply because of the lower threshold for becoming competent in the language.
        • That's funny, as when you write some code using the Qt library things are so clear and concise that you even get the feeling you are using some higher level scripting language. That's not the case with java. Ever.

          The C++ programming language may support nice toys like templates and meta programming, which tend to be a headache to deal with and a pain to read. As a consequence, at least to some extent, the same applies to the STL. Nonetheless, who is forced to use all features of a language? No one.

          So please
        • And because Java bytecode is compiled to native machine code at runtime, it's pretty snappy too. The tradeoff is the slight delay each time you run something. For a service that runs constantly, and hardly ever restarts, it's not a bad tradeoff.
        • No, Java isn't a cleaner language, and doesn't provide cleaner APIs. Its a far more complex language, lacking many features, and with a third rate class library. And as a bonus it has low performance with impossible to predict spikes for garbage handling, which makes it an absolutely inane idea for a real time device. I'll take C++ over it any day of the week- you'd have to pay me large amounts of money to even consider doing a job in Java. And I'd never use it for a personal project. Anything that re
          • Anything that at first runs slow would be a complete non-starter. Some things take time to become mature.

            Java in the past has been really slow. But Java on a mobile device. Is actually pretty fast. At least on my phone.

            Android really just uses the Java language then takes the class files and converts them to it's own interpreted machine language (like rim does with their devices)

            Sure Java has it's downfalls but then every single language does. The problem isn't with Java. It's where the language should be u

          • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

            by fbjon (692006)
            How is Java, as a higher-level language, more complex than C++? What do you mean third rate class library, lack of functionality? And where do these impossible-to-predict gc spikes come from in a custom-made VM?


            I'll grant you that handling memory management manually on small embedded devices like phones may seem like a good idea, for now. But not for long.

  • Is it competing, or are they complementary?
    • Found an answer of sorts in a PDF file on their web site: LiPS and Android Q&A [lipsforum.org]. They appear to be competing. LiPS claims as advantages a formal standardization process and wider license compatability, i.e., someone could build a LiPS phone using proprietary software components, while OHA is based on shared code using the Apache 2.0 license.

      I haven't looked at the actual standards, but perhaps it would be possible to extend the OHA code to add LiPS support, to produce a phone that can run apps developed for either.

  • the tone of the summary seems to suggest that while android is still vapor in terms of real devices, some other group is actually rolling out something.

    except that something they are "rolling out" are specs.

    which android also has plenty of. plus IDE. plus emulator.

    so, well... huh?

  • ... but does this have any relation to OpenMoko?

    Or will the OpenMoko guys have to play catch-up?

    • Re:OK, so I didn't read TFA... (Score:5, Informative)

      by DECS (891519) on Tuesday December 11 2007, @06:20PM (#21664391) Homepage Journal
      OpenMoko is a Chinese manufacturer's plan to outsource software usinghe FOSS community. [1]

      LiPS is a partnership between PalmSource/ACCESS and MontaVista Linux to collaborate on Linux phone development. Open Source Development Labs (OSDL, Slashdot's mom) began its own Mobile Linux Initiative in 2005, involving MontaVista, Wind River, and PalmSource. LiPS seemed to be an outgrowth of that. Trolltech introduced its own Greenphone platform based on Qt last fall. Earlier this year, NTT DoCoMo and Vodafone formed their own group called LiMo to develop Linux standards for mobiles. The majority of Linux phones are built by Motorola, which uses MontaVista's Linux. They are sold to the Chinese market and are not open in any sense. [2]

      Google's Android is an Apache-like collaboration that shares Google's plans and implementation rather than forming a group to develop some. [3]

      Apple's iPhone is based around its Mach+BSD+Cocoa architecture, but is just as closed as most Linux phones. It appears Apple will open development in the sense of releasing an SDK that allows commercial development, but it's not yet known how much access developers will have. [4][5]

      One significant difference between Linux on a PC and Linux on a mobile is that it is illegal to expose the core baseband processor architecture to open software, because that would make it trivial to create network destroying devices. So "Linux-based mobiles" are really just mobile phones that have some extra environment to run the user interface and higher level functions. They are not freedom/open/GPL untainted by Big Brother/Capitalism/Corporations.

