Even though I am more interested in a Chrome OS based netbook now, Android based netbooks are still an interesting news. Companies like HP are still developing android based netbooks, and here is the latest one – Compaq Airlife 100.
It runs a Qualcomm Snapdragon 1GHz processor and has 512MB if RAM, and a 16GB internal Flash drive. Every other feature looks similar to a netbook, including the 10-inch widescreen, 1,024-by-600 resolution, card reader, and 28WH battery (3-cell).
Compaq Airlife 100 works with Microsoft Exchange, that means you can have your corporate email account on this netbook. It also has an application for you to view and edit word, excel and powerpoint files. It can handle PDF files too.
The Airlife 100 will be available only in Europe for now. There’s no word on pricing or when it’ll be available in the United States or any other countries.
If you are interested in testing Android on your own laptop now, you can check out Live Android, a customized android version of laptops and desktop computers. However, I think its better to try Chrome OS, and not android, because both of them are moving in different directions as of now. Android is being developed for mobile phones, and Chrome OS, for laptops or tablets.
I recently tried Chrome Os on my laptop, installing it on my USB drive. You can check this post for more details about it. I have posted some pictures too. I am yet to figure out how to uninstall the OS from my USB drive, and my wife is blaming me for making that drive unusable
Another interesting thing for you, if you want to add the beautiful Chrome Os menu on your normal Chrome browser, check this post, I have explained how to do it !
Oops ! Started writing about Android, and ended up in Chrome OS ! Sorry Guys Here is a nice little video of the Compaq Airlife 100. HP has put in some good work with the UI, and made the netbook touch screeen. The browser has tabbed browsing, and this always remains connected using 3g.
We usually start our weekends at the Forum Mall, here in Bangalore. This weekend, while we were in the Mall, She said,
“let’s go to the apple store”.
I was surprised, because apple store is one of the two restricted areas for me inside The Forum; reason ? : gadgets are dangerous for me. ( the other restricted place is Landmark, coz, I am addicted to books too ).
I asked her “what for ?” and she said …. ” I want to check my facebook” … and I was ..
” WHAT ?”
This happened 10 minutes after we left our home , where we have broadband Internet, and where we are supposed to be back again in another two hours of three. Why can’t she wait for few more hours before she can check facebook again ? The answer is, A facebook app, or a game called “Farm Ville”
I decided to see what this is all about, and I have to admit, I got myself addicted to this game now. So, if you have a facebook account, and going to check this out, take this as a warning. You may get addicted.
This is a simple flash based game, that you can install as an app on your facebook account. You get a small area or, farm which you can develop with plants, trees, sheep and goats etc. Slowly, you develop your farm and earn points, add your friends as neighbors, etc etc .. There is a stupid option where you can purchase points, ( yea, pay using your credit card .. no !! I am not kidding ) with which you can buy virtual trees and seeds … interesting uh ?
I usually ignore all app requests on facebook and I was ignoring this one also, so far. But, when I started using this, I found out that almost all of my friends are already in there, living in their virtual farm houses. With straberries, Apple trees, and orange trees. I got a chat message from a friend asking me to send him an orange tree as a gift ( yes, you can send people trees and more as gifts ).
What makes it sooo addictive ? I don’t have an answer. But, there is something that you will notice. Each plant or tree gets ready for harvesting in certain amount of time. So, if you have a plant that you are supposed to harvest in 2 hours, you should login to facebook and connect to this app on that time, and if you are late, your fruit will be gone as in the real world. ( now you know why she wanted to go to apple store and login to facebook from there !! ) So you are connected to this app all the time, you check back at certain intervals to make sure that everything is fine ….
If you get started after reading this post .. let me know !!
MIPS Technologies, a company which designs processors for various home entertainment devices, says it is working with partners to design Android-based platforms for set-top boxes, digital TVs, mobile Internet devices, and home media players. The company expects Android-powered digital picture frames to come to market later this year, followed by digital TVs and set-top boxes in 2010. ( source )
So, that’s news indeed. We are going to see android running on digital photo frames, PDAs, and even TV set top boxes !! Well, I’m confused again … Chrome OS … Android for mobile .. and then android for laptops, and then they said chrome os on smart phones, now this. Where are we going ? Do you have any clue ?
We waited for Android to come to Netbooks and Laptops, and then Google said, wait it’sChrome OS Tips, and we got confused, now, allow me to confuse you more, with Live Android, a project hosted on Google Code website, providing you live iso file for android.
You can download a normal live iso image file for android to use on your laptop or netbook. Burn it on a cd, ( DvD won’t work ), insert cd to the cd drive, and reboot the computer/laptop, and you will have it ready to test, without making any change to your system.
