Console OS is supposed to be a version of Android Lollipop running on various Intel platforms, and optimized for desktop use with new features like DVR support for digital TV tuners, a desktop friendly file manager, and so on. The project launched on Kickstarter and was successful enough to raise $78,497 from 5,695 backers. But according to Chih-Wei Huang, Android-x86 project leader, and Console OS users, the Console OS developer simply forked Console OS, with some minor modifications like changing the project name, and under-delivering on the promised features.
The first part is fine, as that’s the beauty of open source code, you can fork somebody else work, and add your own improvement, and long as you keep the license and credits, that’s what open source is all about.
Now the project raised funds specifically for development, and as promised the source code is available on github. Here what has been allegedly changed against Android-x86:
- Android-x86 renamed to ConsoleOS
- Some Makefile modifications for Console OS
- Trebuchet home screen from CyanogenMod
- Some Intel drivers (but all of which are apparently disabled right now)
Console OS did keep the Android-x86 copyright and previous developers names, so they did not just steal the code from Android-x86, and claimed it their own, at least in the source code:
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+# Copyright (C) 2015 Console, Inc. # Copyright (C) 2014 The Android-x86 Open Source Project |
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-# By Chih-Wei Huang <cwhuang@linux.org.tw> -# Last updated 2012/07/07 +# Copyright (C) 2015 Console, Inc. +# Licensed under the GNU General Public License v2.0 +# +# Originally By Chih-Wei Huang <cwhuang@linux.org.tw> |
This was also posted on ConsoleOS facebook page, which adds that not all code is on github right with more coming soon including:
- Support for systems other than BayTrail-T (Core, etc)
- A few bug fixes (rotation issues, etc)
- Enabling Intel drivers (we’ll explain what’s up on that shortly)
- Windows installer (so we recommend only installing on systems dedicated to Console OS)
- Anything we can’t post on GitHub (stuff we can only ship in finished/compiled builds) – things like additional live wallpapers, ARM translation support, additional codecs, etc.
Console OS also provided an update on December 8, answering to Android-x86 project rip-off accusations, claiming that only about 70% of our code is on GitHub for now with more to come as shown above.
That might be true, but after one year and a half, backers are really unhappy with the images provided so far, and a far cry of what was promised as shown in the table, even comparing its superiority to Android-x86, and other Android in Intel/AMD solutions, which in hindsights is rather ironic.
While I don’t think the project was a planned scam from the start, because Mobile Media Ventures (MMV) is at least being active in replying to backers on Kickstarter, and did not simply take the money and run, the developers may have under-estimated the work to be accomplished, and development did not go according to plans, with the backers having likely thrown their money into a project that won’t deliver all promised features, if any at all. So it’s likely more incompetence than an outright scam.
But Android-x86 project leader has quite a different opinion:
If he does make some improvements based on the android-x86 code, I’m glad to see so.
However, cheating the world that he is developing something amazing on Kickstart in 2014 but finally just copied an open source project that he degraded at first (see the competitive chart on his site) is very immoral.
When Kickstart campaign began in 2014, he promised you “A” (a much better stuff) and accept your money, but now he just deliver you “B” (a totally different stuff). If you are a backer, can you accept? If this is not a scam, what is a scam?
IMO, Christopher Price and his Console OS is *a cancer* that lives by the nutrient of android-x86.If we can’t cut it immediately, he will continue absorbing the effort of android-x86 and finally choke this project.
[Update: See Console OS answer in comments:
We wish we had been contacted prior to this article. There were and are clear reasons why we had to delay things after out Kickstarter ended. Most notably, after our Kickstarter ended, Intel decided to abandon Android-IA for the PC. While we tried, and spent far more than raised via Kickstarter, to take on maintaining Android-IA… we realized Intel had simply cut back support too much. After many meetings with Intel, we decided the best path forward for Console OS was to rebase on Android-x86, and resume our original goals by fusing and integrating Android-IA drivers from Intel mobile devices. We’re proud and committed to that path.
