yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[G Tablet General] cbay:
I happen to agree with you.

ViewSonic CS seems to be doing the standard damage control double talk.

They probably still have a large inventory of gtablets in stores, and do not want to spoil the sales.

Yes, of course they will support existing products. All that means is they will restart the OTA server and dump 3588 or some newer OTA with bugfixes in the near future (May). Do we need these? For people who are happy with Vegan and TNT Lite etc probably not.

Whenever it comes to a big new OS upgrade..you get the ViewSonic tweet

"Folks- we can't comment on future OS updates to our tablets- too many variables. We'll let you know if updates are available."

The Google Nvidia decision is probably the main reason behind the sudden price drop of the gtablet.

my 2 cents....
[G Tablet General] cbtee:
Thanks, roebeet!

First of all, thank you, roebeet (and all the other developers), for the hard work. Without your efforts, no one would even be talking about the GTablet anymore. I've tried most of the roms and my impression is the TNTlite is the most stable. I know how it is to champion a project and have to rely on others to move it forward ... damn frustrating!! We and Viewsonic really owe you.

Improving the performance, stability, and compatibility of this device should start with Viewsonic and they should have a sense of responsibility to the Gtablet community to do that. Nvidia's abandonment of driver development for the chipset beyond Froyo is a sad note as well. This may be the end of the Gtablet and TNTLite, but you should take pride in what you have given us. This device will have a useful lifespan in my home because of you. Take note, Viewsonic, I WOULD HAVE NEVER BOUGHT a GTablet if these guys weren't here. You owe them a lot and it doesn't make a lot of sense to leave a FREE development resource of your product high and dry. Even if you are at an end, give them what you already got!

With all that, I am confused by some remarks here.

Did anyone really buy their Gtablet with the horrible TNT UI expecting much from Viewsonic to begin with? Does anyone really use their slate for real work? Does an IPAD provide you a better ability to display a Power Point presentation? Can the IPAD even display a Flash Movie? Reading your post about buying the IPAD 2, I couldn't help but notice it must lack a spellchecker 8^D. Would anyone truly have a reason to buy a XOOM instead of a GTablet? Exactly what are you using an IPAD or XOOM for and why is it sensible to spend an extra $350 to do it?

We all know the success of this device has little to do with Viewsonic and A LOT to do with the developers here. It will never run Honeycomb and we will never enjoy the enhancements, stability and performance improvements it provides, but so what. I am sure we will see many people develop tweaks (ex: VTL Launcher http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=1017451 ) to at least facilitate more of a Honeycomb look/experience (vs. a cellphone). But this IS NOT the device I rely on to do my work, it's what I use on the train I ride to work to read ebooks, listen to music, watch movies, or catch up on emails. Mouse support would be great, but at least a USB keyboard works (My only dissatisfaction is no Netflix or Hulu). The few times I've had to edit Power Points on it, it did fine. Thanks to the developers here, this device does a pretty good job with all of that and it kicks ass over my old MSI Netbook. It will be a functional toy for my children when I finally move on to the next tablet, and thanks to the guys here, it looks like I'll get a lot more time before It will appear obsolete (for tablets, that extra time could mean skipping past 1-3 generations).

I am truly hoping roebeet gets the chance to polish TwoTapsX . You guys ROCK!!
[G Tablet General] roebeet:
I am hoping, as well. I know that Viewsonic / TapnTap have the ability to supply a great ROM - we saw a taste of it with UAT build 3991. I just hope that they can follow through and make something really solid and fast.
[G Tablet General] cbay:
So I am disappointed. Honeycomb does seem to be first tablet specific Android OS, and we miss out on that.

I am fairly sure, that had I known that the Gtablet would not run Honeycomb, I would not have bought it.

But, as you say, it is not a complete loss. With Vegan/TNT Lite it is fine for now. It will take Honeycomb by the end of the year to stabilize. I am still hoping that someone will figure out a way to run Honeycomb on the gtab with the hardware acceleration. Also given the Google Nvidia attitude, I am afraid that Ventana also has a 6 month life before Nvidia drops it for Tegra 3.

