Guest Blog tag:typepad.com,2003:weblog-86835045839771404 2010-09-08T06:05:00-07:00 A Variety of Views TypePad Got a few minutes? tag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a00d83451f5c369e201348713837a970c 2010-09-08T06:05:00-07:00 2010-09-08T16:11:55-07:00 By Dinyar Dastoor There are several things you can do in a matter of minutes. You can walk over to a coffee machine and make yourself a tasty stimulating drink. Or you can open Wind River’s Embedded Development Kit and start evaluating your application on a fully functional hardware/software ready reference platform in the same time interval. If you are an engineering manager worried that you never get enough time to select the optimal software and hardware for your applications, you’ve got good reason to be excited. With today’s announcement of Embedded Development Kits as a part of the Wind... Wind River Blog Network

By Dinyar Dastoor

Dinyar_lgThere are several things you can do in a matter of minutes. You can walk over to a coffee machine and make yourself a tasty stimulating drink. Or you can open Wind River’s Embedded Development Kit and start evaluating your application on a fully functional hardware/software ready reference platform in the same time interval.

If you are an engineering manager worried that you never get enough time to select the optimal software and hardware for your applications, you’ve got good reason to be excited. With today’s announcement of Embedded Development Kits as a part of the Wind River On-Board Program, Wind River and its board partners are helping developers to begin application development in minutes rather than hours. Personally, I feel especially proud as this idea was born in my team, and they did an excellent job converting a concept into reality.

We live in an ever-changing world of technology and the embedded industry is no different. What seemed to be a perfect solution 4 years ago feels very cumbersome today. In almost every case, it is not the solution that has become complex, it just simply cannot scale to the needs of a variety of evolving technologies. And it always amazes me how we technologists occasionally put on “blinders” and continue to solve problems in a certain way when a more simplistic solution may be just around the corner.

It was only a few years back that a 32-bit embedded single core machine with a good network stack was enough to do most tasks. Today, we are constantly dealing with processors with multiple cores (2,4,16,32 and growing), rigid requirements to isolate functionalities as well as faults, and the need to execute multiple incongruent operating systems in the same memory space.

The software content and work needed for configuration and optimization for performance/size has grown tremendously and engineering departments find it very time consuming to get it right the first time. In traditional models of embedded software delivery, a multi-core embedded project typically requires ~10-15 DVDs, parsing large amounts of kernel components to retain only the bare minimum required and configuring 100's of application packages. This is enough to keep a skilled engineer busy for couple of weeks just to get the first command prompt on the board!

Simplicity is at the core of the Embedded Development Kits - insert the USB flash drive in any available laptop or desktop in your office and power on the PC. It does not matter whether you have Windows or Linux OS as your existing OS and the hard drive is not touched at all. The Flash drive is a self-contained unit comprising a host operating system, preconfigured embedded operating systems, embedded tool suite and various media (docs, video) to start development. Once powered on, you are ready to start evaluating your applications within minutes. All the complex configuration and customization for a particular processor board is already done by Wind River.

Innovation does not stop here. As the embedded world marches towards multi-core processors, engineers may be interested to try out different configurations for the same hardware to find the optimum design for their requirements. For example, conducting trials with two cores handling VxWorks and two handling Linux. Or Linux with 4 cores in SMP format and compare the results on your applications. We’ve got additional developments cooking that are based on the same simplicity paradigm of the Embedded Development Kits. Stay tuned.

Dinyar Dastoor is Senior Director of Field Engineering, managing various teams across the Americas. Dinyar brings 22 years of embedded experience developing devices and systems in Automation & Process control, Networking and A&D.

 Available Now: Wind River Developer Community for Linux! tag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a00d83451f5c369e20133f36bd6ce970b 2010-08-30T11:54:58-07:00 2010-09-07T17:16:11-07:00 By Kay Stanley Check this site out! http://developer.windriver.com Our initiative to create a resource for our Linux users to connect with others is now a reality! This project focuses on encouraging interactions between Wind River users, Wind River engineers, and embedded Linux community experts. The Wind River Developer Community for Linux provides a platform for exchanging ideas, news, technical information, best practices, and how to maximize the use of Wind River Linux and embedded Linux. We took some extra time to put on some final touches and think it's worth the wait! It is my role as your community manager... Wind River Blog Network

By Kay Stanley

Kay_lg Check this site out! http://developer.windriver.com

Our initiative to create a resource for our Linux users to connect with others is now a reality! This project focuses on encouraging interactions between Wind River users, Wind River engineers, and embedded Linux community experts. The Wind River Developer Community for Linux provides a platform for exchanging ideas, news, technical information, best practices, and how to maximize the use of Wind River Linux and embedded Linux. We took some extra time to put on some final touches and think it's worth the wait!

