More G1 Multitouch progress

Luke Hutch has improved on his modified Java stack method and has provided a full G1 image that has multitouch support built into the kernel.  It’s a little rough around the edges, lacking OpenGL support on the zoom features, but the idea is there.  Somebody just needs to come forward and do the necessary work on the hacked applications to make them run smoother.

I posted recently to show that working multi-touch input is available on the T-Mobile G1 phone. Now the necessary changes to the Android software stack are finally in good shape, and the software is easily installable on your own phone. (”Easily” being a relative term of course — you have to re-flash your phone’s firmware, and that may void the warranty…)

Jailbreaking is for little girls

The main difference between nerds who jailbreak their iPhones, and geeks who root their G1 is that the iPhone users jailbreak so that they can have access to new MMS applications, or trivial options like themes (note that a real keyboard or user-changable battery isn’t going to come from a jailbreak).  For us G1 owners, we root our devices so that we have even more access to the hardware.  Can I already do barcode scanning, install multiple web browsers, change my background (and battery), and extend the functionality of every app installed on my device?  Yeah, I can do that the minute I walk out of the T-Mobile store.

The purpose of rooting a G1 is to bring it to the freedom of an Android Dev Phone that you would purchase from Google.  It removes those last threads of cell-provider nonsense.  Even with the G1 RC30 image installed (I could have opted for an ADP1 image if I wanted) I still have the total freedom I want, and access to the Amazon Mp3 store.  Now I’ve got a device that is truly open.

So what’s on the horizon?  Probably tweaking of low level functionality, like custom app install locations, tethering, virtualization, etc.

Why do I do this?  Simple.  Because I can.

Practical multi-touch on the G1

Head on over to Luke Hutch’s blog to check out his G1 multi-touch demo. Unlike the previous proof-of-concept video from November, Luke has demonstrated multi-touch on a recompiled Android Java stack as opposed to a hacked kernel.