Google Android, Ubuntu

Android is getting a whole lot of interest lately, and a whole lot of “why can’t I run it on my desktop. A better question is why would you want to run it on your desktop?

While Google Android is built on the Linux kernel, all of the applications for the mobile operating system actually run on Google’s custom Java runtime. In other words, Google Android doesn’t run most native Linux applications, and most Linux distributions can’t run Google Android apps… yet. But Canonical is working on software that would allow Google Android programs to run natively on Ubuntu Linux.

Google’s Android platform is well-suited for phones and maybe tablets, but isn’t targeted for, nor ready for netbooks. After all, would you really want to run the iPhone version of Safari or the Windows Mobile version of Word on your desktop computer when there are far better word processors and web browsers designed for desktop operating systems? It’s a matter of resources available at the point of use, and there is no point restricting yourself to limits if it’s not necessary.

But in the long run, running Android on Ubuntu could expand the developer community for both Ubuntu and Google Android. If you develop an app for one, it probably would not be that much work to get it to run on the other. The move could also make it much easier to come up with ways to synchronize the data on mobile devices running Google Android with a desktop computer running Ubuntu.

Development is still in the early phases, so it’s possible that the whole project could lead nowhere. But the screenshot above (grabbed from Scott James Remnant’s Twitpic stream) of Google Android programs running on a machine with Ubuntu Netbook Remix installed certainly suggests a world of possibilities. And on that I think we could all agree, expoanding the developer space is a good thing.

Will Android Chip Away At Windows’ PC Dominance

It’s quite possible that Android, a Linux based smart phone OS, will increasingly encroach on Windows dominance. Windows generally suffers from the same thing, the giant hair ball of design school, which eventually makes it impossible to maintain and the result, Windows rot. The OS just slowly winds itself into the ground. You probably have had that happen to you, I know I have, countless times.

Trying to be too many things to too many people will have that effect.

Goggle bills Android as open source for the wireless world. And it’s price that is swinging the argument. You just can’t beat free. But then there is this — Acer has already made official its intention to field an Android powered netbook in Q3 of 2009. Along with Acer will come more computer makers as firms try the alternative OS to reduce costs. Dell and HP are also both looking at selling Android powered netbooks. So the swell is building.

But where will it crest. There is no good reason Android won’t take over on the desktop as well. If it’s fast enough, it’s hardware requirements are modest, since it is cellphone oriented, then people may find the limited functionality of Android is ‘good enough’. The cheap PCs Android runs on “good enough”. After all, what do people do with their PCs these days? Interent, Internet, Internet and a little Quicken or letter writing on the side. But for the most part it’s all network centric, the network has truly become the computer.

The Wall Street Journal reports that analysts believe Android will slowly chip away at the dominance of Windows in the notebook and netbook market. Some analysts also predict that Android will eventually turn up on desktop computers as well. With the backing of a major player like Google, Android is able to better draw attention and developers to its operating system than some of the other flavors of Linux.

Some of the Android usage agreements also allow the Google logo to be used; a netbook or notebook with a Google logo on it would be more recognizable to consumers than a notebook running another Linux variant like Ubuntu. This could potentially be a huge selling point for those manufacturers, since ‘google is the net’ to most people.

Research firm Gartner is expecting Linux (including Android) to grab 2% of the consumer market in 2010, up from an estimated 1.7% this year. Use of Linux is also expected to grow in the corporate market as well with a market share for Linux predicted to be 2.8% in 2010, up from 2.7% this year. At the same time, Windows’ market share is predicted to decline. The main driver is cost, the netbooks, and low end laptops are extremely price sensitive, it’s really hard to beat free.

If Android delivers, the price of Internet computing could plummet.

More at The Wall Street Journal (subscription)