Motorola coaxes developers to Linux phone platform

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May 15, 2006

Motorola has launched an open source community website around its Linux-based mobile phone stacks, Java specification requests (JSRs), Linux drivers, and testing applications. A new 3.0 version of Motorola's MIDP (mobile information device profile, JSR-271) will be released through the site in June.

Motorola says it hopes a more "open, but simplified working channel with Motorola across the broader Linux, Java, and mobile communities will speed application development on the Motorola platform [and] drive innovation and adoption of new mobile services and features."

Currently, the OpenSource.Motorola.com website hosts Linux stacks for Motorola's 1200/Ming (pictured above) and A780-E680 Linux phones. Also available for the first time is source code for Motorola's SD-MMC drivers for Linux, a release made possible by the SD Card Association's "Simplified Specs" publication.

The Motorola open source site also hosts several Java projects, including a Gatling test framework for Java ME (micro edition) applications, and, most importantly, the MIDP 3.0/JSR-271 project.

MIDP 3.0

Like Sun's later Java Platform Micro Edition (formerly J2ME), the Motorola-led MIDP project defines a scaled down version of Java for resource-constrained embedded devices. Compared with J2ME, it implements less of the Java specification, and is aimed at devices with smaller LCD screens, and limited input entry methods (such as cell phones with simple keypads).

According to the Motorola open source website, and its Java Community Process page, MIDP 3.0 aims for backward compatibility with MIDP 2.0 (JSR118), and also aims to:

Enable and specify proper behavior for MIDlets on each of CLDC, CDC, and OSGi, for example:
- Enable multiple concurrent MIDlets in one VM
- Specify proper firewalling, runtime behaviors, and lifecycle management issues for MIDlets
- Enable background MIDlets (e.g. UI-less)
- Enable "auto-launched" MIDlets (e.g. started at platform boot time)
- Enable inter-MIDlet communications
Enable shared libraries for MIDlets
Tighten specs in all areas to improve cross-device interoperability
Increase functionality in all areas
- Improve UI expressability and extensibility
- Better support devices with larger displays
- Enable MIDlets to draw to secondary display(s)
- Enable richer and higher performance games
- Secure RMS stores
- Removable/remote RMS stores
- IPv6
- Support for multiple network interfaces per device
Specify standard ways for doing MIDlet provisioning through other means (e.g. OMA (SyncML) DM/DS, Bluetooth, removable media, MMS, JSR-232, etc.)
Extensive device capabilities query
Localization and Internationalization (if appropriate, integrating/augmenting JSR-238 as needed)

An "early draft release" of MIDP 3.0 is expected in June, followed by a public draft review. A "proposed final draft" is expected in Q4.

Additional details can be found on Motorola's Open Source Website.

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