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[UPDATED] Samsung firmwares may close

Just thought some people not following their twitter might want to know:
@SamsungFirmware: BAD NEWS MAYBE WE HAVE TO CLOSE OUR WEBSITE! BECAUSE COPYRIGHT! We are checking it out.
This was posted an hour ago
UPDATE:
@SamsungFirmware: We missed a Disclaimer about our website.. We fix it all tonight and hope we keep running!
UPDATE:
Updates from their twitter:
@SamsungFirmware: Samsung wants my domain... Because of the name. samsung-firmware.com is already down they have the same problem.
@SamsungFirmware: We are busy with a new domain so site could be offline soon again YEAH
@SamFirmware: Site DOWN Why because we change it to www.SamFirmware.webs.com Later we go to www.SamFirmware.com
In the last post you can see they changed their twitter name
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

ronandi said:
Just thought some people not following their twitter might want to know:
@SamsungFirmware: BAD NEWS MAYBE WE HAVE TO CLOSE OUR WEBSITE! BECAUSE COPYRIGHT! We are checking it out.
This was posted an hour ago
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
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this is bad news indeed!
Looks like they have to go... underground

Quick everyone, Start downloading and archiving it all before it is too late!

ronandi said:
Just thought some people not following their twitter might want to know:
@SamsungFirmware: BAD NEWS MAYBE WE HAVE TO CLOSE OUR WEBSITE! BECAUSE COPYRIGHT! We are checking it out.
This was posted an hour ago
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
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Not sure how its a copy writing issue, they aren't making any money off samsungs property (roms). They aren't editing them and releasing them as a samsung property....should be interesting.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using Tapatalk

Clienterror said:
Not sure how its a copy writing issue, they aren't making any money off samsungs property (roms). They aren't editing them and releasing them as a samsung property....should be interesting.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using Tapatalk
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I've asked if they can provide any more details at this time. Will post if I find out more.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

You don't have to do anything wrong to get a letter from a company lawyer. If some exec gets a bug up his butt and sics his legal department on you, right and wrong have nothing to do with it.

dc41 said:
You don't have to do anything wrong to get a letter from a company lawyer. If some exec gets a bug up his butt and sics his legal department on you, right and wrong have nothing to do with it.
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That's true. But out of curiosity I've been looking up forms of copy write laws, and they all basically deal with either taking someone's work and putting your name on it exclusively, or selling it or both, or a combination of the two. Besides that the rest applies to copying music which is obviously considered illegal but that is still kind of a gray area. And of course copying games and programs.....but that's targeted towards paid games/apps. So as far as "Copy write infringement" by definition it holds no water. Then again if someone can sue NC Soft for making Linage II too addicting and actually successfully start a lawsuit anything could happen rofl.

I can see why they would get in copyright hot water over what they do. All the work that they host is technically property of Samsung and their partners after all. I would hate for them to be killed off, as their releases have helped us a lot. Samsung should think twice about this though, because I bet without the glimmer of hope shown by the GPS improvements in JH2, there would have been a lot more returns Samsung would be dealing with.

New update from their twitter:
@SamsungFirmware: We missed a Disclaimer about our website.. We fix it all tonight and hope we keep running!
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

Well, either they've taken it down for updating, or it's down completely, either way I can't get to it right now.

From facebook:
Samsung-Firmware Webs SITE IS DOWN. WE HAVE TROUBLE WITH SAMSUNG. WE ARE WORKING ON NEW DOMAIN,

way to have your **** together... >.<

It figures, the day that I decide I'm going to update. Hope they can get it back up soon.

Updates from their twitter:
@SamsungFirmware: Samsung wants my domain... Because of the name. samsung-firmware.com is already down they have the same problem.
@SamsungFirmware: We are busy with a new domain so site could be offline soon again YEAH
@SamFirmware: Site DOWN Why because we change it to www.SamFirmware.webs.com Later we go to www.SamFirmware.com
In the last post you can see they changed their twitter name as well
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

rajendra82 said:
I can see why they would get in copyright hot water over what they do. All the work that they host is technically property of Samsung and their partners after all. I would hate for them to be killed off, as their releases have helped us a lot. Samsung should think twice about this though, because I bet without the glimmer of hope shown by the GPS improvements in JH2, there would have been a lot more returns Samsung would be dealing with.
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So if they are getting in trouble due to basically posting roms from samsung and nothing else what do you call it when people modify their original code to make custom roms? Are they going to jail because not only are they posting samsung property their modifying without samsungs permission.

