Linux Question - G1 Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

This might sound really odd... but I'm looking to -NOT- use my g1 as a phone... I want to uh... (shoot me if you must) want to remove Android, and install a very light ubuntu install or other gnu/linux derivative like DSL (which cannot be ported to armel probably) to my phone and use it as a mini mini computer...
my question to the DREAM community on XDA here is... can it be done... and for any reason I ever want to go back... do you think it'd be reversible?
My main reasoning is this... I have a nokia 5310, and I work a crappy produce job at a supermarket... I fear my G1 getting broken, and have not used it in the last 2 months. also, I'd be interested in learning how to work stuff out and try to get androided ported over to the new 3g Dash if that was possible, cause that phone looks very nice... IMHO though so... please criticism and responses of all kinds welcome to this question.

The closest I've seen is installing Debian with only terminal =/ sorry. You can look under development for more info.

well actually... with vncviewer you can uh... vnc to it and have x11 running with icewm or lxde
vnc viewer local host

I'm not pro at this. Sorry if my advice was bad. lol

No not bad... but good... thank you. I am looking for "ANY" information... and you fit the requisites. Thanks friend

The reason for running x11 and debian on top of android through vnc is that drivers for the g1 hardware aren't available. Unless you want to write these drivers yourself, I'd forget this one. By the time you get it working, your g1 will be fossilised.

I'd be willing to go and try to learn how to do it.
it'd be a fun project... i mean the thing is just sitting here... I mean... I could always perhaps make a completely stripped down version of android. I only want it to use Wi-Fi... and that's pretty much it... I just want it to be an MID

I want to make sure I understand the situation:
1) You have a cheaper phone so do not use the G1 for fear of damaging it.
2) Since you do not use the G1 you want to:
- tinker with it, most likely destroying it in the process if you succeed at anything.
- install a more conventional Linux distro on the phone, which will require at least some programming knowledge as well as intimate knowledge of Linux. If you want X then it as gone from challenge to an impressive feat.
and finally
3) You want to port android to the Dash 3G.
Your decision making process is a little questionable, but hopefully there is some reasoning I missed or you did not mention.
My advise to you would be: Please learn to walk before you attempt to fly.
A stripped down android would be more feasible. You would not have X, but you should be able to port quite a bit of commandline tools over, to include a more user friendly shell. Then you could try and cross compile X, which will take a lot of patience. If you manage to succeed though. from that point you could do a headless X session and attach to it vian VNC in much the same way as is currently done with debian. Alternatively you could try and port the G1 drivers over to the freerunner project and work from that direction, but this would be much more difficult.
It seems a terrible waste of time in my opinion but if you want to try, go for it. Personally I say sell the G1 and buy a nokia n810. It is a little larger but still small and is a mid.
If however you are set on this course I would suggest hanging out on the IRC channels and getting advice from the ROM cookers, Cyanogen in particular since he rebuilds the linux kernel for the G1, something you will be doing a lot of.

Well most birds learn to fly before they walk. And I think I will go down the trail of a custom Android build. I just wanted to know of it being possible to make it work.
I mainly refer to the fact I didn't want it to break ie the screen or the digitized I assume you mean the xda channel... ... so yes I will choose to jump into the pool before the water is full in it thank you for the advice and knowledge

Related

Android, why all the hype?

