From: nospam@needed.invalid   
      
   On Mon, 12/30/2024 1:20 PM, Edmund wrote:   
      
   >   
   > And here I am thinking ( not really ) that stuff would actually work under   
   Ubuntu.   
   > BTW at this moment I don't care about security, I have a virtual Ubuntu   
   > and if all went into hell, I restore in less then 1 minute.   
      
   Must you open every box of cereal from the bottom ?   
      
   This is not a simple project and you know that.   
      
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waydroid   
      
      "Waydroid is optimized for use with Intel GPUs, which usually function   
   without   
       requiring additional setup. It also supports AMD GPUs. However, in certain   
   cases,   
       users might need to create a custom Waydroid image if they experience   
   compatibility issues."   
      
   OK, so what does that mean exactly ? Some of the references at the bottom of   
   that   
   page, show mobile devices (that can run Linux kernels), running WayDroid. I   
   could   
   believe that was a reference to an Intel iGPU (inside CPU) and not a   
   BattleMage.   
   And AMD iGPUs are not simple devices, like just a frame buffer. They take a   
   regular driver for the most part (same as an AMD video card but with a   
   different   
   hardware ID).   
      
      "Waydroid does not include an emulation layer. As a result, devices can only   
       run Android applications that match their specific hardware architecture.   
      
       Personal computers (x86) are limited to x86 Android applications,   
      
       while most phones and tablets (which use ARM64)   
       can only run ARM64-compatible applications.   
      
       The developers are considering adding an emulation layer in the future   
      "   
      
   While you claim this is a container technology, my guess is the previous   
   paragraph shows it runs on the native CPU type with native CPU capabilities.   
   That means it is not an ARM-on-x86 QEMU or something. It is either   
   an x86-on-x86 container or an ARM-on-ARM container running directly   
   off the native CPU. And the advantage of doing that, is not having   
   to fiddle with QEMU devices to gain access to hardware, like the Wifi.   
      
   *******   
      
   The secret to trying stuff, is identifying the "lowest friction way of doing   
   it".   
      
   You started off with the right idea. You selected the "popular platform"   
   Ubuntu, in the hope that a Ubuntu-person had paved the road with gold.   
   This seems a good idea. Then, you sniff around the entrails, to figure out   
   how "mature" the materials are. Is the Ubuntu Install a slam dunk,   
   or little better than a hack in sheeps clothing ? As soon as I see   
   "keyring", a little alarm goes off on my desk.   
      
   One reason for running from a container, could be the easier access to   
   the graphics subsystem.   
      
   You can see in this discussion, they're trying to run Waydroid in VirtualBox.   
   This of course, emulates a graphics, but it does not emulate a *useful*   
   graphics.   
   The Android x86 applications start running, but no graphics appear. And in   
   some cases, stuff crashes. Now, we're getting some feeling for how   
   hard this is to do, if you do it the wrong way.   
      
      https://github.com/waydroid/waydroid/issues/310   
      
   I'm seeing what some of the potential friction points are.   
   You quite likely know all this too, but are hoping for   
   an experiences Ubuntu to find and push some magic button.   
      
   Is running an Android x86 app going to be good enough, or would   
   you instead be starting with an ARM chromebook or an ARM tablet   
   with Linux kernel capability, and running Waydroid on that   
   Android ARM Apps can run ?   
      
   *******   
      
   Since I have Fedora 41 loaded in the cooker and already have a project   
   underway, I can take a divergence and try your little project on it.   
   OK, so what is my first problem going to be ? Well, the graphics choice   
   on my part, is poor.   
      
   Have to remove 16 core machine and put 6 core machine in place, transfer NVMe,   
   install 4 DIMMs, test. NVMe didn't work in CPU slot, worked in PCH slot,   
   booted and into Fedora 41. Different machine graphics and all. Running   
   AMD iGPU before this trial runs. The 16 core machine was NVidia.   
      
   *******   
      
   Here are the Fedora 41 instructions:   
      
   Fedora   
   ------   
      
   Waydroid can be installed from the official package repository.   
      
      sudo dnf install waydroid     <=== Python and small incidental packages   
      
   After installing, launch Waydroid from the applications menu and proceed   
   with the initialization by pasting these URLs in the OTA fields:   
      
   System OTA: https://ota.waydro.id/system   
      
   Vendor OTA: https://ota.waydro.id/vendor   
      
   Vanilla or GApps?  <=== this selector decide whether Android x86 from Lineage   
                           or Android x86 with Google Play Store (would need   
   GMail Acct/GoogleID?)   
                           I tested Vanilla only, not interested in Play Store   
   shenanigans.   
      
   https://docs.waydro.id/usage/install-on-desktops   
      
   *******   
      
   My download isn't all that fast, did the install, did a remove,   
   did the install "dnf" command again, did a reboot to try to pick   
   up the container service. Don't really know whether any of that   
   was necessary, but the idea was, to avoid too many command line tricks.   
      
   After all, this is a demo of "picking the right distro" for an eval OP.   
      
   Notice, in my pictures, there are no keyrings of faffing about, really.   
      
   Even though I was slow finding the recipe, I got the job done.   
      
      [Picture]     WayDroid-on-Fedora-41.gif   
      
       https://i.postimg.cc/65nyMbSv/Way-Droid-on-Fedora-41.gif   
      
   Work smart, not hard.   
      
   Shuttleworth is going to have to pick up the pace   
      
      Paul   
      
   --- SoupGate-DOS v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)