IBM may acquire embedded software powerhouse Wind River, according to rumors originating in the blogosphere, and a statement issued by Wind River competitor Enea. Wind River stock yesterday rose about a dollar per share, or 10 percent, in advance of the rumor hitting. Wind River has denied the rumor, however. (more…)

Linux started out on desktops and servers, but has now shipped on about 20 million mobile phones. Ever wonder how it made the jump? In a new whitepaper, embedded industry pioneer Jim Ready offers a concise technical retrospective on Linux's transition into a mobile phone OS. (more…)

Embedded board-maker Arcom has introduced its first SODIMM-sized single-board computer (SBC). The “Quantum” is based on a Marvell XScale PXA270 processor, and is available with an embedded Linux image preinstalled in onboard flash. (more…)

A U.K.-based embedded software consultancy says it recently implemented a Linux driver and other software for a marine-based military application involving high-speed, fiber-optic networking. Pebble Bay Consulting Ltd. says it helped U.K.-based defense contractor Kaon implement an “embedded Linux” solution for an unspecified military… (more…)

Jeff Campbell (aka “Mr. Zonbu”) has updated the blog chronicling his experiences with Zonbu, a mini-sized Linux-powered network computer for home users. The latest posting, based on two weeks with the device, finds Campbell happy but still full of suggestions. (more…)

Sonos has integrated Sirius radio playback into its Linux-powered whole-house audio equipment. The commercial-free service can be trialed for 30 days by selecting a menu option on the Sonos Digital Music System's PDA-like controller (pictured at left), the company said. (more…)

Foreword — This article traces Linux's transformation into one of the most popular mobile phone environments today. It was written by Jim Ready, founder and CTO of MontaVista — and arguably one of the most important pioneers in the market for off-the-shelf commercial embedded operating systems. (more…)

Stealth Computer Corp. has introduced a mini-PC roughly the size of a hard cover novel, measuring 10 x 5.87 x 2.75 inches. Despite its compactness, the LPC-350PCI includes a PCI slot for “specialized I/O, video, data acquisition, and communications cards,” the company said. (more…)

Several device-oriented products familiar to LinuxDevices readers came away from last week's LinuxWorld Expo with product excellence awards. Winners included Trolltech's Qtopia Greenphone SDK (software development kit), Unicon's System-on-Display hardware reference design, and Coverity's online… (more…)

A seven-year-old, dual-licensed project for cross-platform multimedia middleware has achieved its first stable release. Motama's NMM (network-integrated multimedia middleware) 1.0 lets developers build distributed, heterogeneous multimedia applications with advanced features like synchronized whole-house digital media distribution… (more…)

A small processor module based on a Freescale i.MX31IL processor is now supported by embedded Linux support services provider TimeSys. Subscribers to TimeSys's LinuxLink service for the i.MX31 now have access to a reference distribution for Atmark-Techno's Armadillo-500. (more…)

DesktopLinux.com launched its 2007 Desktop Linux Survey on August 13, asking users of Linux desktops to identify what distributions they use, as well as their choice of windowing environment (KDE, GNOME, etc.), web browsers, email clients, and Windows-on-Linux solutions. (more…)

A project aimed at building a Linux distribution for media center PCs has achieved a major new release. LinuxMCE 0704 is based on Kubuntu, and offers lots of flashy features, such as whole-house high-definition video distribution, optional alpha-blended graphics, gyroscopic remote control, and much more. (more…)

Adlink has released a compact CPU board claimed compliant with version 3.02 of Kontron's ETX “computer-on-module” form-factor spec. The ETX-GLX is based on an AMD Geode LX 800 processor, offers optional HDTV output, supports Linux, and targets applications requiring “a long production life,” the company said. (more…)

Now that electromechanical specs and compliance tests are available for PCI Express (PCIe) 2.0, the PCI-SIG (special interest group) has outlined a forthcoming version 3.0 specification designed to support up to 8GT/s (gigatransfers per second). PCIe 2.0 compliant products are expected this year, followed by PCIe 3.0 products in 2010. (more…)