I think ViewSonic will have lost a golden opportunity to be a big player in the Tablet market if they do not push for Honeycomb on the gtablet. Their hands might be tied with Nvidia's decision, but they can affect Nvidia, a lot more than we can.
[G Tablet General] Macros746:
This thread has been a really great read and very inspiring. I tend to always jump on the bandwagon of the 'valiant underdog' of electronics (read Archos 705, Nintendo Gamecube, Sega Dreamcast, HP Jornada 680 AND 720, Rio Karma, Asus EEE 700, Palm (all of them including Pre) and now the G'Tab) I have always favored a small, eager community of die hard, passionate modders who enable me to do whatever I want with my devices. I wish that these corporations would realize what a valuable asset having a small community of rabid zealots can be for them, and what an advantage that can be in the market. This whole PR trainwreck reminds me very much of what just went down with Palm screwing it's Sprint Pre users by unapologetically breaking promises and sending us down the river. I want to remind EVERY company of where Apple was in the late 1990s when I was in college. I was the proud owner of the first color Macbook and I was a RABID fanboy. Why? Because it seemed like Apple cared. It seemed like they wanted to please me as a customer. They were the people's computer. THAT attitude....that ability to create mindless fans is what put Apple where they are (well...that and gorgeous design and perfect advertising). If Viewsonic were to throw us a bone, acknowledge the amazing work of all of the modders here and elsewhere, and launch a vicious ad campaign, I feel like they could use this community to gain some serious traction in the market. I live in New York City and tend to tote my favorite gadgets with me on the subway where literally thousands of people see them and literally (yes literally) dozens ask me about them. Viewsonic and others like it should not underestimate the power of such grass roots missionary work. Thanks to Woot and Tigerdirect there are thousands of these beasts in the wild waiting to sell themselves. And if Viewsonic can create product zealots we thousands will be far more likely to buy VS the next generation...and the one after that. Who WOULDN'T want a tablet that can compete with the Xoom or the Ipad 2 for less than half the cost? When you compare a Lexus and a Honda, you really can't ignore the fact that one costs three times as much as the other. MAKE ME A MISSIONARY Viewsonic! Give me a reason to tell people on the subway how amazing a piece of tech this really is. Build customer loyalty. you won't regret it.
[G Tablet General] iamgrendle:
.I like everyone else had to join today. I just wanted to comment how this looks like the whine fest going on at xda and clearly orchestarted. This will NOT stop me from purchasing Nvidia products in the future. I know I'm in the minority but seriously, you guys need to get a life. Its a $300 tablet. quote from badfrog

this is what badfrog had to say on tegra forums. i dont know bout you guys, but im so sick of seeing this trolls posts. [begin mod edit for trolling as well and for flaming other members and using vulgar and inappropriate language - doesn't help to do the same thing that someone else does......]-----------------------------------------------[/end mod edit]
[G Tablet General] snapz54:
this is a nice, thoughtful 1st post from a new user. I appreciate what you wrote and I agree.

as for the rest of the early/first time posters in the last couple pages of the thread... rather than respond to you each individually I will simply repost what I said previously and ask that if you feel it is your place to post here in this IMPORTANT thread, you will first ACTUALLY F$%KING READ THE POST AND GET THE WHOLE STORY.

thank you.
[G Tablet General] digger44:
Long Live the G-Tab

Ultimately, companies have to answer to their customers. Viewsonic, Nvidia, Google, Malata, US Merchants. They are in business to sell and support their products. They need us for that. None can continually withstand disaffected customers... especially those with a voice... with intelligence... with buying power and most importantly... with legitimate expectations.

This is evidenced by the reactions and responses to our 'voice' already. Some, such a Google, may require a louder voice than others. We'll see how it goes with the Galaxy Tab... how much life that tab has... and how those customers would react if and when Google says 'No HC for You!' Regardless if G-Tab gets it or not.

This Android tablet space is too new, fragile and (frankly) too dependent and focused on us (Android proponents) for these companies to ignore us and still hope to have success in garnering a sustainable market share in the greater tablet universe. They don't want to lose us in that fight!

That is why we'll continue to voice our opinions and legitimate expectations while, at the same time, continuing to use, mod, root, show-off and enjoy our devices, making them better for ourselves and helping others do the same... because we want to. Period.

