GNU/Linux at Google: Android, ChromeOS, Chromebooks, and Chrome News
- Dr. Roy Schestowitz
- 2014-03-18 18:24:00 UTC
- Modified: 2014-03-18 18:24:00 UTC
Android Gaming
Do we really need another Android console? Apparently so, as evidence suggests that Asus is jumping on that very bandwagon, possibly looking to score where a few of the current solutions have failed to hit. The device will be called Game Box, and the specs have appeared on AnTuTu while the controller struts its stuff all over the Bluetooth Special Interest Group website.
Ouya was the first to show the world that Android can be easily taken out from mobiles and tablets and put into a dedicated gaming console, which in turn opened up quite a lot of games waiting to be played, already available on the Play Store. Although Ouya didn’t perform as it expected to, other players in the field took note of the action.
Android TV
It will be controlled with an Android smartphone.
In this hands-on mini review, we take a quick look at the Ugoos UT2, a TV-centric mini-PC based on a 1.6GHz quad-core RK3188 SoC, and running Android 4.2.2.
Android Wearables
Google has plans to release an Android developer software development kit (SDK) in the next two weeks specifically designed for wearable devices. Sundar Pichai, Google’s SVP of Android, Apps and Chrome, shared at SXSW that the search giant will lay out a “vision for developers of how we see this market working” as part of the SDK.
Google has plans to release an Android developer software development kit (SDK) in the next two weeks specifically designed for wearable devices. Sundar Pichai, Google’s SVP of Android, Apps and Chrome, shared at SXSW that the search giant will lay out a “vision for developers of how we see this market working” as part of the SDK.
Android/Chromecast Software
We have just published the overview of the libraries and modules that various developers use in they Android mobile phone applications.
Android in Cars
-
He reminded the audience of Volkswagon's recent talks with Google, with Audi in particular committing to working with the firm on in-car technology based on Android. But he said that he wanted to see more collaboration from technology firms in other countries. "It would no doubt be a good thing if German and European IT companies would put themselves forward as partners too," he said.
Laptops and Android
-
Google is the one not keen on the idea of a dual-boot Windows-Android tablet-laptop, according to a fresh report from Asia and a CNET source.
CyanogenMod
-
OnePlus, the upstart making a CyanogenMod-powered phone, has revealed a few details about the device that the company says will be cheaper and better than big brand phones and definitely won't include a heart-rate monitor.
-
Koushik Dutta, the famed developer of CyanogenMOD has added DLNA support to his AllCast Android app. Ever since Google opened Chromcast to 3rd party developers Koush is on roll. He has, in fact, been toying with Chromecast the day it was released and created some stir in the free software community when Google changed the preview APIs for Chromecast which broke his app.
Statistics
-
Android tablet sales jumped to 120.9 million in 2013 to snag a global market share of 61.9 percent, up from sales of 53.3 million and a 45.8 percent share in 2012. Over the same time, iPad sales grew to 70.4 million from 61.4 million. But Apple's share of the tablet market dropped to 36 percent from 52.8 percent.
Tablets
-
HP has added a 7.85ââ¬Â³ unit to compliment its line-up of 7ââ¬Â³ and 8ââ¬Â³ tablets. The HP 8 1401 is a quad-core tablet that runs Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean. “It’s got responsiveness that delivers entertainment where you want it. Sleek and smart with technology you can trust, the HP 8 is big on performance, slim in style, and small on price,” claims the company.
Google/Chrome OS/Chromebook
-
Phoronix is reporting that running Windows applications in Chrome OS via Wine seems very unlikely to happen. And it got me wondering about how many people really want to run Windows applications in Chrome OS
-
As usual, Mobile World Congress was packed with cool new SoCs, most of which are destined for Android phones and tablets. Some will see wider usage in the broader world of embedded Linux and Android devices.The big news was the invasion of 64-bit ARMv8 and x86 SoCs, including Qualcomm's Snapdragon 615 and Intel's Atom Z34xx. The ARM models are built on the ARMv8 Cortex-A53 design. Eventually, we'll see the -A53 used in Big.Little hybrids along with the similarly 64-bit, server-class Cortex-A57.
-
Beast is fine. It’s old, but still kicking. It boots. It edits. It searches. It networks. Beast’s CPU is way over-sized for what I do and I do a lot. 99% of the time it idles. Every few weeks I open it up to full throttle to build the next Linux-3.10.x kernel, but what’s the rush? If it took twice or thrice as long I would still be happy.
