Gnome, KDE, LXDE, IceWM All Working On Android

dooberrymctavish writes "Ghostwalker over at AndroidFanatic has gone and done it again; now he's released clear and concise instructions on how to get X11 server running on your Android device. Not only that, but he has successfully gotten LXDE, and IceWM running at a pace. There is even a photo with the instructions showing the LXDE desktop running right there on the device itself. Apparently, you can also VNC straight onto the phone's new desktop from your PC."

Er, no thanks.

[Speare]

Even the 800x480 of a Nokia N810 is a bit cramped for normal desktop style window managers. I hate to contemplate what it would be like to use anything like them on the 320x480 screen that is the G1. And I really don't think it's worth building up an Android netbook distro just to rip it back down to use desktop window managers-- if you want that, then run Linux on it already and forget about the Android application stack.

Great Combination.

[jellomizer]

The Speed and resolution of a Portable Device, combined with the large size of a Desktop PC.
Yea you get geek cred points but for the most part it is kinda useless, for most real uses.

Re:What's not to like?

[mrsteveman1]

X11 was left behind by a number of different commercial Unix users for a reason. Apple being the most prominent i can think of, one of their engineers even left a rather long post on slashdot explaining why they went with their own system (hint: adding all the things they needed that X11 lacked and probably still does, would have required so much work it was easier to do something else).

And now Android has done something similar albeit for different reasons.

Personally X11 is the last thing i want to see on Linux devices going forward. I hate the thing and want to see it suffer if only for irrational reasons.

Re:Er, no thanks.

[sketerpot]

Most of the beauty of the Android's design is looking good and being usable on a tiny screen. I doubt that most software written for people with big monitors is going to be pleasant on a cell phone screen.

Re:Rolling our own mobile desktop

[sketerpot]

Android is already a free software platform where users can write software without being locked out. Isn't that what you're looking for? Sure, it came from Google and is promoted by a consortium of telecom giants, rather than springing straight from the People, but as long as a cat catches mice, does it really matter what color it is?

Re:Er, no thanks.

[outZider]

.. because he's saying that most window managers can't fit well in the resolution. It doesn't matter how well Android handles sizing if the window manager that you're trying itself is terrible at it.

Well then

[Weaselmancer]

Write new software that does look good on a cell phone screen.

With X11 up and running, that opens up a large bank of developers that know X and can do that, you know.

Re:...Well

[Anonymous Coward]

So you can print things? Just taking a wild stab in the dark here ...

This is heinous

[guyminuslife]

No! X must not be ported! X must die!

Re:This is heinous

[Anonymous Coward]

Those who do not understand X, are doomed to scream for its death while begging for someone to reimplement X poorly.

Re:Well then

[Ostracus]

Ummm, no. Knowing X doesn't mean that one knows HCI as well. In fact looking at the development of Linux GUIs over the years I'd say the odds are against it. Note that's not saying one can't be developed, but it's more work than people really anticipate. A cellphone GUI that tries to be all things to all people (curse of a thousand choices) doesn't fit well into the appliance (does a few things well) nature of the device.

Re:What's not to like?

[Sir_Lewk]

You have no fucking clue what you are talking about.

Just thought I'd let you know.

Re:What's not to like?

[Draek]

X11 was left behind by a number of different commercial Unix users for a reason.

How many of them are still alive, though? other than OSX which has fed on OS9's marketshare rather than UNIX's, all of the rest seem to have bit the bullet a long time ago. Meanwhile, Linux, the *BSDs and Solaris seem to be going fairly strong despite being 'stuck' with X11.

Seems like UNIX admins are still too attached to being able to run their apps remotely, among other things.

Re:Driver issue

[Simon Rowe]

And where do I get this "rock-solid proprietary software"? I've been in the business 20 years, not seen any yet.

Re:Driver issue

[slamb]

And where do I get this "rock-solid proprietary software"? I've been in the business 20 years, not seen any yet.

I've never seen any "rock-solid software" of any kind, but at least the Open Source stuff I can fix by myself when needed.

Re:For that matter so is the iPhone

[Nursie]

"Just as open in the end."

What total bullsh*t.

Android is open from the kernel upwards, you can develop what you like for it without needing a developer account or a jailbreak. This is massively different from the iPhone, on which you can only make software if you have an account and the stack itself is totally closed.

This is why android can now be run on multiple devices, some ported by the community.

Re:Er, no thanks.

[drinkypoo]

Frequently I run into default windows that are larger than 640x480

It seems like we are actually going backwards when it comes to UI design. Can we please get a course on UI design mandatory in all CS programs, thank you? Lately I've been running into scads of programs whose dialog box (sans decorations) is bigger than 800x600 on default fonts! I believe Handbrake was one of them...

Re:Er, no thanks.

[Anonymous Coward]

New to Linux? Use Alt+Mouseclick to drag the window by any point in the window.

Riiiiight. The G1 phone may have an Alt key, but you have to open the keyboard. The G2 has no physical Alt key at all. What is a 'mouseclick'?