Jide tries again, Remix Mini does Android PC

[Ted Dog]

So for those of us without Windows, who's gonna start supplying pre-installed sticks?

Really? there is an iso file inside the zip. use linux tools to burn iso. seeding its torrent and lots of connections. tried to unzip in RAM and ran out. they compressed an iso into a zip, ISO is under 3Gs in size. seems like the method FatDog64 uses to boot either EFI or legacy. Found grub.cfg file but permissions are way odd, can't read file < maybe in part that ran out of memory. >

[Semme]

I've exposed my interest, huh?

[Moat]

Well, nuts. I gave this Remix OS alpha for PC a try on USB 2.0 (since I own no 3.0 machines, and some people claimed to get it running fine on 2.0) - but it would fail to boot after reporting it's boot-time speed test results (as too slow @ 7.7 Mb/s write speed - 10 Mb/s being the reported minimum). So not surprised... but bummed! Really would like to take Remix for a spin.

A little odd/disappointing that such a light OS that's somewhat intended to "revive" older computers would require rather recent USB 3.0 hardware to run...

The .zip's included installer worked like a charm, though - and it did at least get partially through the boot process.

Bob

[gcmartin]

Hi @Moat

I dont think the intended audience is for older PCs. Android IS a touch oriented OS. RemixOS adds ability for keyboards and mice in addition to other changes to take advantage of peripherals found in today's 64bit PCs (notice that the final release is 64bit and beta remains at 32bit). There were no 32bit touch PCs before 64bit PCs with touch-screens and webcams became available to consumers.

RemixOS belongs to a Corporation for profit which is taking Android Open Source and extending it similar to how CyanogenMod is also doing for a profit.

Hope this is helpful understanding. I dont speak for RemixOS. They have a forum community which might shed better light for you.[/b]

[jrb]

I got RemixOS-64 working in a fruagal install on an ext4 drive. Here are the details.

[Sage]

http://www.zdnet.com/article/remix-os-beta-[b]install-android-any-pc[/b]

dont think the intended audience is for older PCs

Some confusion with the English language?! Some nesting issue with the mark up on this site, too.

[Moat]

I dont think the intended audience is for older PCs.

Hmm... well, it does somewhat read that way to me, directly from Jide's own website -

http://www.jide.com/en/remixos-for-pc

"Who said you can't teach an old dog new tricks? Remix OS for PC allows you to experience Remix OS on a vast array of existing Intel-based PCs already out in the world... By revitalizing your seasoned hardware with Remix OS for PC, breathe new life into it with over 1.6 million Android apps."



Bob

[James C]

This is a beta version intended for all early adopters who are excited to experience the latest in Android’s evolution.
Android was designed for touchscreens and as there isn't a touchscreen on most PCs, we want you to be aware the experience with certain apps may be different on your PC than on a mobile device.

http://www.jide.com/en/remixos-for-pc#downloadNow

[James C]

Still playing with a couple of Remix Minis which are working as expected.

Using a Remix for PC flash drive on a couple of "regular" pc's, looks promising for a Beta release.

[James C]

Remix for pc,running from persistent usb.

[James C]

.

[gcmartin]

Great; as @James C shows.

A good read BEFORE starting for new users is this, as it informs what you should expect as you go forward.

In my review, it looks that if they add a little Android to Android integration, this will become an very compelling home solution as things go forward. Thus your smartPhones, smartTablets, smartDevices all integrate without fanfare, this will become very compelling. It was projected at CES that upwards of 80% of the smartDevice owners in the world, at the end of this year, could/would own some form of Androids in their homes. So this fits right in there as they, Remix, goes forward.

Reviewing the Remix site, some discrepancies are noticed.

[nubc]

Does Remix OS for PC Beta run as a live DVD? Or do I have to install it?

Yes, it runs as live DVD. Also, Remix OS connected to internet by hardwire ethernet. Finally, an Android-x86 with hardwire ethernet connectivity. This edition of Remix OS booted only in Guest Mode. Failed boot in the default Resident Mode that saves settings and apps, just hung on the RemixOS splash screen, with no activity evident in the optical drive. Pressing TAB to show options just displayed the express command in operation. In Guest Mode I never found the Google Play app. Without Google Play there wasn't much to do, except examine Settings. Plenty of apps listed in Settings > Apps, but not Google Play. Both Wifi and Ethernet are separate headings in Settngs.

I never have liked scrolling in Android, especially without touch functionality. In Remix OS for PC, I can scroll with the wheel of a wheelmouse, but the faint scroll bar disappears the moment the scrolling stops, making the scroll bar unusable. Ah, using the wheel of a wheelmouse for scrolling is one the Experimental features. Works good.

Anyone see Google Play, or know how to put Google Play on this system?

