Embedded Linux Consortium Officially Launched 35
Joshua Lamorie writes: "Rick Lehrbaum, the guy behind www.linuxdevices.com, and involved with the PC/104 Consortium has put together a group of heavy hitters from both the embedded world and the Linux world. The press release came out today, and lists the committee members. Also, on the Web site, there are archives of discussions about the creation of the ELC. This adds to the growing excitement about Linux in embedded systems over the past couple of months."
Great! (Score:2)
BTW, it's the APIs I'm worried about, not the kernel. The interoperability of the core kernel across no less than 9 platforms has convinced me that Linus, Alan, and all the other kernel developers can do portability very well.
Embedded Linux (Score:4)
robr ~:$ telnet microwave.lan
Trying 10.31.33.7...
Connected to microwave.lan
Escape character is '^]'.
login: root
password:
root@nuker ~:# cook 10s cold_pizza
root@nuker ~:# logout
Connection closed.
Full Text of Release (Score:2)
Mar. 09, 2000
San Jose, CA -- (press release) -- Responding to the rising tide of interest in using the Linux operating system in embedded applications, representatives from dozens of embedded technology firms today announced formation of the Embedded Linux Consortium, or ELC, a vendor-neutral trade association dedicated to the advancement of Linux-based solutions in embedded applications. Today's announcement resulted from an organizational meeting held at the Embedded Systems Conference in Chicago, March 1, by representatives from nearly 50 companies.
During the organizational meeting, the group established a formation committee, appointed interim leadership and adopted an aggressive timetable for formally instituting the ELC as a highly proactive embedded Linux advocacy organization. Funds for the ELC's operation will be based on a schedule of annual dues, which will be developed in the next 30 days. At the meeting, over $100,000 was pledged towards initial funding. Rick Lehrbaum was named interim chairman and Murry Shohat was appointed interim executive director. Lehrbaum is known for his work in establishing the PC/104 Consortium. Shohat is a marketing consultant with extensive trade association experience.
"The initial intentions for the ELC are very clear," said interim chairman Lehrbaum. "Linux is now the fastest growing operating system for server applications. The embedded computer market -- which absorbs more than 95% of all microcomputer chips minted each year - is the next frontier. In essence, the goal of the ELC will be to amplify the depth, breadth, and speed of Linux adoption in the enormous embedded computer market."
Linus Torvalds, creator of Linux, said "this new Embedded Linux Consortium is an expression of the current explosion of interest in using Linux in thousands of specialized embedded, mobile, and appliance applications. The ELC provides a valuable resource in advancing the growing use of Linux in embedded applications, an area where Linux can provide enormous benefit."
Paul Zorfass, senior analyst with IDC/FTI, said "Linux has shown the strongest market share growth rate in the bandwidth- and performance-driven server market. Linux is now beginning to establish a presence in the diverse embedded market where its reliability, modularity, scalability, configurability and low cost are extremely attractive. The new Embedded Linux Consortium comes at just the right moment to aid in accelerating the emerging trend of using Linux as the OS within a wide range of intelligent appliances and embedded systems."
The broad corporate participation in the ELC organizational meeting underscores the exploding interest in using Linux in a wide range of embedded applications and intelligent appliances. The organization will serve to facilitate development of common messages on using Linux in the fast-emerging world of Internet appliances, unattended systems, wireless access, home networks, set-top boxes, and a myriad of other embedded system applications. "Because Linux is open source, it lowers critical barriers of cost, time and risk, making it an ideal software platform for embedded applications," said Lehrbaum.
Formation committee members, representing firms ranging from startups to Global 500 computer hardware and software companies, include Accelent Systems Inc.; Aisys Inc.; Cendio Systems; Centura Software Corporation; Coollogic; IBM; Infomatec IAS GmbH; Lineo; LinuxDevices.com; Lynx Real-time Systems, Inc.; Microtronix Datacom Ltd.; MontaVista Software, Inc.; Moreton Bay; Motorola Computer Group; NewMonics, Inc.; OpenSystems Publishing; QNX Software Systems Ltd.; Red Hat, Inc.; TimeSys Corporation; Transvirtual Technologies, Inc.; Troll Tech; Wind River Systems, Inc.
A membership application is located * here *. For membership and general information, please contact Murry Shohat at 707-576-0111, or murry@sonic.net.
Want to work at Transmeta? Hedgefund.net? Priceline?
The deceased was found . . . (Score:1)
. . . with a Linux embedded in the rear quarter-panel of his skull, lying face-down in the bathroom. Inspector Malvolio squatted on his tail and observed the remains from a low angle. There could be no clear motive, he thought, as the victim was clearly a dwarf. Lost in thought, he pondered the carpet: Atrocious. Perhaps that was the motive. If so, acquittal was assured.
But perhaps not.
Perhaps it was not an act of justice, but merely a crime of passion. Perhaps the cowbells, triangles, and woodblocks scattered around the apartment were the key to the whole affair. Perhaps, again, questions should be asked of the unidentified, masked guest even now wiping blood from his hands on a towel. The towel was atrocious. Again, motive? Or coincidence? It was all but unknowable. The Inspecter grew weary of his job. What did it all matter, really?
Inspector Malvolio wrapped his tail around his legs and scratched a loose scale. Soon he would molt, and then he would estivate. The Guest was molting already, in a refined and unobtrusive way.
"Dear Guest . .
[to be continued]
another specialized portal (Score:2)
Some of the articles I have seen her on /., or linuxtoday.
I wish that they had more information on the boards and devices themselves. I am looking for small solutions. I'd love to have a few small computers on my desk each running a different OS. It really only is a new portal.
