Foreword — In this tutorial whitepaper, the co-founder, CTO, and “chief coffee drinker” of Isreali development firm Codefidence explains how to instrument x86-based systems to measure boot latency. Author Gilad Ben-Yossef supplies helpful code snippets and great advice to help any x86 device or PC boot faster. (more…)

Foreword: This paper describes a small, Utah-based company overcoming several hardware and software challenges to create an advanced Linux-based camera. Based on an 200MHz Axis ETRAX FS and an FPGA, Elphel's modular 353 camera, combined with several new expansion modules, can now capture geo-tagged video to CompactFlash or 1.8-inch drives. (more…)

Foreword — This detailed, fact-filled editorial lays out the facts surrounding Nokia's announced intention to buy out its partners and release Symbian to open source. Author Andreas Constantinou, one of the smartest new voices commenting on the wireless market, then looks at what the news really means for the industry. Enjoy . . . ! (more…)

A company called Fiire is shipping a home automation, media control, and security system based on the open source LinuxMCE distro. Built around a dual-core AMD Athlon X2-based box called the Fiire Engine, the Fiire system also includes FiireStation thin clients and a Z-Wave-based FiireChief controller. (more…)

Foreword — This whitepaper compares four approaches to storing program code on flash memory, including eXecute-in-place (XIP), fully shadowed, demand paging, and “balanced” XIP. It concludes that the latter approach can save Flash and RAM while lowering launch time, especially when used with the AXFS (advanced XIP filing system). (more…)

Foreword: This article was contributed by an embedded product development consulting firm that often works with Linux. It outlines the role that chip vendor-supplied evaluation kits play in determining time-to-evaluation and ultimately time-to-market, with a candid appraisal of the kits available from three specific chip vendors. (more…)

Foreword — This hands-on review compares and contrasts two computing appliances that run Linux on Via C7-M processors. The Zonbu Zonbook and the gOS Cloudbook are both manufactured by Everex, and cost about the same up-front, but that's where the resemblances end, our reviewer found. (more…)

AlertMe.com is shipping a ZigBee-based security system centered on a Linux-driven Hub. The AlertMe system includes a variety of sensors, fobs, and other devices that link up via wireless ZigBee connections to the Hub, which in turn reports back to AlertMe.Com's servers and the customer. (more…)

In an interview about two weeks ago with LinuxDevices, Wind River CMO John Bruggeman sounded positively cocky about his company's fortunes. And as usual, the veteran marketer shared plenty of interesting real-world observations — along with healthy helpings of the expected marketing spin. (more…)

In an interview with LinuxDevices, MontaVista's new president and CEO Russell “Rusty” Harris said the company expects growth in a diverse array of markets, not only carrier-grade and mobile segments. (more…)

This hands-on review looks at a small, silent, inexpensive PC based Via's slowest, lowest-powered chip. The Icop eBox-4300 is small enough to piggyback on VESA-compliant monitors, yet actually performs well enough under Linux for desktop use, says reviewer and small-PC enthusiast Eric House. (more…)

Foreword — This informal mini-interview with Glenn Henry, president of Via's CenTaur processor division, took place a few days before the unveiling of Via's “Isaiah” architecture. Henry discusses Isaiah's technical merits, market positioning, and competitive prospects against current and future offerings from… (more…)

Veracity UK Ltd used Linux to build a tiny, rugged, low-powered master reference clock server primarily aimed at surveillance camera networks. Based on an embedded computer little larger than an Ethernet connector, the TimeNet runs a GPS-synchronized Stratum-1 NTP Ethernet server, for “evidential-level” timestamping… (more…)

Convergent Living used Linux to build a WiFi-capable automation controller aimed at letting users control HVAC and multimedia equipment in homes or offices. The handheld Companion Muse is one of several energy-efficient, Linux-based touchscreen controllers from Convergent, whose products range from kitchen computers to… (more…)

LinuxDevices.com is pleased to publish an overview and papers from the Ninth Real-Time Linux Workshop held in Linz, Austria, Nov. 2-3, 2007. The papers, available for free download without registration, span a broad range of topics, ranging from fundamental real-time technologies to… (more…)