Android in Beta

So, obviously from my last post I'm excited about Android. They released the .9 sdk in Beta last week and since then, this thread follows a gentleman working on getting it ported to the HTC Vogue (aka Sprint Touch).

That being said, I have an HTC Vogue. And since Android is still running on top of Linux, I decided to run Beta.

I'm not sure I'd call this version 'Beta'. Unless you're only talking about the OS and not the functionality on a phone since you can't actually make a phone call or write a text. But I'll tell you, they sure got the browser and google maps right. No surprise there. And they've conveniently bookmarked Facebook, Myspace, Ebay, NYTimes and CNN for you. (I'm presently attempting to logout of Facebook. It seems the WM settings for timing out are still on and as I wait for the browser to refresh, the phone goes to sleep... making a minor mess of the situation. But no worries. It worked. And newyorkcraigslist.org is now in my bookmarks *phew*.)

Writing an OS, no doubt, is hard work. I completely get it. I am using the most un-intuitive OS imaginable--Windows Mobile 6.0 (proof: I found the option that lets you set the only screensaver for the phone (a slideshow of your photos as screensaver) under the *settings* for a photo... of course). I'm not a programmer. But I'd gather even for the programmers, it's, perhaps, harder than Google anticipated. Although it would be dandy if the HTC Dream running Android came out in September (won't happen, not with this release as beta) or even January. But I can't imagine it will. And if it does, it'll be pretty bare-bones. But cool none-the-less.

I do want to note a caveat:

The beauty of Open Source and Google's initiatives is that they've created a completely transparent environment around the OS. We, the plebeians, know about all that will be given to us. We know what programs are going to be out and are in development. A luddite as myself can even run the SDK! Hell, I just checked my Facebook page using Android. Much cooler than Windows Mo(re)bile. This makes for easy critics (as hopefully I am not becoming).

I can't wait. WM 6.0 is nearly killing me. I can't upgrade to 6.1 (which will make use of that GPS in my phone *sigh*) because I'm on a mac and refuse to get Windows XP... what a waste of hard drive space.

All of this said, I have a new found respect for the folks over at 1 Infinite Loop. I know, after all I said about them in my last post. They've put together one strong operating system in that iPhone. Of course, their endeavor is not as big as Google's, but still... running a Windows Mo-bile phone leaves me lusting for something better... more intuitive.

So there you have it. 12 hrs with Android and them's my thoughts.