MobileAndEmbedded
Include(MobileAndEmbedded/Menu)
Ubuntu Mobile and Embedded
The Ubuntu Mobile and Embedded project aims to derive an operating system for mobile internet devices using Ubuntu as a base. Sponsored by [http://www.canonical.com Canonical] and Intel, the project has been launched at [:UDS-Sevilla] following a [https://lists.ubuntu.com/archives/ubuntu-devel-announce/2007-May/000289.html preliminary announcement] to the Ubuntu community.
We will extend Ubuntu by providing infrastructure for mobile development, with all of the necessary components integrated into the Ubuntu package archive, ready to install and run, or to tailor for custom mobile applications.
Work in Progress
Mailing list: http://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-mobile
IRC: #ubuntu-mobile on FreeNode
Technical specifications: http://blueprints.launchpad.net/~ubuntu-mobile
- Source code:
Ubuntu branches: https://code.launchpad.net/~ubuntu-mobile/
maemo upstream code: https://code.launchpad.net/maemo
Launchpad packages: https://launchpad.net/~ubuntu-mobile/+packages
Installing UME test environment [https://wiki.ubuntu.com/MobileAndEmbedded/HildonDesktopManualProcedure manually] (DEPRECATED).
Installing UME test environment using the [https://wiki.ubuntu.com/MobileAndEmbedded/CreatingAnImageForUMEDevice Image Builder] (preferred).
[https://help.ubuntu.com/community/UMEGuide UME Guide]
[http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/moblin/ Daily builds] and corresponding [http://people.ubuntu.com/~ubuntu-archive/moblin-build-logs/hardy/ logs]
- How to port applications to use the Hildon framework:
- Info on internationalizing code for mobile. Two pages written independently that need to be merged:
Generating bootcharts for a UME image [https://wiki.ubuntu.com/MobileAndEmbedded/GeneratingBootchartsForUMEImage]
Reducing Boot Time of UME Image [https://wiki.ubuntu.com/MobileAndEmbedded/ReducingBootTimeOfUMEImage]
Preliminary Roadmap
The current focus is on mobile devices which tend to have a touch screen, generous amounts of flash storage and RAM, and wireless Internet connectivity. These are sometimes called "Internet tablets" or "mobile Internet devices" (MID).
Applications
We will be using existing open source applications where it is feasible to do so, packaging them for Ubuntu where necessary. We will fill in some of the gaps by developing new applications if nothing suitable exists. Our goal is to have a basic set of applications needed to have a useful mobile system, such as a browser, media player, system utilities, etc.
Kernel
The Ubuntu kernel team will be providing us with a suitable kernel build, and incorporating additional drivers where necessary. This development will take place in our kernel git tree in concert with the other kernel activity underway for Ubuntu 8.04.
Platforms
Our current platform targets are Intel's MID (Mobile Internet Device) platforms, code-named McCaslin and Menlow. Examples include:
Vendor |
Model |
Platform |
Samsung |
Q1 Ultra |
|
Fujitsu |
U1010 |
|
Kohjinsha |
SH6 |
|
HTC |
Shift |
|
Amtek |
U560 |
|
Elektrobit |
MIMD |
Menlow |
[http://www.umpcportal.com/products/compareWindow.php#%5B%5B,119,99,103,97,117,116,121,106,107,108,105%5D%5D Detailed specs and images. (UMPCPortal)]
It's worth noting, though, that everything we produce will be available for the standard Ubuntu i386 platform as well, and anyone can play along on an Ubuntu desktop or laptop running Gutsy/Hardy.
Development
Development tools are available in Ubuntu 7.10 (Gutsy) Hardy (to be Ubuntu 8.04) and it should be possible to do most development directly within a GNOME environment, or with Xnest. All of the necessary development packages are available directly from the official Ubuntu repositories.
UI Framework
The framework is based on Hildon, and integrated with Ubuntu as a first-class part of the package archive, using a combination of packages from the maemo repository and some snapshots from Subversion. Where we need to modify the packages, we're importing Subversion into Bazaar and maintaining a branch there, to simplify tracking upstream changes.
Several engineers from Nokia are helping with this effort (Thanks!).
Example UIs
- [:MobileAndEmbedded/EmailUI: Email UI]
- [:MobileAndEmbedded/ImageViewerUI: Image Viewer UI]
- [:MobileAndEmbedded/VideoPlayerUI: Video Player UI]
- [:MobileAndEmbedded/RSSReaderUI: RSS Reader UI]
- [:MobileAndEmbedded/ChatUI: Chat UI]
Desktop Components
We are exploring cooperation with the [http://www.gnome.org/mobile/ Gnome Mobile and Embedded] initiative to define a set of desktop-derived components which will be shared between the Ubuntu desktop and the UME platform. Our goal will be to maintain an appropriate level of code sharing and compatibility between these environments, in order to ease maintenance and provide a fertile base for application development.
Build infrastructure
We're using a modified toolchain in order to use different optimizations during compilation. These packages will be labeled "lpia" corresponding to http://www.intel.com/technology/systems/lpia/
Daily builds for supported devices are produced, which can be used to flash Ubuntu Mobile onto a device. More information about the daily builds can be found [:MobileAndEmbedded/DailyBuilds: here].
Schedule
We are targeting our first release slightly after Ubuntu 8.04, following similar release milestones.
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/HardyReleaseSchedule
Applications
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/MobileAndEmbedded/UserApplicationCriteria
Related Projects
[http://www.maemo.org/ maemo]
[http://www.moblin.org/ Moblin] (Intel)
[http://www.gnome.org/mobile/ GNOME Mobile and Embedded Initiative]
[http://tree.celinuxforum.org/CelfPubWiki/FrontPage CE Linux Forum] (being merged to elinux.org)
[http://new.elinux.org Embedded Linux Wiki]
[:CategoryUME] [:CategoryDevelopment] [:CategoryTeams]