Wine is an emulation layer that makes it possible to run some Windows programs on Linux or Mac computers. And eventually Wine may also let you run Windows software on some Android or Chrome OS devices.
That’s because Wine’s developers are working to bring code developed for CrossOver for Android to the free and open source Wine software.
Initially the goal had been to merge the code in time for the release of Wine 2.0, which launches in the next month or two. But Android support has been pushed back.
CrossOver for Android running on a Chromebook
There are some limitations to the way CrossOver for Android works, and they’ll carry through to Wine for Android.
Only devices with Intel processors will be supported, for example… and since there aren’t very many Android phones or tablets with Intel chips, that means Wine for Android will probably be most useful for Chromebooks that support Android apps. It also helps that those devices are more likely to have keyboards and touchpads, since most Windows software is designed for those forms of input.
Improvements that are expected to make it into Wine 2.0 include better support for DirectX and for the Windows “human interface device” or HID layer for recognizing keyboards, gamepads, and other input devices.
–