I use my G-Tab in work... at home... I use it all the time. I need something stable, reliable, and something that does what I want it to do, not what someone else thinks I need it to do. And I can do that already. (TNT Lite 4.3.2 w/Clemsyn 6) I don't feel compelled to move to new versions as soon as they're released... Only when it's right for me. But new and updated versions of an 'open' software platform are something I kind of expect to make it to my capable (and not inexpensive) hardware platform at some point... or why even bother with the whole 'open' thing? Support it, update it, or release the code (all the code).... simple.

Personally, I'll go to TTX or TNTL 5.x (or whatever it's called then) (and wherever it's residing then) when I see what happens with 3991, and then see what Roebeet decides to do. GB doesn't thrill me at this point and HC needs some maturing in my eyes.

Anyway... my little rant... my take on the power of our voice... The power of honest, hard work (and honest, hard criticism)... and yes, also my displeasure (and surprise) in the way XDA has handled itself with respect to Roebeet in this matter. I hope Roebeet does indeed continue to post here regardless of where he posts his Roms. There is too much of a concentration of great work and great devs here (just speaking g-tab, because that's all I know here) to not have his collaboration and insight to help move the whole thing along.

The number of people here in our G-tab forum who are not completely behind Roebeet, his work, and his efforts on behalf of our community is statistically insignificant. Literally! Statistically insignificant. (sorry if this offends anyone)

Long Live the G-Tab!

Long Live Roebeet!

Long Live XDA!
[G Tablet General] roebeet:
Quick thread hijaak

I saw the badfrog comment. He and I had words, today - I suppose that's not a secret, anymore.

I'm not frequenting the IRC as of today and that won't change, so I just want to write this: I lost my cool in the IRC today and wrote a few things to badfrog that, in hindsight, i wish I could take back (one thing, in particular - it was mean and unprofessional of me, regardless of the reasons). He's mentioned before that he's got some surgery coming up, as I recall. With that in mind, I wish him the best of luck and I hope and pray that it turns out well and that his mobility improves.

@the moderators, I would greatly appreciate it if you do not delete this post. I figure that I'm probably being closely watched for any indiscretions right now, but this is obviously not a complaint or a whine. It's just a statement.

End thread hijaak
[G Tablet General] sundar2012:
What a troll. We should get him banned from XDA.
[G Tablet General] snapz54:
well said sir.

Midnight quickly approaches....

anyone on stock see any updates???
[G Tablet General] y2k-inc:
Look how the rich man "talk"... ya! $300 maybe a toilet paper for you but for other is a full week of foods supply for a family ... wouldn't you buying a Poche to only find out 6 month later they are not going to fix your car and ship warranty elsewhere? because they don't have automobiles parts for it? Get a life yourself ... not everyone living in a dream world of your!
[G Tablet General] jerdog:
Guys - let's keep the posts on topic for the thread - no need to bash someone's thoughts or ideas - let's keep this non-personal and discuss the points of the OP. If that doesn't happen, this thread will be closed. There's no need for anymore verbal bashing of other users.

This has gotten out of hand and completely defeats the purpose of the OP, to bring attention to perceived lack of support by Viewsonic and to call on the user community to keep this device within the viewfinder of Viewsonic, and to a smaller extent nVidia.
[G Tablet General] roebeet:
As of 9:26AM ET, no change (updater is still broken). My device has been on 2967 stock for over a week, now.

Yes, I will be calling them at 12:01PM ET (they open at 12). I had a rant that I edited out yesterday, as I wanted to give them more time. But that rant is becoming more relevant now - it's becoming pretty obvious to me that they either don't have the resources or skill-sets to fix these problems. This OTA updater has been down for over a week, and repeat calls to CS have not fixed it yet.
[G Tablet General] JayMonster:
A sleep button that doesn't sleep correct all the time, sleep sucking up battery, Wi-fi disconnecting even when set to "Never", accelerometer fix that doesn't require a hack to work properly... and those are off the top of my head.

And your main points are NOT valid. This community is here for those that want to participate, but that in way gives Viewsonic the right to just abandon the product and expect those here to do their support work for them.

