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[Q] Future G-Tab possibility question(s)

So for a bit I've been looking into tablets, and the G Tablet seems like its the right one for me (great hardware, already a great amount of work from the Devs here on the system) so I think I'll be picking one up after the holidays.
My question though: I remember reading a week or two ago (when doing my initial research) reading somewhere that the G Tablet could run Windows 7 in the future. Is this true? I originally strayed away from Win 7 tablets because I know how much of a hassle they can be, and after putting Android onto my HTC Vogue I went towards a droid tablet. But I also realised that if I could get a Win 7 boot on the tablet also (like one of the other tablets out there with a dual boot) then that would be great to possibly run some of my graphic programs.
So, does anyone think/know if setting up a dual boot on the G Tablet is possible? Has anyone started thinking about developement on it already?
Thanks in advance! Looking forward to getting this tablet and getting it setup, and just wanting to get to know a little more about its future too.

Viewsonic is suppose to be coming out with a DIFFERENT tablet that can dual boot, but not the Gtab..

The Viewpad 10 is what they were coming out with. Don't know if it still is. The big issue for me is there is only Android 1.6 right now for the X86 cpu's. You also have to deal with fans, and the extra weight. I wanted a Windows 7 tablet but not so much anymore.

Sprdtyf350 said:
The Viewpad 10 is what they were coming out with. Don't know if it still is. The big issue for me is there is only Android 1.6 right now for the X86 cpu's. You also have to deal with fans, and the extra weight. I wanted a Windows 7 tablet but not so much anymore.
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Yeah I know about that one, but strayed away from that because it was pretty much unavailable and more pricey (if memory serves).
I swear I remember reading it somewhere that the G Tablet would be capable of running Windows 7 in the near(ish) future, and I'm just trying to figure out if that is true or not.

Only if Microsoft rewrites Win 7 for the ARM processor and reduces the Bloat.

:-D I am sure at some point with all these Tegra 2 tablets someone will port Ubuntu onto the G-tab! This would be amazing considering all the tablet support that they have built into the recent netbook remix.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nn3m09zkcbo
Now this interface on the g-tablet would be amazing!

cuzzinz said:
:-D I am sure at some point with all these Tegra 2 tablets someone will port Ubuntu onto the G-tab! This would be amazing considering all the tablet support that they have built into the recent netbook remix.
Now this interface on the g-tablet would be amazing!
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Wow.... Just watched the video....Amazing lol... Can't believe I didn't think of unbuntu on the Gtab, that would be friggin awesome!

Win 7 running on a 1GHz CPU w/ 512Mb of RAM...ewww

M 5hizzle said:
Wow.... Just watched the video....Amazing lol... Can't believe I didn't think of unbuntu on the Gtab, that would be friggin awesome!
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Once we have kernel source, we'll be able to do it....

Ubuntu is a definite possibility since it runs on ARM and the Android kernel itself is Linux based. But, just like any kernel change, the devs would need the source so that's the biggest obstacle.

[Q] Dual booting Ubuntu 11.04 and Android 3.0?

The dual-form nature of this item would fit a dual-boot scenario perfectly. Boot into Android when used as a tablet, boot into Ubuntu when docked. Just curious as to the possibility of this.
As far as I know, Ubuntu supports ARM architecture, so the Tegra 2 chip should work well with it. Ubuntu 11.04 was just released with the integrated Unity interface, which looks wonderful with the touchscreen: http://unity.ubuntu.com/projects/utouch/
The Unity 2D interface should fly on the Tegra 2, even if the Unity 3D mode lags.
Now I know that on the Xoom, we were able to run Ubuntu on a VNC server and connect to it locally, but that is obviously not an ideal solution, due to VNC's weakness, and the general inefficiency of it.
Are there any devs working on something like this so far? I am sure there would be a very sizable audience for something like this. I'd be happy to do any necessary testing, and I'm sure more will as well. I also wouldn't mind taking this as an opportunity to get involved with the dev community (I have a thorough background in CS, just no experience with this specifically), I'd be happy if anyone were to take me under their wing. =)

You're not the only one hoping for this: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1053641

I was just thinking about this yesterday. Dual booting Ubuntu and Android would make this the perfect device for me.

i would also love the ability to run linux on mine

I'm tempted to wait until this is guaranteed to happen before buying this thing. I need a new portable device for developing on the go, and I also want and need a Honeycomb device for testing apps and casual content consumption.
At the same time though, if anyone knows of a site or thread dedicated to making this dual-boot happen (similar to the dedicated Toshiba AC100 page here http://tosh-ac100.wetpaint.com/page/Ubuntu ), I wouldn't mind learning all about it and potentially help if I can, so please share.
Sent from my Milestone using XDA App

There are some devs who definitely pulled this off on the Atrix and I had Ubuntu on my phone so I'm sure we can get it on the transformer. I'll try to find them and see if similar methods can be used.

