Linux digs in at embedded systems show

In a world where cars, gadgets and even household appliances are becoming smarter and connected to networks, software inside them that previously went unnoticed is attracting increased attention.

In San Francisco this week, vendors building software and hardware for these so-called "embedded" systems -- a broadening market that includes handheld computers, set-top boxes, in-car computers and industrial automation equipment -- will meet at the Embedded Systems Conference to discuss their latest products and technologies.

Making a concerted appeal to the crowd will be a number of Linux software companies who hope the open source operating system can win over developers who historically have turned to software designed in house, or by companies such as Wind River Systems Inc., which makes a popular operating system for embedded devices.

As the millions of smart computing devices in the world turn into billions, analysts say operating systems designed for particular devices are losing ground to general-purpose software that can be adapted more easily for use in different types of products.

Waiting behind the flood gates are two key players looking to stake out the market: Microsoft Corp., which has retooled versions of its Windows operating system for a wide range of embedded devices; and various Linux hopefuls who are building implementations of the freely-available operating system to power everything from network routers to cell phones.

For consumer products like wireless PDAs (personal digital assistants) and smart phones, Linux is being touted as a viable operating system because it is well suited for devices that have limited available memory. Linux also consumes less power than some other operating systems and developers have the flexibility of sharing Linux software code, said Stacey Quandt, an analyst for Giga Information Group Inc.

"It's not a mature market so there's a lot of potential for Linux to make inroads," she said.

One issue may stand in the way of its widespread use in embedded systems, however. Of the various companies developing embedded Linux operating systems, such as Lineo Inc., LynuxWorks Inc., MonteVista Software Inc. TimeSys Corp. and FSM Labs Inc., most build their respective operating systems in ways that make their applications incompatible, analysts and vendors said.

To allow an application written for one vendors' operating system to run on that of another vendor, an industry group will unveil plans Tuesday to create a standard for embedded Linux systems. The Embedded Linux Consortium (ELC), an industry group with more than 70 members including Intel Corp. and Red Hat Inc., has set its sights on firming a standard set of APIs (application programming interfaces) and compatibility test kits so that eventually, any Linux application will run on any Linux operating system, so long as both conform to the specifications.

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