Re:HP Kicks webOS To The Kerb
by masklinn on Sunday December 11, 2011 @07:20PM
(#3341621)
> Can someone explain to me what WebOS actually is?
It's the OS Palm developed for its tactile smartphone "Pre" line (which sadly failed in the market).
> Wikipedia says it is based on the Linux Kernel, so is it like Android which sits on top of a small Linux kernel, but has its own API for UI and telephony?
Yes.
> My understanding is that to achieve fluid, high FPS UI we need to HW accelerate, which means getting specs from HW manufacturers, which traditionally has been a problem for Linux hobbyists. The people who have access to these are the manufacturers.
That's an issue when trying to get open-source drivers, but these don't have such restrictions (all Android phones have "the right" GPU drivers, Android is just awful at using them). Phone manufacturers have all the specs they need when the build phones, and can use binary blobs provided by chip manufacturers if need be.
> In this sense, WebOS would have difficulty achieving any kind of traction.
It's the OS Palm developed for its tactile smartphone "Pre" line (which sadly failed in the market).
> Wikipedia says it is based on the Linux Kernel, so is it like Android which sits on top of a small Linux kernel, but has its own API for UI and telephony?
Yes.
> My understanding is that to achieve fluid, high FPS UI we need to HW accelerate, which means getting specs from HW manufacturers, which traditionally has been a problem for Linux hobbyists. The people who have access to these are the manufacturers.
That's an issue when trying to get open-source drivers, but these don't have such restrictions (all Android phones have "the right" GPU drivers, Android is just awful at using them). Phone manufacturers have all the specs they need when the build phones, and can use binary blobs provided by chip manufacturers if need be.
> In this sense, WebOS would have difficulty achieving any kind of traction.
This issue really has very little relevance.