This is probably a trademark issue, since their domain included Samsung in its name. If it was a copyright issue, they couldn't just change the domain name and continue operating.
Sent from my Nexus One using XDA App

Clienterror said:
So if they are getting in trouble due to basically posting roms from samsung and nothing else what do you call it when people modify their original code to make custom roms? Are they going to jail because not only are they posting samsung property their modifying without samsungs permission.
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Dont forget that what xda does is illegal too, but its been tolerated by the companies so far because of the positive effects xda has on the popularity of the smartphones from these companies.
I dont think that samsung has a problem with what these website does, but purely of the use of her brandname. For example: the first time i heard of samsung-firmwares i thought it was something official by samsung. After visiting xda i learned it was not.
So the reason is just that samsung doesnt want to be associated with this website, because of the experimental stuff. You will get lot of stupid people complaining to samsung about broken smartphones.

Question for zelendel

So was samsungjohns big announcement not the support/questions thread. Just a question no flame intended. I think the vast majority of us that were all over that thread figured that support thread was the big news. So please inform us if it was not the news
Edit: Please keep this flame free this was just meant as a simple question
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oldskooldawgz said:
So was samsungjohns big announcement not the support/questions thread. Just a question no flame intended. I think the vast majority of us that were all over that thread figured that support thread was the big news. So please inform us if it was not the news
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
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No the thread was not the big news. To be honest I dont really have much info yet about this. To be honest I dont trust it to prove to be anything at all really. I will give more info as I get it.
As for Them starting a Support thread here....I dought it....Think about what we do here, and come to your own thoughts

zelendel said:
No the thread was not the big news.
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Well, that is good news.
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SamsungJohn should have just said what he had to say when he could. If he can't say today, then don't start a thread today. No need to hype it ahead of time. His first post should have been whatever big news he had. That would have avoided this debacle.

Thank you very much for your responce
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

zelendel said:
No the thread was not the big news. To be honest I dont really have much info yet about this. To be honest I dont trust it to prove to be anything at all really. I will give more info as I get it.
As for Them starting a Support thread here....I dought it....Think about what we do here, and come to your own thoughts
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Thanks, please keep us informed. Cause unlike john, you're not part of samsung and have nothing to hype. Just shoot us straight.

I really think svetius needs to teach him a little pr. Maybe even have orb write his posts. I don't think he knows what he is doing.

No prob guys I would not leave you in the dark about this. I want to beleive the guy is here for good things but I just dont. If you stop and think for a min I think you will agree he is about as out of place here as as a fruit logo on anything other then a kids toy lmao.
On a side note lets not open anymore threads about this. I will leave this one open but others will be closed on site

TheSopranos16 said:
SamsungJohn should have just said what he had to say when he could. If he can't say today, then don't start a thread today. No need to hype it ahead of time. His first post should have been whatever big news he had. That would have avoided this debacle.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1INb5FM_1lE

TheSopranos16 said:
SamsungJohn should have just said what he had to say when he could. If he can't say today, then don't start a thread today. No need to hype it ahead of time. His first post should have been whatever big news he had. That would have avoided this debacle.
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Double True that!

I've seen mention of the Samsungjohn announcement a couple of times, but have no idea what it was in reference to, can someone please catch me up on it? Searching that user name yields no results..

rpicaso said:
I've seen mention of the Samsungjohn announcement a couple of times, but have no idea what it was in reference to, can someone please catch me up on it? Searching that user name yields no results..
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No one knows, all that has happened so far was several q&a threads that were opened and closed quickly because for good reason we are all pissed.
My head hurts

zelendel said:
If you stop and think for a min I think you will agree he is about as out of place here as as a fruit logo on anything other then a kids toy lmao.
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LOL, I have always said this to my friends who have the phone with the i in front of it (I will not directly mention that dumb phone)

Yea, and everyone around here on XDA were total D-bags and flammed the poor guy.
He's a marketing rep for Samsung, and I think was honestly trying to find a way to reach out to the XDA community. And in return, everyone ripped his thread to pieces.
I guess the old, "you catch more flies with honey than vinegar" doesn't work so well around here. Pitty too. Cause unless all the idiots around here plan on rushing the Samsung corporate headquarters and holding the CEO ransom, burning the one bridge set forth isn't going to get anyone anywhere.

mcord11758 said:
No one knows, all that has happened so far was several q&a threads that were opened and closed quickly because for good reason we are all pissed.
My head hurts
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I did finally find the thread, catching up now. I wouldn't be surprised if there's a trade in offer of some kind involved. Just speculation on my part tho. of course, after the reception he received here we probably won't hear anything now..