It'll take years but I don't see why it wouldn't work. If I can do this on my old ass wm6.5 phone then it's possible on the TF!

Maybe it wont take years, but more of these tablets have to hit the market. Still so many people waiting on their preorders, me included.
I think that there might be quite the interest in making this happen. I remember reading somewhere that Ubuntu allready runs on the Tegra2, so why should it be far into the future before we see it running on the Transformer?
Sorry for any typos. I have fat fingers, a 4" screen, a small child and a dictionary gone wild...

here's to hoping
So far i'm quite impressed with this little tablet. It crunches bytes as fast as i can throw them, and customizing it was easy enough. Although with the dock station and Tegra 2 it does feel more like a netbook than a tablet.
Android 3.0 IMO is the best compromise between a desktop and mobile phone OS. Although it's expandability is not quite what i would wish it to be. Possibly once more developers gear their programs for the higher resolutions and more powerful CPUs this will change. For now dual booting Ubuntu and Android would be perfect.
I'm on board with any project coming about to make this happen, and would offer up my hardware and feedback for beta testing. Hope to see a dedication in this direction soon!

Has anyone tried the method in the xoom development forums?
Sent from HTC Inspire 4G via XDA Premium.

gordec said:
Has anyone tried the method in the xoom development forums?
Sent from HTC Inspire 4G via XDA Premium.
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I haven't seen the post, but I'm assuming you mean VNC?

Zach Alt said:
I haven't seen the post, but I'm assuming you mean VNC?
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Yeah, it's VNC. That's not that hard, we're talking about straight booting INTO Ubuntu.

i have this image from my desire, which boots linux xlde (or something) i cant get it to connect to that image. Pockecloud just get Server disconnected.... maybe another image.. actually that was loading it from removable MicroSD, im now going to try copying to the internal memory "SDCARD" as that would be what the script would have orignally been setup for. I will post results as soon as this has finished pasting the files...
EDIT: still cant get this to work, seems like terminal is ending too quickly which i think means the loopback memory doesnt work, i think thats how it works anyway.
No lock with WYSE pocket cloud or android vnc, i think we need another build for honeycomb, well not so much the OS but the Tegra chip instead.

ubuntuforums.org
There is a thread over at ubuntuforums.org regarding this matter, though they have a different take on it.
One of the posts state:
Re: Asus Eee Pad Transformer
I plan to get one (not available in my region yet, plus I hear there'll be a 3G version next quarter) and install Ubuntu on it, albeit with KDE/Gnome instead of Unity.
There's not technical reason it can't run Ubuntu, it's just a matter of getting the boot loader working. The instructions seem simple enough, although dual booting with Android might be a little more challenging.
If anyone does get one and install Ubuntu on it, please let us know how it goes.
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Maybe it's not all that farfetched getting Ubuntu to run on this device, or any other Tegra2 base tablet.
The original thread can be found at:
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1741103&highlight=eee+pad+transformer&page=1

looks like dual booting may be fairly difficult; I wouldn't mind soloing ubuntu touch os on mine...

I think dual booting may be difficult, but I think chain booting (right terminology?) from Android first and then into Ubuntu would probably be possible.

I don't think many people understand how hard it will be to create a bootable version of Ubuntu. VNCing is easy for the most part.

Would it be possible to use the motorola xoom guide to get ubuntu running with vnc on the eee transformer?
Sorry for any typos. I have fat fingers, a 4" screen, a small child and a dictionary gone wild...

Is the VNC version that bad? Is it very slow or the picture is not full color? I'd like to use it maybe for Open Office (or something lighter) and some programming in text editor.

Looks like there has been significant progress on this. backtrack has been released for arm.. its a security-centric distro, but its built on an ubuntu base.
I'm downloading the img now.. dont know about dual boot though. guess someone needs to port grub over first =)
I cant post links....but a search for 'backtrack5 xoom' should get you there.

[Q] Windows 8 - a possibility?

So I was just curious if anyone has thought about trying to boot Windows 8 on the Xoom....or if anyone is going to be interested in it.
I nabbed the developer preview last week and loved it, and would love to add even more functionality to my favorite tablet.