I am constantly reading posts about android here and i cant understand why everybody is so excited about it. Ok, its linux, but so what. Its open-source, but so what. How many of users that are so desiring it has ever change one line of code in any software? 0.0001%? How many times have you edit some config file as there was no GUI to set it up from there? Do you actually know what the file is? And how to edit it without Word ? So what is SO cool about it? What is this great thing where the touch hd would be so great with it? I thought it was bragging but you can brag with iPhone, i dont think Linux will ever catch its look AND stability (actually imho linux is one huge pile of bugs that works together by pure coincidence). The amount of software that could be used on a phone is very inferior to Windows Mobile and iPhone, and shell is quite useless as on screen keyboard typing can be only meant as a joke (i actually had to buy myself a folding keyboard)... You like it becoase it is google? Some privacy concerned people would raise eyebrow... You dont like the manilla? What about this: http://www.spbsoftwarehouse.com/pocketpc-software/mobileshell/ ?
So what is so cool about android??
(running ssh to dragonfly bsd host and i really dont understand what linux on phone could be good for)
Well, basically, Linux and Linux-based systems allow you to polish those bugs. Which is one of the reasons Linux is as bug-free as you can get right now.
And most computer users don't make their own GNU/Linux distributions either, they download their favorite. I don't see why that wouldn't work in a PDA environment.
This thread doesnt belong here.
msedhom said:
This thread doesnt belong here.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't agree with you. Android is a Rom-development for the Blackstone, so I agree his placement for this thread.
Back on-topic, I disagree with the fact of android being a spoiler to our Blackstone. Android is an open-source OS for Mobile Phones and I really would like a Android Rom for the Blackstone. Creating my own apps and stuff. I hope it will be developed some day
root said:
I am constantly reading posts about android here and i cant understand why everybody is so excited about it. Ok, its linux, but so what. Its open-source, but so what. How many of users that are so desiring it has ever change one line of code in any software? 0.0001%? How many times have you edit some config file as there was no GUI to set it up from there? Do you actually know what the file is? And how to edit it without Word ? So what is SO cool about it? What is this great thing where the touch hd would be so great with it? I thought it was bragging but you can brag with iPhone, i dont think Linux will ever catch its look AND stability (actually imho linux is one huge pile of bugs that works together by pure coincidence). The amount of software that could be used on a phone is very inferior to Windows Mobile and iPhone, and shell is quite useless as on screen keyboard typing can be only meant as a joke (i actually had to buy myself a folding keyboard)... You like it becoase it is google? Some privacy concerned people would raise eyebrow... You dont like the manilla? What about this: http://www.spbsoftwarehouse.com/pocketpc-software/mobileshell/ ?
So what is so cool about android??
(running ssh to dragonfly bsd host and i really dont understand what linux on phone could be good for)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Personally I want it because its smother than winmo, even the old halfworking port feels really smoth and more robust flipping through menues etc. It has that stable feeling Iphone-OS has.
That beeing said, i love where the new manila and Winmo is heading. If they just speed it up and get rid of the flickering and ****ty looking graphics when opening applications it would be more attractive.
my dad recently bought the htc magic and i can understand whats the hype with android.
its a very nice system for a phone.
what i dont understand is that if you want it, why not buy an android phone? my next phone will probably by android, but for now i'm happy with WM. and i can guarantee you that never will android on a device like blackstone be as good as windows mobile. without the help of the manufacturer it is not possible to get a stable and fully working android port. waste of time. go get a hero.
MOD EDIT
Already a discussing/testing thread on Linux. No need for another. I've already had to close one due to repetitive/useless posts.
Please try searching before creating new threads. Thread closed
Ta
Rick

HARet and Backtrack

What's up everyone?
(Mods, not sure if this goes in Rom Development or Software... I thought software... I could be wrong!)
Well I was looking at the massive development that has been made on porting Android to the Kaiser, and I started thinking, if HARet is a linux bootloader, would there be a way to use it to load a bootable copy of backtrack or the like?
Sorry if this is a ridiculous question... I'm not a computer engineer, nor a marginally intelligent monkey for that matter, so I thought someone with some knowledge could shed some light?
Well, you'd think it'd be possible if you somehow used a version made for ARM processor, but there are so many practical reasons that it wouldn't work well if at all. There's a reason that we're not all running Debian with gnome as our standard OS's, the hardware specs are simply too high, and so much work would need to be done to add drivers and get it booting. Even knoppix probably wouldn't work well. Plus, you can't really run a full desktop distro on a QVGA screen that's 2-3 inches across. In addition, Backtrack's whole purpose is for security and network penetration testing, and neither of those would work on a phone. You couldn't even get the WiFi chipset into monitor mode, let alone crack a network or inject packets. Even things like firefox would crawl at best. When you read this, you'll understand why the developers only port Linux distros optimized for embedded systems, like Maemo and Android; other ones simply aren't practical for use, and would be a waste of time to port. However, your question was a perfectly reasonable one (and you put it in the right section!)
If any developer would like to add further to this, they are more than welcome to.