Shammyh said:
Yea, and everyone around here on XDA were total D-bags and flammed the poor guy.
He's a marketing rep for Samsung, and I think was honestly trying to find a way to reach out to the XDA community. And in return, everyone ripped his thread to pieces.
I guess the old, "you catch more flies with honey than vinegar" doesn't work so well around here. Pitty too. Cause unless all the idiots around here plan on rushing the Samsung corporate headquarters and holding the CEO ransom, burning the one bridge set forth isn't going to get anyone anywhere.
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I respectfully disagree with your position, but if we want this discussion to remain open lets avoid name calling and flaming

Shammyh said:
I guess the old, "you catch more flies with honey than vinegar" doesn't work so well around here. Pitty too. Cause unless all the idiots around here plan on rushing the Samsung corporate headquarters and holding the CEO ransom, burning the one bridge set forth isn't going to get anyone anywhere.
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I agree. The way I see it, we have nothing to lose. They already have our money. Why not let the guy say his piece? Is there anything he can possibly say that will sway our opinion without doing something about the problems? Is he going to hypnotize us into buying more Samsung products?

Shammyh said:
I guess the old, "you catch more flies with honey than vinegar" doesn't work so well around here. Pitty too. Cause unless all the idiots around here plan on rushing the Samsung corporate headquarters and holding the CEO ransom, burning the one bridge set forth isn't going to get anyone anywhere.
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With all due respect. Samsung has brought the hatred and anger on themselves. They choose to enter into agreements where they cant comment on the updates they provide. They choose to enter into agreements where they cant update their own hardware without the carriers blessing. They choose to allow their PR reps make comments about updates that never come dangling a carrot in front of those hopeful for the advanced features others on identical hardware in other countries enjoy.
Sorry they burned their bridges, they doused their customers with gasoline, you cant blame us for wanting to embrace them with our last fiery breaths.

Ok guys if this turns into a flame fest or name calling i will close this one as well. I am not sure what will happen if anything other then empty promises as like stated above "they already have our money." To be honest This will be my last Samsung device I ever own. No matter What Samsung has to say, I will never again promote a Samsung device, as I had big hopes for the Captivate. I should have known better after all the work I have had to do on their other smartphones, that this one would be just as much a POS as all the others, BJ, BJ II, Epic, Jack.

rahlquist said:
With all due respect. Samsung has brought the hatred and anger on themselves. They choose to enter into agreements where they cant comment on the updates they provide. They choose to enter into agreements where they cant update their own hardware without the carriers blessing. They choose to allow their PR reps make comments about updates that never come dangling a carrot in front of those hopeful for the advanced features others on identical hardware in other countries enjoy.
Sorry they burned their bridges, they doused their customers with gasoline, you cant blame us for wanting to embrace them with our last fiery breaths.
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I agree.
But when fortune turns in your favor, what's the best thing to do?
Continue the outrage and anger (justifiable as it may be) or turn the other cheek and see if something constructive can't be done?

Why ICS is important to me.

Watch the video (In case you havent seen it yet!). In it Matias Duarte explains how the Android team is beginning to try and create a cohesive and unified atmosphere with the os at the most basic levels. I for one, am absolutely thrilled to see that they are finally going to be paying attention to design and aesthetics. Usability of the platform can also benefit from this immensely.
I am also tired of people saying "ICS isnt all that special". It really doesnt matter how "special" you think it should be. What matters is that its the next iteration of the os. We all want to have our devices updated and current. So wanting this on our devices has less to do with design in this sense, and a lot more to do with jumping on the wagon of unification. I would greatly prefer beautiful apps and ease of use over anything Gingerbread has offered us so far. Now I already know that a lot of the visual benefits of ICS come mainly from theming and such, but its profoundly more exciting when the theming itself is coming from the creators of Android and not some hard-to-find source in the app market.
Lastly, I would appreciate it if you guys could give your thoughts on this. Are you excited to see the new direction the Android team along with Matias, are going in? Do you feel that they are focusing on some rather important points in the software (usability, framework, aesthetics) or not? And of course please keep the flaming and crude/rude comments to yourselves. Thanks all for listening to my rant.
~~Vince
Heres the new design guidelines site they have up.

