The Nokia N900 is landing in the hands of real users with the Maemo 5 final release that we have been polishing in the last weeks.

The fortunate users of a pre-production Nokia N900 are encouraged to flash completely their devices in order to have them as they come out of a sales box. The instructions to flash the internal memory and the eMMC can be found at http://wiki.maemo.org/Updating_the_firmware. Even if technically your backups and the current eMMC firmware should work, we recommend you to start completely from scratch. As if you would have got a new device today.

The Maemo 5 SDK is being updated accordingly (as we speak, so wait if you still don’t see it). It can be downloaded at http://forum.nokia.com/maemo. Now it comes with a GUI installer to ease the path to get you started. Current Maemo 5 final SDK users can simply update their sources in order to get the content matching the sales release.

Welcome the Maemo 5 final release! Welcome the Nokia N900!

Just an extended microblog post to let you all know about something that is growing pretty fast: Maemo – Barcelona Long Weekend.

It all started with a UX Meets Code workshop for 50 invited Maemo developers but then we started getting questions in forums, emails and phone calls. Specially about local activities. This is something we wanted to start sometime, somewhere… So why not Barcelona next month! We are now proposing developer training en español, a localization workshop taking el català as test case, gatherings of local groups interested in Maemo and the N900…

GNOME, KDE, Debian, Softcatalà, Hispalinux & co: cuanto mejor sea la respuesta local más gorda la podremos liar.

The Maemo 5 Final SDK has been released containing everything a developer needs to get their software ready for N900 users. Check the Maemo development landing page in Forum Nokia for the SDK download, the release notes and other technical details.

This SDK release delivers the latest, stable Maemo 5 code base, which is a reason good enough for any Maemo developer to install it an leave behind previous versions. But there is more:

• If you are new to this check the modest yet beautiful Discover Maemo 5 SDK wiki page.
• Windows / Mac / Eclipse users: you can start with the VMWare based Maemo Virtual SDK. The new release has the same content than the official Maemo 5 Final SDK. DIRECT LINK
• After clear and continuous developer feedback the SDK offers now the possibility to install Nokia applications needed for proper testing of add-ons, plugins and web services.
• A new Sharing Plug-in API has been released to help you integrate web services for sharing files. Users can install these plug-ins in one click and have new web services just as integrated as the ones that come out of the box.

Also don’t forget the Maemo 5 UI Guidelines published recently, specially the Hildon 2.2 UI Style Guide, the Maemo 5 Desktop Widget UI Guidelines and the document about Redesigning from Maemo 4 to Maemo 5.

You can check the maemo.org Development section for an exhaustive list of Maemo 5 developer resources including the community supported runtimes.

Last but not least: your questions about Qt development and the N900 developer device program will be answered this Friday in the Maemo Summit.

There are few days in your life where you feel part of something historic. Today is one of these days for me, and I believe also for any software freedom lover out there. Maemo 5 has been launched together with its damn cool hardware body, the N900. It contains everything you knew about the Internet Tablets plus an evolved UI plus the little feature that raises the eyebrows of all your friends: yes, now it makes phone calls.

We have published a ton of information, pictures and videos about the software and the device as seen from a user perspective. Go to maemo.nokia.com and enjoy this beauty made of basically the same components many of us have in our Linux laptops. Below you have few additional thoughts for those caring specifically about Linux and free software.

Maemo 5 is a computer platform that happens to fit in your pocket: OMAP Linux Kernel, Xorg server, GStreamer, Telepathy, Tracker, GTK+ (Qt also available) and many more. The telephony stack is also there and SMS also works, but this doesn’t mean that Maemo is now transformed into a smartphone platform. Landscape mode by default, 800×480 amazing display, full qwerty hardware keyboard, a Mozilla based browser providing you the WWW as you are used to get it… We are just expanding the concept of what features a computer that is always with you is supposed to have.

No-phone-fans, are you still reading with some suspicion in your eyes? Look at this screenshot then (CLI guys please forgive me):

Exactly. If freedom is your concern then you don’t need to “unlock” or “jailbreak” Maemo 5. From installing an application to getting root access, it’s you who decide. We trust you, and at the end it’s your device. Nokia also trusts the open source community in general and the Maemo community particularly helping in getting casual users through the experience path. The N900 might just be a new and successful entry point for a new wave of open source users and developers.

But get no confused: even if a skilled Linux developer can get in the deep insights of the system, Maemo 5 is actually a beautiful and smooth gem for mobile users. I’m personally proud of the work done by the Maemo designers and developers building this beautiful and useful UI on top of Xorg, OpenGL ES, Clutter, GTK+ and our Hildon application framework. A showcase of open source UI.

There are many areas where Maemo 5 excels thanks to open source championing:

Multitasking, with that powerful OMAP3 processor being pushed by the Linux kernel and plenty more components up to Hildon, performing a very visual and usable dashboard. You need to see the videos. The implementation is very nice and makes you fly between apps, web windows and tasks. Little note: the dashboard windows are not simple snapshots, they show you the real content in real time!

I can’t describe with words the feeling of listening soma.fm on the air, through my bluetooth headset while commuting on the train. And then a call comes and you can answer pressing a button. Simple? Not with Linux & OSS until recently. 3G connectivity playing together with BlueZ, PulseAudio, GStreamer and Media Application Framework: beautiful.

It’s also refreshing to see conversations with your friends where SMS & instant messaging are mingled, thanks to Telepathy magic. Adding chat, microblogs and the likes to the mix is up to whoever wants to push it, since the framework is open.

