How MIDs Are Complicating Mobile Linux Development

Mobile Internet devices are gaining in popularity, and manufacturers have increasingly chosen Linux as the operating system best suited for the device type. As the market segment begins to differentiate, developers should look to solutions that allow for more flexible development, writes Jason Whitmire of Wind River.

The mobile Internet device (MID) is the most exciting new device category to hit the market since the smartphone. A MID is a handheld device that delivers high-speed wireless Internet and multimedia services, typically with a 4- to 7-inch screen form factor. Most MIDs will be based on the Linux operating system (OS) and at less than half the cost of an average laptop, MIDs are an appealing new alternative.

Like the smartphone, there will not be a prototypical MID. Many analysts predict that this type of device will require vigorous segmentation and differentiation in order to achieve broad market support, which will drive unique vertical platform instantiations based on the needs of the target market that the device supports. A MID manufacturer will aim some device models at gamers with accelerated 3-D graphics and multimedia support, while building other MIDs with Web camera, instant message and telephony support to address the specific needs of social networkers. Business users will require enterprise application integration and voice control while buyers looking for an inexpensive all-in-one device will want as many features crammed into the small MID footprint as possible.

Due to this differentiation, MID manufacturers will face the challenge of managing the software stack for multiple MID products while simultaneously keeping development and support costs down. There will be many common components between platforms forming a core software product, but the unique features of the targeted vertical platforms will require different supporting packages in each vertical MID's software stack. As an embedded device, MIDs will universally require a small OS footprint with optimized performance for features including "instant on/off" and power management, while supporting packages for the business user may be substantially different than those for the gamer.

Embedded Device Needs

Unlike desktop and laptop Linux distributions, which typically have the luxury of ample storage, processing, and memory resources, MID developers will need to customize the Linux kernel to their specific devices. Linux for embedded systems requires developers to build an optimized run-time image by utilizing the appropriate toolchain and a build system to package the run-time components.

To do this, MID developers will need a more complex build environment than with a laptop that allows for asynchronous development, software separation and accelerated integration.

Kernel Configurations

To maintain optimal productivity with a core MID product and unique vertical platforms, the developer will need to isolate kernel configuration changes based on the specific vertical product. In addition, the developer will want to minimize the need to fork development trees and maintain a simplified product structure.

This will provide the added benefit of speeding up diagnoses of potential bugs that may be introduced when adding unique components for each vertical product.

Distributed Teams

Many device development teams work in disparate geographies to increase productivity or to take advantage of lower-cost locations. In addition, co-located teams often work independently on different parts of the stack to speed time to market.

It is essential for the build environment to support this asynchronous development process for MID manufacturers to keep costs down and to help get their products to market as quickly as possible.

Maintaining the Software

In addition to open source packages, MIDs will likely offer features based on commercial code, and a sophisticated build environment will help developers manage packages from both the proprietary and community sources. This is essential because as proprietary code and open source packages are updated, these updates must be applied not only to a single product instantiation, but to the entire product line.

The build environment that maintains a core product and places the differentiating components in separately identifiable structures can facilitate the upgrade process and help keep maintenance costs down, resulting in faster rebuilds to various vertical platforms when the core platform is updated. Similarly, during the development process, the ideal build system would allow the quality assurance team to apply coding defect fixes into a separate structure for the integration team to later incorporate with fix issues found in other parts of the core product or differentiated components.

Open Source Complications

With the incorporation of both commercial and community code, protecting the commercial intellectual propertyis extremely important. Ideally, a build system would help isolate commercial code from open source code while also maintaining the origin of all code. With this transparency, the code origin is traceable, which helps with indemnification.

In the future, MID manufacturers will offer unique vertical products differentiated by targeted feature lists. This product approach will challenge software developers to maintain a core product containing common code while also offering support for unique product features. A robust build system supporting asynchronous development and software separation while easing package integration will help MID manufacturers lay the foundation for cost-effective product development, rapid innovation and easier market segmentation.