tazbo28 said:
Watch the video (In case you havent seen it yet!). In it Matias Duarte explains how the Android team is beginning to try and create a cohesive and unified atmosphere with the os at the most basic levels. I for one, am absolutely thrilled to see that they are finally going to be paying attention to design and aesthetics. Usability of the platform can also benefit from this immensely.
I am also tired of people saying "ICS isnt all that special". It really doesnt matter how "special" you think it should be. What matters is that its the next iteration of the os. We all want to have our devices updated and current. So wanting this on our devices has less to do with design in this sense, and a lot more to do with jumping on the wagon of unification. I would greatly prefer beautiful apps and ease of use over anything Gingerbread has offered us so far. Now I already know that a lot of the visual benefits of ICS come mainly from theming and such, but its profoundly more exciting when the theming itself is coming from the creators of Android and not some hard-to-find source in the app market.
Lastly, I would appreciate it if you guys could give your thoughts on this. Are you excited to see the new direction the Android team along with Matias, are going in? Do you feel that they are focusing on some rather important points in the software (usability, framework, aesthetics) or not? And of course please keep the flaming and crude/rude comments to yourselves. Thanks all for listening to my rant.
~~Vince
Heres the new design guidelines site they have up.
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I can't deny that I would be overly excited if ICS came to this device, haha.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I997 using xda premium

Kevinr678 said:
I can't deny that I would be overly excited if ICS came to this device, haha.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I997 using xda premium
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+1 internets I totally agree!

As nice as ICS's upgrade would be...it's not in Sammy's or AT&T interest
Sammy want's device sales and AT&T wants new/renewed contracts. By limiting ICS to 2012 devices, it provides incentive for 2010/2011 device owners to pony up for the new hotness with the new software.
Now before anyone wants to say, "WAIT WAIT, Apple..." save it. We're not talking about Apple here. Sammy is the OEM and they control what happens for the product line.
Sure you can wait for a dev to 'hopefully' get around to releasing an ICS port and yeah, it may be decent. That's your choice.
My upgrade plans begin in 2013 when ICS should have a few months in the wild and become more mature. By then all my smartphones will be eligible for upgrade discounts. I have no issue with AT&T's service as they allow me to keep my grandfathered unlimited data plan.
I'd rather have ICS when it's grown up and not so much a baby. Also, fully functional on my device too would be nice.

Interviewer is huge fan of Apple I can see

The main reason i want ics is so i can impress my friends lol. It also just has features that i just like better. Im not going to die without it, but it would be nice with it. Im sorry guys who have to wait for their contract, both my parents have their upgrades up and both are fine if they get my infuse, and i get the note.

durvall said:
Interviewer is huge fan of Apple I can see
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Joshua Topolsky! My man! He was the senior editor at Engadget.com before leaving to start theverge.com. He actually left his Apple iPhone after the 3gs I think. He soon thereafter bought a Nexus One. Which I think he still uses to this day. And touts it every chance he gets. He does however praise apple for incitefull design and craftsmanship. I mean he is in a business (tech blogging) that is notorious for praising the behemoth company(not that this is a good thing) But trust you me when I say he isn't afraid to drop the hammer on Apple when he voices his gripes over their products. I would venture to say that most blogging sites require their employees to work on Macbooks now though. It seems to me that they would rather choose a totalitarian system like the Macs because they are less prone to buginess and viruses. And when your in an industry that thrives off of having secure data on close deadlines and less vulnerabilities, Macs (imo) just do it better. I dont use a mac, never have, I have had an Iphone 3g one time for a while. But will probably never go back. Unless I become rich or something. You do have to admire their design principles though both physically and software wise. When you compare Apple's aesthetics to Androids up till now, its just no-contest which is more cohesive and well thought out.

durvall said:
Interviewer is huge fan of Apple I can see
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So is Samsung.
Sent from my SGH-I897

funny thing is I used to frequent a guitar forum and a well known member was a Samsung senior cdma systems engineer and his phone was an iPhone. that was before cdma iPhones existed so he was obviously on att which is big in texas. he didn't boast about apple too much nor Samsung, basically the only things I remember that stood out was he refuted the idea that the apple products have Good audio. said the newer apple products are not as good as the older ones and suffered from clipping (overdrive basically) and boasted the galaxy s in that area. but when it came down to it he was a fan of ios for the accessories and high quality audio software (garage band for the ipad) and got an ipad 2.

i always have an upgrade....(4 lines=leverage) .. but i will not purchase another phone until ICS is available, especially because of updates. i want the note..but if no ics pre-installed..i aint buying.. i almost went to verizon for the nexus but they dont have good coverage where i travel

ICS should be important to everyone. Even if only for the principle of it.
Sent from my SGH-I897

Anyone currently working on ics?
Sent from my SGH-I997 using XDA App

dustinhayes93 said:
Anyone currently working on ics?
Sent from my SGH-I997 using XDA App
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yeah but they haven't posted progress so its anyone's guess as to what issues they are having. remember the people working on it have real lives and are doing it as a hobby. so i don't think anyone is working on it full time.

