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Ubuntu gets its first smartphone deal, comes to high-end devices in 2014
Canonical's smartphone-sized Ubuntu distribution hasn't had an official device to call home since release, but it won't have to live that nomadic existence for much longer. CEO Mark Shuttleworth tells CNET that his company has just signed its first Ubuntu handset deal; the Linux variant should ship with higher-end smartphones sometime in 2014, he says. While Shuttleworth isn't naming this initial customer, he adds that Canonical is negotiating phone deals with four "household brands." It's too soon to say whether or not Ubuntu will get enough support to compete against other mobile platforms, but the agreement suggests that the publicity from the ill-fated Ubuntu Edge campaign is paying off.
Ubuntu desktop and mobile icons redesigned, united at last
Canonical's been working for years to turn Ubuntu into a universal OS for whatever sized screen you use, be it of the television, desktop or mobile variety. Recently, the company showed off the next step in this evolution: unified icon designs for mobile and desktop Ubuntu implementations. In keeping with current UI trends, the new icons have flatter, more stylized appearance when compared to the old desktop iconography. System tiles are less colorful and more reserved in appearance, while apps and folders have been punched up with a flashier look to set them apart visually. Of course, the new icons won't actually make their way into a Ubuntu for awhile, as the goal is to get them into the 14.04 release for mobile (13.10 is the current version). Should you want more background on the production of the new icons, there's an hour-long video discussing it after the break. Don't forget the popcorn.
New 'experimental' emulator makes Ubuntu mobile OS development easier
Ubuntu's touch-based (read: mobile) OS is still finding its footing with users (and a hardware home to call its own), but the outfit's paving the way for developers to get onboard. An experimental emulator for the mobile OS has just been released that apes much of the feel, and occasionally the look, of Android's own emulator for desktop. As it's currently a work-in-progress, not all of the functionality is available at the outset. ADB, SSH access and serial console are all turned 'on' by default, but you'll need to fuss with the emulator to enable things like Powerd and "a few other services." There are also some non-responsive UI bits to deal with, since the provided keyboard layout is somewhat unworkable, but no doubt future releases will see these rough edges ironed out. That said, it's a good way for devs and non-devs alike to glimpse the Ubuntu experience on mobile.
Open source can help the developing world, but it's not without challenges
Many see open source technology as an ideological tool -- a way to promote freedom in a world of closed, proprietary systems. For Canonical's Jono Bacon, Mozilla's Stormy Peters and Wikimedia's Tomasz Finc, it's more about improving humanity. Speaking at Expand, they argued that open code connects the developing world and delivers meaningful local content. However, the trio is also aware of the potential pitfalls, such as fragmentation. They know that a successful open platform isn't born overnight.
Daily Roundup: Peripheral Vision, Ubuntu 13.10, potential dedicated messaging app from Twitter and more!
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Ubuntu 13.10 Saucy Salamander lands with mostly minor tweaks
Just like clockwork, here comes the latest release of Ubuntu: version 13.10 Saucy Salamander. Like April's Raring Ringtail, this update is mostly about fine tuning the things that already make Ubuntu the Linux distro of choice for many out there. Performance has been improved, especially in Unity (Ubuntu's user interface), and the ability to sign into or up for Ubuntu One cloud storage has been baked right into the installation process. The only major, immediately noticeable feature is Smart Scopes, which delivers semantic search results from a number of online sources to your Dash, including Amazon, eBay, Etsy, Wikipedia, Weather Channel, and SoundCloud. In total Canonical claims over 50 web services are baked into Smart Scopes. Of course, if all those results from the web are cluttering up your search for apps and files, you can turn off the feature all together or disable individual sources. Unfortunately, what's most notable about Ubuntu 13.10 is what it doesn't include. A number of features, including a new version of Unity and the Mir display server, have been delayed until October of 2014. That also means that Canonicals goals for a unified UI and codebase across the desktop, TV, phones and tablets have been set back by at least six months. You can download the latest and greatest Ubuntu at the source, where the keen eyed among you might notice that the default download is now the 64-bit version of the OS.