Freescale Eyes Cheap Linux Netbooks With New Chip Design

Freescale's new i.MX515 processor is built for netbooks -- low-cost Linux netbooks, specifically. Working with organizations like Pegatron, Freescale has drawn up a reference design for OEMs that ties in its processor, Ubuntu Linux and Adobe Flash Lite to create a netbook that could retail for as low as $200.

Freescale Semiconductor has launched a new low-cost processor, the i.MX515, that's designed to power what Freescale hopes will be new lines of Linux-based netbooks retailing for less than US$200.

There are lots of interesting angles to Freescale's efforts -- the lower price point, the technology behind the i.MX515, and a new path for Linux into the minds of everyday consumers.

First, the Price

Most netbooks retail in the $300 to $400 range, so a sub-$200 netbook obviously could generate a lot of consumer appeal. Designed for basic Web browsing, e-mail and related tasks, netbooks aren't designed to handle heavy-duty computing . Intel's (Nasdaq: INTC) Atom processors are currently featured in many netbooks, and Freescale's new processor play could give it a price edge over Intel. Companies that make the actual computers, then, could use Freescale processors to create new netbooks that undercut today's already low prices.

Consumers are expected to purchase 140 million netbooks in 2013, compared with 15 million sold in 2008, according to ABI Research.

"As was evident in the 2008 holiday season, the netbook market has exploded due to consumer demand for affordable and compact devices that allow users to conduct routine tasks like social networkingor shopping on the Web," noted Philip Solis, principal analyst at ABI Research.

"The netbook market is still in its infancy, and it represents a huge market opportunity for companies like Freescale. As advanced platforms for netbooks become increasingly available, price points will drop and the market will expand," he added.

The i.MX515 Package

Integrating an ARM (Nasdaq: ARMHY) Cortex-A8 core and manufactured using 65-nm process technology, the i.MX515 provides up to 2,100 Dhrystone MIPS (million instructions per second) and can scale in performance from 600 MHz to 1 GHz, according to Freescale. Freescale's advanced power management features included a dedicated, hardware-based video acceleration block, which the company says will allow for extended battery life and eliminate the need for fans or heat sinks.

Freescale also notes that the i.MX515 will let original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) build netbooks that can run for eight hours with 8.9-inch displays.

On the memory front, the i.MX515 supports both DDR2 and mobile DDR1, giving netbook designers more options for configuring their solutions -- again, this is designed to let OEMs create netbooks at the lowest possible price points.

The new processor also offers both OpenVG and OpenGL graphics cores for 2-D and 3-D graphics as well as Flash, which is particularly important since Adobe (Nasdaq: ADBE) Flash-based video is so widely used online. Freescale says it's working with Adobe to enable the Adobe software to run on the processor's dedicated OpenVG graphics block, which will extend battery life and keep the consumer browsing experience rich and responsive.

Working with Pegatron, Freescale has created a comprehensive netbook reference design based on the i.MX515 processor, Canonical's Ubuntu, and Adobe FlashLite.

More Linux!

If netbooks continue to flourish -- and if they continue to run Linux -- might Linux break through to everyday consumers and gain mindshare in the consumer marketplace?

"When it comes to netbooks, I think people are buying them for the hardware and form factor of the small computer instead of the software running on it. That's to say, people will be fine with using Linux if that's the OS (operating system) on it. I'm sure they'd be fine using Windows if that was on it, too," Michael Coté, an analyst for RedMonk, told LinuxInsider.

"You can find netbooks in places like Target, which I was actually surprised to see. The price of $299 to $399 still seems kind of steep for the 'casual' type of interest I'd see driving netbook sales, but if it was lowered another $50 to $100, maybe it wouldn't be too crazy to think that people would buy them, especially if there were some compelling applications beyond Web browsing, e-mail checking, and the like," he explained.

