Esfia Inc. announced that it has received $2 million in its first major round of financing, from four key investors. Esfia's CEO, Eric Lee, says Esfia will use the money to launch a line of RISC-based single board computers (SBCs) targeting vertical markets. (more…)

The Embedded Microprocessor Benchmark Consortium (EEMBC) announced a new series of benchmarks which will measure “Digital Entertainment” performance applications. EEMBC says the benchmarks are intended to offer designers of set-top boxes, PDAs, mobile phones, and in-car entertainment systems a sophisticated new set of tools for evaluating the performance of embedded processors in their systems. (more…)

Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller Information Technology Research Initiative (DSITRI) has launched its Zaurus-X-gcc cross-compiler package for Mac OS X, a binary distribution that targets ARM-Linux as used on the Sharp Zaurus 5500. The package uses Apple's free “December 2002 developer tools” including Project Builder, includes gcc-2.95.3 and glibc 2.2.2, and supports Objective C as well as C and C++. (more…)

Cross compilation occurs when a compiler running on one system produces executables for another system — this is an important concept when the target system doesn't have a native set of compilation tools, or when the host system is faster or has greater resources. In this how-to article, Peter Seebach discusses the initial setup of a cross compilation environment (using the Sharp Zaurus handheld as focus)… (more…)

Tokyo-based Access Co. Ltd. announced today that its NetFront web browser has surpassed 100 million deployments worldwide. According to Access, NetFront is now the most widely deployed and actively used web browser in the “beyond-PC” market, supporting more operating system platforms and devices than any other browser. (more…)

Cross compilation occurs when a compiler running on one system produces executables for another system — this is an important concept when the target system doesn't have a native set of compilation tools, or when the host system is faster or has greater resources. In this how-to article, Peter Seebach discusses the initial setup of a cross compilation environment (using the Sharp Zaurus handheld as focus)… (more…)

At the Microprocessor Forum in San Jose, Calif. this week, VIA Technologies unveiled the VIA Eden-N processor, a tiny x86 processor in a nanoBGA package measuring just 15 x 15mm — roughly the size of a U.S. (more…)

An article at SD Times claims that Metrowerks' $6,240 per seat Platform Creation Suite 3.0 de-mystifies the black art of creating board support packages (BSPs). The article quotes David Beal, Metrowerks director of embedded Linux tools, who describes BSP creation as a four-step process. (more…)

Opera Software simultaneously launched Opera 7.21 for Linux (SPARC, Intel, PPC), FreeBSD (Intel), Solaris (SPARC), and Windows. New features include less annoying ads in the free (advertising-supported) version, an “undo” for accidental window closures, and a “kiosk” mode for limiting functionality on public computers. (more…)

Fabless microprocessor design company Hyperstone AG and dedicated systems house Global Digital Technologies SA have ported the uClinux kernel to Hyperstone's E1-32XS processor, adding uClibc, the elf2flt tool, GNU tools, and some essential applications to create… (more…)

Transmeta disclosed specifications and technical details on its latest low-power, code-morphing, x86-compatible microprocessor — the Efficeon. The announcement came as part of the annual Microprocessor Forum in San Jose, Calif., where Transmeta had a prominent presence but Intel was nowhere to be seen. (more…)

Forbes Magazine has published an article called “Linux's Hit Men” which suggests that the Free Software Foundation's legal efforts to enforce the terms of the GPL could intimidate companies and dissuade them from embedding software licensed under the (more…)

Technology analyst firm Semico Research Corp. has published its latest research report on the emergent Network Processor market. The study notes that one of the most visible network and communications processing trends is the integration of security and cryptography directly into the processors themselves. (more…)

Sputnik is a wireless network management system based on Linux and embedded Linux software combined with commodity PCs and wireless access points (APs). It aims to bring Cisco-class network management and security features to wireless networks, enabling wireless Internet service providers (WISPS), community wireless service… (more…)

FSMLabs claims that its recently released RTCore 2.0 flattens the learning curve for users of its RTLinux hard real-time OS. To prove the point, the company has now published several pages of coding examples meant to illustrate this new simplicity. (more…)