Hello again all...long time no see!
I am no way an expert on this...but I thought I'd ask some of the UI and programming geniuses on here if you'd had a chance to play with Android yet.
How powerful is it?
Is it capable to be used as a fully functioning non-mobile OS on it's own?
If so (and if not) how does it handle type rendering as compared to others?
And lastly...do you think Android can potentially change how we view operating systems, mobile devices (or even other devices like e-Readers)?
From the fonts side, some custom TrueType fonts developed by Ascender, rendered using FreeType - nice, but not exactly revolutionary.
>nice, but not exactly revolutionary.
compare to iPhone...
"From the fonts side, some TrueType fonts licensed from Microsoft and Linotype, rendered using the Apple TrueType rasterizer - nice, but not exactly revolutionary."
;-)
I'm not a developer, but as a UI designer I have had a chance to play with Android in action on the G1.
Despite the poor visual design (and interaction for that matter), Android itself has a lot of potential and can be a very powerful system if the right people get their hands on it.
Again, I don't know a lot about the development side of things, but it is my understanding Android has a unique rendering engine for type, though apparently has some difficulty with many TrueType fonts (if you were to install your own) - other than Droid, which is currently the default used on the G1.(It is also important to note that processing speeds of the hardware can be an obstacle for the OS)
Here are a couple of resources:
http://androidguys.com/?p=656
http://understandinglimited.com/2009/03/07/android-complex-script/
>but it is my understanding Android has a unique rendering engine for type
The documentation (http://developer.android.com/guide/basics/what-is-android.html) says it uses FreeType - maybe with a twist? FreeType is currently developed by Google employees.
Interesting resources! Thanks Zara, Simon.
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