The camera is also impressive, all sustained by GStreamer. Together with good lens and an impressive display, even my pictures look cool (sometimes, and the camera is not to blame). No hurries to transfer or upload the pictures to see them in a big screen: you get a fair impression of the real thing right there with your device. The Maemo team has several hobbyist photographers and all of us are waiting impatiently to get the green light and start uploading pics.

I could go on and on but today I better leave you with the good news. Application developers, the next post is for you.

Many of you already have heard the news: Maemo Harmattan will base its application framework in Qt while keeping most of the Fremantle middleware based on GNOME technologies. The goal is to offer an open, efficient and compelling Linux mobile stack with a cross-platform Qt API used also by Symbian and available in other mobile and traditional operating systems. Hopefully a successful step helping free software projects collaborating with each other and also helping free software developers reaching millions of potential users.

At a personal level it was a pleasure and a honor to explain these news to the GNOME and KDE communities in the same place and at the same time in the first day of the first joint Desktop Summit ever! Hopefully the work Nokia is putting in Harmattan will benefit KDE, GNOME and specially freedesktop.org, that common meeting point in need of so much love.

There is not much time (and even less bandwidth)  to blog extensively in the Gran Canaria Desktop Summit, but here you have the main sources I’m aware of:

• slides
• audio (25 mins, untested due to slow connection – hopefully works)
• talk.maemo.org discussion. I’m concentrating my comments on feedback there.
• Vincent blogging from a GNOME point of view
• Der Standard was the first media reporting
• Slashdot picked it up

Catch me up and let’s talk!

Three days to land in Copenhagen to enjoy a Danish Weekend. It looks like we are going to have around 100 developers coming literally from all directions to hack and take part in several activities. I wonder where all these people is sleeping though since we have (aparently) many beds available.

Let me insist again that you need to register in order to get your shirt and other goodies (free-as-in-literally-beer). Speaking of shirts, william [at] mozilla dot com can get one of your size from XXS to XXXL if you send him an email in advance NOW.

See you in Friday’s party!

Time to talk about The Mozilla/Maemo Danish Weekend! Just in case you missed the announcement:

Mozilla/Maemo Danish Weekend
May 30-31 + Friday night party (29th).
IT University of Copenhagen (see map & pictures & more pictures)

The Maemo and Mozilla projects are organizing a joint developer camp in Copenhagen the last weekend of May. If you are working on Fennec, Fennec add-ons or Maemo 5 applications this call is for you!

Let me repeat this: Maemo developers not related with Fennec/add-ons are welcome as well! (some people wondered). In fact we have already a good representation with Fremantle Stars, other remarkable projects with a foot in Maemo 5, GSoC projects and Mer.

The meeting is open and free, although registration is needed if you want us to have enough sandwiches, drinks and memorable shirts.

So if you’re in a hacking mood and want to participate, or if you know people who would love to participante, please help spread the word, blog about it, make some noise ! We definitely want a packed house and as much hacking as possible (c) William’s Blog

Register – Who is coming.

Once you have registered, go for the logistics:

Vi ses i København!

I was meant to blog about the imminent Mozilla/Maemo Danish Weekend but… Tomorrow.

Detail from westergas_section, by josh jackson (some rights reserved)

The first Maemo Summit ever was a big success last year. Today starts the walk towards the second edition!

October 9-10-11 - WesterGasFabriek - Amsterdam  (get a feeling)

3 days: 1 organized by Nokia and 2 by the community.

4 post-industrial spaces surrounded by culture, parks, canals and fun:

• Transformatorhuis: keynotes & track 1.
• Machinegebouw: track 2.
• De Kapel: track 3
• Oostelijk Meterhuis: special activities.

Location plan (pdf 1,1MB)

Registration

Not yet, but for you to know:

Free entrance! Registration needed to grant you food, drinks, a maemo.org shirt and a seat.

300 participants expected: developers and engaged users, community members and curious newcomers, from many countries and The Netherlands too.

Organization

Bootstrapping. See Maemo Summit 2009/Organization

FAQ

See also the discussion at talk.maemo.org (formerly known as internettablettalk.com – community united!)

Interesting stuff guaranteed. See you there! (or before)

After some emails exchanged with the Mozilla folks we agreed on an unprecedented co-organization of a Mozilla/Maemo Danish Weekend. It’s conceived to be a hands on developer event held in the IT University of Copenhagen on May 30-31 (preceded by a welcoming evening party on Friday 29).

Both teams are pushing their alphas to a beta stage as we speak, so it made sense to have a collocated hackfest.If you are working on Maemo 5 applications or Fennec add-ons this call is for you.

Right now there are 13 participants registered from 11 countries – a promising kick off! There is a modest travel sponsorship budget for developers short on cash but abundant in skills.

More information in the joint announcement and the wiki page. See you in Copenhagen!

If you could read the subject then maybe you are target for this:

http://fruct.org/index.php?morus_itemid=65

Yesterday we met in Helsinki the organizers of the next FRUCT seminar and they told us they would welcome Maemo developers willing to showcase their work and tell about their experiences in the Maemo community. If you are good and not too far away they might even have some budget to sponsor your trip. If you are interested introduce yourself to Timofey (dot) Turenko at Nokia (dot) com.

FRUCT stands for Finnish-Russian University Cooperation Program in Telecommunications and they develop several Maemo research projects.

See also the discussion thread in Internet Tablet Talk (soon to become talk.maemo.org).