Linux on Android

[Joseph Barney]

Naturally, I figured you guys would have a Pine phone or Android running a Linux VM. Is that the case? What is everyone running? Though iOS isn't too bad. Technically it's a BSD variant but Android runs the Linux kernel. I use Andronix and Ubuntu. I might install Kali next and they're limited as in they run and get internet but certain security tools can't do much, I'm guessing for liability reasons and limits Android puts on the operation system.

Joe

[Seth House]

I used to root my Android phones for years but it's a hassle and I got tired of doing it. Nowadays I just use Termux which is a pretty slick mini-distro inside a regular Android app, though it's subject to all the restrictions of an Android app and there's no root. For network scanning I've been using Fing which is pretty slick and does a lot without the need for root, but it's closed source and a service (and they pester you with ads all the time).

That said, I've given up on Android for the future and have been working to actively de-Google my life. I picked up a Pinephone and it's getting really close for use as a daily driver and I'm really excited about it. There are people in the Pinephone community that have been using it as their primary device, though you have to expect random bugs and breakages still and I haven't made the jump yet. The hardware is running an older SOC and is a bit slow but I tend toward minimalist software so it's still workable for me. It's amazing to see a real Linux running on a real phone. :-D

[Joseph Barney]

They have degoogled Android that's hardened to boot. They remove pretty much 100% of Google though it's partly maintained by Google but has no back doors, and Google even use some of the hardening aspects in regular Android. The "app store" is simply ones like F-Droid. I've donated to F-Droid before and other similar projects. And there's a degoogled Google play store where you can download the free apps from Google or something like that. They're the real apps and there's an open source Google services replacement as well, to run them if i recall correctly. Linux is cool and i do enjoy the aspects of Google like the AI photography ability. Wow. My 4a 5g can shoot. But there's other cameras that are real cameras such as point and shoots that are pretty portable and even rugged such as by Olympus and Nikon. I'm somewhat into consumerism but at a minimalist level. I'm not what I think of as a hoarder. And the photography is something I enjoy in the outdoors. I'm kind of like the 5150 Van Halen album. I want to best of both worlds. I own several movies on Google Play movies and they still don't have a solution to that anyway and I'd want an extra phone to try the hardened features. With all the hacking going on, i figure it's wise to have a backup plan. I'll likely put it on old Samsung or Pixel.

Joe

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