Viewsonic has completely screwed this up since the very beginning, and I doubt any of us would still own these things (nor would there be a dual boot, it would still be a Crap-N-Crap interface only device) without the work of the people like roebeet. It gave them a chance to turn this around, improve their reputation and build on it. Instead they seem to be dumping stock, expecting the XDA community to serve as their tech support so they can move on to their ViewPad products (and whatever else they have in their pipeline). Sorry, no matter how you shake that out, it is wrong.
[G Tablet General] GeneralSpecific:
Did you guys see the article on AndroidCentral today??
[G Tablet General] thebadfrog:
I take your words as intended and with the same respect I say the same thing. I wish I could take back what was said as well. As this is not not possible I have purposely kicked my self from irc and have asked my account be banned at XDA. I wouldn't be posting or even here if it wasn't for the wonderful love notes in my inbox. Best of luck wherever you land Roebeet. While I don't agree with you all the time you have been great for the community as a whole.

@ all you brilliant speakers........your not doing your cause or Roebeet any favors. While I don't associate your stupidity with Roebeet, I'm very flattered that you would take the time to leave me notes with your brilliant thoughts and enlightened vulgarity

Good luck again Roebeet.....this frog is out of here

EDIT: To the mods....Please leave all these wonderful comments about me alone. They don't bother me and just show the ignorance of the speaker
[G Tablet General] JayMonster:
Was just about to post a similar story up from Android Police. This at least gives us some hope... though it is still highly dependent on Viewsonic. (unless we could just get our hands on the EOL'd Dev board... muahahaha!... just kidding... sort of).
[G Tablet General] JayMonster:
Tick, Tock, Tick, Tock

Viewsonic has better get its butt in gear as the G-Tablet is Today (4/14) the Gold Box Deal of the Day on Amazon at $279.99
[G Tablet General] pr0cs:
Well, I don't know if I would agree with that. There are a few issues here

1) I don't know if Google will ever release what exists currently as Honeycomb to open source. I suspect the next 'tablet oriented' code they release will be a patched version of Honeycomb. As many people will attest, the Xoom (and similar 3.0 devices) isn't the most stable of devices, there are a lot of quirks, odd behavior and strange design choices that suggest that the OS is still a work in progress. I suspect the next version they release to open source will have a lot of fixes in it

2) If they do release the OS to open source there is nothing stopping teams from porting it to the gTablet. It may lose some of it's functionality depending on where you stand on the Nvidia driver issue. (I'm still not convinced that we'll get Gingerbread/Honeycomb hardware accelerated code). We already have Gingerbread running on the gTablet now and for 80% of the people using the tablet it works just fine, there is nothing to say that the same functionality wouldn't work under 3.0 either.
[G Tablet General] bcampbe7:
Excellent post! Well said.
[G Tablet General] smakcc:
I am with you Roebeet. I am also thinking of pawning off my G - Tablet and moving on to something else. It's a really bad feeling when you believe in a product more the inventors themselves. Goes to show, being on the "bleeding edge" will always hurt you one way or the other.
[G Tablet General] whiplash13:
I am a bit curious, have any of the ROM developers been contacted by nvidia as they stated in their reply?
[G Tablet General] thebadfrog:
Yes they have
[G Tablet General] gojimi:
Yes, we have.
[G Tablet General] pr0cs:
awesome.

Can you elaborate on what was discussed?
[G Tablet General] gojimi:
I can not... but what has been discussed does NOT include anything about HC or GB or anything of the like.... this is more of an introductions mission for both parties.
[G Tablet General] Tostino:
/incredibly happy

Would you please elaborate as much as you can on what they are willing to provide?

Edit: crap, just saw your last post :p
[G Tablet General] whiplash13:
Thanks frog and gojimi for the quick response as that is very encouraging news.
[G Tablet General] thebadfrog:
I'll let gojimis response stand on this....give it time. Things are on the right path now.
[G Tablet General] pr0cs:
Thanks for the update.