      That makes it valid to be interested in mobile Linux because of familiarity with the architecture, the availability of low cost software, and a desire to expand the market for Linux based products, but there is little real political GPL-freedom argument for pursuing mobile Linux.

      Google appears to initially be targeting Windows Mobile [6], and offers an alternative to the increasingly creaky Symbian [7]. Some amount of Google's Android seems complementary with efforts to use Linux on the lower levels, but it also competes against the higher level plans of LiPS, Greenphone, LiMo, and OpenMoko, none of which appear to have a very significant future.

      [1] Apple iPhone vs the FIC Neo1973 OpenMoko Linux Smartphone [roughlydrafted.com]
      [2] The Standard Soup Prepared by Linux Mobile's Many Chefs [roughlydrafted.com]
      [3] The Great Google gPhone Myth [roughlydrafted.com]
      [4] Steve Jobs Ends iPhone SDK Panic [roughlydrafted.com]
      [5] Leopard, Vista and the iPhone OS X Architecture [roughlydrafted.com]
      [6] The Spectacular Failure of WinCE and Windows Mobile [roughlydrafted.com]
      [7] Origins: Why the iPhone is ARM, and isn't Symbian [roughlydrafted.com]

      • One significant difference between Linux on a PC and Linux on a mobile is that it is illegal to expose the core baseband processor architecture to open software, ..
        That makes it valid to be interested in mobile Linux because of familiarity with the architecture, the availability of low cost software, and a desire to expand the market for Linux based products, but there is little real political GPL-freedom argument for pursuing mobile Linux.

        I don't see how that is different from any other hardware that has open Linux drivers but closed firmware (apart from it being mandated by law rather than being a choice made by the developer). Especially when it comes to things like video chipsets and high performance radio / data acquisition cards, who really do have an entirely separate processor running on them that is not directly accessible to the OS on the main processor(s).

        Furthermore, the fact that all the applications running on my computer are F

      • One significant difference between Linux on a PC and Linux on a mobile is that it is illegal to expose the core baseband processor architecture to open software, because that would make it trivial to create network destroying devices.

        I've heard that preventing such tampering was the reason much of the firmware is closed, but this is the first time I've seen the assertion of an actual law or regulation requiring the firmware internals be kept secret.

        Can you (or someone) give us a pointer to the law and/or re

  • So where are the handset companies? (Score:3, Insightful)

    by bn0p (656911) on Tuesday December 11 2007, @05:21PM (#21663565)
    Reviewing the member list at the Linux Phone Standards Forum (LiPS) web site [lipsforum.org] I noticed that none of the major handset companies joined this organization. The Open Handset Alliance [openhandsetalliance.com] on the other hand has HTC, LG, Motorola and Samsung as members.

    Having a standard is all well and good, but it only matters if someone puts it into a phone.

    Also, how many development platforms can survive in the cell phone market anyway? Besides Android and LiPS (we'll ignore Microsoft for now), there are Symbian [symbian.com], the LiMo Foundation [limofoundation.org] and a la Mobile [a-la-mobile.com] - all Linux-based. The first two or three to get accepted will attract the developers and dominate the market (unless they *really* bring something new to the game).


    Never let reality temper imagination
    • The more the merrier, in my opinion. To survive, a platform must attract device manufacturers, software developers and end users (and keep them). I don't see the market getting crowded--the losers will fade away fairly quickly, especially with how fast end users go through phones. God forbid we wind up with another stagnant monoculture like we got with PCs.

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by DECS (891519)
      Your comment makes it sound like Symbian is Linux based. It is, of course, not related at all. Symbian is based on the EPOC OS used by Psion for its PDAs. It's backed by Nokia and Sony Ericsson in the EU and DoCoMo in Japan, although each uses a flavor of Symbian that is really a different platform. Symbian's backers like to group them all together because that gives Symbian an overwhelming share (~70%) of the smartphone market.

