Joined: 05 Jun 2008 Posts: 2876 Location: New Jersey
Re: Regarding the Linux Mon Jun 30, 2008 6:42 pm
Navxnut wrote:
Is there any way an idiot can find out if it is running Linux? I'll look providing I don't have to poke abouts its innards with some program.
Returning to this old thread. Here's confirmation that the 5000 series runs Linux. You can now download the source code from Garmin's developer website. Haven't done this yet, but intend to have a look when I get a little time
Interesting. Up till a couple months ago, I didn't expect to see a linux Garmin till the fall. I knew the 5000 was linux, had no idea on the 800's. I guess their "closed" system may be opening a bit. Surprised they posted the source code. I assume that means they're encouraging 3rd party apps?
The Linux license code requires that they make available the source code they are using. Note this (obviously) doesn't include their proprietary code that actually makes the device do its thing.
I wouldn't take it to mean they are encouraging third party apps. There would still be hurdles to cross in making any third party app work.
Joined: 13 Mar 2008 Posts: 263 Location: Winter Springs, FL
Mon Jun 30, 2008 11:28 pm
Yeah, I wouldn't assume anything positive or negative from Garmin's move to Linux. If anything, it might hurt them in the short term as they move from a stable environment to a brand new environment that will likely require a long period of tweaking until they get it right.
Looks like one thing Garmin has embedded in their version is support for location aware services (think iPhone), which I would think a likely candidate for 3rd party development. Nice bog entry here:
http://bergie.iki.fi/blog/nuvi_880-first_device_to_carry_geoclue.html
If you follow the links, the possibilities start to develop. Video support, custom menu/window structure, audio, and targeted poi info are only a few of the possibilities.
No... I wish there were more third party opportunities. But Garmin seems to be pretty thick headed when it comes to third parties. They want to do it all themselves. (And I'm not saying that is a bad thing.) Take what they did with MotionBased. Buy 'em up and integrate them. They don't really do the whole "partnership" thing-- instead they purchase and integrate. Even Garmin Games which used to be on a third party site is now entirely integrated within the Garmin site. Again-- not nocking the approach. They've got the most stable platform, likely for that very reason.
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