Mobile platforms were another theme at the O'Reilly Open Source Conference last week. Attendees heard from representatives touting Intel's Moblin, the LiMo Foundation, Google's Android and even Sun Microsystems' JavaFX Mobile platform, which is in development. InfoWorld's Paul Krill reported Tuesday that even the iPhone played a (small) role:

The iPhone attracted attention at the conference. An audience member during a morning keynote presentation event asked why the open source world has not done anything as "insanely great" as iPhone.

Sun Microsystems' Tim Bray mentioned the iPhone in an OSCON interview, noting that he was disappointed in the mobile market as a whole because the iPhone, which is surrounded by a tightly closed ecosystem, is the only mobile device widely used to surf the Web. Bray also expressed disappointment with the Android platform, Krill said. Bray noted that the project "lacks transparency" and releases thus far have not offered much. Krill also noted that Bray hopes the JavaFX Mobile platform will be an open, "encumbrance free" alternative to the iPhone.

Speaking at the Open Mobile Exchange session, Linux Foundation Executive Director Jim Zemlin pointed out that improvements in real-time tech are relevant to mobile devices and that changes addressing power consumption could mean longer battery life.