Android 3.2 Honeycomb for the Samsung Galaxy Tab
8/14/11: For the time being, this thread will close. Work continues on this (and many other) projects, but this thread has grown too large for its own good and has ceased to be relevant. I will start a new thread when I release 3.2 HC, until then, I'm doing my part to help keep XDA crap-free. 
See you soon.
See you soon.
8/5/11: I've been pretty quiet for the last week or so... I've had a lot on my plate, but a lot of things are beginning to fade into the background and HC is more in focus. So far, we have a working kernel for HC (which was a much bigger undertaking that I had thought it would be,) and an HC system based on 3.2 and GB that boots minimally, but provides proof of concept. Next up is correcting video issues, merging in things from the Xoom, building wifi and 3G and enabling the SDcard. I plan to fix video issues first, if only to provide you with some screenshots.
7/25/11:
Code:
public void studyForFinals()
{
if eatSleepUrinate()
{
study();
}
else
{
studyHarder();
}
}7/23/11: Made quite a few kernel modifications and achieved an HC boot today. Hammering out GFX issues as the system doesn't fully boot in.
7/20/11: I just finished building the first version of the new HC kernel with the latest CWM and it boots. The source is up on github.
7/20/11: I spent the last couple of days building a new honeycomb kernel based on the recently released gingerbread cdma kernel along with a recovery built from CM7 source. Things are proceeding slowly, but progress is being made. It looks like I'll begin assembling the basic system components tomorrow and start uploading things to github as they change. Drop in and watch the magic happen in slow motion over the next few days if you want.
7/17/11: Didn't get quite as far as boot, but I did layout the SDK and the Xoom dump, made a lot of notes and made a system map. Next step is to identify the changes that provide compatibility to our type of device to make sure I target my coding for that. Also working on a new kernel based on gingerbread. Since I'm starting fresh here, I might as well switch to a GB base. So the next couple of days will be about kernel building and assembling a bare base of 3.2 into which I can pour code from the GB releases. Oh, and by the way, I just wanna say:
7/15/11: Getting caught up on things. Looks like dev starts tomorrow on HC. Hoping to at least have boot by tomorrow evening.
7/12/11: It never fails; wait a few minutes and everything changes. 3.2 dropped today for the Xoom. I told ya, as soon as I say anything, it's almost immediately irrelevant. Well, now I'm committed to a couple of things, so I'll have to start development in a few days, but I'll let you know how it's going as I do.
7/12/11:
First, I got 3G running on both tabs... but spent days trying to work out a way to connect, (it recognizes the modem, but wont actually latch onto a network.) Then I learned about GB dropping shortly and spent a few days doing research on that in hopes of avoiding a slew of bricks, (only to discover that there is no change to the bootloader so far with CDMA devices... excellent news, but a lot of wasted research.) And then I got tied up with family affairs, work, summer classes etc. etc. etc.
The last straw was when I discovered that 3.2 is going to drop on a new 7 inch tab in a month or two (and will be pushed to the Motorola Xoom in a matter of days according to various accounts on tech blogs.) With that news, I've dropped development altogether.
3.2 is designed to be compatible with 7 inch screens and single-core processors... So continuing this port would be like trying to cram your foot into the wrong size shoe when the right size shoe is sitting just across the room... what's the point?
So when I get my hands on that, we will have an HC that was designed to run on devices like ours (with all of the tasty features available in 3.1 plus whatever new things they do for 3.2.) As the port of 3.01 will like never run with full features for our tab, I think waiting for 3.2 (a short wait) will be the best option as we will have all of the features we should have had in the first place, and then some.
In the meantime, I have been swamped with work of various kids, cheifly the development of a website that will provide a space for new and less experienced developers to hone their skills with the benefit of more experienced developers to directly assist them (along with a web page of their own, a forum with moderator privileges and a mirror for projects.) We've been calling it an "Android development lab" and I have high hopes for it as a place for individuals to develop skills, build software and stage releases fit for XDA and the like. Though XDA fulfills this function in some ways, it is often difficult for the new developer to realize a vision by simply searching forum posts. (We are in no way attempting to draw traffic away from XDA, but rather providing an environment focused on preparing inexperienced individuals to contribute to places like the XDA community.) It's still under construction, but should be ready in a few days.
Also, I've been contributing to various other projects in small ways and have worked in an advisory capacity with several individuals to help them get projects going. I've found that I really enjoy this role, and will continue in it for the time being.
While we are waiting for 3.2, I will be working in partnership with others to bring you MIUI for the tab (already under way), a dual boot option for the galaxy tab and a native linux installation focused on utility and hacking. Look for these projects soon.
For now, I will no longer be updating this thread. My apologies for leaving it hanging here so long, it's just that every day seemed to bring with it an unpredictability that quickly rendered anything I had to say irrelevant.
See you soon.
~Space
7-5-11 #2: fyi:
Code:
21:06:33.622 Debug PhoneApp 6634 Radio technology switched. Now CDMA is active.7-5-11: I know I'm dragging my ass on this one, but sit tight. Good things are coming.
7-1-11: I meant to update sooner than this, but shortly after I created this thread, I found out that gingerbread would be coming to the Sprint tab in a matter of days... (and perhaps the Verizon tab soon?) This changes things in several ways.
There will be new bootloaders on upgraded Sprint tabs that won't be compatible with my froyo-based HC build (and the Verizon tab as well if GB ever gets released for it--I assume it's to happen in the near future.)
I don't know if these boot-loaders will be locked. I don't know if it will be possible to revert to froyo boot-loaders to run my HC, and I definitely don't want to tell anyone not to upgrade their tab to GB just to run my HC. Preventing you folks from enjoying your device would defeat the entire purpose of what I'm doing here.
Not knowing how things are about to change for us, I took a couple of days to do some research and see what I could find out... And I found that there is no existing information, leaked or otherwise, on what the boot-loader situation will be (but if your google-fu outranks mine, please post your find here.)
So i began to look into moving my work into a GB base. I think that not only will this be possible, but should net similar results as using a froyo base for the same purposes (it might be a touch more difficult as GB is not nearly as clean, organized or stable a system as froyo IMO.)
So, I have a froyo based HC release soon to come after it gets some finishing touches and a few last minute fixes. At the same time, I'm working on getting a GB base assembled and functional so that we can side-step these potential issues. When the new HC is released, some of you will be able to run it, others may not, but please don't hesitate to upgrade to GB if you wish. I'll do my best to get HC working for upgraders as well.
This whole thing has me running a little behind schedule--of course. But stay tuned for more details on the upcoming HC release... I think you'll be pleased.
6-30-11: Here we go again.
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