Mentor Blogs

Next week, the Embedded Systems Conference will take place in San Jose, California. Except that it has a new name: ESC is now part of DESIGN West, which is an aggregate of a number of conferences. Personally, I do not care for the new name, as the word “design” has a very broad meaning way beyond electronic systems. But I guess I will get used to it. The event will be interesting from many … Read More

Embedded Systems Conference, DESIGN West, Linux

Somebody asked me: “What is the plural of Linux?” Maybe it is Linuxes. That sounds a bit messy, which seems rather appropriate really… If we think about the desktop world and buying application software, you might have a Windows PC or a Mac or perhaps you run Linux. It is typical for the spec for an application to discuss hardware and OS compatibility. There will normally be ridiculously … Read More

Linux, Nucleus, RTOS

The increasing complexity of cars has taught automakers the value of cooperating with competitors on technology that customers won’t see and don’t care about but would be prohibitively expensive for a single automaker to develop in-house. Automakers and suppliers formed the GENIVI Alliance, for example, to create an open source (Linux-based) development platform for in-vehicle infotainment, facilitating … Read More

Jaguar Land Rover, intel, Genivi Alliance, Visteon, Microltron, MontaVista Software, QNX, Linux, Android, PSA Peugeot Citroën, in-vehicle infotainment, Magneti Marelli, Mentor Graphics, XS Embedded, Renault, Delphi, Microsoft, ARM

I was, of course, saddened to hear the recent news of the death of Steve Jobs. Since then, the Internet has been buzzing with stories, anecdotes and speculation about him. As a result, the news of the death of another key figure in the computing world barely got a mention: Dennis Ritchie died on 12 October 2011. Although not so much of a household name as Jobs, there are many [including myself] who … Read More

Dennis Ritchie, Steve Jobs, Linux

For a software developer, the idea of a library is quite simple: It is a file containing a [typically large] number of functions/procedures/subroutines in a special format. At link time, the linker looks in the library [or there may well be more than one, in which case it checks each in turn] to resolve any references to functions not satisfied by the supplied object modules. This means that the programmer … Read More

Development Tools, libraries, Linux

Just a quick “heads up”. If you are interested in the selection of an operating system for embedded applications [a topic I discussed briefly here] you might like to attend a Web seminar that I am presenting later this week. The session will be less than one hour, including live Q&A. The live session will be on Thursday at 9:00 Pacific and an archive recording will be available after … Read More

Linux, multi-core, RTOS, Multi-OS, Nucleus

All my working life, I have had a challenge with explaining to people what I actually do. It all starts with defining what is an embedded system. As I have discussed before, this is by no means easy. I thought that this might become simpler over time, as embedded systems become even more ubiquitous, but the reverse is true. The definition is getting even fuzzier. It has reached a point where software … Read More

RTOS, Linux

I recently talked about the process that might be applied to the selection of an embedded operating system and I hope that these guidelines are useful. I am currently working on a Web seminar on this topic, so I would welcome any input. However, developers tend to stick with a particular OS [or, at least, with a particular OS vendor] – recent research suggested that only about 20% of developers … Read More

Linux, API, RTOS, Nucleus

I was recently approached for help by a Mentor Graphics customer, who was planning a new project and needed to select an operating system. They wanted guidance with that choice. Of course, one is tempted to say that it does not matter which of our products they chose [as, between them, Nucleus RTOS and Mentor Embedded Linux do cover most possibilities], but I felt they needed something more objective. There … Read More

Windows CE, Source Code, Linux, Low Power, RTOS, Networking, Nucleus

Mentor recently shared OpenMCAPI, our MCAPI implementation, with the world under an open source license (BSD). We’re proud of it because it was especially designed for portability, and while it’s sophisticated enough to offer advanced features like asynchronous communication, it’s simple enough that it can be easily understood and deployed on low-resource embedded systems. So what … Read More

Multi-OS, MCAPI, Multicore, AMP, Linux

Some time ago, I wrote about the use of a memory management unit (MMU) for embedded applications and covered the basics of what such a device can do. Recent comment on that posting inspired me to think more about how an MMU may be used more creatively. The basic function of an MMU is to control a relationship between the addresses that a CPU uses to access specific memory areas and their actual physical … Read More

Linux, memory management unit, RTOS, MMU, Nucleus

I like simple things. Excessive complexity tends to annoy me. When I first started working with computers, I thought that mainframes were overly complicated, so I was pleased to discover minicomputers, where I could really understand exactly what was going on. Embedded software was a natural progression, as, again, I could grasp the entire functionality of the software. But that began to change, as … Read More

Linux, Android, Nucleus, RTOS

As well intentioned as it might be, “Hang up and drive” is not, by itself, a solution to the problem of distracted driving, and it remains to be seen whether or not legislation will have a significant impact. It looks like smart phones are here to stay, and while they are by no means the only source of driver distraction, managing their use inside moving vehicles can reduce the likelihood of crashes. Delphi … Read More

Distracted Driving, Human-Machine Interface (HMI), Delphi, smart phone app, Linux

I have pondered before the appropriateness of Linux for embedded applications. My initial stance was clear enough: I could see very little sense in it. Why use a desktop operating system in such a completely different context? Over the years, the popularity of embedded Linux has increased, the technology of embedded systems has moved on and I have reappraised my views accordingly. With Mentor Embedded … Read More

Multi-OS, Multicore, Linux

The GENIVI Alliance, which is working toward a scalable software architecture for in-vehicle infotainment (IVI), recently released an IVI software architecture report based on interviews with automakers, tier one firms, semiconductor suppliers, and service providers, including Alliance member and non-member companies. Relevant IVI architecture suppliers, according to the report, include Microsoft, … Read More

Microltron, MeeGo, Microsoft, Genivi Alliance, Strategy Analytics, Wind River, in-vehicle infotainment, Android, Moblin, Linux, Maemo OS, QNX, Roger Lanctot, IVI