OpenMoko on the Navigo GPS?

[Nils Faerber]

The idea of porting Linux and whatever GUI on top of it to non-Linux
devices is as old as Linux for non-x86, i.e. around 10 and more years.

And it is every time the same problem: No hardware specs of the device
(i.e. schematics and chip documentation) it is either impossible or
tremendously hard to do a full featured port.

I worked on some of those several times and every time you are almost
done the device goes out of production. This is frustrating and
basically you are doing the job of the manufacturer. In fact you even
donate them your hard work for free - the job they normally would have
had to pay some engineers for is then done for free and they can sell
even more devices without any investment.

This is not my idea of working or supporting open source software. So I
stopped working on such projects. If a manufacturer wants Linux for
their devices they should at least actively support the effort - if not
even paying engineers to do it. I will no longer do it for them for free
without any specs.

My 0.05€ ;)

Cheers
  nils


Joseph Reeves schrieb:
> My previous fun and games have proven to me that the FreeRunner is
> going to be the ultimate GPS device:
> 
> http://lists.openmoko.org/pipermail/community/2008-March/013855.html
> 
> But I couldn't help think about the possibilities of running OpenMoko
> on something as cheap as this:
> 
> http://www.ebuyer.com/product/131342#
> 
> No, the specs aren't a fully featured as the FreeRunner, but it's got
> a 400mhz CPU and a large (-ish) screen. And at £50 it can happily sit
> in my car, especially if it's going to give me OpenStreetMap images to
> drive along to.
> 
> I'm sure someone will have a better idea about this than me; would it
> be possible to ditch the Windows CE from it and replace it with
> OpenMoko?
> 
> Cheers, Joseph

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