Running ROM in Emulator

I have installed the SDK and Eclipse. I have created an AVD and run through the little tutorial. I can start the emulator using the (windows) command line. How do I run a "cooked" ROM in the emulator? If there is a better place to post this question, please let me know. I am particularly interested in the Hero (CDMA, Sprint).
The sdk emulator emulates an older ARMv5. I for one don't think it's very practical for developing custom roms on but it has been done before. I remember hearing a couple people saying they had Sense UI running on it. Cool but kind of pointless if you ask me. Anyways:
http://developer.android.com/guide/developing/tools/emulator.html
has just about all the info you'll need to do it.
Speaking of emulators. I merged zen and emulator to get my name zenulator back when I messed around with console emulators for the ps1 and dreamcast. Before android took over
Zenulator,
Thanks for responding. That's exactly the page I was using. Can I simply replace userdata.img with the boot.img from the ROM? I'm just curious to see what the various ROM's will look and act like. (I do not yet have a smartphone; I've got a stupid one. My wife promised my a new phone when she upgrades hers, and the Hero looks really good to me.)
WarpSpeed said:
Zenulator,
Thanks for responding. That's exactly the page I was using. Can I simply replace userdata.img with the boot.img from the ROM? I'm just curious to see what the various ROM's will look and act like. (I do not yet have a smartphone; I've got a stupid one. My wife promised my a new phone when she upgrades hers, and the Hero looks really good to me.)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah I see. I'd get the evo if your planning on buying a new smart phone.
Also no you cant just swap out parts from the roms postrd in the forums since the emulator runs off a yaffs system image and also it doesn't run a boot.img. It uses a separate kernel and ramdisk.
Zenulator,
Thanks again, particularly for preventing me from wasting my time over an impossible task. One cannot help lusting over the EVO. However, I carry my phone in my pocket, and the EVO might be a bit too big for that. Furthermore, I don't really use a phone all that much, so it's hard to justify the extra expense. I have suggested to my wife that she get one.
Are there any other emulators or virtualization techniques I might use to display a ROM's function on a computer monitor? Do those guys who create the ROMs simply try them out on their own phones, or do they have software which will allow them to first test their creations on the computer? I fiddle with Linux, and have used VMWare under Windows and Linux. Took a stab at Zen once, but didn't have the right hardware.
just an idea.. It wouldnt be hands on but you could youtube the different roms and see what they look like
Furthermore, I don't really use a phone all that much, so it's hard to justify the extra expense.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Aw man, you would sooo use your phone 300x more if you had a smart phone of any kind, though I'm partial to Android ; ) . I can't remember what i did before my first BB.... Ahhhhh the memories.
Easily justifiable expense. LOL
-------------------------------------
Sent via the XDA Tapatalk App
I used my phone like 20 minutes total throughout the day when I had a dumbphone.
My Hero gets used and abused hours each day.
You all are preaching to the choir! I want a new phone so bad that I can taste it. I've been scouring the forums, learning as much as I can, and I can hardly wait. The Hero looks just right for me, and I'm really looking forward to using an open file system. It looks like Sprint will be dropping the Hero soon (price is going down) and replacing it with a "Hero 2," apparently essentially the same thing as the htc Legend. We'll see. Anyone heard any other news?
I probably play more on my phone than I text or talk, but don't regret paying $25 more a month than I was with MetroPCS. I can't see myself paying nearly $100 a month just for the Evo as I am on a plan by myself.
This is not completly on topic, but there is the Android OS for computers. You think I could take the kernal and ramdisk, etc from the Hero and swap it out with the ones from the Android OS
http://gadgets.softpedia.com/news/How-To-Run-Google-039-s-Android-OS-On-Your-Windows-PC-3897-01.html
&RoidRage,
Thanks for the link. I followed it out and downloaded the complete iso. I will look inside it and play with it, maybe live, maybe virtualized. It might be fun to see if some components can be swapped out, though I doubt it will work.
Dual processors running at 1.5 GHz seems overkill for a cell phone, but then, that's why we're here.
Hi all
I'm trying to load a ROM into the emulator, how can I do that ?
Kcarpenter said:
Aw man, you would sooo use your phone 300x more if you had a smart phone of any kind, though I'm partial to Android ; ) . I can't remember what i did before my first BB.... Ahhhhh the memories.
-------------------------------------
Sent via the XDA Tapatalk App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
seriously, my dumbphone was on like 20 minutes a day
and my hero is overused easily (especially in class)
how i run roms that dont have the system.img ?