A stable version of Ubuntu's mobile OS is available now... if you own a Nexus 4
After a long period of developer (and enthusiast) previews, Ubuntu 13.10 for smartphones, as well as desktops, is finally available as a stable release. The gesture-heavy, Linux-based mobile OS still doesn't have an official hardware home -- if you'll remember, Canonical's Indiegogo bid for the Ubuntu Edge failed to meet its lofty goals -- but there are a couple of devices that can run the OS. Google's Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 4 are both officially supported, so owners of those handsets with the right know-how can head to the company's site now for instructions to flash the OS. That doesn't mean we won't someday see a dedicated Ubuntu device -- the company's still in talks with OEMs. For now, though, you can at least enjoy the fruits of Canonical's mobile labors while holding fast to the Edge of hope.
Running Linux on your Mac: 2013 edition
Back about this time of year in 2009, I wrote a post that's remained a venerable favorite. Entitled "How to set up Ubuntu Linux on a Mac -- It's Easy and Free," the post described in full detail how those interested in learning more about one specific Linux distro could install Ubuntu in a virtual machine on their device. This post is an update to the original, with all-new instructions but still using the same framework -- Oracle VM VirtualBox, which is an open source virtualization environment, and Ubuntu Linux. Why would you want to run Linux on your Mac, which features a Unix-based operating system in itself? Well, you may need to run Linux applications for your job as a system admin, or perhaps there's some specific app that some kind soul has written to run on a variety of Linux distributions but hasn't been ported to OS X yet. Whatever the reason, it's easy to do and you can put it on your resumé. Step 1: Download VirtualBox The first thing to do is get the Virtual Machine environment installed. Rather than use either VMware Fusion or Parallels Desktop, we're using the free Oracle VM VirtualBox. Download VirtualBox 4.2.16 for OS X Hosts here, and save it to a convenient spot on your Mac. Step 2: Install VirtualBox At this point you have a file with a name like "VirtualBox-4.2.16-86992-OSX.dmg" either in the Downloads folder or on the desktop. Double-click it to mount the installer image and this Finder window appears: The instructions are right on the box! Double-click the VirtualBox.pkg icon, respond to the various prompts using the default values, and VirtualBox is installed in the Applications folder. Step 3: Download Ubuntu Now it's time to get the Linux distro that I used the last time -- Ubuntu. Yes, I know there are plenty of other distros out there to play with and that some are better than others, but for the purpose of this post I'm trying to make this as easy as possible for readers to just experiment. Head on over to this page in your favorite browser, and click on the download button for the Long-Term Support (LTS) edition -- that just means that version will be supported for a longer time. In this case, it was Version 12.04 LTS. By the way, if you have a fairly recent Mac that's running Lion, Mountain Lion, or even Mavericks, go ahead and select the 64-bit version of the operating system. You'll be asked if you want to make a donation to help development of Ubuntu; that's up to you and you can also just try it for free, then donate later. The download will begin and several minutes later an .iso disk image file is stored on your Mac. This is used as an installation "disk" for Ubuntu. Step 4: Launch VirtualBox and create a virtual machine Pop into the Applications folder and launch VirtualBox. A blank "Oracle VM VirtualBox Manager" appears. Click on the New button in the upper left of the window to start creating a new virtual machine. The first window you'll see looks like this: I typed in a very original name for my virtual machine: Ubuntu. You may call it George if you wish. The type of operating system is Linux, the version in this case is Ubuntu (64 bit). Click Continue. A screen appears asking for the amount of memory you wish to allot to your VM. VirtualBox recommended 512 MB, but I selected 1 GB because hey, RAM's good! Clicking Continue again, you're then asked if you want to add a virtual hard drive to the new machine. Use the default "Create a virtual hard drive now" radio button, and click "Create". The next screen asks what kind of hard drive file type you would like to use. I chose the default VDI setting, and clicked yet again on Continue. Now you need to select the storage size of the virtual hard drive on your physical drive. Once again, select the default "Dynamically allocated" and click Continue. VirtualBox needs to know the initial size of the new virtual hard drive and where you want to save it. I suggest using the default 8 GB setting, and default location -- in your user folder (the one with the house icon in Finder). You can select another location if you wish. Click Create to continue. Guess what? You're back at the Oracle VM Virtual Box Manager. With your new virtual machine selected in the left sidebar, click the green Start arrow. As your virtual machine boots, it will want to be pointed at the installation media -- in this case, that's the Ubuntu distribution file. Mine was called "ubuntu-12.04.3-desktop-amd64.iso", but