Yea of course. Its great to know it is being worked on. Anything is better than nothing!
Sent from my SGH-I997 using XDA App

LinuxBozo still around? I had some questions for him..
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theROMinator said:
LinuxBozo still around? I had some questions for him..
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he drops in to a thread every once in a while especially the "all the devs jumped" threads. he was never that big on posting. I dunno if he answers pm's.

Dani897 said:
he drops in to a thread every once in a while especially the "all the devs jumped" threads. he was never that big on posting. I dunno if he answers pm's.
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Yes, he does. I've spoke with him before. I was just hoping he hadn't jumped ship.
Sent from my SGH-I997 using Tapatalk

theROMinator said:
Yes, he does. I've spoke with him before. I was just hoping he hadn't jumped ship.
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I don't think so. I know at one time he said he didn't like change.... whether he'll post work after his ics thread got trolled on I don't know.

theROMinator said:
Yes, he does. I've spoke with him before. I was just hoping he hadn't jumped ship.
Sent from my SGH-I997 using Tapatalk
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He will probably answer in this thread lol but he is. One of the leads with the infuse cm7 team. He has been busy with other stuff though (carpantry). He is around. Ics will come someday hopefully...

even though some people will drop their Infuse's this Spring, Im really hoping some devs will still try to bring over ICS for the people who want to feel out the year on devices. I wish I wasnt so disorganized, otherwise i might actually have the capacity to learn how to develop. =/

Has anyone tried this?

I know its so painfully obvious, but has anyone actually tried to contact samsung to get the development resources we need? Drivers and the such.
Beyond a doubt they left this phone to sink a long time ago, but the sidekick community is die-hard and all we want is the phone we thought we were getting. And we can have that phone, with no added work by Sasung - we have the devs and the will! We only need the way.
It would not be too difficult to draft a polite but demanding business letter/ petition and have all of us send it in. Shoot, if we got the story to the XDA mods we could probably get support site-wide for "dedicated sidekick/android enthusiasts want freedom for their phone - device never allowed upgrade from froyo". You guys might see this as stretching it, but a majority of people on XDA have samsung devices and would hate to see their own development halted by the company.
Strength in numbers. Not to mention, this kind of outcry would show samsung that the sidekick (keyboard devices) are still sought after and will be fought for. Somewhere in our petition should say the resources are just to hold us over until they release the next model which will NOT get treated like the red-headed stepchild the 4G did.
You'd be surprised what a small, vocal group can get done. If anyone has any background on this type of thing, say so. if nobody else steps up I will write it tuesday-Thursday and post it for any revisions, then we can each take a copy and send it. Even a simple facebook page or cheap website would add so much to this cause.
Sent from my SGH-T839 using xda app-developers app

Tsloble said:
I know its so painfully obvious, but has anyone actually tried to contact samsung to get the development resources we need? Drivers and the such.
Beyond a doubt they left this phone to sink a long time ago, but the sidekick community is die-hard and all we want is the phone we thought we were getting. And we can have that phone, with no added work by Sasung - we have the devs and the will! We only need the way.
It would not be too difficult to draft a polite but demanding business letter/ petition and have all of us send it in. Shoot, if we got the story to the XDA mods we could probably get support site-wide for "dedicated sidekick/android enthusiasts want freedom for their phone - device never allowed upgrade from froyo". You guys might see this as stretching it, but a majority of people on XDA have samsung devices and would hate to see their own development halted by the company.
Strength in numbers. Not to mention, this kind of outcry would show samsung that the sidekick (keyboard devices) are still sought after and will be fought for. Somewhere in our petition should say the resources are just to hold us over until they release the next model which will NOT get treated like the red-headed stepchild the 4G did.
You'd be surprised what a small, vocal group can get done. If anyone has any background on this type of thing, say so. if nobody else steps up I will write it tuesday-Thursday and post it for any revisions, then we can each take a copy and send it. Even a simple facebook page or cheap website would add so much to this cause.
Sent from my SGH-T839 using xda app-developers app
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I'm for it. I think it's a great idea to sign a petition requesting to Samsung at least a test build of Gingerbread. :good:

Agreed broda's we have to do this.:thumbup:
Sent from my SGH-T839 using xda app-developers app

I like the idea! I'm not a dev so I wouldn't be able to write the letter, but I can help edit.