It is my role as your community manager to facilitate bringing together community insights and tips for all sizes of companies and all types of users. We are planning to spotlight Wind River Linux resources, open source ideas, community experts and customers. Visit our site, look through the beginnings of this community and when you're there, please register and participate if you have anything to add to the discussions or comments. It's intended to be a place to connect with others, show your knowledge, assist others, ask for ideas and help, and provide you an opportunity to become recognized by your community.

Don't be shy, join us on our community launch!

Kay Stanley is the Community Manager in charge of the Wind River Developer Network. As such, she oversees the communities, providing a forum for Wind River customers and users to share, collaborate and assist others. She has been in the software industry for over 15 years, including work in several operating systems using embedded, open source, and relational database management systems, where she specialized in technical support, product release and user group/community design initiatives.

 Coming Next Week: Wind River Developer Community for Linux! tag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a00d83451f5c369e201348651a57f970c 2010-08-20T13:47:08-07:00 2010-09-01T11:35:46-07:00 By Kay Stanley We have been busy creating a new resource for our Linux users to connect with others! One of the most high profile and exciting initiatives that I've been tasked with, is to partner with other Wind River staff, and create a place for Linux users of all kinds to come together. We've heard what our customers have been asking for and they were the key drivers behind this project: You asked for it and we built it. In two separate Wind River Linux user surveys, our customers’ top request was an active, well-maintained content-rich discussion group. The... Wind River Blog Network

By Kay Stanley

kay_lg We have been busy creating a new resource for our Linux users to connect with others! One of the most high profile and exciting initiatives that I've been tasked with, is to partner with other Wind River staff, and create a place for Linux users of all kinds to come together. We've heard what our customers have been asking for and they were the key drivers behind this project:


  • You asked for it and we built it. In two separate Wind River Linux user surveys, our customers’ top request was an active, well-maintained content-rich discussion group. The Wind River Developer Community for Linux is focused on Wind River Linux and embedded Linux content.
  • Get your questions answered. The Wind River Developer Community for Linux brings together the combined knowledge of embedded Linux experts, our customers, and Wind River engineers.
  • Maybe you’ve got some of the answers. The Wind River Developer Community for Linux is a rewarding way for you to share your expertise. Someone may have helped you figure out a technology problem or given you great advice; now you can repay the favor while meeting new people and making new contacts.
  • A repository of Wind River Linux and embedded Linux tips and best practices, the Wind River Developer Community for Linux collects and stores relevant content contributed by our customers and experts to help you enhance your skills so you can gain more knowledge and take yourself to a new professional level.

This initiative encourages interactions between Wind River users, Wind River engineers, and embedded Linux community experts. The Wind River Developer Community for Linux provides a platform for exchanging ideas, news, technical information, best practices, and how to maximize the use of Wind River Linux and embedded Linux.

As your community manager, I look forward to seeing how our first forum will bring together community insights and tips for all sizes of companies and all types of users. I have been working on building user groups, communities and partner forums for many years in the Linux, Solaris, AIX and Oracle worlds. This is the first time I've personally been involved in bringing a new tool to the embedded/open-source users. If anything my experience with Wind River Linux and its customers has shown me, it's that this user base has no problem sharing, building on each others ideas and helping each other. I hope to provide you all with a place to do just that in a community atmosphere!

We are looking to launch the Wind River Developer Community for Linux soon and have already shared developer.windriver.com with early adopters, so stay tuned for the official release!

I am very proud to help deliver on a demand of our Linux technology users.

Cheers.

 Blinded by a Tree tag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a00d83451f5c369e201348232e9fb970c 2010-05-27T17:51:02-07:00 2010-09-01T11:33:06-07:00 By Eddie Glenn Developing large systems is a lot like trying to get an appreciation of the Amazon when you’re standing beneath a single tree in the middle of it. Sure, there’s a lot that you can find out about that single tree. You can look at its trunk, its leaves, and its branches. You could take soil measurements around the tree to determine if it is getting the proper nutrients. But, the health of that single tree is often determined by what’s going on around it. If your perspective is limited to just that tree, then you’re going to... Wind River Blog Network

By Eddie Glenn

glenn_lg.jpgDeveloping large systems is a lot like trying to get an appreciation of the Amazon when you’re standing beneath a single tree in the middle of it. Sure, there’s a lot that you can find out about that single tree. You can look at its trunk, its leaves, and its branches. You could take soil measurements around the tree to determine if it is getting the proper nutrients.

But, the health of that single tree is often determined by what’s going on around it. If your perspective is limited to just that tree, then you’re going to miss the jungle. You won’t see how the various streams feed into the rivers, how one part of the ecosystem feeds another part which feeds another part. Simply put, if that single tree is in distress, how can you fix it without looking at what’s going on around it?