yours might be different dependent on the version number of the download. Select the distribution file by clicking on the folder icon, then using the standard OS X dialog to find and select it on your Mac. Once you're ready to go, click Start. Step 5: Installing Ubuntu Linux Pretty easy so far, right? It gets even easier now, since Ubuntu practically installs itself. Here you have a choice -- you can either just try Ubuntu, which means that you're running it from the disk image, or you can install Ubuntu so that you can start installing apps and customize it. I suggest clicking the Install Ubuntu button. The next screen checks to see if your computer has at least 4.5 GB of available drive space (we set it for 8 GB earlier) and is connected to the Internet. Chances are good that if you're reading this post on TUAW, you're connected to the Internet. I checked both the "Download updates while installing" and "Install this third-party software" boxes so that my virtual machine received any late-breaking security updates, then clicked Continue. Next, an Installation type window appears. Since you've selected your virtual hard drive, make sure Erase disk and install Ubuntu is selected, and then click Continue. You should see something similar to this indicating that you're connected to a VBOX HARDDISK: Click that Install Now button and you're on your way. You'll need to create a user for your virtual machine: Put in your name, the name of the computer (if different), pick a username, and then select and confirm a password. If you don't care to log in every time you start the virtual machine, just select "Log in automatically" and click Continue. For me, I decided to require a password lo log in. Now you are treated to an exciting slideshow of features while the Ubuntu installer does its magic. When it is complete, you're asked to restart the machine: As soon as your virtual machine reboots, you're greeted with a login window (if you selected that option), and then move to to the Ubuntu Desktop using the Unity Desktop Environment: At this point, you can choose to play around for a bit, browse the Ubuntu Software Center (think of it as Ubuntu's App Store), tweak settings, and otherwise make yourself at home. I would suggest, however, that before you do too much, that you make a few minor changes to your virtual machine. To do this, shut down your Ubuntu VM by clicking the little "power button" icon in the upper right corner of the window, then selecting Shut Down... Step 6: Final Tweaks Once you're safely back at the Oracle VM VirtualBox Manager, click on your Ubuntu virtual machine in the left sidebar and click the Settings button in the toolbar. What we need to do is change the boot order so that VirtualBox knows where to look for the virtual machine file on the Mac. When the Ubuntu - System settings window appears, click the System tab: See that second item below Base Memory titled Boot Order? Initially, it's going to show CD/DVD-ROM as the first item in the list. You want to change that by clicking on Hard Disk, then moving Hard Disk to the top of the list using the little arrows to the right of the boot device list. By the way, since your Mac doesn't have a floppy drive, uncheck that Floppy check box. In fact, you can do the same to CD/DVD-ROM as well if your Mac (like both of mine) doesn't have an optical drive. Conclusion I was surprised at how little time it took to set up the Ubuntu virtual machine this time compared with 2009. Of course, the iMac I installed it on is much faster than the one I used four years ago, and both VirtualBox and Ubuntu have gone through some changes as well. It boots a lot faster, too -- from the VirtualBox Manager, it takes just 8 seconds to get to the login screen. Like I said earlier, you can choose to use any other Linux distribution if you wish to; I just chose Ubuntu because that's what I did four years ago. But this is a fun and educational way to learn all about another operating system, and if you choose not to make a contribution, it's also free.
Ubuntu Edge Indiegogo campaign ends with over $19 million outstanding
When Canonical took to Indiegogo to crowdfund its Ubuntu Edge smartphone, the $32 million it sought seemed like an incredibly lofty goal. And, one that's now proven unattainable. Despite quickly selling out of the lowest pledge tier that included a handset, reducing the price of more expensive tiers, then doing the same again as the deadline loomed, the campaign has closed over $19 million shy of its goal. Still, raising just over $12.8 million is a record of sorts, depending on whether you believe a failed effort qualifies. In total, a handful of high-cost bundles were pledged for, 5,674 backers coughed up enough for a lone Edge, and many more thousands offered small sums in support -- or, some just really wanted a T-shirt. We're not convinced the journey ends here, though. After all, there's clearly some desire for the Edge. Will we see investors step in to make it happen? Or, perhaps Canonical founder Mark Shuttleworth will finally see fit to pump some of his own substantial reserves into the project. A project update from Shuttleworth can be found at the source link. In addition to thanking backers, he says that "the support and publicity has continued to drive our discussions with some major manufacturers," adding: "Watch this space!"
