roaming | McCartman - 9/1/2011 12:47
Right. I understand that completely but that is not the point I am trying to make. I know that Android itself IS open, but the phones are not. People like to make the comparison that iOS is a "closed" platform and Android is "open". Android OS may be "open", but the devices are NOT. If they were, the term "rooting" would not even exist in the mobile world. Therefore, the Android platform is not open - same as Apple's.
Still not a fair statement. You have to compare oranges to oranges. "Android" (the OS itself) is open. The hardware platforms on which Android runs may or may not be open, depending on the device manufacturer. If you have the skills to unlock the hardware, you now have the potential to have an almost unrestricted device (restrictions would be based on hardware limitations - CDMA vs GSM, etc.)
Compare operating systems:
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| Is the Android operating system open-source? YES / NO
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| Is the iOS operating system open-source? YES / NO
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Compare proprietary UIs implemented by the hardware manufacturer:
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| Do the manufacturers of devices which use the Android operating system "lock" their devices to prevent end-users from having default unrestricted access to
| modify/customize device features? YES / NO
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| Do the manufacturers of devices which use the iOS operating system "lock" their devices to prevent end-users from having default unrestricted access to
| modify/customize device features? YES / NO
|
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If a user has the technical knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to bypass the proprietary UI restrictions of a given device, which device offers the greatest potential level of customization? ANDROID-BASED / iOS-BASED
You can squirm all you want, but there is only one correct answer.
If I root my Android device, my options are now wide open and are limited essentially only by my own KSAs (or by the hardware itself as noted above). If I jailbreak my iOS device, I'm still stuck with the restrictions of a closed operating system.
This has nothing to do with whether one or the other is the "right" approach. Both have their strengths and weaknesses, as have been debated, ad nauseum, ad infinitum, here and on thousands of other forums across the internets. But there is a definite answer to the question of which system is ultimately more open, and the question can't be dodged by pointing to device UI locks.
(BTW, I've long since lost track of what was the original question in this thread, so this post may or may not address it at all.) |
anyone rooting their droid?