-
The Samsung Chromebook 2 11.6-inch and Chromebook 2 13.3-inch models are the company’s latest additions to its line of Chromebook computers. And they are powered by the Exynos 5 Octa processor.
Chrome Security
At Google, there continue to be big cash bounties available for talented hackers. We've reported before on the bug bounty program that Google has been running for several years now, focused on rewarding hackers and security researchers with cash for discovering meaningful bugs in the Chrome browser. The company just participated in the annual Pwnium and Pwn2own events, where hackers and researchers are challenged to uncover bugs in browsers, and Google has already patched a number of significant bugs that were uncovered.
Google officials said this week that the company will reward developers of Chrome packaged apps by letting them give users free trials and in-app purchases, marking an expansion of Google's focus on fostering a robust ecosystem of applications. The company is also going to allow developers of browser extensions to charge for them for the first time. The Google Developers Blog makes clear that the company is very focused on monetization options for app creators, which has been a key point of focus for Apple as it has sought to attract iOS app developers.
Chrome Aura/GTK/Graphics
We aim to launch the Aura graphics stack on Linux in M35. Aura is a cross-platform graphics system, and the Aura frontend will replace the current GTK+ frontend.
-
Due to notorious Linux graphics drivers, Google developers working on Chrome/Chromium aren't looking to enable hardware video acceleration by default anytime soon. The problem ultimately comes down to poor Linux graphics drivers.
Chrome Voice
-
According to a post on the official Google Chrome Blog, the search and mobile OS giant has added a new version to the latest beta of the desktop-oriented Chrome Browser. The company calls it “Hands-Free Google Voice Search,” which, as the name implies, allows you to perform a search query simply by speaking up and activating the feature with a spoken command.
Ballnux Android (Microsoft-Taxed)
The large 5.9-inch phone expands to some big Asian markets like Indonesia and Singapore, but LG Electronics still won't commit to North American or European sales.
Samsung’s Galaxy devices could have a built-in security error that could allow for “remote access to data,” claim the developers of Replicant–an Android OS based on CyanogenMod. The security flaw discovered in certain Samsung Galaxy phones and tablets allows for access “to read, write, and delete files on the phone’s storage.”
On Wednesday, the Free Software Foundation reported that a back door was found in the Samsung Galaxy.
Misc.
-
The new $189 "Privacy Phone" comes with VPN, 128-bit encryption, and other tricks aimed at keeping you safe and anonymous.
-
Rich Miner strolls the halls of Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, pausing every few minutes to check out the latest gadgets on display. As one of the co-founders of Android, he is walking through a world that has been all but conquered by the operating system he helped create. Now, as a general partner at Google Ventures, he’s tasked with finding and investing the search giant’s billions in the next big thing.
Recent Techrights' Posts
- Five Years After Its Formation Libera.Chat Has the Most Simultaneous Users in Internet Relay Chat (IRC)
- netsplit.de also measures the cross-network total at over 300k, probably for the first time in years
-
- Outsourcing is Not Security
- Outsourcing to Microsoft is the opposite of security
- Links 28/06/2026: Turkey's State Broadcaster Suspends Commentator, Journalists Under Attack
- Links for the day
- Debugpoint.com Turns to LLM Slop for 'Help'
- This is how sites die
- Follow the Real Security Experts
- Werner Koch
- Assessing the Upcoming (July) Proprietary/GAFAM Cuts
- The total (or %) matters to us because it can help shed light on what scale of layoffs to expect next week
- Microsoft Lunduke Does Not Correct or Clarify Misinformation That He Posted (or Repeats It Instead)
- Not the first time [...] detracts and/or distracts from legitimate criticisms
- How Not to Do Security
- Asking Microsoft for permission
- Gemini Links 28/06/2026: Simulation Theory and Pursuit of Novelty
- Links for the day
- The Slop 'Religion' is Dying: From Widespread (Paid-for) Hype to Widespread Hate
- Wait till "sentiment" in Wall Street - not just general (public) "sentiment" - shifts strongly against slop
- For Whistleblowers' Sake, Choose Hosting Platforms Wisely
- Techrights is hard to 'sedate'
- How to Discreetly Leak Important Information to Techrights
- Some years ago we published multi-part series about how to contact us securely
- Expect Many More Whistleblowers From Microsoft
- We envision many pissed off workers from Microsoft will become whistleblowers after next week's giant wave
- Efforts to Resume Progress on FreeJS, LibreJS, and Reduce Dependence on Microsoft
- It's still in a relatively early development stage
- Whistleblowers Improve the World
- we should appreciate and respect whistleblowers
- Microsoft Windows Plunges to All-Time Lows in Japan
- Microsoft is disintegrating; many people no longer use (nor need) Windows
- GNU/Linux Turns 43 in 3 Months From Now
- The Manifesto of the Free software movement (GNU Manifesto, 1985) turned 40 last year
- SLAPP Censorship - Part 121 Out of 200: One Day We'll Discover What Company or Rich Person/s Funded the Lawfare Against Us
- Even if the law firm shoulders some of the losses, then it is in effect an investor in the lawfare, according to established caselaw
- Working on "Linux", But on Microsoft's Payroll
- Under the totally false guise of "security" those same people are now promoting TPMs and other horrible things
- Links 28/06/2026: Energy Crunch, EEE by Microsoft, and John Bolton Pleads Guilty in Dictatorship of SLAPPs
- Links for the day
- Jim Not Dead Yet
- Let's wait a few more days
- Microsoft Layoffs So Big They Cannot Even Wait for 'D-Day' (July 1)
- "Layoffs at Xbox Appear to Have Already Begun, with Multiple Compulsion Games Employees Announcing Their Departures"
- Over at Tux Machines...