Ubuntu Edge raises record-breaking $10 million, enters Guinness Book of Almost
$10,311,220. It isn't sufficient to greenlight Canonical's innovative hybrid smartphone, but it is just enough to beat the sum raised by the Pebble smartwatch and thereby steal the crowdfunding record. Well, sort of, at least. It depends on whether the amount pledged is all that matters, regardless of whether the project actually comes to fruition -- as happened with both the Pebble on Kickstarter and Indiegogo's previous record holder, the Scanadu Scout. More importantly though, Ubuntu Edge may have reached the point where it'll have a second chance even if it doesn't achieve the required backing of $32 million: Canonical founder Mark Shuttleworth told the BBC that some manufacturers have noticed all the hubbub and have come "out of the woodwork" to discuss taking the Android / Ubuntu concept forward, such that August 21st may not prove to be a terminal deadline.
Mobile Miscellany: week of August 5th, 2013
If you didn't get enough mobile news during the week, not to worry, because we've opened the firehose for the truly hardcore. This week brought a smartphone inspired by TopGear's 2012 supercar of the year, leaks of a water-resistant handset for T-Mobile and an Android smartphone from LG that sells for under $100 outright. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore all that's happening in the mobile world for this week of August 5th, 2013.
Trojan targets Linux desktop users, steals web banking info
Malware certainly exists for Linux, but it's more frequently targeted at servers than everyday PCs. Unfortunately, regular users now have more reason to worry: a rare instance of a Linux desktop trojan, Hand of Thief, has surfaced in the wild. The code swipes banking logins and other web sign-in details, creates a backdoor and prevents access to both antivirus tools and virtual machines. It's known to work with common browsers like Chrome and Firefox as well as 15 Linux distributions, including Debian, Fedora and Ubuntu. Thankfully, Hand of Thief is partly neutered by its limited attack methods; it relies on social engineering to fool victims into installing the software themselves. Even so, the trojan is a reminder that we shouldn't be complacent about security, regardless of which platform we use. [Thanks, Dreyer]
Canonical drops Ubuntu Edge price to $695 for rest of crowdfunding campaign
Canonical's Indiegogo campaign for the Ubuntu Edge smartphone had an auspicious start, but it slowed down after the first few days. The Linux developer may have just rekindled interest, however, by dropping the regular price of the Edge from $775 to $695 for the last two weeks of the crowdfunding drive. Part supplier deals helped reduce the manufacturing costs, Canonical explains. While that's not the lowest price that we've seen during the campaign, there won't be another discount -- if you're at all interested in the unique Android and Ubuntu hybrid, you'll want to make a pledge today.
Ubuntu Edge pricing drops to $625 minimum on Indiegogo after initial sellout
So far, it seems that Canonical's $32 million Ubuntu Edge smartphone Indiegogo campaign has been a roaring success, having raised over $3.5 million in about 40 hours. But after selling out all 5,000 units in the lowest $600 pricing tier, Canonical has added three new pledge levels. Initially, those who missed out on the one-day-only offer would've needed to cough up $830, but there are now $625, $675 and $725 rungs prior to that price, each with 1,250 of the linux-coated handsets available. Meanwhile, the counter at the original $830 second level -- which had already been in the hundreds -- has been reset, with all those buyers dropped to the new $625 tier. Canonical promised it would "refund the difference (to those buyers) at the end of the campaign," adding it would contact each with more info. After setting an Indiegogo record by raising $2 million in about 8 hours, the fundraising inevitably slowed down, and the revised price tiers could be a response to that -- either way, there's still a steep climb to the gargantuan target.
