Ars Checks Out CyanogenMod's New Installer 143
Ars Technica runs through the pretty and simple (but Windows-only) installer that is one of the first big fruits of the newly commercialized CyanogenMod project, and finds it very worthwhile. However, and despite being far easier for ordinary mortals than the error-prone process of the old way to put on CyanogenMod, it's not perfect: reviewer Ron Amadeo ran into troubles using it on his Nexus 4, and cautions: "If CyanogenMod Inc. really wants to lower the barrier to entry, they next thing they need is a way for users to just as easily go back to the setup they had before installing CyanogenMod. Currently, the installer is a one-way street. If the user decides CyanogenMod isn't for them and wants to go back, they're stuck. Even worse, they could run into the situation I did, where CyanogenMod installs but everything is broken. I've done this enough that I know how to go back to stock, but for a novice, they would have been abandoned with a broken phone."
backup (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:FOR-PROFIT CORP !! NO THANX !! (Score:5, Insightful)
uh ... go ask your carrier for upgrade then .
waiting ..
waiting.
waiting.
Re:FOR-PROFIT CORP !! NO THANX !! (Score:5, Insightful)
That really IS silly. I get so tired of greedy bastards who think that their "intellectual property" is worth quintillions of dollars. But - people DO need to eat, they need homes, some of them hope to raise kids, some like to have their own private transportation.
A company isn't evil just because it's "for profit". They may BECOME evil, in the pursuit of profits, but profits aren't evil.
Real life has a way of destroying idealist's dreams. Unless, of course, you are posting from some alternate dimension in which no one needs or wants profits. How does everyone eat over there? You should share your secrets with us!
Re:User unfriendliness strikes again unfortunately (Score:3, Insightful)
Customs roms aren't really about escaping Google, they are about escaping the lockdown carriers tend to put on their phones.
Re:Reflash it back to stock (Score:5, Insightful)
For that matter, we can't expect normal users to spend a couple hours researching anything, even if they do understand search engines. Normal users expect to push a button or two, and get instant gratification.
which is the way it should be, justifying needlessly complex processes is stupid as is blaming the user for not wanting to spend hours researching shit like that.
Re:FOR-PROFIT CORP !! NO THANX !! (Score:4, Insightful)
Sorry, but that's just nonsense. Microsoft doesn't give you an entire functional open source OS while keeping back just a few proprietary apps.
Can you state exactly how AOSP is "crippled"? The version Google ships with their devices is exactly the same OS, only some of the apps are different proprietary versions. Like Linux or BSD or any open source OS it can run closed source apps.
Re:Hacker tool (Score:4, Insightful)
I'm a programmer who paid $500 for a very expensive phone. For that price, I need it to be the perfect phone. In other words, to be able to make and receive calls and text messages without fail.
Then why did you buy a smart phone? That's what dumb phones are for. Why did you spend 10X the price on features you don't need?