Linux lands on iPhone

 

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By Matthew Sparkes

Posted on 1 Dec 2008 at 08:51

Hackers have ported a slimmed-down version of Linux to the iPhone, bringing open source code to the closed Apple platform.

"I'm pleased to announce that the Linux 2.6 kernel has been ported to Apple's iPhone platform, with support for the first and second generation iPhones as well as the first generation iPod touch. This is a rough first draft of the port, and many drivers are still missing, but it's enough that a real alternative operating system is running on the iPhone," announces a blog post written by user PlanetBeing.

Although the kernel of the operating system is up and running, there is still much work to be done before the code is of much use to the average user. Currently Linux on the iPhone does not support sound, wireless networking, use of the built-in accelerometer or the touchscreen.

Currently the system uses a bootloader called OpeniBoot to select between running the Linux port or the standard Apple OS, but can only be used with an external USB keyboard under Linux. The code is based on a distribution called BusyBox.

It's unlikely that work will stop there, however. The post goes on to ask those "experienced with porting Android" to come forward, perhaps suggesting that in the future iPhone owners will have an even wider selection of operating systems to choose from.

Apple last week was banned from showing one of its UK iPhone adverts because it made misleading claims about the speed of mobile browsing.