It’s been a few years in the making, but Google’s Fuchsia OS is starting to materialize. Indie developer Dahlia OS announced, via Tweet, that they released a nifty emulator to let you try out the software for yourself. Like with every 3rd party OS emulator, there are caveats and additional steps to take.
The Fuchsia OS emulator is called FImage and it requires Linux
It’s called FImage, and its main selling point is its simplicity and speed. It doesn’t require you digging into your computer’s code or uprooting the software. It’s a simple emulator that can run on top of your pre-existing software. So, if you’re worried about bricking your device or damaging it, you’ll be fine.
In order to get things started off, there are a few hoops that you need to jump through. Firstly, this is specifically for computers, so no phones or tablets. The computer also needs to be running Linux. We’re not sure if Dahlia OS is working on a version that can run on other operating systems.
Your computer also needs to have adequate specs. It’s recommended that you have at least 8 GB of RAM. If you have a dedicated GPU, then you’ll need an Intel processor released after 2010. If you don’t have a dedicated GPU, then you’re going to need a 4th generation Intel processor. You’ll need Ubuntu 20.04, and up-to-date graphics drivers.
If your computer has the right software and specs, then you can go ahead and get started. You’ll have to download the files from Dahlia OS’s Github. Once they are on your computer, you’ll then have to run a few simple terminal commands. The commands are listed in the folder that you download.
Don’t expect to do much with FImage
Once you have the software compiled and running on your computer, you’ll see a pretty vacant landscape. This because the purpose of FImage is for developers to take a look at the software. It’s not meant to be anyone’s main OS. Fuchsia OS itself is still a work in progress. It was recently released to a few original Nest Hub users, and that’s pretty much it.
There are a few drawbacks and technical issues that arise when using FImage. Firstly, the mouse input is laggy, which will most likely annoy most users. If your computer is using a software GPU, the performance will be terrible throughout. The terminal application within Ermine will crash. There’s also “Extreme jank” on Ivy Bridge devices using host GPU.
