[Nolug] Android phone apps for Linux cmdline geeks

Hi, All,

Hopefully, there are some Linux geeks on this list that may be able to
offer some guidance for me. For the following, assume I do not have a
G**gle account of any type. Sorry for all the rambling, but I have so
many questions.

I just acquired my very first Android phone and I am looking for some
apps to set up as much of my usual Linux environment as possible without
actually rooting the device (that may come later). Also, being a rather
old-fashioned type, I'm not especially anxious to turn my whole life
over to G**gle simply to be able to make use of the basic features of my
phone (at least not just yet, and maybe never).

I am looking both for the standard PIM apps (Calendar, Contacts, Memos)
as well as some more specialized Linux apps (ssh client and server, bash
shell, terminal emulator, ftp, tar, zip, etc.). Are there any
reasonable PIM apps that do not require a G**gle account? Are there any
basic Linux apps that do not require rooting the device? If so, any
recommendations?

Is Google Play safe to use, or is there a safe way to use it? It seems
to be the only place to go for downloading apps. It appears to be very
commercially oriented, at least as compared to the N810 Maemo store, and
I find it rather difficult to find what I am looking for when browsing
it. I am mostly used to using Open Source software and open software
repositories, and find the highly commercial orientation of Google Play
to be very distracting. Any tips?

It seems that most of the base software on the phone is oriented
toward running everything through G**gle's servers as a "convenience"
function. Everything becomes a G**gle search for something (and, of
course, adding all of my info to their marketing engine). I'd like to
avoid that as much as possible. The younger ones tell me to quit
fighting it, that it's inevitable anyway. However, this old fart is not
about to just roll over and die. But I would like to be able to make
some informed, wise choices in that area.

On all of my current Linux (and Windows) devices, I am, e.g., running
Firefox as a browser and have it configured with plugins to block
annoying ads, limit javascript, block flash, etc., and have a much more
pleasant browsing experience as a result. I am also running the "Iron"
browser (based on Chromium) on one of my systems, but find it much less
configurable to my liking than Firefox and not as usable for my
purposes. The Android browser seems to have no configurability at all.
Are there any useful alternatives?

My most recent pocket Linux device is a Nokia N810 Internet Tablet. It
was under powered when I first got it, and it seems even slower now.
However, it runs a number of apps that I find invaluable in everyday
use. I'd like to get as many of those or equivalents as possible for my
Android device which appears to have more than enough horsepower to run
anything I might throw at it. I'd like to be able to make better use of
the phone than to be limited to making calls, texting, and playing
games.

For reference, I have a Samsung Galaxy Note II with Verizon as the
carrier and, yes, for better or worse, the most recent OTA has been
installed.

Thanks!

--Phil

-- 
Philip Amadeo Saeli
openSUSE, RHEL, CentOS
On the North Shore
psaeli@zorodyne.com
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