Closed source.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App

Use search before posting. we have at least 3 threads on this subject.

kenfly said:
Use search before posting. we have at least 3 threads on this subject.
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My join date is before yours, man. I know how to use search and did. Threads I found were unrelated to Xoom.
@gqstatus0685: I was aware it's closed source, but I guess the question is if the drivers will support the hardware (which is the usual problem). Since Win 8 is designed with tablets in mind, and specifically ARM processors, IMO there's a good chance it will come with drivers that will/could run on the Xoom. Was more just curious as to how much work it would take to hack it on there.

Agreed OP. Although it IS closed source, if the x86 version can run on the variety of devices it's been running on, I have no doubt on my mind we'll be dual booting the ARM version off of an SD Card/USB Drive. Or possibly even replacing Android, a touch optimized version of Windows 7 on my Xoom? I'm very enthusiastic. Netflix, Office products, and EVERYTHING else I do on my computer, no workarounds, nada. This would be ideal.
At this point I'm wondering what Android does that 8 wouldn't be able to do.

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1262002
Here is one.
Again use search before posting.
Doesn't matter how long I've been here.

WINDOWS 8 Prelease!!!!

Hey devs, lets start cranking this baby out. Lets do some research, and find out what he need to get W8 on the G Tablet
Please details, or possible obstacles you find, or feel

Sorry Charlie
DJTJ said:
Hey devs, lets start cranking this baby out. Lets do some research, and find out what he need to get W8 on the G Tablet
Please details, or possible obstacles you find, or feel
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Well, this has been answered before, but just to make you happy...the closest you will ever get to seeing Win 8 on a gTab is if you play a YouTube video of it.
Won't be possible for numerous reasons:
1. Doesn't meet the hardware specs (too little ram, too little storage, missing various pieces of hardware, screen res way too low, etc)
2. Unlike Android (which is open source), Windows is not...MS would be all over anyone butt if they tried to modify it for another device
3. MS has already stated Win8 (RT) will only come pre-installed on OEM devices meaning the OEM's build will be specific to their hardware
4. We can't even get drivers for our current hardware on Android...how do expect to get Windows ones for it??????
5. I could go one, but I hope you get the point
Al

aabbondanza said:
the closest you will ever get to seeing Win 8 on a gTab is if you play a YouTube video of it.
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Precisely.
How many devices (of any type) can you name which run any form of Windows (or MS-DOS, for that matter) without MS's blessing? (Let's skip pirated copies here.)

rajeevvp said:
Precisely.
How many devices (of any type) can you name which run any form of Windows (or MS-DOS, for that matter) without MS's blessing? (Let's skip pirated copies here.)
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My thoughts exactly....... Why OH Why would you want Microsoft software on a Android Tablet. UI for Win8 are not that great and perfomance wouldn't be either. Really Metro on Android it's bad enough they have a launcher for it let alone someone wanting a OS. I would rather try putting IOs on this thing then somthing from Microsoft. Just saying.

Even if the UI is fantastic and the performance is great, the idea is a non-starter. Here's why:
Let's say Hannspree makes a deal with MS tomorrow and releases Win 8 (completely unlocked of course!) on their Hannspad next month. Now, since the Hannspad and the gTab are very close tablets, you could conceivably just pull the official files from that tablet and use it on the gTab with minor modifications. And let's also assume that you've got Win 8 working perfectly on the gTab by going in with a hex editor and patching whatever binaries. And finally, when you boot it, Win 8 blows the socks off everything else.
Unfortunately, what you've done now is create a pirated distro of Win 8 -- a warez distribution -- and no reputable BBS (certainly not XDA!) will touch it. You'll have to post your wonderful creation on some 0-day warez upload site for people to use.
The technical problems are actually a tertiary concern here.

I have it on my U30GT Cube, well, not really on it, but with the "Splashtop" app I can use my main PC (Win8) on my tablet touch screen and its great.
So, while you may not be able to fully install Win8 on the Gtab, if your main PC has Win8 (I assume any other Windows OS too), I do not see any reason why Splashtop would not suffice or indeed enhance any tablet.

[DEV HACK IDEA] Porting over Android to the new Chromebook..??

I checked out the specs of the newly-announced $249 chromebook, and I realized what an awesome android device it would make, if only android was successfully ported to it....
I know at the same price point we can get a n7 32gig, but the larger 11.6" LED HD tempts me, though the res at 1366 x 768 is not that great. also, all the hands-on reviews have heaped a lot of praise on the high-quality keyboard-touchpad on the device, which is even more tempting and would make up for the lack of touch input on the device...
Its config is pretty identical to a flagship android phone/tablet with two cortex-A15 cores on the Exynos 5250, 2gig RAM and 16GB onboard storage with an expandable mem slot, 2 full usb ports and a full HDMI out, with the usual WiFi a/b/g/n and Bluetooth 3.0.
I'm a noob when it comes to creating ports and ROMS, but I guess it would not be such a difficult task for the awesome dev community out here to manage that feat. Maybe we need to wait for an actual android device with the exynos chip inside to release, whose android ROM we could use as a base to port to the chromebook...
windows 8 RT would be more awesome, but seeing that its a licensed OS, porting it might amount to piracy/illegal hacking, so its not something that I would discuss/encourage here....

