I can’t answer for anyone else, but one major reason for me to keep using SailfishOS since the Jolla1 is the similarity to desktop Linux, which Android lacks even if I install something like Termux and root the phone. I can’t fit a laptop (even a netbook) in a pocket or small bag, and why would I need to when my phone is already already a complete Linux system? (although a physical keyboard would be nice)
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Full agree @maighstir , thanks for saying this clear!
So, what exactly is the scenario?
You are away from your computer, out for a walk, and you get a message from someone and suddently need to do some remote work on the spot?
What is the usecase?
Looks good! What minilaptop is this, @iolala ?
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The problem is bootstrapping the ecosystem. SFOS is great, but does it have a good enough native web browser, maps & navigation, and VoIP calling applications for day-to-day use?
Some of these applications were a struggle in the past. In comparison, Nokia N9 had Firefox, an exceptional offline maps and navigation solution, and Google Talk plus Skype working back in 2011.
IMHO, Jolla and the community should focus on polishing those. The rest will follow suit. There might be good opportunities for SFOS growth soon as Google might be pushing for a more closed Android.
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@maighstir Thanks, same for me and I’ve been saying this forever! Except for the physical keyboard thing; you know you can ssh into your phone, right?
It’s about configuration and personalisation. Fixing. Which I do at home, through ssh, just like with my other machines. Everything is right where I’m expecting it to be. Well, almost. Changing the default font is easy as pie. Creating a script for remote-mounting my cloud storage, and binding it to a desktop icon. A systemd service to perform some recurring task. Etc. etc. No apps, no “rooting” around.
When I’m out and about, I enjoy the fruits of my labor.
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I’m out somewhere and get an idea for a project I’m working on, I can easily fire up the terminal, git clone the project and test it out, using the device I most likely already have in my hand. Or, yes, a friend calls or messages a question of python, php, or bash, and I can quickly figure out and verify an answer rather than respond with “well, the internet says this, but I can’t verify that it actually works or not, or even if it did work fifteen years ago but the language has changed since then”.
Sometimes even if I’m at home, it can be less effort shoving a few lines of code into my phone than to go get a laptop for the same task.
Also - and I realise I’m in a rather small minority with this - I often find the command-line utilities of grep, sed, awk, git, youtube-dl, scp, etc. more familiar than the hundreds of gui alternatives for more major mobile platforms. The folder layout is effectively the same as on my desktop and laptop, it’s the same basic environment, the config files are in the same place - it is just another computer, just in another form factor, and I enjoy having a full familiar Linux computer with me without the extra weight and bulk of another device. Thank you for the tip though, it looks like an interesting toy.
The terminal isn’t available unless you enable developer mode, and 99% of users shouldn’t need to, but I appreciate that it can be easily enabled and that it isn’t limited to it’s own little sandbox.
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Yeah, and I sometimes do. But at that point I’m already at another device and rarely need to remote into the phone, unless it’s something specific for the phone.
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Same for me but opposite way round: I like to tweak on the device and enjoy doing this on Linux desktop via ssh, and that it uses Linux standards.
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It’s not about ‘needing to’. It is simply the option, which I do use when not at home. As said somewhere above:
- Simply testing development solutions that come to mind
- Adapting the phone to my preferences. Having the patchmanager has blown my mind. I would not expect such possibilities on android.
This also brings some issues, for sure, which most linux distros bring also (when editing the system or ui).
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