It's great news anyway and really bodes well for the future enhancements to the software/tablet.
[G Tablet General] snapz54:
viewsonic will be waiting for us to fade away, we won't.

this is my latest twitter comment:

go use your twitter account, if you don't have one go register for one. At least for the time, this medium works. They are afraid of bad twitter press, we need to make them realize we can make it bad unless they make good.
[G Tablet General] randyist:
I posted that on Twitter as well. Now do you honestly think I should Purchase a G-tablet for $280? or should I wait? i'm thinking about getting one for my mom.
[G Tablet General] thebadfrog:
It depends on what you want it for. If you walk in knowing with a little hacking it makes a damn nice Froyo tablet then it is well worth the money. The current roms are stable and it works well even with the current stock update. The screen is not pretty and if you are buying it in hopes of getting Honeycomb then just pass on it and wait for a Honeycomb tablet. For the money its damn nice as it is.
[G Tablet General] randyist:
So are you saying that it's a lower resolution for how big of a screen it has? I currently have a Galaxy Tab (sprint) and it's very clear/nice. I definitely am able to root and install roms (with the help of forums) .. I have a rooted and Rom'd Optimus S. I hope that Viewsonic listens and gets a driver working for HC. :(
[G Tablet General] dfin13:
Straight on, the screen is great. I might even say beautiful -- bright, nice colors, clear text and graphics. It's the viewing angles that kill it. Mine is propped up in a case when I'm not using it on the toilet, so it's tolerable for now.
[G Tablet General] roebeet:
x2 on that. I want more from VS and Nvidia from a software perspective, but that doesn't mean the device is bad as is. You have an abundance of mod options if you want, even if VS never makes another update again. Think about what the device can give you now versus what it might give you later.

The only hardware caveat I personally have is with the screen angles, as many of you know. But that's my personal complaint - others see no issues with them. So you'd need to think about how you'd use the tablet and tailor your expectations accordingly.
[G Tablet General] y2k-inc:
Great, great, great news :) hope now VS will contract you guy for subcontract out the ROM build instead of TnT LOL
[G Tablet General] ch3vr0n5:
This news is indeed very good and a step in the right direction but it doesnt mean anything to us if Viewsonic doesn't get their collective heads removed from their rears and bring us some quality a speedy support. Only then can we finally get a stable and fully functional froyo based rom with which to modify to our hearts content. Then maybe... just maybe we can hope for GB and even HC...

Stay vigelent!

Cheers
[G Tablet General] metrognome9:
First post!

Whew! I just got through 45 pages of this. Wow! I ordered my gTab last week from TD based on lurking here for a little while. How I missed this thread before I ordered I'm not sure. Regardless, it should arrive today.

To Roebeet and the other devs: Thank you for educating me and raising awareness for this issue. I appreciate all of the time and work the devs here put in to make ROMs that actually work. I haven't been on IRC so I don't know what went down there but I hope you don't leave. And kudos to both you and 'frog for being able to resolve your disagreement like adults. There's nothing wrong with agreeing to disagree...

Anyway, back on topic. Even after getting through this thread I think I'll probably keep the gTab when it arrives. While I haven't tried any of the ROMs yet, from what I've read I think I'll find one that does what I need. That is as long as the display angle issue doesn't make me crazy.

Take care and thanks everyone for trying to put their (VS and nV) feet to the fire!
[G Tablet General] snapz54:
x3

also, quick update:

I seem to be getting answers from viewsonic's twitter! so far to the last tweet stating they missed the first deadline for the ota, the responded:

I responded:

if anyone has "the ultimate question" you can try it yourself or post it for me as I seem to be starting a dialog. I'm @grubcatering on twitter
[G Tablet General] randyist:
Yes. Twitter seems to work best for everything. I am a dish network customer and they respond to twitter in seconds!
[G Tablet General] snapz54:
Ota back online!!!

Apparent update released!!!

Stay tuned.
[G Tablet General] DLP-ROB:
true .
[G Tablet General] mikeami:
Please do not think this is over.

"NVIDIA provides support until the hardware partner chooses to no longer support the device."

It is evident that VS is backing away from this device, and we need to KEEP pressure on them to support it(!) or else Nvidia will stop it's support of the G Tablet version of their hardware.

Great thanks to everyone who has taken action in this cause, and place this thread in your bookmarks and check back OFTEN. If VS lets this product wither in the vine we need to get radical again.
[G Tablet General] Naysses:
Anybody could post an update.zip stock rom, please?

I got my gtab stuck on apx (like tccrews had it) and I need an stock rom update.zip to apply a fix that I found posted here.

Thanks in advance.