Could we lobby HP to create OpenWebOS/WebOS Ports friendly Android tablets?

[jdevora]

Hi,

After the "final nail in the coffin", I was wondering if there is a way to beg HP to at least make the new Android tables "Open WebOS installable"

What is it required? Early access to the hardware and the drivers?

Do you think that the people on Open WebOS, WebOS Ports and the community in general could create enough pressure on HP to make them do us this last favor?

[Preemptive]

I think it is worth lobbying and I would hope/expect that gram are doing just this.

If they need anything, it's hardware. They must be close to HP. Should webOS make a comeback in the future it could payback for HP many times over.

It's often been said that the problem for Homebrew & webOS-ports is the lack of open hardware. I have suggested that even if financing a new handset is beyond the enthusiasts, publishing a specification of hardware that will run openwebOS might be a way to encourage manufacturers (possibly chinese startups) to produce something that's OS agnostic...

If HP is willing to at least license it's hardware or supply drivers (even closed ones) to as many OS's as possible, it is one selling point and possibly a way to differentiate themselves in the marketplace. Given their track record, I think it's unlikely they will produce a successful 'me too' android phone or tablet. Either the hardware will have to be very special or the OS or both. Letting the user pick or even change OS might be something of interest...

[geekpeter]

quite simply, why would they? they dont need and probably dont want too.

WE are the ones that "want" it, they however do not, they have their android/winblows beds to sleep in.

[Vistaus]

But Meg did say that they wanted to release a new webOS tablet eventually so technically we could try to lobby. But I don't think we are big enough for that.

[kevets]

There's got to be a way to let them know what's up. Is there anyone in webOS Internals or webOS Ports that has connections there? Do they know we're still alive?

[geekpeter]

Originally Posted by kevets

Do they know we're still alive?

again tho, why would they care?

[jdevora]

Originally Posted by geekpeter

again tho, why would they care?

Maybe they won't care but OTOH, It will cost them nothing just allow a few guys in the same company to take a look and could make us to buy one of their tablets...

Cheers
JD

[geekpeter]

Originally Posted by jdevora

Maybe they won't care but OTOH, It will cost them nothing just allow a few guys in the same company to take a look and could make us to buy one of their tablets...

Cheers
JD

there have been a few oldish posts regarding the aftermath of HP's clusterfudge that hinted that many HP divisions dont share anything with each other, rather they seem to compete as near seperate entities and dont share the chocolatey goodness all among themselves.

if they couldnt/dont talk to each other back then im guessing nothing significant has changed, same likely applies to their windows/android efforts, ill bet different teams are producing different plans/devices/etc instead of making something between them that would work on either OS.

[mattmers]

Just do what I did, email them. I started a thread doing this basic thing through their corporate email. I think me and a few others have emailed by now.

[daexpression]

what to do... even with the news of the new android HP tablet with new specs..and everything.. do those HP android folks....(wonder if they're in a different BU)..and the gram engineering folks even communicate on an informal / formal level to collaborate to give us an option or they see each others as competitors>.

[Buddy1969]

HP is a hardware producer. If they know what's good for them, they produce tablets that can theoretically run with any of the common OSs (basically Win8 and Android).
So there should be a way to make the hardware work with WebOS as well.

But when was the last time we witnessed HP doing something right?

[steven_farkas]

How do we know these new tablets won't have an open webos partition on them? Maybe thats why things have gone quiet? We can speculate all we like, but in reality we don't even know for sure that these android tablets are coming.

the only way lobbying HP would work is if someone had thousands (preferably tens of thousands) of webos users hiding in their basement who could suddenly come out and join in.

[jdevora]

Originally Posted by Vistaus

But Meg did say that they wanted to release a new webOS tablet eventually so technically we could try to lobby. But I don't think we are big enough for that.

Does anyone know here twitter or email?

We could send her an email with an easy way to keep her promise....

Just give access to the Open WebOS team to the new hardware and allow them for an easy way to the final user to install OpenWebOS on that hardware and this will make that WebOS will have at last new hardware

Cheers
JD

[jdevora]

Originally Posted by mattmers

Just do what I did, email them. I started a thread doing this basic thing through their corporate email. I think me and a few others have emailed by now.

Not a bad idea

The thread would be Influence Meg Whitman and HP Isn't it?

Cheers
JD

[jdevora]

I just used HP Executive Team: CEO email

For send this email to her.

Hi,

I try to suggest you an easy way to keep the promise that Meg Whitman made last telling that you will build new new hardware for WebOS.

There are still thousand of WebOS Supporters that start to have problems finding hardware, the latest news are that you are going to the Android route.

As a way to give something back to the community that you took everything away, couldn't you offer the specs and drivers of this hardware to the Open WebOS /Web OS Ports teams for they be able to install it on that hardware.
This way you can keep your promise of "giving us new hardware".

There are a few thousands of Web OS supporters out there that would love to buy this new hardware for be able to keep going with WebOS.

Cheers
JD

[Vistaus]

Originally Posted by jdevora

Does anyone know here twitter or email?

We could send her an email with an easy way to keep her promise....

Just give access to the Open WebOS team to the new hardware and allow them for an easy way to the final user to install OpenWebOS on that hardware and this will make that WebOS will have at last new hardware

Cheers
JD

But it's not that easy. I mean, what is the install base? In other words: I think OWO would get more users when it's released with new hardware instead of easily installable on exisiting hardware.

[etphoto]

I think for ever OpenWebOS email they get they probably get a thousand Android emails. I wish is was different.

Sent from my HTC6990LVW using Board Express

[jdevora]

Originally Posted by dignitary

50 people emailing HP corporate about webOS-friendliness isn't going to do much. Nor would 500.

About your only option is to ask that they keep the bootloader unlocked on the devices they release and go from there. Anything webOS-related is just going to look like a speck of annoyance whereas nearly the entire Android community an get behind asking HP for unlocked bootloaders on their future devices.

That is true, but OpenWebOS is part of HP, they could have better luck lobbing internally.

I'm not asking that HP releases those tablets as the "next WebOS hardware" what I'm asking them is making things easy (drivers and specs available) for other to port OpenWebOS to it.

Cheers
JD

[jdevora]

Originally Posted by Vistaus

But it's not that easy. I mean, what is the install base? In other words: I think OWO would get more users when it's released with new hardware instead of easily installable on exisiting hardware.

Sure, but that would mean a new level of compromise that I don't see HP willing to take

[rnld]

HP made their decision on WebOS some time ago. A handful of emails at this point is pointless.