Mobile Python: Rapid Prototyping of Applications on the Mobile Platform

1.4. What Are Symbian OS, S60 and Python for S60?

Symbian OS is an operating system designed for mobile devices. It includes associated libraries, user interface frameworks and reference implementations of common tools. As a descendant of Psion's EPOC, it runs exclusively on ARM processors. Symbian OS APIs are publicly available and anyone can develop software for Symbian OS.

S60 is a software platform for mobile phones based on Symbian OS. It is Nokia's user interface framework that runs on all Nokia S60 devices on top of Symbian OS. S60 is one of the leading smartphone platforms in the world. It is developed by Nokia, which licenses it to other manufacturers including Lenovo, LG Electronics, Panasonic and Samsung. S60 consists of a suite of libraries and standard applications based on Symbian OS APIs.

Python is a dynamic object-oriented, open-source, computer-programming language. It can be used for many kinds of software development, for instance, to create stand-alone programs, scalable server software or small scripts – Python's roles are virtually unlimited. Python was created by Guido van Rossum and is distributed under an OSI-approved, open-source license that makes it free to use, even for commercial products.

Python is often used for prototyping and teaching introductory programming classes. It can be learned in a few days and offers strong support for integration with other languages and tools. Python comes with an extensive standard library, thus its slogan is 'Python ...