I owned an iCraig Android tablet that didn't have Google Play installed, and apparently Remix OS for PC Beta doesn't have Google Play. Why would any Andoid-based system not have Google Play? Does Google charge for Google Play?

[amigo]

amazons kindle comes without playstore. You can extract playstore from the 'gapps' collection available from cyanogenmod and elsewhere. gapps is a collection of the google apps which come with most devices.

Interestingly, with Android you not only get 'There's an app for that!', you also get a command-line. In addition to a few normal tools like 'ln' 'cp' and stuff, you also get some android-specific tools like 'am', 'pm', 'bmgr' and 'settings' These tools provide a cli/scriptable interface to the android-gui-app versions of 'Activity Manager', 'Package Manager', 'Backup Manager' and 'Settings'.

And, back to missing PlayStore, there is a cli program called 'raccoon' which lets you download apps directly from playstore, from the cli. There is also a 'service' and 'service-manager' as well as other cli tools which look interesting.

[nubc]

How many of those tools depend on being root? Am I root in RemixOS for PC Beta? Can I "su" to do root commands? Oh yeah, CLI gives access to Superuser. Confirmed

I rooted an iCraig notebook, using a good tutorial to install Google Play. I'll review that tutorial. Seems to me, I have to put a Google Play apk in a certain location, which might require root permission and registration.

Google Groups (Remix OS Forum)
https://groups.google.com/forum/m/#!top ... jsV0ZB8174

[James C]

I installed Google Play on my USB ...

http://www.jide.com/en/remixos-for-pc

Where is Google Play Store? How do I install it?
Currently, the Google Play Store is not pre-loaded onto Remix OS for PC.
We recommend that you side-load Google Mobile Services by referring to the "Download and install Google Mobile Services on Remix OS" section here.

Link leads to
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic ... 0ij-vCPiQI

Since Google Play Store is not preloaded onto Remix OS for PC and there are many different instructions out there that describe how you can download and install Google Play store, I have decided to post the most updated and accurate one here.

1. Download the GMSActivator.apk, attached in this post, directly onto your Remix OS
2. Click on the downloaded file to install it (You may need to change your settings to allow installation of apps from unknown sources. Settings > Security > Device Administration)
3. Open the installed file
4. Select "Install Google Services"
5. Reboot OS.

Worked for me with no trouble.

HTH.

[nubc]

Well, I'm not sure how much of that I can do with a live DVD, because the procedure requires a reboot to activate things. I guess I will have to figure out why Resident Mode doesn't work, whereas Guest Mode does work. Maybe I didn't give it enough time to boot in Resident Mode, I gave it 10 minutes. How long does it take to boot in Resident Mode? Also I clicked on a downloaded file, and Remix OS reported there was no app to do what I requested.

Here are the extra system reports during failed boot up in Resident Mode:

Code: Select all

Writing Speed Test...
Cannot detect the writing speed. System may fail to boot up. To continue, press Enter...
Not enough space to create Data Partition. Unable to use Persistent Mode, to continue, press Enter...
Checking Data Partition....

It may have to do with a USB connected keyboard.

Curiously, in Settings > Sound there is a setting for Audio Output Mode, which is the most logical place for selecting between Stereo and Mono audio output. Unfortunately, this setting is currently empty and non-functional. But it's a good start and a commendable innovation. Get a clue, Google.

BTW, this version of RemixOS is based on Android 5.1.1, as reported in Settings > Info

EDIT: Forum responder says, to run in Resident mode, USB 3.0 is required, and needs a USB drive to which to write data and apps, as was mentioned in release announcements.

[nubc]

BTW RemixOS for PC reset my BIOS clock forward by 5 hours. Does this indicate the physical location of the developers is Great Britain?

EDIT: Oops, that might have been Android-x86-5.1-r1 that messed with the BIOS clock. I'll have to check RemixOS for PC next time I run it, to see if it messes with the clock.

Install Google Play services on Remix OS 2.0 Alpha (xda-developers)
http://forum.xda-developers.com/remix/r ... x-t3292087

Install Google Apps on Remix OS for PC (Liliputing)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PLeLEMIm3E

Install Play Store on Remix OS for PC (Jay Kapoor)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBouqQAPql8

How to download and install Google Play Store on Remix OS for PC (Remix OS for PC forum @ Google Groups)
http://tinyurl.com/z346n5z

[don570]

Another crowd funding campaign with remix people helping.

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/unui ... remix-os#/

Complaints already over the high cost of shipping.
_____________________________________________

[nubc]

If the Unuiga 605 processor is 2GHz, I wonder how they handle heat dissipation on the mainboard. Did they splurge on a processor chip heatsink?

Well, wadya know, my favorite thumb drive is USB 3.0. Unfortunately, I don't have a computer with USB 3.0, so I got the same error about failed writing speed test, and no space on the data partition.