- GNU/Linux news for the past day
- IRC Proceedings: Saturday, June 27, 2026
- IRC logs for Saturday, June 27, 2026
- Links 28/06/2026: Heatwave in Europe and Media Failing to Actually Criticise Power
- Links for the day
- Gemini Links 28/06/2026: Poems, Photographs, and Neoliberalism as Religion
- Links for the day
- SLAPP Censorship - Part 120 Out of 200: Garrett Undermines His Own Application Because His Friend Graveley Failed to Accomplish What They Had Both Aimed For
- Hold off the "popcorn"
- Don't Settle for Slop
- Slop is a bit of a symptom of where society is told to go
- Gemini Links 27/06/2026: Photography From Interlaken to Shynige Platte, Slop 'Code', and Distro Hopping
- Links for the day
- TIGER COMPUTING LTD Sent Us Threats Half a Decade Ago (Because of Criticism of Their In-House Debian Developer), Now the Company's Debt is Deepening
- So what is they're connected to the military?
- GNU/Linux in Mexico Near All-Time High
- With all the tourists packing the place (or hotels) we can imagine big changes to be seen next month (many portable devices)
- Summer Plans in Tux Machines
- July is nearly upon us
- Gopher (Protocol) Turns 35, Gemini is 28 Years Younger
- Bad technology comes and goes very fast
- Be Like Stallman and Assange, Not Like MElon or Bill Epsteingate
- these people treat women like worse than dirt
- Exposure Leads to More Whistleblowing
- In areas like IBM or European patent affairs we've always earned a lot of trust
- European Patent Office (EPO) Series Will Run Well Into July
- We still have a very significant chunk of EPO "trench" stories
- Links 27/06/2026: Journalists Kicked Out of China, Torture in Iran and Turkey
- Links for the day
- How Microsoft is Preventing or Slowing Down Adoption of GNU/Linux (Fake 'GNU' Controlled by GitHub in Windows, WSL, Sabotage at Boot Level, Not Limited to Dual-Booting)
- Microsoft is still at it
- Rising Computer Prices Good News for GNU/Linux and Free Software
- This can greatly assist the adoption of BSDs and GNU/Linux
- Links 27/06/2026: More Restrictions on Social Control Media and Russia is Leveraging Cellebrite/Back Doors
- Links for the day
- Saying "No" is Not a Bad Thing
- Society benefits from people who say "No!" even when it seems impolite (and possibly inconvenient) to say so
- Next Week's "Bloodbath" at Microsoft Includes "Silent Layoffs" (Which Microsoft Won't Count)
- The notion of "silent layoffs" is fast becoming the "new normal"
- Akira Urushibata on the Likely False (Unverifiable) Claims Anthropic Makes About Defects for Marketing/Hype
- Some pro-LLM person has managed to derail the discussion on this topic
- European Patent Office (EPO) Series: "Team Campinos" in Split
- The EPO team was of course headed by Campinos himself who delivered a "forward-looking" keynote speech to the assembled audience consisting mainly of Administrative Council delegates from the national IP offices
- Supporting Women in the Free Software Community
- The common theme here is abuse of women
- Left IBM After Many Years, Came to Microsoft/XBox, Now Silent Layoffs at XBox
- many inside XBox will have their last day next week
- Gemini Links 27/06/2026: Homeworlds and Tarot Cards
- Links for the day
- Over at Tux Machines...
