Apps

Android has been praised time and time again because of how open it is. It is “open” because it is open-sourced. Long have I not understood the business model of open-sourced software. How do you make money on something that is essentially free? That is until of course Android 2.0 was released. This was a defining moment in my eyes because for the first time Android moved from a geek pipe dream, much like linux is, to a true contender of the big boys like Apple, RIM, and in distant 3rd Microsoft.

HTC as we all know has risked a lot of time, money, and effort into Android. They were the first ones to take a chance with the brand new Mobile OS with their HTC G1 back in 2007. Since then they have released some of the best phones out on the market such as the incredible and EVO. One of the reasons they have such a great phone is because of their software they put on top of Android. Some may not like the idea of having a third party “overlay”. Most of these people I think fit into two categories.

1. They have an android phone made by someone else that is either underpowered or the manufacture screwed the skin up making their phone run like crap.

2. They are remembering the days of Winmob X.X and all the crappy Skins manufactures always insisted putting on them.

However, HTC’s Sense is a great overlay. From the phones that I have played with, it doesn’t slow Android down or impede any function of android. The Incredible and the EVO both are as quick and responsive as my Nexus One. For business users you don’t need to go out and buy any third party software in order to effectively connect to exchange. (Yes I know that plain-jane Android 2.1 can connect to exchange but anyone that has actually used it on a regular basis knows that it sucks the big one and you need to purchase touchdown.) Finally it looks great too. For example: They used the multi-touch “pinch” with perfect finesse in order to allow a user to “shrink” all the home screens and choose the home screen they are looking for quickly and easily.

Since HTC has put so much time and effort into their software that they wrote themselves. I agree with their view point. Their Cease and Desist letter in my eyes is completely legit and justified. They are only protecting their work. Everyone including nerds and geeks, need to realize these three points:

1. Companies are in business to make money.

2. Companies can only employ people when they are making money.

3. When someone disregards all copyright laws and ethical boundaries for personal gain, companies should and will bite.

By taking HTC’s software and offering it to the public for free, Conflipper has effectively disregarded all three of these points. I guess my point of this is that just because something is open source does not mean whatever is built on top of it is as well.