[Q] A Newb to Android

I just ordered my Samsung Captivate and now I am just waiting...
Maybe I could pass the time learning about Android!?
Having only had a little expierience with my Friend's MotoBackflip running Doughnut and my current phone being Winmo 6.5, I wanted to know the best way to learn about Android before I recieve my phone.
What would be the best learning resource?
I have a feeling I am going to want to Root the phone which I don't completely know what that means but if it gets rid of the the Bloatware then I am just fine with it.
HTC has spoiled me so I have a feeling I am going to want to get rid of TouchWiz too but we'll see.
I have like a thousand questions but I am a pretty capable person so just point me in the right direction if you can!
as far as rooting i think you could take a look at the android dev forum , theres some info there about rooting and different roms available I believe
Don't use a task killer.
They are not needed. And there is no reason not to root. And it is pretty much risk free.
Sent from my iPhone with the bigger Gee Bees.
notasimpleway said:
Don't use a task killer.
They are not needed. And there is no reason not to root. And it is pretty much risk free.
Sent from my iPhone with the bigger Gee Bees.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Weird, I thought a task killer would be essential. I've always wondered where those little programs go if you don't close them lol
Shival said:
Having only had a little expierience with my Friend's MotoBackflip running Doughnut and my current phone being Winmo 6.5
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm, I'm in a bit of a similar situation (though I've owned an iPhone in-between owning WinMo and then Android).
First off, the best way to learn is to see whether devs had ported Android to your WinMo phone or not. If they did, use that to learn. If not, try reading an Android guidebook (e.g. T-Mobile G1 for Dummies) or simply using an available Android emulator. There's one at: http://tmobile.modeaondemand.com/htc/g1/
Lastly, there's a bit of a difference between Android's root and WinMo's HardSPL. The only purpose of HardSPL is basically to change ROMs...because WinMo pretty much allows you to do anything else you want. Android's rooting, on the other hand, doesn't just allow you to install ROMs, but it allows you to use a variety of programs which requires your phone to be rooted (e.g. ROM Manager), install certain tweaks, and so on.
As an analogy, Android's root is probably closer to iOS' jailbreaking than it is to WinMo's HardSPL. As with the iPhone's jailbreaking, rooting allows you access to a larger variety of apps, tweaks to change how your phone performs, and so on.
If you have any other questions, then basically the right direction to point you in is the Android phone forums around here. Read the questions others asked, see the answers, and learn. That's how I did it.
Shival said:
Weird, I thought a task killer would be essential. I've always wondered where those little programs go if you don't close them lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Android is built on Linux. Linux does not handle resources the way Windows does. Basically, it closes programs when it is done on its own.
Sent from my iPhone with the bigger Gee Bees.
Your def in the right place. This is my first android phone and from what I understand the captivate is one of thee r easier phones to do anything with. I've flashed this thing a bunch of times already and there hasn't ben any custom roms released for it yet. Check out the stickies in the dev forum. Everything is there. And there s no way to get rid of touch whiz yet. Launcher pro is pretty awesome though. Its free on the market
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
Is LauncherPro basically another UI?
When I goto root my device, which or what is going to be the best way?
Should I do the Onclick root program thing? or is there an even better way?
This is sounding like it is going to be just as much fun as the first time I Flashed my HD =]
[Edit]
I just noticed the Re-done Captivate guide so that looks like its gonna solve a bunch of my questions! Sorry that I didn't notice it before I posted.
Thank-you everyone that posted!
-Further Questions
Am I going to want to root the phone as soon as I get it?
Would it be best to use the phone with my Ubuntu partition?
I have a feeling I am going to want launcherpro, should I cash out and get LauncherPro Plus?