I will write up a draft tomorrow after my studies, leaving the appropriate "technical" spots easily editable so that we can get exactly what we need from Samsung per the Devs instruction.
Thank you guys for your support on this, I truly believe good can come of this!
Maybe we can direct them to our sidekick wishlist thread while we're at it ;D
Sent from my SGH-T839 using xda app-developers app

I would definitely help to, but English is not my main language. So i would try to help with the petition!

If samsung releases the driver source code I can make a stable CM6 and a BETA CM7 for this community. Butttttttt.....I don't see it happening.

Im up for it, count me in. Sure never doubt the power and determination of an online community especially an open source one like xda

I doubt anything would happen for sk4g. We did similar things in the sgs4g community. Samsung is more like honey badger...

Of course we should try, but i'm not sure that Samsung will help us after 2 years of doing nothing....

I'll post it up within the half hour - this week was busier than expected. And unless Samsung completely destroyed everything relating to our device, it should be as simple as a developers release right?
Sent from my SGH-T839 using xda app-developers app

Tsloble said:
I'll post it up within the half hour - this week was busier than expected. And unless Samsung completely destroyed everything relating to our device, it should be as simple as a developers release right?
Sent from my SGH-T839 using xda app-developers app
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Yup

Here is draft one. Feel free to download the doc and make adjustments. Let's just be sure that the majority of our community agree on the final product and then we can take action. I will be sending out the story to Gizmodo/Engadget and stuff too... If this isn't an underdog tech story I don't know what is. You guys might think that's over the top, but it's just not right for a company to abandon their customer and it is never too late to make amends.
To Whom It May Concern:
This is a formal petition regarding the Samsung SGH-T839 device (T-Mobile Sidekick 4G).
We, the loyal consumers (and other), request through this petition that you kindly release development information & resources regarding the SGH-T839. This request is being made due to the absolute lack of support and development for this device since its launch April 20th, 2011. Please note that this device shipped with Android Operating System (Android from this point) Version 2.2 “Froyo” which was released May 20th, 2010. This is despite the fact that the SGH-T839 launch date was over four months after the release of Android Version 2.3 “Gingerbread” (released December 6th, 2010).
Not only was the device shipped with an outdated operating system, but a Kies / Over the Air Update to Gingerbread was never released. This came as a shock to all loyal consumers of the SGH-T839 as Samsung continued to update other devices to the new Android version and release new devices with Gingerbread already installed. In addition to the lack of support, the SGH-T839 had many bugs such as a keystroke logger within the system, the keyboard software missed keystrokes, and frequent Force-Close of applications.
These problems, amongst others, have been thoroughly logged by the XDA Developers Community (www.xda-developers.com). Amazingly, there is a large community of SGH-T839 users that are dedicated to the device and have managed to correct many of the software-related defects that were shipped with the device. This petition requests that Samsung release the following development items to the XDA Development Community, that the loyal consumer of their product may be able to enjoy everything that the SGH-T839 is capable of:
We urge you not to overlook this petition, as it is being circulated amongst several online communities that are dedicated to the Android Open Source Project for support. The influence of these communities over Samsung’s broader handheld-device customer base runs very deep; the XDA Developers Community alone has over 4.7 million registered users. We, the loyal consumer (and other), anticipate a prompt response to this matter. We also look forward to increased involvement from Samsung pertaining to the Android Open Source Project and hopefully a future device with similar form-factor of the SGH-T839.
Sincerely,
Edit 2: Was just thinking maybe "Release source to XDA community should be create developers release pack or something?

