First big Android … fisaco

Well, I wanted to call this a $#!\^storm, but I don’t think it’s grown to those proportions yet. But any new platform will have its hiccups, and Google is relatively new to the OS world.

So, here’s the news. Google issued a legal Cease and Desist order to a developer Steve Kondik (known as Cyanogen). The story goes something like this… Steve is an active Android developer, doing a lot of work on the lower-level stuff (lower level than apps), including multi-touch and more home screens. His changes are essentially at the OS-level, and Android doesn’t have a full-fledged package management/patching mechanism like Linux distros, so making use of them requires recompiling stuff and re-flashing the device with a new ROM image (since the installation apps can’t handle stuff this low-level). Here’s the rub: in order to work on a device, the ROM image needs to include both closed-source Google apps and proprietary (device manufacturer) drivers. While these apps and drivers are available for download, the license terms prohibit redistribution. But in order for Steve to create a fully-functional ROM image, he has to include the closed code.

There are some writeups on this at Linux Magazine and a good, timely analysis at Linux Insider.

There’s also a clarification by Google’s Dan Morrill on the Android Developers blog.

So, what’s my take on all this (not that another guy taking about this is needed)?

Firstly, I think this is relatively minor. The community will work around it, whether with Google’s blessing or not. The bigger issue that’s coming to light is the fact that Google isn’t simply altruistic, they’re a for-profit entity. They have every right to be, and they have every right to exercise some amount of control over Android. The community needs to realize that Android isn’t a silver bullet, and isn’t even the Linux of the phone world. On the other hand, Google needs to realize two important facts: 1) the openness of Android is what’s driving developers to it, and they need to do all they can to continue that, and 2) most of those developers are flat-out used to running Linux with an all-GPL system, and aren’t used to the concept of not being able to roll their own distribution.

So what’s my advice?

1. Google should further decouple their Apps from the Android platform. Specifically, instead of requiring users to back things up, they should provide a redistributable application that installs their other apps. Allow a user to flash a bare-bones community ROM image, and then pull whatever else they want from Google. If Google intends on toeing the line that Android is Free but the (Google) Apps aren’t, then Google should provide an acceptable means for users of community ROM images to easily and painlessly re-install the closed Google apps on that image.
2. Google should require that handset manufacturers do the same. Create a redistributable application that can be part of community ROM images, which will (via tethering or whatever) download and install any proprietary device-specific drivers that are needed.

Bottom line of my opinion - it’s fine if Google exercises their full control over their own closed apps. But they should provide an avenue for non-technical end-users to easily upgrade a community (i.e. Free) ROM image with the expected Google Apps and device manufacturer software.