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What's the Deal with Embedded Linux?

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What's the Deal with Embedded Linux? www.eetimes.com May 5, 2008 The industry newsweekly for the creators of technology Commentary: What’s the deal with embedded Linux?FOR NOT By Kenton Williston One thing is for sure: There is no shortage points? Yes, but embedded Linux can’t match of opinions on Linux. But which vendor isONLY. OSs like INTEGRITY. Last week Green Hills Software wrote a telling the truth? Or are they are lying in Do you want to pay now or later? Do-it- scathing opinion piece on embedded Linux. hopes of building sales? yourself Linux is royalty-free, but you have to Here’s the opening: The reality is that each viewpoint con- make a major engineering investment to get “Embedded Linux is the most hyped embed- tains elements of truth. Every project has it up and running. In contrast, a commercial ded operating system ever. It is promoted as unique requirements, so differREADINGent projects Linux package (or a competing OS) can get inexpensive, high quality, high productivity, call for different operating systems. Here is you to market with minimal up-front cost. reliable, widely available, and well supported. my (non-partisan) list of questions you How many units will you ship? If your vol- It is none of these things…” should ask yourself when evaluating embed- umes are low, it doesn’t make sense to have Ouch! Green Hills goes on to congratulate ded Linux: your own OS team—so skip the do-it-your- Linux vendors for admitting that the OS is Do you need a full-featured OS? Embedded self approach. “CHAOS” (thanks, Wind River!) and “a Linux is big; PERSONALtypical builds ex ceed 2 MB. Sure, What is your time to market? The do-it- money pit” (you too, MontaVista!). But the you can shrink the OS by stripping out things yourself approach doesn’t make sense if praise is short-lived: According to GHS, this is like networkingFOR stacks and file systems, but you’re in a hurry. a cynical ploy to scare you away from do-it- these features are the main reason to use Is there support for your specific processor, yourself Linux and turn you into a Wind Linux. If you don’t need these features, you are board, or reference design? The OS with the River or MontaVista licensee. COPYbetter off with a lightweight RTOS. best support will give you the lowest NRE That’s some tough talk, but Green Hills Can you get an OS with application-specific and shortest time to market. Software is hardly a neutral observer. The features? WinCE comes in numerous flavors, Will you have to port your existing code? company sells its own operating systems, so including versions designed specifically for Most projects are built on existing code. Waste it stands to benefit by sowing fear, uncertain- automotive applications. (The same is true of too much time porting the code, and you lose ty and doubt (FUD) about Linux. Indeed,PRINTED QNX.) Nucleus has community special fea- the benefits of switching OSs. (You can side- every vendor I have spoken to has takDISTRIBUTION.en a tures for portable media players. And so on. step this issue with virtualization, but that adds distinctly self-interested position on Linux. What is the licensing model? The Linux another layer of complexity to the system.) Here’s a sampling of the claims I’ve heard: General Public License has its drawbacks. Does your tool chain support the OS? If MIPS: Do-it-yourself Linux works great! What if you want to modify the kernel, but not, you will have to switch. This adds to the Just go to LinuxMIPS and download! Our don’t want share your hacks with the rest of learning curve and makes the design team Linux support makes us a winner! the world? What if unauthorized code cranky. If you are willing to switch tool Wind River, MontaVista: Free Linux is a sneaks into the kernel, and the owner chains, look for OS-aware features like MIPS’ disaster. Buy “real” Linux from us or you will decides to sue? Questions like these are Linux hot-spot analyzer. end up crying over your keyboard! mainly issues for products with long life Whatever you decide about embedded QNX: Linux is a disaster. But our Linux- spans, like cars and network infrastructure. Linux, it’s a good idea to take vendor claims like RTOS is great! The rest of us can often ignore the legal with a grain of salt. For example, Green Hills Microsoft: Geez, why are you even looking issues and simply update the kernel in the talks tough about Linux, but the company’s at Linux? Life is much easier with WinCE. next product rev. MUTLI IDE has supported embedded Linux Mentor Graphics: Linux? WinCE? You have Is Linux responsive and reliable enough? I since 2001. Ask yourself: if GHS really thinks to be kidding. You can get everything you know what you’re thinking: Isn’t embedded embedded Linux is a disaster, why does the want from a light-weight RTOS like Nucleus. Linux specifically designed to address these company support it? (#16809) Reprinted with permission from the May 5, 2008 online edition of Electronic Engineering Times. Copyright 2008 United Business Media LLC. For more information about reprints from Electronic Engineering Times, please contact PARS International Corp. at 212-221-9595..
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