Linuxrebel:
You have got the point written in plain english that makes more sense than all of the expressions of noob-isms and RTFM remarks combined. The product is certainly worth the $ and should work as expressed in advertisements and from the manufacturer's claims. Nokia has started something great and we are early adopters (although the platform has been around for a while in N770 clothing.) I expect some issues due to the open source nature of the firmware. But like you have stated, the device needs to have a solid base of apps and OS that just work from the start to build on. When I got mine, I was under the impression that the device was going to perform this way. Maybe a few minor issues, but mostly gold in release. Ubuntu and Mandriva are at this point IMO. Why not Maemo? Why do the repos act the way they do? Why does Microb still fail to connect during extended browsing? Why do my SD cards occasionally fail to be mounted, even in the middle of a song? Why does the Map application built into OS2008 crash on me when it's loaded? Everything feels so "beta." And that's before you even add any 3rd party or extra apps. I bought this device as a replacement for Windows Mobile devices. There are three major things I need it for: Web browsing, MP3 playback, and maps. All three fail miserably when compared to any other pocket device I've ever tried. The word "reliability" comes to mind here. That's ever more important to me than all of the available free apps or the much better screen on the N800. I'm upset that Nokia couldn't do better, and embarrassed at times when trying to show others how great the product is and it fails for the reasons listed above. I know the product will be better over time and I will wait and help out as much as I can to achieve that goal.


Yeah, I see your point. When geeks like you or me come in here for answers we can usually get what we need or figure it out by deductive reasoning. And when others have questions that we can answer, we try to express those solutions as best we can. Again, Nokia has to step up and make an impact if they want a successful platform to continue with.


Nokia should accept this platform as something to invest in rather than just go through the motions to sell just a few and then move on. I really do think that the small, pocketable devices (cell phones, smart phones, PDAs, UMPCs) are the future due to portability and Moore's law gaining ground every day in the performance-to-size ratio. Microsoft is spending enormous development clout on bloated, overblown GUIs and has focused attention away from the PDA except in the very limited WM Smartphone OS. With the limited development in making a truly versitile small-footprint OS for mobile use and lack of full Web plugin availability, they have left the door wide open for Linux to take over in this format. Since less full-sized desktops are being sold, and more mobile devices are being developed and purchased, this gives Linux a fighting chance to succeed and eventually take over should the development of open source software for mobile devices achieve a level of professionalism similar to what Ubuntu and Mandriva have accomplished on the desktop. This will benefit all users with a lower cost of ownership, lack of licensing fees for software in most cases, and a less impirical outlook on the future of computing.

PS: Great list of possible answers to questions newbs have! It's the "canned response repository" for those of us who refuse to answer user's questions but still smugly post anyway (I'll never understand that...)
Nokia and other Linux developers need to look toward the future of OS potential on mobile devices as THE future of consumer computing needs!!!!!!!!!!!!!
If all of us send emails to Nokia support concerning our needs it may become apparent to them that they need to invest a bit more.