Windows Mobile 6.5.3 is actually a decent piece of software. I would not have been able to reach this conclusion without the good people of XDA-Developers, and especially @NRGZ28, who cooked the EnergyROM I’m now using.
Let me explain: with most of the phones that you buy today, you are not limited to the OS supplied by the manufacturer and any updates released for it – courtesy of your friendly internet hacker. You can download tools to hack your device and flash any ROM on it – and it might even be legal. That is, if you’re ok with voiding your warranty.
Hacking? Who cares?!
A few days ago, a colleague asked me “what if the VC240 root password is leaked or hacked? Customers could install whatever they want on them!” Well, I said, first, we’re dealing with the enterprise market here, and they have a tendency to value warranty. Second, when we’ll really have to worry about that, we’ll know we’ve hit the big times.
Take my router, for example: Linksys WRT54G. Linksys was required to release the WRT54G’s firmware source code due to some legal hubbub. The result? A massive amount of third party firmware projects, which modify everything from capabilities to GUI – even converting the router to an access point or a repeater. This has lead to better product reviews and better sales. So much in fact, that when version 5 of the product turned out to have too little memory for the modifications, Linksys re-released version 4 under a new model name, so as to allow it to be hacked.
Of course, if your real business is selling (or licensing) the software for your hardware platform, like Apple’s doing with the iPhone or Microsoft with the Xbox, then hacking is a real problem. If you just sell the device, like Archos is doing with their Jukebox or Creative with the iRiver, why would you care what software it is running? The customer can replace the software with the Rock Box and it will only mean that you no longer have to service this device.
On the other hand, if you’re a software company, you’re in trouble: the sad truth is anyone can create software. I’m saying create and not write, since mashup services and ‘cooked’ ROMs are not exactly written.
Would you hack that?
Back to the VC240. We sell a nifty screen, with a heavy-duty camera, some really mean processing units, some badass codecs and a decent GUI.
Until VC240 fits into a blender, we can ponder about hacking.
Could someone hack that? Yes. By now you should know that anything can be hacked. Would he want to replace our software with his own? Seems to me that if someone wants a video conferencing unit, they could not create a better solution without a massive investment of time and effort, but maybe I’m wrong – open source groups have taken on major projects before and done extremely well.
On the other hand, if anyone would want to create a use for it that is NOT a video endpoint – a gesture activated screen, some kind of artistic video feedback, security, face recognizing workstation – it may actually make sense.
I have to admit I look forward to that.
Tags: access, access point, customers, developers, firmware, Hack, Memory, RADVISION, security, Software, source code, VC240, windows mobile, wrt54g linksys, xda developers
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