"So, in that regard, if netbook prices are low enough to drive a large volume of sales, then sure, it'd help out with Linux adoption," he added

Linuxy New Year's Resolutions

Bloggers took a moment to contemplate the upcoming year and what it means for open source software and Linux in particular. There were some New Year's resolutions and a few holiday gifts still floating around in the week between Christmas and New Year's Day.

So 2009 is here at last, and not a moment too soon! Finally we can put another Holiday Season behind us and get back to work.

Some of us, of course, are still recovering from the seasonal merriment; others are still pondering gifts they received. To wit: On Digg, Rekzai earned more than 3,340 Diggs and 345 comments for posting a photograph titled, "I like Linux, so my aunt sends me this for Christmas!"

No shortage of penguins in that thoughtful assortment -- lucky geek, that Rekzai! We can only assume the aunt in question got some of her ideas from our own Linuxy holiday shopping guide ... always glad to help out!

'10 Coolest Open Source Products'

Also on Digg, meanwhile, some bloggers saw fit to think over the past year and the advances that were made for our favorite operating system Specifically, inspired by an article on Channel Web, bloggers contemplated what the article called "The 10 Coolest Open Source Products of 2008."

Many of the 100-plus comments that ensued in the next day and a half or so quibbled with the article's choices, or made suggestions of their own. Others, however, devolved into all-too-familiar terrain as they shifted their focus to the year to come:

"Dare I say it... 2009 will be the YEAR OF LINUX!" quipped reddikilowatt.

Aaaaaah! Not that -- anything but that!

'3% by 2010'

Seriously, though, there were also more substantive predictions on hand.

"OK, hear me out," reddikilowatt continued. "We're going to see more Android phones (if Motorola can stay in business), netbooks, media servers and players, hand held media players, the Kindle is set to ramp up, Canonical seems to be getting a lot of mindshare in the blogosphere and MS is chasing Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) instead of putting out product.

"I think the community's slogan should be '3% by 2010'...," reddikilowatt added. "Hey, stranger things have happened," he said. "I'll get working on the T-shirts."

Along similar lines, an article in Open Mode titled "Why You Might Be Using Linux in 2009" inspired quite a discussion on Digg as it outlined some major products and trends likely to attract new attention to Linux this year.

No fewer than 1,036 Diggs and 360 comments met the article's posting on the site within three days, but reactions appeared to be a generally mixed bag.

Noob Majority

"Another year, another 'year of Linux' story," wrote Hellman109. "*yawn*"

On the other hand: "I mean no disrespect to you Linux guys and gals out there, but these sensationalist/speculative articles aren't helping encourage people to switch over to Linux," asserted jaygeeze.

"The normal, mainstream individual does not even know about KDE4, cloud computing, and doesn't care about netbooks," jaygeeze explained. "They care about user interface and not having to install something through the command line and hardware/software compatibility (and yes, using WINE is kind of cheating). They care about customer support and documentation.

"You wonder why Ubuntu is a popular distro (even though we call Ubuntu users noobs, but that's just it, a majority of the people in the market for computers *are* noobs) - it's because they focus on these things," jaygeeze added. "We need more articles that advocate and share these improvements, not a geeky list saying people will be switching over because of the cloud."

Stepping Into Action

All in all, the outlook for 2009 was an overarching theme throughout the Linux blogosphere, as geeks around the world tried their hand at predicting what may come.

Now, we here at LinuxInsider have already delved into what bloggers are hoping will happen for Linux over the course of this new year. What we haven't yet heard, however, are what they're planning to do themselves, whether for the sake of Linux or just in their personal lives.

To illustrate: Thomas Teisberg over at the Linux Loop made some suggestions for how to help the Linux community as a whole in a post he made on Christmas Eve.

On a less altruistic note -- but no less interesting -- LXer bloggers spent some holiday time comparing notes on which sites they think are worth visiting every day. Joining the predictable ranks of Slashdot, Digg, Dilbert and LXer itself were a few interesting surprises sure to help get 2009 off to a good start -- even if LinuxInsider wasn't top of the list. Just an oversight, we're sure!