Tsloble said:
Here is draft one. Feel free to download the doc and make adjustments. Let's just be sure that the majority of our community agree on the final product and then we can take action. I will be sending out the story to Gizmodo/Engadget and stuff too... If this isn't an underdog tech story I don't know what is. You guys might think that's over the top, but it's just not right for a company to abandon their customer and it is never too late to make amends.
To Whom It May Concern:
This is a formal petition regarding the Samsung SGH-T839 device (T-Mobile Sidekick 4G).
We, the loyal consumers (and other), request through this petition that you kindly release development information & resources regarding the SGH-T839. This request is being made due to the absolute lack of support and development for this device since its launch April 20th, 2011. Please note that this device shipped with Android Operating System (Android from this point) Version 2.2 “Froyo” which was released May 20th, 2010. This is despite the fact that the SGH-T839 launch date was over four months after the release of Android Version 2.3 “Gingerbread” (released December 6th, 2010).
Not only was the device shipped with an outdated operating system, but a Kies / Over the Air Update to Gingerbread was never released. This came as a shock to all loyal consumers of the SGH-T839 as Samsung continued to update other devices to the new Android version and release new devices with Gingerbread already installed. In addition to the lack of support, the SGH-T839 had many bugs such as a keystroke logger within the system, the keyboard software missed keystrokes, and frequent Force-Close of applications.
These problems, amongst others, have been thoroughly logged by the XDA Developers Community (www.xda-developers.com). Amazingly, there is a large community of SGH-T839 users that are dedicated to the device and have managed to correct many of the software-related defects that were shipped with the device. This petition requests that Samsung release the following development items to the XDA Development Community, that the loyal consumer of their product may be able to enjoy everything that the SGH-T839 is capable of:
We urge you not to overlook this petition, as it is being circulated amongst several online communities that are dedicated to the Android Open Source Project for support. The influence of these communities over Samsung’s broader handheld-device customer base runs very deep; the XDA Developers Community alone has over 4.7 million registered users. We, the loyal consumer (and other), anticipate a prompt response to this matter. We also look forward to increased involvement from Samsung pertaining to the Android Open Source Project and hopefully a future device with similar form-factor of the SGH-T839.
Sincerely,
Edit 2: Was just thinking maybe "Release source to XDA community should be create developers release pack or something?
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I think we should ask for the release source for devoleping

I do not believe any of the official ROMs had the keystroke print statements enabled... someone can correct me if I'm wrong.
I'm not sure if I understand what you are asking Samsung for. Any partially complete work toward GB they might have laying around? Not to curse our chances, but I think they are not likely to release source for proprietary drivers.
Be very clear about what you're asking for. They might seriously consider one such request, if it is well reasoned, and within their power to grant.

One other thing to consider is sending this petition to T-Mobile as well. They can exert considerably more pressure on Samsung.

I left the "specific request" blank. It goes at the end of the 2nd to last paragraph after the colon. That's why it looks like I didn't ask for anything. If someone with the knowledge wants to give that list, it can be added and the other revisions can be made.
Sent from my SGH-T839 using xda app-developers app

Good first draft. Keep in mind your audience, though. We're unlikely to get Samsung to help us by insulting them. For example, "due to the absolute lack of support and development for this device" should be replaced with a different reason. You attract more flies with honey than vinegar. Maybe something about how the device has great potential, especially with the physical keyboard, but has been limited by its operating system. Speaking of keyboards, didn't pretty much all or most ROMs at the time come with the so-called key-logger? Also, keep in mind that Samsung and T-Mobile have no interest in supporting the Sidekick because they don't make any more money off it. They make money by getting people to upgrade to new phones. So whatever we ask them has to be easy for them, like just releasing to developers whatever they have lying around that isn't proprietary. Lastly, it's a bit misleading to say there are X million XDA members. The vast majority of them couldn't care less about the SK; I'm sure the SK community is rather small. Maybe highlight this fact: there are a few of us developers who love the SK as a development machine but our hands are tied because we don't have the code, etc. etc.

marathonjon said:
Good first draft. Keep in mind your audience, though. We're unlikely to get Samsung to help us by insulting them. For example, "due to the absolute lack of support and development for this device" should be replaced with a different reason. You attract more flies with honey than vinegar. Maybe something about how the device has great potential, especially with the physical keyboard, but has been limited by its operating system. Speaking of keyboards, didn't pretty much all or most ROMs at the time come with the so-called key-logger? Also, keep in mind that Samsung and T-Mobile have no interest in supporting the Sidekick because they don't make any more money off it. They make money by getting people to upgrade to new phones. So whatever we ask them has to be easy for them, like just releasing to developers whatever they have lying around that isn't proprietary. Lastly, it's a bit misleading to say there are X million XDA members. The vast majority of them couldn't care less about the SK; I'm sure the SK community is rather small. Maybe highlight this fact: there are a few of us developers who love the SK as a development machine but our hands are tied because we don't have the code, etc. etc.
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Totally agree with this.
T-Mobile knows that they have everything because of loyal customers, not to mention how many of the hundreds of thousands of people who owned Sidekicks. Samsung understands this which is obviously why they decided to pick up the device two years ago.
Play this to our advantage. Tug on their heartstrings, so to speak.

Yeah, I agree. Haha I guess this letter wasn't the place to let my frustrations out ;P
Sent from my SGH-T839 using xda app-developers app

Is XDA against BlackBerry?

