Nokia has selected the Linux-based MeeGo mobile operating system over its Symbian OS for all upcoming high-end smartphones, effectively admitting that Symbian was not in a position to ever truly rival the iPhone or Android devices.
CNET says the N8 will be the last N-series smartphone to use Symbian.
“Going forward, N-series devices will be based on MeeGo,” said a spokesman.
Symbian will still be installed on low and mid-end phones from the world’s largest phone maker, however.
Nokia has spent many millions on developing the Symbian OS, only to see their smartphone market share deteriorate thanks to Apple and Android.
MeeGo was created earlier this year, a merged effort by Nokia and Intel, mixing their Maemo and Moblin operating systems.
Result for: linux
After 11 months of ongoing development, Google Chrome for Macs and Linux is finally stable, moving out of the beta stage.
The company even admitted that for the first few months the popular browser was extremely buggy and should only be used by more advanced users. Today, that is no longer an issue.
Along with the “stable” tag, Chrome for Macs and Linux now include advanced syncing for bookmarks and settings, geolocation APIs, app cache and other HTML5 tools.
Perhaps more notably to the casual end user, the browsers now have access to all 4500 Chrome extensions.
Not included in the new release is built-in Flash, as you will need to manually download it. By Flash 10.1, Google promises a stable version.
Get the Windows version here: Chrome at AfterDawn
Get the now stable Mac and Linux versions here: http://www.google.com/chrome
Result for: linux
In late April, Sony was sued in California over its recent firmware update that removed the “OtherOS” feature of the PlayStation 3, a feature that had allowed for the installation of Linux on an HDD partition.
This week, two more class action lawsuits have been filed against the company, one in Georgia and the other in California.
Both cases claim that Sony has made features consumers paid for “inoperable” with the release of firmware version 3.21. The firmware update is “voluntary,” but those that do not cannot sign into the PlayStation Network, or play their games online.
Both suits also state that Sony did not properly disclose that they reserved the right to remove built-in features, and that any removal of the “OtherOS” feature was not disclosed in the PS3 TOS, or SSLA (System Software License Agreement).
The second suit specifically says plaintiffs “lost money by purchasing a PS3 without receiving the benefit of their bargain because the product is not what it was claimed to be - a game console that would provide both the Other OS feature and gaming functions.”
The class action suits include anyone who purchased the PS3 console between November 17th, 2006 and March 27th, 2010.
