Hitachi describes its “VisionPlate wireless tablet” as being “designed to provide a simple and solid graphic wireless interface to any network application and is a true 'Thin Client' device.” According to Hitachi, the device, which does not require special pen or stylus for use, was designed the VisionPlate tablet to be both attractive and rugged, so that it can be used in a wide range of commercial and… (more…)

PRISMIQ recently introduced the PRISMIQ MediaPlayer, a device which the company says represents the first instance of a new consumer device category — the “networked entertainment gateway.” Priced at just $250, the Linux-powered gadget delivers audio and video media files, obtained from either home PCs or the Internet, to TVs and stereos. (more…)

IR Data (Irvine, CA) recently unveiled a Linux-based portable wireless server at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. Dubbed the Wireless Zone, IR Data's new gadget takes advantage of Linux, Apache, and other open source technologies to creates its own 802.11b wireless (WiFi) hot zone, within which it can deliver web pages, demonstrations, presentations, and other data to other… (more…)

The Equinox ESP-2 MI is a compact, 2-port serial hub that offers IP-based LAN connectivity to systems and devices which have serial ports, but lack direct network interfaces. Equinox expects the device, which uses embedded Linux as its internal operating system, to be popular in industrial/manufacturing environments, which are increasingly migrating away from proprietary “fieldbus” interfaces, toward… (more…)

LinuxDevices.com technical editor Jerry Epplin takes a look at SnapGear's award-winning uClinux-based VPN appliances from the perspective of a developer's ability to customize them — and in the process, becomes a uClinux convert . . . (more…)

Executive summary

This paper presents a case that mature, reliable Open Source Software (OSS) embedded development tools, popularly know as GNU Tools, are ready to be widely adopted as a business strategy and a solution to software tools obsolescence, vendor lock-in, and vanishing manufacturing sources as applied to embedded systems in complex, long lifecycle embedded computer systems that… (more…)

A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn in no other way.
— Mark Twain

I strongly believe that we learn best by doing, that what you know is a synthesis between what you have studied and what you have accomplished. (more…)

The Embedded Linux Consortium (ELC) has just released the ELC Platform Specification (ELCPS). As an active member of the Embedded Linux Consortium's Platform Specification Working Group, I invite all interested to carefully study the specification. (more…)

I started Hacom in November of 2002 to distribute the OpenBrick hardware platforms in the US. OpenBrick is a new kind of low-cost fan-less small computer targeting the Open Source / Free Software community, mainly Linux, FreeBSD, and OpenBSD. (more…)

LinuxDevices.com is pleased to publish the proceedings from the Fourth Real-Time Linux Workshop held December 6-7, 2002 in Boston, MA at the Computer Science Department, Boston University. The conference was organized by the Real-Time Linux Foundation. (more…)

This article addresses a perceived need that has arisen with the rather sudden proliferation of embedded systems that deploy full fledged operating systems, such as Linux. The intent is to initiate a discussion in hopes of eventually meeting the perceived need. The hope is that this is really an opportunity for the embedded Linux community. (more…)

Foreword: LocustWorld recently announced a hardware/software implementation of an open access point platform capable of meeting the needs of community networks. The system is available for purchase as a ready-to-go system (the “MeshBox”), or the software can be freely downloaded from LocustWorld's website. (more…)

What's a Terapin mine and what can I do with it?

The Terapin “mine” is a hand-held, Internet-enabled, personal data storage and record/playback device intended to meet a variety of professional or personal digital data needs. The simple-to-use Linux-powered device provides enough storage capacity in its built-in 10 gigabyte hard drive to hold thousands of digital photographs and audio… (more…)

Background

About a year ago I wrote an article which was published by LinuxDevices.com, and after it was mentioned on Slashdot my company (Elphel Inc. (more…)

Background

Previous articles in this series have examined some commercial toolkits available for embedding Linux. The products from Lineo, MontaVista, (more…)