Android OS

Crazi Tane

Hey guys..
I just have 1 query. Is it possible to install Android OS onto the onion.

tjoseph1

@Crazi-Tane :
ARM-64bit is the mainstream architecture for Android OS.

There were 32/64-bit MIPS ports of android in the past, but not maintained anymore. https://www.mips.com/develop/android/

So, Onion Omega running android is not anything we can expect, even if it had GiB of Flash and RAM.

Thanks..

crispyoz

@Crazi-Tane The short answer is no. Android Things IoT did support some MediaTek stuff but that's now dead and buried. OpenWrt is more advanced and flexible so I'm not sure why you would want to run Android on it, I suspect you are asking because you have a specific app you want to run on an Omega2, right? Maybe there is a suitable solution available.

Crazi Tane

@crispyoz
Hey crispy..
I am trying to do something quite adventurous and want to utilise the ease of Android OS to create a display output. I don't know how to do this in linux.
Any tips on where I can learn?

Also I have the Omega 2 with an expansion dock, is there any way I can connect a monitor to the omega and make the omega output to the external display?

Thanks

crispyoz

@Crazi-Tane "ease of android". If you want to be adventurous you don't go for easy, you push yourself.

Omega doesn't have any hardware to drive a screen, but take a look at the Omega Dash which uses a frame buffer to feed a touch screen.

Crazi Tane

@crispyoz Thank you

I will take a look at the Omega dash and you are right, I shouldn't do the easy thing.

Thanks

Crazi Tane

@crispyoz Crispy, 1 more thing..

Can you use python libraries in the Omega and if so, how to you put them onto the omega. Can you copy folder structures across?

crispyoz

@Crazi-Tane I did respond to this, but seems I did not hit submit. Sorry.

Yes you can run python on Omega2, also micropython may be more appropriate due to its smaller footprint.

Edit /etc/opkg/distfeeds.conf, uncomment lines 2 and 5, then run opkg update.

opkg install micropython will install micropython
opkg install python will install python 2.7.x (light)
opkg install python3 will install python 3.3.x

Python is very popular on Omega devices, so many users can advise you on this. Personally I use C/C++ so I am not the best resource to assist you with python.

Crazi Tane

@crispyoz Ah ok thank you very much