[maemo-developers] [maemo-developers] Re: [maemo-announce] New Nokia 770 software image available

[From: Michael Wiktowy]

On 11/2/06, Álvaro J. Iradier <airadier at gmail.com> wrote:
> Is it posible to upgrade without flashing? Something like apt-get
> dist-upgrading packages, flashing new kernel and initfs?
>
> Greets.

I recall the Nokia devs stating in the past that they did not intend
to support this route to upgrading. It is too bad but I would imagine
that the problems involved are two-fold:
1) This route to upgrading is a lot more complicated to do right while
avoiding the cruft buildup that is tolerable on a desktop system yet
not so easily accommodated on a limited resource embedded system and
2) This route to upgrading typically necessitates having an equally
large space to store the packages on top of the existing place where
the old ones are installed. It seems wasteful to keep around a bunch
of empty storage space for upgrading purposes that could be used for
user data/apps. Once again,  it is tolerable on a desktop system yet
not so easily accommodated on a limited resource embedded system.

Neither of these things are technically insurmountable but it is a
question of whether you want them to spend time and effort trying to
get this to work and answering the inevitable questions from
situations where it doesn't work or taking the simple brute-force way
to upgrading and spending more effort on the actual content of the
upgrades.

/Mike