InaTux, meanwhile, recently posted "20 Early Linux New Year's Resolutions," including suggestions for hackers and companies alike.

New Year's Resolutions

But what kinds of New Year's Resolutions are actually being made by those who participate in the Linux blogs, we couldn't help but wonder? So we took to the streets and asked around.

Some resolutions were universal in nature: "I hope to get more work done!" Monochrome Mentality blogger Kevin Dean told LinuxInsider.

Others were more specific: "My GNU/Linux resolution for 2009 is to introduce as many teachers as possible to GNU/Linux in my last year of teaching," educator and blogger Robert Pogson said.

'The Wonderful World of Linux'

Some were positively sunny about technology: "My personal Linux resolutions for '09 are to spend more time on my blog and to spend more time introducing users in and around my life to the wonderful world of Linux and open source in general," Foogazi blogger Adam Kane told LinuxInsider.

Others were less so: "My New Year's resolution for this year is to spend more time on non-computer-related hobbies," Montreal consultant and Slashdot blogger Gerhard Mack said.

Then, perhaps most admirably of all, was the response of Mhall119, a Slashdot blogger who operates Quinn Co., a charity that uses a version of Ubuntu customized for kids 3 years old and up to help special-needs and low-income children.

Giving Away Computers

"I had been assembling second-hand PCs on my living room floor and an end table, due to lack of space," Mhall119 explained. "However, my wife and I just bought our first house, and it has a _huge_ workshop, with plenty of space to store and work on three times the number of PCs I currently have -- which is good since we've just been offered a dozen iMac G3's.

"So, my 2009 Linux Resolution is to seriously step up my work for our charity," he told LinuxInsider.

Among Mhall119's specific plans for this year are re-basing Qimo, his Ubuntu re-spin, on XFCE instead of Gnome "to get better performance," and then making a PowerPC port of it to run on the newly donated iMacs, he said.

"We've placed a couple of computers in a local preschool already, and have promised 10 or so to disadvantaged students at a nearby elementary school," Mhall119 explained. "I'd like to ultimately give away 100 or more computers in 2009."

What are *your* resolutions for this new year, dear readers -- Linuxy or otherwise? We'd love to hear about them. One last toast to the promise and the potential of 2009!

Gadget Gawking at CES: Mini Projectors Still Just Good Ideas

There's a pall over CES this year, with exhibitors demonstrating a stiff upper lip along with their gadgets. There are hot spots, of course, and no shortage of cool concepts -- but some of them, like the pocket projector, aren't quite ready for prime time.

The doors to the Las Vegas convention center opened Thursday, and the Consumer Electronics Show is now officially in full swing.

I'm in no position to do an official head count, of course, but the crowd seems just a little thinner than it did last time I was here. Sure, there are the occasional bottlenecks with the crowding and the elbows and the coughing right next to your face, but certain parts of certain halls just seem kind of dead. I can find places to sit in the press room and the slop stands. Is it really less crowded? Perhaps the constant message from exhibitors ("Yes, it's economic Armageddon, but we're doing fine") has tinted my perceptions. Who knows?

There's also a greenish hue hanging over the show. Exhibitors are giving out fewer paper press kits, opting instead to give out CDs, thumb drives, or adding a "/ces" to the end of their Web sites. I'm a big fan of that last one -- the less crap I have to carry around, the better -- but it would be much more useful if there were greater free WiFi access throughout the center.

Pocket Projectors

I dropped by Optoma to get a look at its Pico projector, which began shipping last month. This is something I'd read a great deal about but wanted to see in person.

The Pico is a US$399 DLP projector, about the size of a pack of cigarettes, that hooks up to a digital camera, iPod or iPhone. It lets you display your photos on any wall or screen, anywhere. Optoma says it'll project images at sizes up to 100 times that of the device's small screen.

