Hi everybody,
I thought I should post a roadmap for the coming few months so that we all know in which direction the development of Ubuntu Linux on RK3066 devices is going and at what pace.
So here it is.
Pre-Alpha 0.3 is now available with compatibility with the UG802, Rikomagic MK802 III, MK808, UG007, iMito MX1 and MX2 and probably a few more Android TV players.
Features are basically the same as Pre-Alpha 0.2, with a few more Ubuntu packages added to the Ubuntu 12.10 root filesystem.
Pre-Alpha 0.3 will be the last of the pre-Alpha releases which were intended as a proof-of-concept and a tool for developers.
Alpha 0.4 is coming in 10 days, it will have a much simpler installation procedure and a big change: there will be two "flavours", one for desktop use with XFCE and some extra eyecandy, and another for server use with as many server packages as possible.
Alpha 0.4 will be the first of the Alpha releases which are still intended for knowledgeable users, people who have some experience with Ubuntu on PCs, and developers.
Alpha 0.4 will also be compatible with a quite popular RK3066 Android tablet, the Pipo S1. Interestingly, the Pipo S1 is just $20 more or so compared to an RK3066 PC stick, and for that you get an LCD screen (800x480), camera (low res), battery, etc. And it has an HDMI output too.
Alpha 0.5, 0.6, etc.., will follow at 10 days intervals more or less, with fewer bugs/issues and added packages for each iteration, and a growing range of compatible RK3066 tablets and Android TV players. Special priority will be given to getting the internal WiFi going, so that an extra USB WiFi dongle is not required. And as many kernel drivers will be added as possible, after adequate testing of course.
So when do we get to the Beta stage? If you have been following my posts in the RK3066 kernel thread in the ArmTvTech forum, then you know that we are still missing the source code for quite a few drivers for the RK3066 kernel. I have been contacting various manufacturers to ask them to release the source code for their chips and also, who knows what Rockchip will decide as the competition heats up in this market? So, the idea here is that as soon as I am satisfied that I have a complete set of drivers for at least one RK3066 device, then I'll release a Beta.
Beta releases are intended for general consumption, with a simplified installation procedure, but are still considered as too buggy or untested for daily production use.
1.0 will happen if/when we have Mali and VPU drivers available for the RK3066, but that depends very much on Rockchip releasing some proprietary source code.
Just a note: I am looking for volunteers to help me with these releases, there is a lot of testing, development, documentation, etc, and I just can't do it all myself, the workload by far exceeds what a single person can cope with. So if any of you can spare some time to help, please PM me and we can coordinate the work as a team.
And finally: I am looking for sponsors, in principle people who sell or resell RK3066 devices (TV players, set top boxes and tablets) and would be interested in offering the option of having Linux and Android dual booting on their products. Please PM me if you are interested in sponsoring this nice community project!
I thought I should post a roadmap for the coming few months so that we all know in which direction the development of Ubuntu Linux on RK3066 devices is going and at what pace.
So here it is.
Pre-Alpha 0.3 is now available with compatibility with the UG802, Rikomagic MK802 III, MK808, UG007, iMito MX1 and MX2 and probably a few more Android TV players.
Features are basically the same as Pre-Alpha 0.2, with a few more Ubuntu packages added to the Ubuntu 12.10 root filesystem.
Pre-Alpha 0.3 will be the last of the pre-Alpha releases which were intended as a proof-of-concept and a tool for developers.
Alpha 0.4 is coming in 10 days, it will have a much simpler installation procedure and a big change: there will be two "flavours", one for desktop use with XFCE and some extra eyecandy, and another for server use with as many server packages as possible.
Alpha 0.4 will be the first of the Alpha releases which are still intended for knowledgeable users, people who have some experience with Ubuntu on PCs, and developers.
Alpha 0.4 will also be compatible with a quite popular RK3066 Android tablet, the Pipo S1. Interestingly, the Pipo S1 is just $20 more or so compared to an RK3066 PC stick, and for that you get an LCD screen (800x480), camera (low res), battery, etc. And it has an HDMI output too.
Alpha 0.5, 0.6, etc.., will follow at 10 days intervals more or less, with fewer bugs/issues and added packages for each iteration, and a growing range of compatible RK3066 tablets and Android TV players. Special priority will be given to getting the internal WiFi going, so that an extra USB WiFi dongle is not required. And as many kernel drivers will be added as possible, after adequate testing of course.
So when do we get to the Beta stage? If you have been following my posts in the RK3066 kernel thread in the ArmTvTech forum, then you know that we are still missing the source code for quite a few drivers for the RK3066 kernel. I have been contacting various manufacturers to ask them to release the source code for their chips and also, who knows what Rockchip will decide as the competition heats up in this market? So, the idea here is that as soon as I am satisfied that I have a complete set of drivers for at least one RK3066 device, then I'll release a Beta.
Beta releases are intended for general consumption, with a simplified installation procedure, but are still considered as too buggy or untested for daily production use.
1.0 will happen if/when we have Mali and VPU drivers available for the RK3066, but that depends very much on Rockchip releasing some proprietary source code.
Just a note: I am looking for volunteers to help me with these releases, there is a lot of testing, development, documentation, etc, and I just can't do it all myself, the workload by far exceeds what a single person can cope with. So if any of you can spare some time to help, please PM me and we can coordinate the work as a team.
And finally: I am looking for sponsors, in principle people who sell or resell RK3066 devices (TV players, set top boxes and tablets) and would be interested in offering the option of having Linux and Android dual booting on their products. Please PM me if you are interested in sponsoring this nice community project!