Replicant

Hi Fil,

Thanks for the links. I had a brief read. I guess he wants to get rid of Google (and Apple, but with Android that's not
a problem, I think) and basically installs lineageOS without Google Apps. He is also bothered with many esthetical issues
which forces him to build a customized ROM. Then he discovers that installing apps without Google Play is not-trivial.

As far as I can tell, this is - apart from the design issue - simply lineageOS without Gapps. Hence the ambitions regarding
freedom are not as big as with replicant, since many freedom compromizing topics (e.g. proprietary drivers for Wifi
and Bluetooth) are not addressed at all.

Please let me know if I am missing something...

Kind regards,

George

Yes, I had the same thought at first by reading their project.

In fact, I thought that these functionnalities he wants to develop can be useful to make it easier to make Replicant more usable for users.
There are two problems currently from my point of view:
1. GUI is not very friendly and Replicant priorities are hardware drivers
2. support lakes for Replicant users, and there are too few forces to propose enough support for users.

This project could at least help for point 1 to increase the GUI with libre code which will allow users to get privacy with their phone.
This point is for sure, in my point of view.

Another point which could be is to make eelo (and any other alternative phone project) understand the interest of using libre hardware and drivers for privacy. This seems more an evangelist work but it would help to have hard skills into retroengineering like the ones used to discover samsung exploit a few years ago. Even if this is not the core of eelo project, it could only help to exchange with them.

I had a brief read. I guess he wants to get rid of Google (and Apple, but with Android that's not
a problem, I think) and basically installs lineageOS without Google Apps.

https://www.indidea.org/gael/blog/leaving-apple-google-eelo-odyssey-bootstrap/
https://www.indidea.org/gael/blog/eelo-io-holiday-season-latest-updates/
https://www.indidea.org/gael/blog/eelo-tech-societal-project-freedom-democracy/

My understanding is, eelo wants to search for and remove all surveillance
software, they find. Same thing as replicant is doing? I think, unlike
replicant, eelo will accept the presence of non libre phone device
driver software. About replicant you get a phone with several
not working devices. About eelo you get a phone presumably
having all devices working. Also if it requires non libre
software.

My understanding is, the main android software, I do not know if it has a
specific name, is libre software. I do not know if this piece of
software contains surveillance software. Often a phone seller wants
to install well known google applications on his phone. Like gmail,
google play. These applications comes in a bundle and seller is
not allowed to modify them. In this bundle of applications is
a far reaching piece of surveillance software. It tracks a lot
of what is going on on the phone and reports to google. It
takes a copy of all data any application on the phone collects
and ships it to google.
Right?

If eelo wants google play to be installed on
an eelo phone, eelo will not improve security and privacy.
Maybe eelo is not aware of this matter.

Can there be any cooperation between eelo and replicant?
Eelo and replicant partly doing the same work should be
avoided.

Have eelo and replicant been communicating?