安迪•鲁宾和他设计的Android系统忙得几乎没有喘息之机。自从Android系统诞生以来，它几乎与每家无线运营商和智能手机厂商都进行了合作，在不到三年的时间里，它一跃成为智能手机行业的主导操作系统。微软的移动视窗（Windows Mobile）系统已经报废了，塞班（Symbian）系统也已被诺基亚抛弃。Android如日中天，黑莓（Blackberry）和Windows Phone 7只能抢夺市场上的残羹剩屑。

    苹果的iPhone用户数量虽然一直持续增长，但Android设备的迅猛发展，使得就连iPhone的市场份额也相形见绌。

    最近当我到百思买（Best Buy）购物的时候，我发现手机柜台上摆着40来部Android系统的智能机，旁边只摆着几部功能手机、还摆着一只古怪的黑莓或Windows Phone 7，以及几部苹果的iPhone。如果你到美国无线电器材公司（Radio Shack）或美国大多数无线运营商的展厅里逛逛，情形也大同小异。

    因此你可能会想，这篇文章肯定是要连篇累牍地说Android的好话吧？

    事实却并非如此。

    今天大部分时间我都在看一些关于Android的负面报道，这些报道指责Android设备要么太便宜，要么用户界面太难看；而且用户界面要么太像iPhone，要么太不像iPhone了；Android应用的质量也差强人意；屏幕要么太大，要么太小；电池寿命其短无比，且机身太厚……如此种种，不一而足。

    但这就是横扫一切其他操作系统的Android系统。

    我听到的两个最大的报怨，一是称Android手机的升级更新不够快（这是真的！），二是许多Android设备的系统功能不完整——这恰恰是第一个问题的症状。首先，手机厂商和无线运营商之所以迟迟不愿将手机的操作系统更新为最新版本，是因为他们想卖新手机，而不是让顾客一直用旧手机。

    此外，无线运营商和厂商往往会在Android系统上面添加其它复杂的软件或程序，它们往往具有破坏性，使得这些手机升级起来更加困难。这就是为什么谷歌的Nexus手机如此重要，因为它没有任何运营商或厂商的添加程序，因此可以迅速更新，并带给你真正的谷歌式体验。

    不过只有一个Nexus是不够的。

    《商业周刊》（Businessweek）指出，过去的几个月里，谷歌一直在努力解决上文提到的后两个问题。首先，鉴于许多Android设备的系统被厂商人为篡改，导致系统功能不完整，因此谷歌执行了由来已久以来的“反分割”措施，以此告诫运营商和厂商，不要在修改程序上做得太过火。我想谷歌对那些在发布产品后更新了设备的公司可能会相对温柔些，对那些没有更新设备的公司大概就不会手下留情了。

    此前已有许多厂商指责Android系统的“开源”是一张免费车费，让一些厂商不劳而获，免费“搭车”。不过此次谷歌缩紧开源平台的行为并没有受到这些厂商的普遍欢迎。谷歌在当初起草Android开发许可时似乎颇有远见，给自己加封了开源平台的某种控制权，以免开源平台变得无法控制。

    早前谷歌曾宣布，在其清理“蜂巢”系统（Honeycomb）的代码之前，将不会公布“蜂巢”的源代码，这份声明也在业界掀起了类似的愤怒声浪。

    Android 3.0“蜂巢”系统完全是为了屏幕更大的设备设计的，而且在Android系统最受青睐的小工具、多任务处理、浏览、通告和定制等方面都做了改进。谷歌表示：“尽管我们为安装了Android系统的平板电脑能够增添这些新的功能而感到兴奋，但在我们能够把它安装到包括手机在内的其它设备之前，我们还有很多工作要做。我们决定在那之前暂不开放‘蜂巢’的源代码。我们致力把Android作为跨多个设备类型的开放平台来提供，一旦准备就绪，我们就会开放‘蜂巢’的源代码。”

    对于那些想要使用Android代码而又不愿意遵守谷歌游戏规则的厂商和运营商来说，他们现在有了别的选择。亚马逊（Amazon）新开张了一个功能齐全的应用商店，使设备制造商们除了谷歌的应用商店Apps Marketplace外，又有了一种享受各种手机应用的新途径。而谷歌的Apps Marketplace只面向谷歌认可的设备。