I have found some interesting things on there site though that may actually seperate them from the rest. They actually show hardware for embedded devices. I will definately be looking into this for my tiny devices needs.
send flames > /dev/null
Emb. Linux, Committee members, & stuff (Score:1)
Re:Embedded Linux (Score:2)
Even better, it's Lehrbaum. (Score:2)
This means that Embedded Linux will fragment freely, as it must to fill adjacent niches, but it won't fracture.
above is funny funny! mod up! (Score:2)
You need to mount the magnetron, load the turntable motor control values, enable them both
yeah, but you could write a perl script to cook a whole dinner. you'd need one of them hacked barney dolls to put food into the nuker and take it out again. or fucking aibo. no doubt you could drag legos into it and set up a whole bank of nukers as a beowulf cluster
some idiot will run a web server on his microwave. and slashdot will run a story about it.
...positive experience with a recruiter? (Score:1)
Re:The deceased was found . . . (Score:1)
Re:...positive experience with a recruiter? (Score:1)
Catalyst Recruiting is not a recruiting agency, we are a database company. We maintain a database of candidates for jobs, and provide employers with advanced search tools to find the candidates that best meet their needs. Thus, we do NOT promote anybody to anybody else, rather we provide an information service.
Want to work at Transmeta? Hedgefund.net? Priceline?
...a better choice of words... (Score:2)
cool (Score:1)
rbf aka pulsar
Re:Embedded Linux (Score:1)
I'm surprised someone hasn't sacrificed an old 486 to do this yet! Some newer microwaves already come with a fancy LCD panel that can display simple bitmap graphics and stuff. X would be a little rough on it, but I'm sure it could be done. You might want to add a robotic arm that can reach over to the fridge and grab your pizza, so you don't even have to get up until it's ready. The only problem I see is AOL cds mysteriously vanishing from the pile in the corner and somehow ending up nuking themselves...
This is a godsend... (Score:2)
Many people only know about the Microsoft that dominates the desktop and server OS markets, but don't realize that they're also working VERY hard to take over the embedded systems market. At the low end (sorta), there's CE (or pocket Windows or whatever), and at the high end, there's Embedded NT, which finally launched a month or two ago.
I can see how MS has been so successful - the embedded industry is very fragmented, and the tools are often quite archaic.
I happen to use a non-MS RTOS that I quite like, but I've seen the company that sells it sink and suffer ever since MS arrived on the block. I'm worried about what to do if/when MS stomps them out of existence. It doesn't help when the PHB asks why we can't just use Windows for the OS in our product (reason one: 3MB RAM available).
I've been following the embedded linux buzz for the past year or so, and I see it as a savior to hundreds of developers who are in the same position that I'm in.
= = = = = = = = = == = = = = = = = = = = =
PS - Any programmers with embedded and/or linux experience lookin' for work in the North SF Bay area? Contact me at "glonq at hotmail dot com".
Re:Embedded Linux (Score:1)
Embedded Linux - wrong answer? (Score:4)
There's a real need for an open-source real-time protected-mode operating system, but Linux, or any UNIX variant, isn't it. L4 [tu-dresden.de] has real potential, but it's not finished yet. Already you can run Linux on top of L4. If you're into embedded open-source real-time, get behind L4 and push.
Definition of REAL TIME (Score:1)
With absolutely no missed ones.
REAL TIME does NOT mean fast. Known timing is the goal.
No Unix was written with that goal in mind, therefore the original post was right.
Please consider moderating the original post up!
Best regards,
Niels Krisian Jensen
Denmark.
P.S: Linux will still be a good platform for the larger part of most systems, which is not real time critical, e.g. HMI (Human-Machine Interface).
ELKS? (Score:2)
What about ELKS [soton.ac.uk]? It's probably the oldest of the 'embeddable' Linux projects, but you don't see any press releases mentioning it.
Re:Full Text of Release (Score:2)
I missed this when I looked at the www.linuxdevices.com page (I just had my morning coffee and the caffine hasn't kicked in yet). This is damn good news: the company I work for signed a large-ish contract with Wind River over a year ago. At that time, we asked about support for Wind River tools under Linux (i.e. hosting Tornado development under Linux). At that time, we were told "it's in the works, it'll be here RSN". Great! We can get rid of our WinNT boxes. Guess what? No Linux support for Tornado yet.
Tornado, for those of you how aren't embedded software developers, is Wind River's development toolset for their real time OS, VxWorks. IMHO, having worked with both Linux and VxWorks, VxWorks is great for a) Hard real-time (I must service this interrupt in 150 nsec DAMMIT) or b) small devices (tens of kBytes to hundreds of k). However, when you do the embedded megabyte monsters I do, VxWorks tops out and won't do the job. Also, I've had problems getting WRS to solve issues with their code. My next project will be Linux based for the GUI side.
The point of all this is that I'm surprise that WRS would support Linux moving into the embedded market at a target: whether they believe it or not, Linux is a competitor to VxWorks.
Re:Embedded Linux - wrong answer? (Score:1)
Linux will be well suited for folks who need decent, non-deterministic performance, who want to avoid stinky, proprietary dev tools, and who want to save a few bucks.
The last time I checked, the licence fees for QNX were at least 10x those of Lineo's Embedix (haven't checked out Blue Cat or any other embedded linuxes yet, though.)
Re:Embedded Linux - wrong answer? (Score:1)
-tim
Linux too general for embedded devices? Perhaps... (Score:2)
Linux may work well for cable boxes, digital video recorders, and PDAs but can it run a FibreChannel adapter? How about a realtime system to be used in manufacturing? I think that it can do it but each of these situations and many others require so much customization that it begs the question, "Why not just do it from scratch?"
Embedded Windows? Only in toys (Score:2)