[Sugar-devel] Sugar future

[forster at ozonline.com.au]

> 1 Android kernel + Ported linux libraries + Sugar
> 2 Android kernel + Datastore/Collaboration replacement + Sugar rewritten in
> HTML
> 3 Full Android + Datastore/Collaboration replacement + Sugar activities
> rewritten in HTML
> 4 Full Android + Datastore/Collaboration replacement + Sugar activities
> rewritten with native Android API

Thanks Daniel

That explains things for me. I was not fully understanding the technical discussions.

With options 1 &2 a lot of existing functionality could be lost:
The phone (unless a Sugar dialer was written)
The alarm clock (unless a Sugar one written)
Skype
Some power management controls
Airplane mode/wifi/phone modem controls
Facial recognition screensaver delay
Multiple file selection
Excel spreadsheet viewer
Anything we need Gnome to do on an XO
Lots more

A lot of Android devices are going to come into the posession of kids in developing countries, cheap second hand devices, old phones etc. Millions of them. Options 1&2 are not likely to be installed because they will result in a significant loss of functionality.

Purchases of new tablets by government education departments with options 1&2 is viable.

My guess is that cheap privately owned devices will outnumber education department devices by orders of magnitude. The privately held devices will also be used in a way that is more consistent with Sugar principles, experimentally and playfully, the education department devices may well be locked down. It would be good if Sugar's affordances for playful learning could exist alongside the full Android.

I understand that we may not have the resources to do this.

Thanks
Tony