- GNU/Linux news for the past day
- IRC Proceedings: Friday, June 26, 2026
- IRC logs for Friday, June 26, 2026
- Links 26/06/2026: SoftBank Forbids Mentioning That Slop is a Scam, "'We Need Courageous People' to Combat Greed and Corruption"
- Links for the day
- Gemini Links 26/06/2026: "Negativity of Reddit" and "Moving Blog to Gemini"
- Links for the day
- Same MIT Site That Fabricated the Fake News for IBM is Still Being Paid to Produce Fake "Reports" That Prop Up a Ponzi Scheme
- If this is the media we deserve as a society and believe keeps us informed, then we are all doomed
- 'Social' Slop: The Social Control Media and Slop Crises Are Converging
- Social Control Media and slop may have a shared fate. People will shun them both.
- XBox Being Discontinued, Some Models of XBox Canceled, Not on Sale Anymore
- First some of the largest retailers quit stocking/selling XBox, now a 2TB model is axed
- Union Syndicale Fédérale (USF) Speaks Out Against Campinos and Informs the Chairman of the EPO Administrative Council
- Does Mr. Kratochvíl pay any attention at all?
- 'António the Pretender' Campinos is Digging His Own Grave With Grotesque Lobbying Intended to Undermine Democracy in Europe's Second-Largest Institution
- One way or another, the EPO will never be the same again
- The Principle of "Do No Harm"
- "Do No Harm" is a common saying
- After Years of Bluewashing People Who Are Still Labelled "Red Hat" Suddenly 'Leave' (Might be PIPs), IBM in "Forever Layoffs" Loop
- Remember that Red Hat had mass layoffs this year
- Microsoft Staff Bracing for Impact Ahead of "Layoffs Lottery"
- some people start to assess who will get culled next
- Donald Trump and IBM's CEO: Twins Separated at Birth, Saturating the Media With False Reports About Things That Don't Exist
- Every "journalist" that went ahead with this fake news should be sacked on the spot for a rejection of fact-checking
- The Register MS Will Become Indistinguishable From Spamfarms at This Current Pace
- Follow the money...
- Microsoft Layoffs Have Already Begun in Its PR Department
- It is called Waggener Edstrom
- Techrights Community as Litigants in Person (LIPs)
- Unwittingly and due to circumstances we're had to step in to protect women abused by monstrous men who lack empathy
- European Patent Office (EPO) Series: Rest and Recuperation on the Adriatic Coast
- The EPO President's connections with the Croatian SIPO date back to his days as head of the EU trademark agency EUIPO
- Firehose of Spam (Fake News) From The Register MS Today
- This is how awful the state of news sites really is
- Slopfarms Becoming Scarce and Few (or Inactive)
- we'll try to refrain from even giving the remaining slopfarms any visibility
- The Register MS Promotes Things That Do Not Exist... for Money
- How much more ZTE spam will come out before 5PM?
- Links 26/06/2026: RIP, Om Malik, 1966-2026
- Links for the day
- Memory Leaks Suck
- Slop ('vibe') coding means lots of bad programs
- Natural Disasters and Personal Disasters
- Thank you, Om Malik, for the positive memories
- Gemini Links 25/06/2026: Life Philosophy and Misery
- Links for the day
- GAFAM Became a Mainstream Term, and Why Words Matter
- Conveying problems in useful terms [...] Impairing propaganda attempts (e.g. calling parrots "intelligence", back doors "confidential", and outsourcing "cloud") should be the first step
- European Patent Office (EPO) on Strike Today, Next Week Another Historic Week
- If you live in Europe, contact your delegates today
- FSF FreeJS Project (Part of the GNU Project's Goals) Advanced Further in 2026
- They're moving to reduce dependence on anything to do with Microsoft
- SLAPP Censorship - Part 119 Out of 200: Our Suggestions to Our Politicians and Heads of State
- coverage about SLAPPs and related matters
- Microsoft Already Closing Down Studios, According to Some Publishers
- It is being compared to what happened in Intel
- IBM PIP Stories Told in Public, Fake IBM News (Fabricated Claims) Drown Media Sites
- IBM is seeding fake news to help justify the bailout
- Over at Tux Machines...
- GNU/Linux news for the past day
- IRC Proceedings: Thursday, June 25, 2026
- IRC logs for Thursday, June 25, 2026