[Q] Dual boot?

I was wondering if dual booting would be possible on our phone? I've seen that the HD2 got winmo + android boot... But having some kind of Stable partition and a second "dev" one would be quite amazing...
Thanks!
I asked the same question, and my post was moved to Q and A. Most responses were that WinMo is not worthy of the hardware. WP7 didn't attract quite the same disdain.
I would really love to run WP7 on the captivate, and I think eventually someone will make it happen. I think WinMo would run amazingly smooth, but I doubt we'll ever find out.
The HD2 won't quite run android ROMs, you have to boot into WinMo, then restart in Android, but it is really easy to swap what "ROM" you are using. If the HD2 was capable of AT&T 3G, I would have one by now.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
Yes please to WP7 on Captivate. If nothing else i want to be able to run it for a few days to see how I like that new software. And check out the Xbox Live integration
yes, i only have one phone but would like to learn to do some basic development and it would be nice to have a stable rom to switch back to on the fly. i've had problems using nandroid and titanium backup. if anyone knows of a way to change to or add a secondary boot loader so multiple os's can be launched that would be awesome.
minmo might be a bit impractical but multiple android installations would be cool sweet.
Ok.. well get a checklist started on what you would need:
A custom bootloader that would work with the Captivate.. And I'm sure people would want the choice to pick the OS upon bootup instead of having to go into the recovery screen and booting up from there.
It would also have to be compatible with working Android and Win7
Someone would then have to find the source code to Win7 - or at least the SDK for it and develop in whatever language its written in.
Then someone would have to code the drivers for the Captivate and Win7 mobile.
Pretty much.. it wouldn't be any type of "take n' bake" task and would be quite the project involving a ton of work.
I'm sure someone out there in the world will come up with it.. I mean someone took the time to port Android to the iPhone - so it "could" happen.. but most likely won't due to the huge amount of work it will take.
avgjoegeek said:
Ok.. well get a checklist started on what you would need:
A custom bootloader that would work with the Captivate.. And I'm sure people would want the choice to pick the OS upon bootup instead of having to go into the recovery screen and booting up from there.
It would also have to be compatible with working Android and Win7
Someone would then have to find the source code to Win7 - or at least the SDK for it and develop in whatever language its written in.
Then someone would have to code the drivers for the Captivate and Win7 mobile.
Pretty much.. it wouldn't be any type of "take n' bake" task and would be quite the project involving a ton of work.
I'm sure someone out there in the world will come up with it.. I mean someone took the time to port Android to the iPhone - so it "could" happen.. but most likely won't due to the huge amount of work it will take.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
At least there's a Samsung Omnia 7. It has a 4" SAMOLED like ours. I hope it has more in common with us as well so it would make the process easier.
JayPhill89 said:
At least there's a Samsung Omnia 7. It has a 4" SAMOLED like ours. I hope it has more in common with us as well so it would make the process easier.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if winmo gets ported great, if not oh well, if you read the op it was not to get winmo but just used the hd2 as an example of dual boot on a phone. a boot loader is a starting point so can the topic go in that direction? i just dont want naysayers to get confused and tell us every reason we wont get or dont want winmo.
You cannot just take the source code for WP7. It is not open source. You can port android to things, but not the other way around.
nbs11 said:
You cannot just take the source code for WP7. It is not open source. You can port android to things, but not the other way around.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As Dani897 said, the thread is not about porting WP7 to our phone, but just having dual boot to be able to have (lets say) one stable rom and one dev rom on the same phone...
seriously want this to happen figure it out

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