@manoj. I am using the rom build from @petefoth for the device sony xz1 compact where you can find the camera app from Sony that you can have and get from the sony development website.
I am just wondering , and I know that you have like e/ the desire that every single device have the same experience, why dont you use the original app if possible in these devices from sony.
Original camera app software if dependent on proprietary software cannot be used on /e/. In case the stock has only Open source code, then it can be considered. We also try to have a consistent experience across all devices.
That is not strictly correct. It is perfectly possible to include such proprietary software in /e/, but /e/ have chosen not to allow it in their official builds. They could make a different choice, but ther is no sign of that at the moment.
The code for my original lilac builds came from Whatawurstâs gitgub repos. The camera is only present in the lineageos-17.1 branch, as the camera does not (yet) work with Android 11 / R
So maybe is better to send the e/ developers straight to Sony developer world, cause they will know how to get the opensource camera app from there , dont u think?
A team member who checked responded that there is no Camera code in the Sony Developer code site. In case there is a location we missed, pl share, and we can have a look. Off course, it will need to be checked for any google traces.
The camera is not built from source. Along with a whole lot of software that is in the /e/ ROMs, it comes from the proprietary vendor blobs extracted (originally) from the device.
You originally said (my emphasis)
I was challenging that statement because such proprietary software can be run but /e/ chooses not to because itâs not open source. Thatâs a valid choice, even though I disagree with it , and even though all /e/ ROMs include proprietary, closed source software via vendor binary blobs extracted from devices. Itâs just a question of which proprietary, closed source software /e/ chooses to include.
I believe the âproprietary softwareâ issue is a red herring, and the main reason /e/ doesnât include the Sony Camera app is
even though not all devices have the same UI / user experience
FM Radio apps are not present in all devices, because some devices donât support it
WiFi calling and VoLTE are similarly not present where the device or the userâs carrier do not support it
Including such apps means the the UI / UX is not identical, but it is apparently still judged to be âconsistentâ. Including the Sony Camera app would not be any different in my opinion: the Ui would be different, but still consistent.
At the end of the day, whether or not an app is or is not present in the /e/ ROMs is mostly not because that software âcannot be runâ. It is a choice by whoever at /e/ is responsible for UI design. It happens that I disagree with those choices, particularly when they make an /e/ phone âworseâ (from a user perspective) than the stock ROM.
Over three years on this forum, I have seen users who have different requirements. We had a user who left /e/ because of one of the social media apps (Instagram or Snapchat do not remember which one) did not work on it.
Ultimately, users will have to decide what it is that they are really interested in. If they absolutely need the camera and all its functionality to work, then maybe they should stick to ROMâs that can use proprietary software. /e/ and open source code has its limitations.
For /e/ the rules are very simple. If the camera source has proprietary files, it will not be possible to add it to /e/. For e.g. we are working on finding alternatives to Magic Earth which has proprietary code.
We do understand that Cameras are an essential part of smartphones, and we are on the lookout for skilled developers who can help us with improving the existing camera app. Which is why I asked for links to such open source camera libraries in this thread. I had contacted the developer behind the OpenCamera, but unfortunately he did not have the bandwidth to take up additional work.
Is understandable tha e/ is doing a great effort to get OS running. This is not about leaving a project that we love , is more about how to do it better, like you said to try to make a better camera. Is just an idea if the phones can have better quality camera it will be an upgrade to the devices and to be able to facilitate that cameras to the clients will be a great extra.
Hope that a great developer will pop up soon and help to improve this issue. Crossing fingers for it
we are working on finding alternatives to Magic Earth which has proprietary code.
you might allready know that there is this app called Organic Maps in F-droid. Is not as good as Magic Earth but is the same than Open Camera is not as good than Sony camera