The CyanogenMod founder, Steve Kondik, has found new work, thanks to Samsung. This was the man who gave the world the most popular “unapproved” Android ROM. Having a good programming skill set is a plus in today’s world and Steve Kondik is a prime example. He was the person to give the mobile realm the “quick fix” they wanted when their smartphone was left behind by Google Android fragmentation. Samsung has wised up and given him a job doing what he is very good at; writing code for Android.
Those who like to have control over their smartphone instead of their phone have control over them, have turned to the CyanogenMod custom ROM. It has been a way to get the most modern version of Android on your smartphone instead of having to wait for a cell carrier or other company to bring along an update. Android has features that the CyanogenMod ROM opens up for those users who want things like a FM radio. It will only work if their device supports it, but a rooted (jailbroken) Nexus One with FM radio is just one example of what the CyanogenMod software can accomplish.
For now, the last edition of Android is version 2.3, also called Gingerbread. CyanogenMod calls this their “CyanogenMod 7″ version. They are enjoying providing their extra, custom code in Android to help release users from the restrictions that some cell carriers place on smartphones. The custom sections are written by Steve Kondik, for the most part. The community at XDA forums also provide some help on the side. Samsung will be employing the expertise of Kondik in the position of “software engineer”. So far, no formal word from Samsung has taken place. The facebook page for Kondik was the source for the news.
The Samsung team will probably not be dumping their OEM versions of Android for the CyanogenMod version. They will also probably not be dumping the Bada version of their mobile operating system software. Samsung is a major seller of smartphones in Europe and the United States. They outsell Nokia in Europe and are on par with Apple in some respects. Getting on the Samsung team is a notable achievement for Steve Kondik. The only detail about what he will be doing is from his own words; “I will be making Android more awesome.”. Google has sent Kondik some cease and desist letters in the past for his inclusion of gmail and other Google-specific software in his version of Android. It looks like he will not have to worry about that anymore.