    CellularSouth公司就刚刚发布了第一款内置亚马逊应用商店的设备。

    Facebook和微软也被谷歌排挤出了Android生态圈子。

    谷歌的安迪•鲁宾表示，“反分割”条款早就是Android开发许可的一部分，不过有些受访者却表示，谷歌最近才收紧了其开源政策。例如有两位不愿透露姓名的人士指出，Facebook一直在研发用于智能手机的Android版Facebook应用，但现在Facebook的高管们对谷歌非常不满，因为谷歌已经开始针对Facebook对Android系统的修改进行审查。此外另据两位熟悉内情的人士透露，由于Verizon公司的Android设备使用了与谷歌搜索引擎相竞争的微软“必应”(Bing)搜索引擎，谷歌也力阻这款设备投放市场。

    事实似乎很明显，谷歌的算盘，是希望通过执行Android开发许可中的条款，尽量使这两家竞争对手无法从Android中获得好处。不过对于那些简单地把Android和“开源”划等号的人来说，他们并不支持谷歌的这种做法。

    Facebook和微软都有可能把自己与谷歌的纠纷提交到美国司法部（Justice Department）。

    一位熟知内情的人士表示，谷歌加紧控制开源平台的行为，已经促使一些公司向司法部提起了诉讼。谷歌女发言人莎丽•约德尔•道尔蒂拒绝对谷歌、其合作伙伴以及相关诉讼进行评论。

    不管是不是这样，过去两个星期里，在联入谷歌Android市场的Android设备中，大约有三分之二的设备使用的都是Android 2.2系统，它是Android的一个相对较新的版本。其次的版本是Android 2.1，它和Android 2.2一起，占据了所有Android设备的90%多。

    It's hard for Andy Rubin and his Android creation to catch a fair break. Partnering with just about every carrier and smartphone manufacturer, Android has come from nowhere to be the dominant OS in the smartphone industry in under three years. Windows Mobile was scrapped, Symbian was cut and now Blackberry and Windows Phone 7 are in a fight to gain some pittance of market share against the surging Android.

    Android's growth has even made Apple's iPhone, which continues to grow in numbers, flat in market share.

    When I go into a Best Buy (BBY) nowadays, I see about 40 Android devices next to a few feature phones, an odd BlackBerry or Windows Phone 7 and a few iPhones. Walk into a Radio Shack or most U.S. carrier showrooms and you'll see the same thing.

    So you'd think the news would constantly be on what Android is doing right?

    That's hardly the case.

    I spend most of my day wading through reports of how Android devices are too cheap or that the user interface is ugly and either too much or not enough like the iPhone's. The quality of the apps aren't up to snuff or the screens are too big or small, the battery life is horrible and the phones are too thick. On and on.

    This, for the mobile OS that is destroying everything else out there.

    The two biggest complaints I hear are that Android devices don't get updated quickly enough (True!) and that Android devices are fragmented -- which is a symptom of the first problem. Manufacturers and carriers aren't motivated to update their handsets to the latest version of their OS because they want to sell new handsets, not keep their customers on old ones.

    Add to that, carriers and manufacturers add complicated and often crippling overlays to Android, which make it that much more complex to upgrade. That's why Google's Nexus products, those sold free of carrier or manufacturer excesses, are so important. They get updated swiftly and give you the real Google experience.

    But the Nexus initiative wasn't enough.

    According to Businessweek, Google has spent the last few months trying to fix the latter two problems. By enforcing its long held "anti-fragmentation" measures, it is telling carriers and manufacturers that they can't get too crazy with their modifications. I imagine that the companies that upgrade their devices after releasing them are being treated better than those that don't.

    But that doesn't sit well with many who decry Android's 'Open'-ness as a free ticket. Google, which seemed to have some foresight when building out the Android developer license, gave itself some controls so that the open source platform didn't get too out of hand.

    There was similar outrage when Google announced that it wouldn't publish the source code to Honeycomb until it had cleaned up the code.

    Android 3.0, Honeycomb, was designed from the ground up for devices with larger screen sizes and improves on Android favorites such as widgets, multi-tasking, browsing, notifications and customization. While we're excited to offer these new features to Android tablets, we have more work to do before we can deliver them to other device types including phones. Until then, we've decided not to release Honeycomb to open source. We're committed to providing Android as an open platform across many device types and will publish the source as soon as it's ready.