I couldn't help to immediately notice how conspicuous it is that XDA has created forums for small, still in development OS'S like Tizen, Sailfish, Firefox, Ubuntu Phone, and heck, even Bada. What's the deal gents? I know some of you must have discussed it.
Regardless of whether you like or dislike them, BlackBerry 10 OS is live to market, and they still have the 3rd place in global market share. There has to be some reason this doesn't recognition here and even Bada does?

Please, refrain from posts like this complaining about xda. Its just the os is new and we are a development forum. We know nothing of developing on that software yet and it still hasn't come to many carriers, mainly in America. So quit your rambling because it might take some time for the z10 and q10 to gain its respective forums. So the reason why we have bada, ubuntu, and even a sister iPhone site, is because we can DEVELOP on them. This is not tech support. This is development.
Sent from my SGH-T999 using xda app-developers app

iKoolkid said:
Please, refrain from posts like this complaining about xda. Its just the os is new and we are a development forum. We know nothing of developing on that software yet and it still hasn't come to many carriers, mainly in America. So quit your rambling because it might take some time for the z10 and q10 to gain its respective forums. So the reason why we have bada, ubuntu, and even a sister iPhone site, is because we can DEVELOP on them. This is not tech support. This is development.
Sent from my SGH-T999 using xda app-developers app
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I didn't note any animosity toward xda in the OP's post. But using your own argument begs the question, where are the development forums for OS5, 6 or 7? Surely they've been around long enough with all the US carriers, even some pre-paids. Could it be that YOU don't know anything about the platform? Perhaps there is something to the OP's query that could be better explained by the powers that be.

XDA was never a blackberry site, simply because (I presume, this is all historical now) the BB was generally a phone provided by your company, which was heavily locked down, and you were to just use it like a good employee, who does what he's told...
There's not much interest in Blackberry anyway, and tech rumours are certainly worth taking a look at RE RIM's long term future...

Looneytoon98 said:
I didn't note any animosity toward xda in the OP's post. But using your own argument begs the question, where are the development forums for OS5, 6 or 7? Surely they've been around long enough with all the US carriers, even some pre-paids. Could it be that YOU don't know anything about the platform? Perhaps there is something to the OP's query that could be better explained by the powers that be.
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Thanks, you understood my intention correctly.

pulser_g2 said:
There's not much interest in Blackberry anyway, and tech rumours are certainly worth taking a look at RE RIM's long term future...
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There are zero credible signs one way or the other regarding how the new overhaul is doing yet from a business standpoint or consumer interest.

How much market share does RIM or now BBRY own? I don't think there is enough demand to justify creating a development forum specifically for BlackBerry users. I am sure you can find others like yourself on other forums dedicated to this platform.
Sent from my SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2

omnius1 said:
There are zero credible signs one way or the other regarding how the new overhaul is doing yet from a business standpoint or consumer interest.
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There are signs though of other R&D work, which are credible, and have images which couldn't really be faked unless you were with RIM...

I assume that the OS is not open source and thus there's no way to develop for it?

slimshotty said:
How much market share does RIM or now BBRY own? I don't think there is enough demand to justify creating a development forum specifically for BlackBerry users. I am sure you can find others like yourself on other forums dedicated to this platform.
Sent from my SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2
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BB is ahead of wp8 currently in mobile OS market share
Aoi_sora9x said:
I assume that the OS is not open source and thus there's no way to develop for it?
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Would that also not apply to wp8 which does have a presence here?

slimshotty said:
How much market share does RIM or now BBRY own? I don't think there is enough demand to justify creating a development forum specifically for BlackBerry users. I am sure you can find others like yourself on other forums dedicated to this platform.
Sent from my SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2
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BlackBerry (formerly RIM) is the number 3 platform worldwide. Emerging markets (read: anywhere outside the US) are snatching up old Curves and Pearls at a ridiculous pace. It is reasonable to expect a Windows Mobile area on XDA because of its history and once-dominant presence. It's also plausible to see Sailfish, Ubuntu and even webOS here because they're Linux-based as is Android. But to exclude BlackBerry and not Windows Phone 7/8 on the basis of marketshare is, to paraphrase Tony Montana, "a pig that doesn't fly too straight".

Buddy what can i say is BB 10 is just now launched and we didnt even know what it is based on. Xda is place of devs/users for Android, iOS and Windows phones.
Ok just check, in 2007-8 have u been to Xda?? I think no.. why??
Now, we are in stage where we all need to know what BB 10 is giving to us. Over which it is running and how much user capacity is there.
Let Admin/Xda commitee to take decision. May b next step would b adding BB10 support.
Just wait and watch buddy. I thought ur subject of thread will b changed soon.:sly:
Sent from my N7100 using tapatalk HD