Creating a Live USB for Live Android
You can contact them on twitter, if you need help. I did get help through twitter, really fast. I was trying to create a Live USB using the iso file, but they said, its not ready for using on USB drives.
So, netbook users ( most of those netbooks come without a cd drive ) you may need to wait until version 3.0. The current version has some problem with usb file creator. When it’s ready, you can use this program to create a Live USB.
Me ?
I have downloaded the file, but I couldn’t burn the cd correctly, so, I need some more time to test this. Will update you all once I get this to work on my laptop … stay tuned .. you know what is RSS feed right ?
Android is being picked up by Laptop and Netbook manufacturing companies. We saw Dell testing Android on their netbooks, and Acer announcing an Android based netbook being developed. So, an important question that we need to find answer for is, about the future of prices for these android based Netbooks and Laptops.
What makes Netbooks popular ? Yes, small, light, compact etc .. agreed, but price is also a very important factor for their growing popularity. When the world started noticing netbooks coming, most of the geeks expected Linux making it big on Netbooks market. Well, it did, to a large amount, and then Microsoft gained their space too, with their Windows XP running most of the netbooks. So, right now, most of androids come with windows XP, and that adds a certain amount to their cost.
Netbooks can go further, if we can bring prices down, and the best way to do this, is to get rid of the additional cost of an Operating System. Now, not everyone will accept Linux on Netbooks, just because it is not windows, or it does not look like Windows. What’s the solution ?
My answer to this question, is Android. As mentioned on another blog post here about Android, google can be a motivation for people to try another OS, it will be a “feel good factor” for this open source OS, that it is from Google, the great. With a free OS that’s popular, and easy to use, prices will come down, and more people can afford a Netbook, and I think that will be really good.
Surprise !! you can now download Android Live ISO file, and test your skills on android OS ! Download it from this page. I will try this cd and let you all know about how it works ! Stay tuned !! and yes, you can follow them on twitter here
I know this is too much to ask for now, but, still I am really interested to learn this. Installing Android on netbook/laptop that is.
It may take some more time before we actually see Android on Netbooks, and Laptops etc. But, there are some news here and there about people installing Android on their netbooks and nokia phones etc. I am still searching for an article that explains how to do this. ( if you guys know something of that kind, please leave a comment here )
I find tutorials on how to install Google Android SDK ( well it works only on Linux, or Apple’s OSX as of now !! ) but no luck on finding something about installing Android OS itself.
I am only a Linux user, not an expert. I feel good to tell you that I am linux user. Because, when I look around, I see only linux geeks, or linux experts and very very less linux users.
Understanding Linux as a user
The open source theory is not my attraction. I use Linux because it is a good operating system and that’s the only reason.When I write about Linux, I am not preaching freedom and open source or any of those theories… but I am trying to tell you about a good operating system that I use.
My job introduced Linux to me as an operating system that does almost everything that windows can do, and lot of things that Windows can not do. I used linux because I had to, and I did not leave Linux because I started loving it.
This will not happen very often. We do not have platforms where general public get introduced to Linux. Linux and most of the things related to it are shared within the Geek Communities around the Internet.
The next step, reach the common man
What Linux should do now, as early as possible, is to introduce Linux to the common man. This should happen online and offline. There is a great community of Linux users. They can easily do this, using their online and offline contacts.
I was wondering what will Google‘s response be, when it comes to the Yahoo! Microsoft deal. I came across this post which has some interesting points and it gives a clear idea about what Google’s concerns are, about this deal.
Could Microsoft now attempt to exert the same sort of inappropriate and illegal influence over the Internet that it did with the PC? While the Internet rewards competitive innovation, Microsoft has frequently sought to establish proprietary monopolies — and then leverage its dominance into new, adjacent markets.
Yes, that is a serious concern. Microsoft is always for copyrights, making the PC costly, making the computing itself costly.. and it kept it away from masses for a long time. Now, do you see low cost laptops entering market with Linux OS on it ? don’t you think it could have been much earlier, if Microsoft’s approach was different ?
Another question
Could the acquisition of Yahoo! allow Microsoft — despite its legacy of serious legal and regulatory offenses — to extend unfair practices from browsers and operating systems to the Internet? In addition, Microsoft plus Yahoo! equals an overwhelming share of instant messaging and web email accounts. And between them, the two companies operate the two most heavily trafficked portals on the Internet. Could a combination of the two take advantage of a PC software monopoly to unfairly limit the ability of consumers to freely access competitors’ email, IM, and web-based services? Policymakers around the world need to ask these questions — and consumers deserve satisfying answers. Continue reading →
We usually start our weekends at the 
