[PLUG-TALK] speaking of Google...

[Galen Seitz]

On 10/08/2012 04:57 PM, Benjamin Kerensa wrote:
> On 10/08/2012 04:22 PM, Russell Senior wrote:
>> I learned this weekend that Google's Android has been progressively
>> making it more and more difficult to use adhoc mode on their wifi.
>> This is impacting people developing infrastructureless communications
>> technologies (such as the awesomely cool Serval Project), particularly
>> those that would be useful in disaster situations.  Furthermore, they
>> are being less that transparent about why they are doing it.  The
>> speculation is that carriers are pressuring them to eliminate it.  It
>> is clear they are doing it intentionally (they are removing features
>> that exist, by commenting out/deleting kernel code).  It is getting to
>> the point that even if you go to the extreme measure of
>> compile/installing your own kernel to reenable adhoc mode, the GSM and
>> bluetooth modules will cease working.
>>
>> https://groups.google.com/forum/?fromgroups=#!topic/android-platform/tLLspmSySbY
>>
>>
>>
> Google is not making it harder to use Ad-Hoc they simply have never
> supported it.
> http://code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail?id=82
> 
> Android further is Open Source and you can pull the source from AOSP
> and see that they have not removed the support from the Kernel
> versus they just have not added support in their wifi toolsets.

That's certainly not my interpretation of the messages in Russell's
link.  Quoting Paul Gardner-Stephen:

"Speaking from the perspective of the Serval Project, we are
needlessly expending hundreds of hours of effort to make adhoc IBSS
work to some degree on Android, with substantial effort required for
each different handset, which is delaying our ability to get our
software to deployable quality, all because of the lack of adhoc IBSS
support.

It should be noted that the wpa_supplicant goes to some effort to
PREVENT adhoc mode, i.e., it is non-accidental that Android does not
support adhoc IBSS mode.  ..."


galen
-- 
Galen Seitz
galens at seitzassoc.com