

Ask HN: What's the best phone to write an app for for Linux C programmers? - scumola

I don't own a mac, and I don't know or care to learn java.  What phone platform can I write code for?  I'm a Linux/C guy.
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kqr2
Android also has a native C/C++ development kit.

[http://arstechnica.com/open-source/news/2009/06/android-
goes...](http://arstechnica.com/open-source/news/2009/06/android-goes-beyond-
java-gains-native-cc-dev-kit.ars)

You can also cross-compile iPhone apps on Linux, however, you won't be able to
sell it at their app store.

<http://www.saurik.com/id/4>

Another alternative is the Nokia N900 which uses maemo.

<http://maemo.nokia.com/> <http://maemo.nokia.com/n900/>

~~~
zitterbewegung
I believe if you use the native C/C++ development kit you still have to write
the interface in java.

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m0nastic
I'm a little surprised no one mentioned WebOS; the phone runs Linux and the
PDK is in C (although as pointed out in the reply below, the PDK is only
available on Windows and Mac right now).

I would also look at Meego (what Maemo became after it merged with Moblin),
which you can code in C, C++, or Python (or really anything, although the
native graphical interface is Qt).

The only issue with either of those is that you might be writing an app that
no one will use (as one platform was still-born, and the second isn't yet
born). That's the price you pay to avoid learning new technology though.

~~~
dillon
The PDK is only for Mac/Windows. <http://goo.gl/MnyQf>

~~~
m0nastic
Oops, I thought they had already shipped the Linux version of the PDK, but it
looks like you're right.

Thanks.

~~~
freshrap6
There isn't an official build yet, but the developers at webos-internals have
a build you can use.

<http://www.webos-internals.org/wiki/WebOS_Internals_PDK>

------
Xuzz
In case you are interested in iOS, you can check out the Open Toolchain
project: <http://code.google.com/p/iphonedevonlinux/wiki/Installation>

It's not seamless, and you might need to learn Objective-C (don't worry, it's
not Java), and you can't submit to the App Store, but it is possible.

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regularfry
Right now? Nokia N900, without a doubt. Maemo is a lightly hacked Debian, the
official toolchain is gcc-arm (admittedly without autoconf, but that's a
blessing if you're in control of your own source), and deployment is straight-
up apt. Plus it's a decent Python dev platform if your tendencies veer in that
direction.

If the "lightly hacked" part gets in the way, you can even debootstrap a
_real_ Debian release onto the device and develop in that.

The hardware is decent as well; it certainly feels more solid than the HTC
slide phones I've played with recently, and despite dropping it a few times
it's barely got the shine worn off after 8 months.

All that being said, it's entirely unclear what the future of the platform is;
Meego could sink without a trace in 6 months, and I don't know if Nokia are
planning a successor device. In my mind they'd be insane not to, but sanity
hasn't been Nokia's hallmark of late.

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dillon
WebOS uses HTML/CSS for it's interface and uses Javascript for it's apps. Palm
also has a PDK which allows you to write apps in C. Problem is Palm hasn't
released it's PDK for Linux. Luckily some hackers have been able to get it to
work. <http://goo.gl/MnyQf>

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chuckmcknight
There really isn't one. Symbian might be the closest that's still out there.
Android would be somewhat quirky at best, and Apple wants you to use their
toolchain.

Having said that, take a look at Appcelerator's Titanium (appcelerator.com) or
AppMakr (appmakr.com). They both provide tools that enable you to create
HTML/CSS/Javascript screens and also intermingle with other scripting
languages to produce a compiled app for desktop, Apple, Android, and others.

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tzs
You don't give enough information for a reasonable answer. What's the app for
and how do you want to distribute it?

For instance, if your app is intended to go into widespread distribution and
make you some money, then the answer is either Android (suck it up an learn
Java) or IOS (you should be able to develop on a Hackintosh).

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pessimizer
Qt. That way you get Symbian, Maemo, Meego, and Linux tablets, like the Shogo
(embedded applications, like the QooQ on that have been pretty successful.) Qt
for Android, Windows, and iPhone seem to be coming along, albeit slowly.

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jrockway
OpenMoko, which is Linux-based and uses C for all the core apps. I don't think
anyone uses it anymore, though; everyone just installed Android on their
handsets.

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ig1
That criteria pretty much rules out Android, iOS, Windows, and Blackberry.
That leaves you Symbian out of the major players.

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sovande
<http://www.vintagephone.com/HBcradle.htm>

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shareme
find out what devices run Poky Linux