Chromebooks boot with UEFI (Basically a modern BIOS), so the Android source code would have to be heavilly modified to be bootstraped from UEFI. Not to mention drivers and custom kernels (which isnt much of a pain if the hardware has documentation, all eyes on you Samsung.)
And I dont think we will ever see Windows on a chromebook unless someone creates an emulator for ChromeOS... Which I dont think is possible, but dont quote me on that.

i know it would take a ton of modding to find a workaround for it, but enabling the developer mode on the chromebook allows booting of an unsigned linux installation off the external memory (eg. gentoo ubuntu) on the x86 chromebooks currently available (Cr-48 etc..)
trying something similar for booting android off an image on the mem card might be a possible way...
UPDATE : https://plus.google.com/109993695638569781190/posts/b2fazijJppZ a google employee has already begun work on porting ubuntu..!!

drivers would be difficult, esp for the SoC as there is no device currently on the market with it. but maybe after Samsung releases a couple of phones/phablets running the A15's, porting of the drivers could be attempted...

I was wondering the same thing and figured I would come here to see if anything was planned. I just ordered the new one and was curious if there would be much interest in modding this thing. Guess in due time!

rumors say the upcoming google nexus 10 tablet is running identical hardware (exynos 5 dual omap15 / 2gig ram) which is gonna run android 4.2
once its out, MAYBE porting the ROM to the chromebook may become a teeny bit easier...

the_crazy_devil said:
rumors say the upcoming google nexus 10 tablet is running identical hardware (exynos 5 dual omap15 / 2gig ram) which is gonna run android 4.2
once its out, MAYBE porting the ROM to the chromebook may become a teeny bit easier...
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If I'm not wrong Nexus 10 will have exactly the same processor than the new Samsung Chromebook. If someon manage port android to this new latop I won't hesitate to buy it.

there is a developer board with same hardware and as far as I know it has android source codes, you can check the website http://www.arndaleboard.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page

Wasnt this done a while back with the CR-48 thanks to Hexxeh?
http://hexxeh.net/?p=328117655
Just got to find a way to port it over to the new Chromebook, then port Android.

Since Android was ported to the HP Touchpad I'm pretty confident that it can be ported to this device... I mean the touchpad was the last thing I thought Android would run on and it runs like it was made for it... COME ON DEVS!

Following this thread with anticipation.

Well seeing as this device uses the same SoC as the nexus 10 i would be hopeful someone will manage to port android. I for one would be keen to have this option!

Touch Chromebook?
If this article on Android Community turns out to be accurate and Google release a touch chromebook any time soon, I would throw some money at a kickstarter to get android on it. Would be cheaper than an N10 - and probably quicker than waiting for a keyboard dock...!
Can't link because I'm new... androidcommunity.com/google-reportedly-plotting-12-85-inch-touch-chromebook-20121126/

Very hopeful!

^ here's a +1 form me

started..
OK...I was able to get into the uboot portion of chromeos and managed to load uvboot ( unverified boot )which will allow the booting of non chrome os kernel's. however it seems its looking for something else. I already got Ubuntu loaded on it so maybe I'll try to get it booting off the SD first so I don't brick my cb.....keep you guys posted.

rawtek said:
OK...I was able to get into the uboot portion of chromeos and managed to load uvboot ( unverified boot )which will allow the booting of non chrome os kernel's. however it seems its looking for something else. I already got Ubuntu loaded on it so maybe I'll try to get it booting off the SD first so I don't brick my cb.....keep you guys posted.
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great work! i'm still waiting for my chromebook the stock's very erratic, and i cant find anyone willing to ship it to my country...will try to help as soon as i lay my hands on one!!

Ok ... DD'd the system.img from the stock N10 factory image and created a new BOOT partition. Booting the Chrome OS kernel worked ( which should be fine due to the fact that the CB and N10 have the EXACT same ARM SOC ) it seems the boot partition need to be re-written to work with the UEFI. im going to keep digging until I find something ( or someone lends some expertise dealing with UEFI and BOOT ).Happy New years !!

Kernel boots..just has a hard time mounting the ROOTFS...any want to shed some light on this.
Thanks

Super stoked for this!! Have been thinking this would be good to have Android on from the minute I got it!! Looking forward to this!!