Canonical working on Android emulator for Ubuntu

Android enthusiasts, developers or just plain curious sorts might find this interesting. Canonical is working on an execution environment for Android software to run inside an Ubuntu system, bringing all its applications to the desktop. The increasingly-popular mobile platform has seen a lot of speculation regarding its future, including plans to bring it to netbooks or other non-phone devices, and this seems like a firm step in that direction.


Eventually Canonical plans to publish the environment, along with its corresponding source code, for any Linux user to tinker with it. At such an early stage, they've produced little to note, but it makes you wonder if there are other developers working on similar projects behind closed doors. With the line between smartphones and desktops getting thinner, and given the open nature of Android, I can imagine a lot of people would find this interesting. Any increased awareness in Android is going to be beneficial from Google's perspective, and this is doubly true since the launch of their app store, which will need a lot of developer support to become strong.