P.S. And by the way – our GitHub, as it notes on the main Console OS GitHub repo, is not yet fully live. Much of this criticism of our stack, and how it forks Android-x86 (with full attribution), is premature.
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Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
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We wish we had been contacted prior to this article. There were and are clear reasons why we had to delay things after out Kickstarter ended. Most notably, after our Kickstarter ended, Intel decided to abandon Android-IA for the PC. While we tried, and spent far more than raised via Kickstarter, to take on maintaining Android-IA… we realized Intel had simply cut back support too much. After many meetings with Intel, we decided the best path forward for Console OS was to rebase on Android-x86, and resume our original goals by fusing and integrating Android-IA drivers from Intel mobile devices. We’re proud and committed to that path.
P.S. And by the way – our GitHub, as it notes on the main Console OS GitHub repo, is not yet fully live. Much of this criticism of our stack, and how it forks Android-x86 (with full attribution), is premature.
Here is what, we users might consider a fair trade. Give half your money from kickstarter to android-x86 project since you are using all of their hard work to begin with.
Then return a major “fair” amount back to your bankers as you didn’t deliver shit from your initial claims.
Keep the remaining and try to be cooperative with the official team pushing back code *if any* so you make android-x86 better for all
Agree they should def give a big chunk to android-x86, as a baker of Console OS, I am very disappointed with what has been released to us thus far..
Mobile Media Ventures (MMV) appears to be simply a one man operation, they have no technical software
background skills that would allow them to accomplish any of what they claimed on Kickstarter in 2014.
Unless they are able to contract work out and get it completed in a reasonable amount of time they’ll
always be struggling, anyone can validate these statements with a little googling session on companies /
people who are CEO’s / etc. just takes some looking the information up then make and educated decision.
DSCM, you’ve made this claim on several sites… and that’s simply not correct. When you look at our Wiki, our Forums, all of our account and download sites and infrastructure that we have been building – no one person could do all that work.
Around a half-dozen people are working (hard) on Console OS today. Due to past criminal acts of cyberstalking, we made the decision to not promote members of the team currently in public.
@Demetris
Once we fully stage GitHub, we will definitely offer incentives to the community to contribute improvements and bounties that benefit Android-IA, Android-x86, and Console OS alike.
We will not, however, pay an “extortion toll” to fork an existing OSS project. That’s not how open-source works.
We appreciate Android-x86.org’s technical contributions – but we feel the best way to build on that is to reward new contributions.
Except there are no technical contributions from Console OS. You only take Android-x86’s work and rename it on GitHub.
If 70% of your code are already uploaded (this is according to you on your Twitter site), why can I not see code from your “team.” Eventually MMV will crash and burn, hard.
Years and years of lying make it hard to keep your story straight.
@Console, Inc.
ah….could you please tell me where and on what sites I supposedly made that information available???
a person can check what I said for themselves, you on the other hand are accusing me of something
that you fail to justify or document.
The entire console os idea is silly, try and hack android to do things a windows PC can do already. And Android as a serious gaming platform excuse me why I try not to laugh too much at that (see Ouya).
No-one other than a bunch niche users would ever touch this.
Yeah there are enough gullible idiots on Kickstarter that are willing to throw money at something that fuses Android or iOS in some insane fashion. I should do a KS with Android in your washing machine and clothes iron system!!
@Cdan haven’t Samsung and others already done android based appliances ?
Or at least the gui/front end.
Same for car navigation and entertainment systems.
eg from 2013
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/slideshow/googlegadgets/9-little-known-Android-gadgets/itslideshowviewall/18527906.cms
You don’t appreciate Android-x86’s technical contributions, you rely on it to keep your joke “operating system” alive.
Has anyone tried donating to Android x86?
The PayPal link directs to cwhuang@linux.org.tw and refuses to deposit because of TW region restrictions.
The news are spreading to reddit and other pages.
It seems it is getting viral:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Android/comments/3y840w/console_os_response_to_accusations/?sort=top&limit=500
@Console, Inc.
This comment was written in July 2016. Hey Price, your downloads page is down. I see Console OS has already started to go the way of your other projects.