      In reality, Nokia's S60, and Sony Ericsson UIQ, and DoCoMo's FOMA are about as s
  • The nice thing about standard^Wspecification/API is that there are so many to choose from :-(

    OpenMoko, Android, LiPS,.. there's going to be a selection quite soon: there aren't that many phone manufacturers who wants to develop their own applications..

  • Android will win (Score:3, Interesting)

    by realdodgeman (1113225) on Tuesday December 11 2007, @05:32PM (#21663741) Homepage
    OpenMoko and LiSP are too little, too late. Android is in the works, and they got it all: Branding, a prototype GUI, and the right members (Open Handset Alliance Project).

    Android will be the Linux on mobile phones, and it will be great.

    • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

      by zullnero (833754)
      As a mobile developer, your comment is hilarious. I'd mod it +5 funny, but few non-mobile software developers would get the joke. "Will be great"?

      EVERYONE says that about their new upcoming mobile OS. Then it gets released, and we discover something seriously flawed about it. No APIs for custom hardware. Difficult path for porting pre-existing applications from other platforms over to it. Poor performance. Security flaws. Vendor lock-in. Insufficient API. Nonstandard. If you've ever seriously writ
      • If you did some research you would know that Android is all about the APIs, and that it is open source. It also has an interesting scheduler that I look forward to seeing in action. There are some introduction videos floating around, but I can't remember where.

  • playing catchup (Score:5, Insightful)

    by SuperBanana (662181) on Tuesday December 11 2007, @05:42PM (#21663861)

    Google's Android may be getting all the headlines, but the venerable LiPS (Linux Phone Standards Forum), which launched to much fanfare in 2005, is rolling out the specs.

    From what I understand, the LiPS had been "stuck in committee" with no real progress until Google announced Android. Then all of the sudden, there was a flurry of activity.

    Specs are nice, and it's good to see progress, but the slashdot summary seems to have a distinct "look at LiPS, it's better, it has SPECS!". That's great, but..here's a prototype device running Android [engadget.com], and let's not forget the OpenMoko people, which have not only got a so-close-you-can-taste it physical device, they've got a pretty sorted software package as well, which runs on a couple of existing phone/pda widgets. The OpenMoko stuff and the Palm/HP/etc PDA stuff (I forget the proper project names, sorry!) is quite open and documented. The Linux-on-handheld boys have had working software out there for *years*.

    Welcome to the party, boys. Beer's been had, chips are gone- there's some frosting left on the cake platter, though. Same thing to Google- it's nice that they have shiny prototypes, but if they're so open-source, why couldn't they work with any of the existing groups? Ah, I love the open source world: why help someone else, when you can re-invent your own wheel (anyone remember the days of Freshmeat's front page being literally FILLED with mp3 players software?)

    • ``Ah, I love the open source world: why help someone else, when you can re-invent your own wheel''

      That's not unique to the open-source world, though. However, in the world of proprietary software

      1. You _can't_ help somebody else, even if you want to
      2. You may or may not have access to the specs without paying through your nose
      3. One or a few big players will push everyone else out of the market

      By contrast, with open source, you know that

      1. You can not only use, but also contribute; you can fix the bugs and

  • Access Screwed Up Linux on Palm Phone (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Doc Ruby (173196) on Tuesday December 11 2007, @06:09PM (#21664259) Homepage Journal
    Talk about LiPService: Access (of Japan) was the company that basically bought the PalmOS [linuxdevices.com] away from Palm. They claimed (in 2005) that they were going to roll out mobile phones running Linux, with PalmOS GUI and binary compatibility. Where are they? Just now putting out just specs, right as Google and the rest of the world blot them out of existence. Nearly certainly taking chances of a Linux mobile with Palm compatibility (and its library of apps and developers) to zero.

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