ABI Research reports that a group of 20 RFID vendors has formed a “patent pool” consortium with the intention of offering easier access to RFID intellectual property. Existing industry groups that license MPEG and DVD technology are said to have provided the model for the new consortium, according to ABI. (more…)

This whitepaper introduces “Micromonitor” (aka “uMon”), a mature open source boot monitor and boot loader that recently achieved its first stable release. The paper was written by uMon creator Ed Sutter, and covers uMon's features, capabilities, typical uses, and APIs, before listing new features in version 1.0. (more…)

An embedded Linux services company with offices near both coasts has gained another top LinuxPPC developer. Matt Porter, who maintains the Linux kernel for 400-series PPC chips, will join Embedded Alley Solutions Inc., which previously hired LinuxPPC-on-Motorola guru Dan Malek. Porter will work from Chandler, Ariz., according to the company. (more…)

Foreword: After writing code for booting dozens of different hardware platforms on numerous embedded operating systems (including VxWorks, Nucleus, pSOS, uC/OS, among others), Ed Sutter decided to develop a common boot platform for embedded devices. (more…)

An inexpensive house-brand 802.11b/g wireless router from Fry's (Outpost.com) has been adopted by a group of device hackers that aims to make Fry's “AirLink” devices as capable as name-brand gadgets. The AirLink101 AR315W is based on a Marvell ARM914 board, has a six-port 10/100 Ethernet switch, and can run Linux or eCos…. (more…)

Opengear demonstrated an open source KVM (keyboard-mouse-video) reference design at LinuxWorld in San Francisco this week. The company hopes the design will help bring the open source paradigm to what founder Bob Waldie describes as “the last remaining remote management technology with no open source… (more…)

Rajant Corp.'s Linux-powered BreadCrumbs are small, rugged, battery-powered, mobile wireless mesh repeaters/routers capable of instantly establishing meshed 802.11b wireless networks. They're aimed at military, police, fire, paramedic, and emergency-service uses, and can be deployed on moving vehicles on the ground and in the air. (more…)

Rajant Corp.'s Linux-powered BreadCrumbs are small, rugged, battery-powered, self-configuring, mobile wireless mesh repeaters/routers capable of instantly establishing meshed 802.11b wireless networks. They're aimed at military, police, fire, paramedic, rescue, and emergency-service uses, and can be deployed on moving vehicles on the… (more…)

Parasoft has updated its C/C++ code test suite. C++Test 6.5 includes enhancements to code analysis and unit testing functions, adds platform and team support features, and can now validate code against more than 600 coding standards and “best practice” guidelines for reliability, performance, maintainability, and security,… (more…)

[Updated 8:00 PM PDT] — While Linux and open-source software keep making progress in the server market, could this be its time to break through in the wider enterprise? eWEEK.com looks at the state of the market from the floor of LinuxWorld San Francisco, August 2005 . (more…)

An open source project developing free software walked away with the “Best of Show” award at this year's LinuxWorld Expo in San Francisco. The Linux Terminal Server Project (LTSP) makes software through which low-cost, networked, “thin client” workstations can access Windows or Linux software residing on central servers. (more…)

Opera Software has unveiled a super-lightweight browser aimed at Web-enabling some 700 million low-end and mid-tier mobile phones. Dubbed Opera Mini, the browser works on WAP-enabled, J2ME-equipped (Java 2 Mobile Edition) handsets, provided the selected wireless carrier supports the service, Opera says. (more…)

[Updated Aug. 12, 2005] — Wyse Technology debuted a compact yet powerful Linux-based thin-client at LinuxWorld today, and announced a 1,900 unit deployment of the device by a major European health insurance provider. (more…)

MontaVista Software Inc. and PalmSource Inc., two leaders in mobile device software, have joined each others' partner programs and are teaming up to “help further accelerate the development of next generation Linux-based mobile phones,” the companies announced today. They plan to “leverage their collective expertise to create integrated solutions for handset vendors and mobile operators looking… (more…)

A Linux-powered robot submarine dubbed Mongoose and built by students from the Georgia Institute of Technology was named Best Newcomer in the eighth annual Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) Autonomous Underwater… (more…)