When we develop large electronic systems, we too often focus on just one part of the system without regard to the system as a whole. Why is that? The main reason most would cite is that very few people have access to the entire system. While this is usually the case, another reason is that the system as a whole is often too complex to set up, control, and debug because there are few development/test tools that work at the system level. This is especially the case, when the system is comprised of multiple target architectures and multiple target RTOSes.

Full system simulation (aka virtual platforms) changes all of this. For example, Wind River Simics allows one to build a virtual platform of a large system containing tens to hundreds of boards, each containing perhaps different target hardware architectures and RTOSes. So, while one can still use their favorite tools to examine each tree, er, board, Simics provides visibility of the entire jungle, er, system.

By seeing and controlling the system as a whole, one can use Simics to easily see how behavior in one part of the system impacts other parts. With the recent introduction of Simics Analyzer, one now has the ability to analyze & collect metrics on the system as a whole instead of being limited to just a single part.

As electronics become more integrated with other electronics, system complexity will continue to rapidly grow. Developers will need to see the forest, beyond a single tree.

Eddie Glenn is Senior Marketing Manager for Wind River Simics. He has over 23 years of experience in the embedded software industry including many years writing embedded software for safety-critical flight applications. He spent nearly 14 years at Rational Software in a variety of roles including safety-critical RTOS engineer, marketing engineer, product manager, and product marketing manager. Eddie has a bachelor’s degree in computer science and electrical engineering from the University of Virginia, and an MBA from the University of Oregon. Eddie can be reached at eddie.glenn@windriver.com.

 Battling the Bottleneck tag:typepad.com,2003:post-6a00d83451f5c369e201348028769e970c 2010-04-27T06:15:00-07:00 2010-09-01T11:34:57-07:00 By Mark Guinther I have crossed to the other side of the generation gap. While growing up in Michigan, I remember my parents telling me about their primitive childhood experiences: walking 4 miles through the snow each way to school, uphill both ways, no TV, no microwave oven, only one family car… Now my own kids stare in disbelief when I tell them that I grew up in a home with only one phone attached to a wall, no worldwide web, no laptop, and no cell phones with text messaging. They visualize me as a caveman back in the Stone... Wind River Blog Network

By Mark Guinther

guinther_lg.jpg I have crossed to the other side of the generation gap. While growing up in Michigan, I remember my parents telling me about their primitive childhood experiences: walking 4 miles through the snow each way to school, uphill both ways, no TV, no microwave oven, only one family car… Now my own kids stare in disbelief when I tell them that I grew up in a home with only one phone attached to a wall, no worldwide web, no laptop, and no cell phones with text messaging. They visualize me as a caveman back in the Stone Age.

Clearly, technology has changed quite a bit within my lifetime. Personal connectivity has become ubiquitous, and despite the occasional temptation to toss our smartphones into the nearest river, we are better off for it. But our ever-increasing connectivity requirements and the constant flood of new devices have brought with them a demand for higher bandwidth network connections and more of them. We don’t get to see the networking equipment that processes our requests and delivers our content, but we know when it doesn’t seem to work fast enough. Those are the times we grumble about our network service, or device, or both. For service providers, unhappy customers lead to increased churn and less revenue. Service providers are furiously trying to deliver not only the best end-user devices, but also an infrastructure that will accommodate the increasing traffic load. This is where multi-core processing plays such a critical role. Conventional system designs cannot keep pace with the bandwidth explosion being driven by mobile devices, social networking, communications and web traffic. Networking equipment designed on multi-core processors offers the increased performance capability, lower space, weight and power requirements, and scalable designs that service providers need to win customers and reduce churn. Today at ESC Silicon Valley, Wind River announced a new Wind River Network Acceleration Platform that is designed to help equipment providers battle the bottleneck by delivering ultra-fast IP packet forwarding performance.

Multi-core processing is a disruptive technology, and the potential benefits definitely make it worthwhile to explore. Check out this Multi-core Network Acceleration whitepaper for a more detailed discussion on the technology. For years, Wind River has made investments in multi-core, from technology innovations to partnering with key industry leaders. The Network Acceleration Platform is just the first of Wind River’s multi-core acceleration solutions. As industries continue to adopt multi-core technology, it will become increasingly critical to work with experts who have the ability to maneuver the complexities and maximize the potential of multi-core processing.

Mark Guinther is Product Line Manager for Networking at Wind River. He has over twenty years of experience in the data/ voice/wireless networking industry including management positions at Alcatel and FORE Systems. He has a background in a broad range of technologies including IP routing, xDSL, network security, ATM, IPv6, VoIP, wireless, and next generation networks. Mark has a bachelor’s degree in computer science from UC Berkeley and an MBA. Mark can be reached at mark.guinther@windriver.com.