It was mentioned in list just a few days ago I think that next firmware would provide for backup/restore functionality of apps. I also believe apt-updates for all was in future roadmap too. mike andrei raevsky wrote: > Dear friends, > > Let me begin my saying that I *love* by N800 and I wonder how I have > ever lived without it in the past. I use it all day long, to check my > emails, get the news, listen to music, calculate my weekly spending, > read ebooks, etc. I looked long and hard for something like a > internet-capable, ebook-reading handheld device and after careful > consideration I choose the N800 and it is way better than my > expectations. > > I love of OS, the interface, and I have found many truly excellent > third party software. So please do not take offense at what follows, > but I am also really frustrated with the N800. I want to tell you > what bugs me so much and ask you whether you found a way around the > two issues which make me grind my teeth and get gastric reflux. > > 1) OS updates and backups > > I am totally appalled that an operating system based on Debian was > re-designed so much that the only way to update the OS is to download > a file, use a flasher, then loose all the data and configuration on > the unit and, even worse, use all the downloaded applications. Not > only that, but it turns out that the backup application does not > always work between the backups and that when it works it does not > really backup the configuration at all. Holy cow! How does one take > something as beautiful as " apt-get update && apt-get dist-upgrade" > and reduce it to such a total disaster?! To cap it all, there are > entire threads on the Internet Tablet Forums > <http://www.internettablettalk.com/forums/> which discuss all the > crashes, bugs, and other problems with new version of the OS! That > is, in my mind, the single worst design flaw in the N800. > > I have 15 third party applications (taken from 12 'application > catalogs), I have Xterm with such things as mc and wget installed, I > have ssh installed and configured to give me root access when needed, > I have 12 RSS feeds I use daily, I have a well-filled contacts list, a > long internet radio list, etc. IF I flash my unit it is going to take > me hours to get all this back. I will need to backup and restore > /etc/apt/source.list manually only to try to remember where I got > which app (but I still will not be able to apt-get). It is going to > take me hours... > > 2) Repositories: > > Nokia followed a rather strange repo policy. There are the basic > Nokia catalog and the Nokia 3rd party catalog. And after that, you > are on your own. For example, one of the most amazing application on > the N800 is the FBReader which has its own repo. There is also a > Maemo repo, and a maemo-hackers repo. And a bora-extras. And > claws-mail repo. And many more. That's just crazy! Why did Nokia > not follow Ubuntu's policy of having a Main, Restricted, Universe and > Multi-universe <https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Repositories/Ubuntu> > repos in one place. Multiple repos are just an stability/security > risk for the unit, IMO. It would take Nokia just a couple of > employees to maintain such a one-place repository and it would > immensely improve the capability of the unit. Debian can boast that > it now has 19000+ applications. Of course, having a different > architecture the N800 could not do that, but would it not be a good > selling point to say, for example, the iPhone offers you 10 > applications (or whatever, I made this number up), the N800 offers 127 > (or whatever number). > > These two issues are, of course, linked and my best guess is that the > folks who designed the N800 either were not truly used to the > GNU/Linux way of doing things, or were overruled/micromanaged by a > bunch of "suits". I just cannot imagine anyone who has 'walked' the > Debian way settling for this kind of nightmarish "updating" scenario... > > So here is my question to you: > > Has anyone figured a safe and easy way around all this mess? Has > anyone written an application which would *really* backup all the > data, applications, source list and settings from an N800 to a single > file which could then be used to restore? Then the unit could be > flashed, the OS updated, this one script downloaded and a real > one-step (if not one click) backup would follow. > > Is there another workaround hack which would make it possible to > update the OS safely, rapidly and painlessly? > > How are you all handling this? > > Last but not least, is there any hope at all to see an apt-get update > && apt-get dist-upgrade -capable N800 in the future? > > Many thanks for any pointers, > > Andrei > ------------------------------------------------------------------------ > > _______________________________________________ > maemo-users mailing list > maemo-users at maemo.org > https://lists.maemo.org/mailman/listinfo/maemo-users >
