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Comment by jlgreco | Hacker News Reader

If I were somebody with a Chromebook that still had ChromeOS installed, I would be very very concerned right now.

If you don't control your device's software updates, then the device is not yours. It is as simple as that.

We've had a long time to prove the disaster that is users controlling updates. The majority of people are far and away better off having automatic updates. It's also one of the big selling points of the devices though so I don't think it should catch anyone by surprise. You're free to install another OS on your device though (which is a good sign the device is yours).

We've had a long time to prove that using automatic updates to remove features is a recipe for disaster. In fact, I seem to remember a certain company using forced updates specifically to remove users' ability to install other OSes on their devices...

Just because you can install another OS on your chromebook today doesn't mean you will be able to in the future. Get out now, or you are making a gamble.

> We've had a long time to prove that using automatic updates to remove features is a recipe for disaster. In fact, I seem to remember a certain company using forced updates specifically to remove users' ability to install other OSes on their devices...

They didn't remove a feature... They removed an undocumented setting for an SDK that has warnings all over the place that the API is not final and to not release an app until it is.

Woosh. He was referring to Sony and their removal of Linux on the PS3.

From my response to somebody else in this discussion: " Hiding behind terms of use on SDKs isn't something that mellows the sting of this to users who probably don't even know what "SDK" means."

Then shame on the developer for releasing an app for mass consumption based on private and non finalized APIs, and then blaming Google when things break. I understand that ragging on corporations is fun, but c'mon. Perspective , please.

"Shame on the developer" does not make this any better for the consumers either.

The problem the consumers are having was generated completely and totally by the developer of the app, not Google. If you as a developer write an app using non finalized APIs, and release it, and the app breaks because that API changed, it is completely and utterly your fault.

Automatic patches of vulnerabilities is good. Automatic removal of features is not.

But they didn't remove a feature. No where is it advertised that what the OP was doing was supported. There are plenty of warnings about how it's only an SDK preview though and that you should not release an app that uses it until the SDK is officially released.

It's the same with android. They made adblock stop working several times, slowly tightening restrictions on it. And OS updates remove root, which will break a slew of apps.

It doesn't feel like your device unless you install something like CM.

Android, however, has a large and vibrant (albeit poorly organized and highly confusing) community of open source distributions that aren't subject to this kind of nonsense. The Chromecast is still new and unhackable, though hopefully this will change.

I think I'm starting to see the writing on the wall for CyanogenMod. I can see one day Google going after them if they remove some functionality from their ROM's that Google really wants in, and their ROMs become used by say - tens of millions of people.

But Google would be really, incredibly stupid to do that. The Reader outrage will seem tiny compared to the outrage they will get if they mess with CyanogenMod, who's used by the most core users of Android, and most vocal ones in the Android community.

CyanogenMod also has a lot of good will with those users, while Google's good will is diminishing by the day. Jeff Jarvis said recently that Google has only done well when it has done stuff for the users, not against them. If I were Google's CEO I would imprint that in my brain before doing something really stupid in the future.

I mean, you're saying you can see Google going after Cyanogenmod, then you list out the reasons it would be really stupid for them to do it. I think Google are aware of these reasons, too.

In all honesty, I do not think that Cyanogenmod is used by any more than a statistical blip of users, when the whole of Android is considered. I really doubt Google cares very much about these custom ROMs, and won't start caring until everyone starts flashing them on their phones. Which will not happen any time soon.

removing root is because of possibly binary incompatibility. System updates from Google or manf need to be in a consistent state to ensure a proper upgrade. They don't know what you did to your phone.

How did you go about removing ChromeOS from it? As far as I've seen either a new OS is installed under ChromeOS (crouton) or beside it (chrubuntu).

What do you expect from Google? I have rapidly lost respect for this company in last couple of years.

Is it sad that I'm starting to wish Microsoft could pull itself out of the trash can and kick Google in the ass a bit?

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