03.18.07
Installing Applications: Downloads and Garage
In the first part of this two part piece, I walked you through the Applications Manager and did a quick install from within the viewable apps on the N800. This part will cover the Downloads and Garage sites which are great resources for finding new applications to try.
Downloads
Both sites are hosted on the Maemo.org site which is definitely worth spending some time on if you are looking to learn more about the platform in general Downloads is a nicely structured directory, though it’s still a work in progress.
What’s really nice about Downloads is that the mission is to make it very simple to find and install applications. You can browse by subject on the left or try a search on the right. When you get to a detailed page, you’ll see something that looks like this:
The green arrows will enable a one-click install procedure, which means that if you do not already have the required repository on-board, the install process will make sure you do to prevent any glitches. It’s best to make sure the application is supported by your device (N800 vs. 770) though I’ve been finding that quite a few older applications run fine on the N800, though your mileage may vary.
Garage
Garage is a very different site. It’s more of a community in itself to help the open source development community track progress on development, interactions with users and also provides hosting for downloads, lists and a fair bit more.
Personally I really like Garage as it’s a great way to stay current on applications and updates as they happen. Much of what is here, is in early phases on life and may not be for every user, but it’s a lot of fun to be actively involved testing and providing feedback back into the system. A great application that is in active development is the g-Podder Podcast client. As you can see (or perhaps need to click through to the larger image) from this image, you need to install a few things in order to get going.
It takes a bit more time as you need to pay attention, but there’s nothing to shy away from if you really want to check things out. One great thing again about the Garage site is that there are forums in which both users and developers actively participate to provide help and feedback.
I’m not sure of the process or timing from when applications in Garage make it into Downloads, but it seems like that’s the plan as things get certified / approved for a broader audience. For now, you feel free to explore both…
Technorati Tags: Nokia, Maemo, Internet Tablet, N800, Maemo.org, N770, N-Series
