Update on the Gemini Linux/Android phone

They've shipped some units (though it appears mine may be a month or two away still), but today they released their state of play on Linux, which I thought may be of interest. As I've mentioned earlier, it's my hope to run TDE on this device. It's possible (though I'd be probably overly optimistic in expecting) that by the time I get the device, or anyone but the earliest backers get theirs, this will be much farther along. The information is here: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/gemini-pda-android-linux-keyboard-mobile… It says in part: We have been extremely busy in the past few months to make sure that the Gemini user experience will be on par with the tremendous expectation that you all have for the device. For this reason, we decided to focus mainly on the Gemini hardware and the Android operating system running smoothly on the device. Currently all manufactured Gemini devices will only have Android OS installed out of the box - you will have a bit more work to do to create a dual-boot Gemini device running Linux and Android. . . . We have developed a Gemini Flashing Tool that will enable you to partition your Gemini flash memory and install Linux alongside Android. The Gemini Flashing Tool runs on a standard PC (in fact it should be able run on Windows, Mac and Linux) and it’s basically a front-end to well know utilities such as adb, Xflash and fastboot. It will guide you through the various steps needed to install Linux on the Gemini, allowing you to choose the space to be reserved for Android and for Linux. By using the partition tool you will basically transform your Android-only Gemini into a dual boot Android/Linux Gemini (and back, if you wish so). You can also use the tool to manually update Android, for example to install a rooted Android version. Now, on to the much debated point – the choice of Linux distribution available for the Gemini. You might remember that we said in the past that we planned to release a Debian firmware. This will not change, Debian is going to be supported, even though we are sorry to say that we haven’t been able to allocate resources to it lately, and as a result we did not make much progress in terms of supported drivers (yet). However, we are thrilled to say that other Linux flavours have been ported to Gemini too! We also said that we want to enable the device to run many different version of Linux. We are really excited to say that at the moment we have the following Linux distributions fully or partially running on the Gemini: Debian Sailfish OS Ubuntu 17.04 Postmarket OS (an experimental version running Hildon UI – may look familiar to MeeGo/Maemo users) Special Mention: a few months back we got in touch with some open source members and in particular with Nikita Ukhrenkov. Nikita really helped us in many ways, and led a community effort to port a number of Linux-based operating systems on the Gemini. Nikita will be joining us at our stand at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona (Hall 7 stand 7K40) and he will be showing some of the Linux version at out Linux showcase next week. Please note that although many functionality are already working (including 4G connection on Sailfish!), these are still early days and as such we still have to deal with performance issues, missing drivers, keyboard layouts and other issues. However, we believe that Linux is well underway for the Gemini and with your help we can take it much further.. If you think you can help us developing things further, please jump in, it’s now the right time! The various Linux firmware and the partition tool, will be available on our new support Website support.planetcom.co.uk .Please mark this Web address, as this is the place that will contain official information regarding Gemini support, tutorials, tips and software downloads for your Gemini. If you are a developer and want to talk to us or get in touch with other fellow developers, you can do so now using our new developer forum: http://developer.planetcom.co.uk/ We hope this website will simplify the coordination of new and already existing projects, for example the work carried on by Adam Boardman at https://github.com/gemian/gemini-keyboard-apps/wiki, to whom we are really grateful. We are also now confirming that we will be opening the source code for the Linux kernel and the boot loader for the Gemini. We know that some users have been asking for this in order for the Linux developer community to be able to contribute properly. [eoq] This all seems interesting and hopeful. Am I right in thinking that if Debian runs on it, TDE will as well? -- dep The shortest distance between you and playing great acoustic guitar: the great new instructional DVDs from Marjorie Thompson, available at www.MarjorieThompson.com