The Daily Roundup for 07.22.2013
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Ubuntu Edge smartphone announced with $32 million Indiegogo campaign, aims to hit market in May 2014
Ubuntu's plan to merge the desktop computer and mobile device is taking shape today in form of the Edge, which it's aiming to bring to market in May of next year for $830 outright. True to Canonical's community driven roots, the company is turning to crowd-funding to get the device on its feet. It's aiming to raise $32 million, and to that end, Canonical's launching a campaign on Indiegogo today, which provides early backers the opportunity to snag the phone for $600. According to company founder, Mark Shuttleworth, the Indiegogo route isn't meant to compete with its strategy of courting carriers for its mainstream smartphone project. Rather, it's meant to solve an "innovation gap" that's arisen during talks with manufacturers over its grander vision. The Ubuntu Edge is a very ambitious smartphone that'll be capable of running a full-fledged Ubuntu desktop operating system alongside Android. While specs are currently tentative, the company is aiming to outfit the Edge with a quad-core CPU, 4GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. Meanwhile, the phone itself will sport a 4.5-inch, 1,280 x 720 display that's constructed of sapphire crystal glass, an 8MP rear / 2MP front-facing camera and stereo speakers. As for connectivity, Canonical's eyeing LTE, dual-band WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0 and NFC, along with MHL support. If the converged device strategy strikes your fancy, you'll find good incentive to be among the early backers. According to Shuttleworth, the Edge will only come to market if backers make it happen, as "none of the phone manufacturers are yet ambitious enough to try to put both things in one package." Regardless of whether the Indiegogo campaigns succeeds -- it'd be a record, if so -- Canonical will continue pursuing its strategy to bring a more basic Ubuntu smartphone to market. Recently, the company announced the first of its partner carriers, which includes Verizon, Deutsche Telecom, EE, SK Telecom, China Unicom and others. We're still waiting to see what type of smartphone might be offered through the carriers, but it's now clear that if you believe in the open source / converged device philosophy, you'll need to vote with your wallet. %Gallery-194333%
Meet Utilite, a $99 quad-core ARM-based PC running Ubuntu
That box you see above? It's a quad-core ARM-based PC running Ubuntu called Utilite. The desktop system, made by Compulab, will be available next month starting at $99. While there are plenty of Android dongles built on ARM SoCs out there, few (if any) can truly offer a PC-like experience. The company -- best known for its Trim Slice, Fit-PC and MintBox products -- wants to change this. Utilite packs a single-, dual- or quad-core Freescale i.MX6 Cortex-A9 MPCore processor (up to 1.2 GHz), up to 4GB of DDR3 RAM (1066MHz), an mSATA SSD (up to 512GB), WiFi b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0, HDMI and DVI-D outputs, two Gigabit Ethernet sockets, four USB 2.0 ports, one micro-USB OTG connector, audio jacks (analog and S/PDIF), a micro-SD XD slot and two ultra-mini RS232 interfaces -- phew! Rounding things up is support for OpenGL ES, OpenVG and OpenCL EP plus multi-stream 1080p H.264 on-chip decoding. All this fits in a chassis mesuring just 5.3 x 3.9 x 0.8 inches (135 x 100 x 21mm) and only consumes 3-8W using a 10-16V supply (unregulated). Those are impressive specs for the price, and the system sure looks positioned to compete favorably with some of the x86 boxes out there.
Mobile Miscellany: week of June 17th, 2013
If you didn't get enough mobile news during the week, not to worry, because we've opened the firehose for the truly hardcore. This week, Ting went rogue and all but confirmed the HTC Tiara, Boost Mobile did the obvious and announced a phone that's long been rumored in its pipeline and Wind welcomed a new, compact Samsung handset into the fold. These stories and more await after the break. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore all that's happening in the mobile world for this week of June 17th, 2013.
Ubuntu team closes its original 'bug:' Microsoft's majority of PC market share
When Ubuntu Linux was still in early development back in August 2004, Canonical founder Mark Shuttleworth filed a tongue-in-cheek first bug: that Microsoft had a majority of PC market share. Little did he realize that he'd have an excuse to cross that bug off the list in 2013. Since computing now includes phones and tablets, he argues, that leaves the traditional PC (and therefore Windows) in the minority versus Android, iOS and other platforms. Whether or not you agree with that market interpretation, Shuttleworth is ready to move on -- he feels it's better to polish Canonical's own cloud, desktop and mobile efforts than to target someone else. It's undoubtedly easy for Shuttleworth to make peace when the battle is supposed to be over, but we can't object to such a healthy attitude.
Python S3 is a new tablet that can't decide: boots Ubuntu, Android and Windows 8
Ubuntu tablets may not be particularly new, but thanks to its liberal build, things can get a bit more interesting when another OS is added to the mix. Ekoore's Python S3 tablet goes a little further, nestling Ubuntu, Android and Windows 8 behind its 11.6-inch screen. Specifications can be customized on the order page, but there's an Intel Celeron processor, 8GB of RAM and a 128GB SSD for storage, while the 1,366 x 768 resolution was chosen to suit all three operating systems: Windows 8, Android 4.2 and Ubuntu 13.04. There's connectivity through both WiFi and an optional 3G module -- the Win 8 license itself is also a purchasable extra. The device is priced at $770 for the US, while you'll be able to pick up a dockable keyboard add-on (with built-in battery) for around $179. For those of you who still can't decide your favorite tablet OS, you can hedge your bets and place an order at the source.
