"Open" in the age of Google a rant

Open source development and production models has multiple definitions. Don't expect Google to change its current model to a traditional  Open Source model. That's not realistic in the age of open sourced consumer hardware gone mainstream. Perhaps Google should clearly define their approach to Open Source.

I'm dissapointed in the inconsistency with Google's open vs. closed policy like the next guy but I think journalists really need to do their homework before "retweeting" news rather than research. 

1. Honeycomb is a fork of regular Android Source.
2. Forked version has been released to select OEM's. Don't forget that just as any 3rd party can fork android into a proprietary or sell their release.
3. Android software stack has never been open (in the traditional bottom up sense). It always gets released once its baked. They claim Honeycomb isn't baked due to rush to compete with the iPad 2. 
4. For Application developers, the SDK was released months ago, when Google felt it was baked.
   
   Am I missing something?

The real issue here is that Google sets up this better than holy expectation of themselves and we all hold them up to it. But it is unrealistic and bad business to think Google will and should be truly open. Google needs to be a bit more forthright since for the sake of competition, service providers, manufacturers and content providers.

I personally trust that Google will continue blazing trails, bringing Open Sourced software to the mainstream no matter what definition of that "open" may be. The fact that I can jump on github and download the source of Android today, create drivers for some hardware and build a urinal with an embedded screen with the OS for FREE is amazing to me. I can't take that for granted.

Brings me back to journalist reporting the same garbage over and over again. I can't think of how the delay of one specific version (Honeycomb) of android hurts anyone. There currently isn't even a market for DIY tablets (which is what honeycomb is built for) also this is marketed and has been released to the Motorola's and Samsung's of the world. 
Calm down and enjoy your mass market plastic toys and leave the emotional attachment to stakeholders. Sheesh.


Read: 

• http://source.android.com/about/philosophy.html (Philosophy and Goals)
• http://source.android.com/source/licenses.html (licenses)

"Google loves to characterize itself as 'open' and iOS and iPhone as 'closed.' We find this a bit disingenuous and clouding the real difference between our two approaches," Jobs is quoted. more by Steve Jobs

Google needs a consistent culture for app roll outs

Apps are one reason we buy into today's device ecosystems.  They should be taken seriously by Google.


I have come to like the Google Reader App on my Android-based cell phone; when it first launched on Android 2.2, it was slow and buggy, but these issues were quickly patched. I had expected it to be as baked as the Gmail app or the Youtube app.

Then came Android 3.0, optimized for larger screens.  I took a look at the Market Place, but as this is a brand new platform,  there were a few tablet-centric apps from Google.  I know they are coming, but they should be here already, dammit. The promise was that older Android apps would scale fine,  and I bought that crap.  Sure, mobile-optimized apps would work on a larger screen, but when they would, they did so very poorly.
 
Shipping optimized versions of apps for screen sizes twice or thrice the size of a cell phone should be mandatory. Google understands this; they deployed 3.0, the tablet-y email, Youtube, and a few other core apps from the jump, like Androidify. Why did they not invest in building a full suite of tablet-centric apps by the time they went live with 3. 0?  For Christ's sake, there are two tablet-optimized apps on the Android Market from Google none are added value for buying an Android tablet.
As you can see from the snapshot in the picture, Google Reader renders poorly in 3.0.
Google Reader for Android 3.0 needs to be optimized for larger-screen devices.


Since Google Reader is one of the core services that sync right from the jump with your Gmail account on Android devices,  you'll have to expect as they rolled out Honeycomb on larger screens it would be part of the full suite of tablet-optimized apps.

Google accounts on Android sync with Books, Web, Calendar, Contacts, Email, Reader, Photos, Video, and soon Music. Reader, Docs, etc.,  should be part of this initial roll-out. 


This is a new type of problem, a little different from the days of Microsoft shipping bundled software like Microsoft Works.  This problem may be a good one in the new age of bridging your software platform ecosystem across interfaces of all sizes.
If Google is going to provide Android users seamless syncing of their photos,  news feeds,  social interactions, etc., at least ship with apps optimized for the screen size.

With the Android Market slated to grace Google TV screens "very soon,"  I would hope that some level of attention will be given to shipping with a suite of Google TV-native apps that gives developers inspiration and users solid features to get used to.

Originally written on Blogger for Android, which begs the question, where the HELL is Google Docs for Android tablets? Web? App? All the hoopla about focus on mobile and hiring frenzy and nothing to date? Bullshit.