# Kindle OS Programming Language?



## kindlematt (Mar 1, 2013)

Which programming language does the Kindle use for the OS?


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Hmmm. . . . that's a good question. . . . .early models were, I believe, based somehow on linux.  But I might be wrong about that -- it's not something I ever paid close attention to.  As long as it works, I'm happy. 

There's another forum, mobileread.com, where a lot more techie types hang out.  We're the BEST, site, of course.  but the folks there are very helpful with theses sorts of questions.


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## hamerfan (Apr 24, 2011)

Unsure of the programming language used, but here's a cool teardown video of the PW by a KB member here:


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## Mike D. aka jmiked (Oct 28, 2008)

kindlematt said:


> Which programming language does the Kindle use for the OS?


I'm not sure what you are asking. The OS itself is a combination of Assembly and C. Programs can be written in any one of a number of languages.

Mike


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## marianneg (Nov 4, 2008)

What exactly is the reason for your question? Are you looking to write apps for Kindles? The Kindle Fires use a forked version of Android, so Android apps (which are written with a particular Java API) should work on them with little to no modification. E-ink Kindles run a custom OS based on a Linux kernel. To write apps for them, you will need to apply to be a developer at http://kdk.amazon.com/, which is apparently still in beta after several years.


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## Guest (Mar 16, 2013)

Kindlematt,

Kindle OS is based on Linux.

Kindle eInk OS was based on Linux.
Kindle Fire OS is a skinned version of Android, which is also based on Linux.

*****
As other have pointed out, you need to know Java to write apps for either.

Kindle Fire Apps use Android but have their own APP Store which has some slight differences. Android uses Java. You can use Eclipse and then Android SDK Add-on for it.

Kindle eInk Apps use Java too. But not Android. For them you have to use Kindle App SDK and add that to Eclipse.

You can send me a direct message if you have specific questions. We've made apps for both.


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