    Other options are opening for manufacturers and carriers that don't want to play Google's game but still want access to the Android code. Amazon now has a fully functional App store which gives device makers a way to enjoy apps without Google's default market -- which only comes on approved devices.

    Indeed, CellularSouth just released the first Android device with Amazon's Appstore in the default install.

    Facebook and Microsoft (MSFT) have also been edged out by Google.

    Google's Rubin says that such clauses have always been part of the Android license, but people interviewed for this story say that Google has recently tightened its policies. Facebook, for example, has been working to fashion its own variant of Android for smartphones. Executives at the social network are unhappy that Google gets to review Facebook's tweaks to Android, say two people who weren't comfortable being named talking about the business. Google has also tried to hold up the release of Verizon Android devices that make use of Microsoft's rival Bing search engine, according to two people (VZ) familiar with the discussions.

    While it seems intuitive that Google would want to limit the benefit that both of these competitors could derive from Android, by using clauses in the Android developer license, it doesn't sit well with people who simplify Android as "open."

    Both of those companies are likely heading to the Justice Department over these issues.

    It's these types of actions that have prompted the gripes to the Justice Dept., says a person with knowledge of the matter. Google spokeswoman Shari Yoder Doherty declined to comment on Google and its partners or any complaints to the government.

    For what it is worth, almost two-thirds of Android devices that have checked into the Android Market in the past two weeks were running Android 2.2, a relatively recent version of Android. The second most popular flavor is Android 2.1 which, combined with 2.2, makes up over 90% of all Android devices.

    EETimes把这个问题扩展到了芯片制造商上，指出英特尔公司（Intel）没有受到谷歌的公平对待。有趣的是，另一方面谷歌又对英特尔优待有加。谷歌推出的基于Android系统的谷歌电视（GoogleTV）恰恰是由英特尔独家提供芯片——至少目前是这样。

    那么，运营商和厂商会做何反应呢？对于其中某些公司来说，他们可以转向微软的Windows Phone 7操作系统，也可以开发自己的智能手机操作系统，有传言说摩托罗拉（Motorola）就在这样做（在Android时代之前，摩托罗拉有一个Linux分发平台，不过很少有人接受这个平台），现在还不清楚是否他们认为自己现在可以做得更好。韩国三星（Samsung）也有自己的Bada智能手机操作系统，三星把它安装在自己的低端手机上，不过同时三星也销售Focus等WP 7手机。宏达电（HTC）、华硕（ASUS）和LG的情形也差不多，他们都既生产Android设备，也生产基于WP 7的设备。

    对于厂商来说，WP 7还是一片未经验证的战场。不过随着最近诺基亚（Nokia）宣布转战WP 7，许多其他厂商也不得不思索WP7是否也有让人喜爱之处。

    就在本周，有些专家还在报怨Android设备的不完整，而现在谷歌开始着手处理这个问题，他们会怎样看待谷歌这一举措？

    Android已经不再是个开放的平台了，谷歌开始明确宣称要对其进行控制。Android的总设计师安迪•鲁宾也好，谷歌的副总裁维克•贡多特拉也好，埃里克•施密特也好，他们仨都是卑鄙无耻、说话不算话的伪君子。

    可怜的老Android，怎么着都是错。

    译者：朴成奎

    EETimes extends this concern to chipmakers saying that Intel isn't getting a fair shake. Interestingly, the exact opposite is true for Android-powered GoogleTV, which is Intel only, at least for the moment.

    How will the carriers and manufacturers react? One option for some is heading over to Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 or developing their own Smartphone OS. Motorola (MMI) has been rumored to be doing just that (they had a Linux distribution before Android, which was poorly received) so it isn't clear if they think they can now do better. Samsung has its Bada smartphone OS, which it puts on its low end phones, and also sells Windows Phone 7 devices like the Focus. HTC, ASUS and LG are in a similar situation, building both Android and WP7 devices.

    Windows Phone 7 is still an unproven ground for manufacturers, and with the recent Nokia arrangement announced, they have to wonder if there is favoritism there as well.

    What do the pundits, who just this week were complaining of Android's fragmentation, think of the move to clean up the perceived mess?

    Android is no longer open and Google starts asserting control. Andy Rubin, Vic Gundotra, Eric Schmidt: shameless, lying hypocrites, all of them.

    Poor old Android can't catch a break.