The LED light source inside is good for 20,000 hours, which means the device will probably be well into obsolscence by the time the bulb blows. It has inputs for USB and standard composite.

Perhaps I've been jaded by the incredibly luminescent, huge, LED-backlit TVs I've been staring at for the last two days, but the Pico's image came off as just plain limp. The photos appeared a little fuzzy, the color was drab -- and this was all on a screen about 15 inches across, which is the around the maximum size you'd want to try in a lighted room, according to the Optoma rep I spoke to.

The company didn't have it on display in a darkened area, which I assume would yield a better image. Still, 100 times larger than the source screen, even in the dark? I'm skeptical.

Even though I was left wanting more in terms of picture quality, I still love the idea of pocket-sized projectors. Maybe the next generation of the Pico, if there is one, will usher in some big improvements. Internal memory? Flash card slot? Perhaps, but Optoma isn't talking about any specific plans just yet.

The Color of the Bulb

So, I crossed the South Hall to the 3M booth, where they were also showing off some small projectors.

3M's currently available mini is the MPro110. That projector looked perhaps a little sharper in ambient light, though it could have been due to better source material (but who'd use fuzzy, washed-out pix for their product display?). I got to see 3M's in lower-light conditions at about 15 inches, and it was definitely an improvement.

3M was also talking about the next generation. The MM200 on display is still a prototype, but it noticeably improved the image's color quality. That, I'm told, is due to the RGB LED it uses; the MPro110 uses a white LED.

It's also smaller and thinner than the MPro -- little enough to cram into a smartphone or portable media player, for instance -- and 3M is talking about selling the hardware out to other manufacturers for use in whatever devices they can come up with.

AMD Aims to Smash Petaflop Barrier With Graphics Supercomputer

AMD is working on a supercomputer that will do much of the graphics processing for you, rather than delivering raw data that is then rendered at the client side. The AMD Fusion Render Cloud will render graphics, then compress and deliver them, the company said, saving processing power and battery life.

AMD (NYSE: AMD) is working with leading software and content developer Otoy to develop and deploy applications, high-definition (HD) content and even games in the cloud using a massively parallel supercomputer .

Details of the AMD Fusion Render Cloud were unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas during a keynote by AMD president and chief executive Dirk Meyer, along with Otoy chief executive Jules Urbach and spokespeople from Lucasfilm, Dell (Nasdaq: DELL) , HP (NYSE: HPQ) and Electronic Arts (Nasdaq: ERTS) .

Is Technology Accessibility the New Green?

Aside from a car he can drive, which he admits isn't likely, Stevie Wonder also wants to be able to use an iPhone. However, touchscreen devices are difficult for blind people to use because of their multiple menus. He went to the Consumer Electronics Show to ask for better access for blind people.

The craze for touchscreen gadgets, sparked by Apple's (Nasdaq: AAPL) popular iPhone, is raising worries that a whole generation of consumer electronics will be out of the reach of the blind.

Motown icon Stevie Wonder and other advocates came to the world's biggest gadget fest, the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week, to convince vendors to consider the needs of the blind.

Wonder told a CES event that his wishlist included a car he could drive -- which he acknowledged was probably "a ways away" -- and a Sirius XM satellite radio he could operate.

"If you can take those few steps further, you can give us the excitement, the pleasure and the freedom of being a part of it," said the famed musician.

Accessible by Accident

Some companies had managed to make their products more accessible to the blind, sometimes without even meaning to, Wonder said. He cited an iPod music player and Research In Motion's (Nasdaq: RIMM) BlackBerry as gadgets he likes to use.

Advocates argue that if product designers take into account blind needs, they would make electronics that are easier to use for the sighted as well.

The good news is that manufacturers do not need to put large sums of money into making products accessible, nor would they have to forsake innovation, said Chris Danielsen, a spokesperson for the National Federation of the Blind.

"We don't want to hold up technological progress," he said. "What we're saying is, think about the interface and set it up in such a way that it's simple. The simpler you make the user interface of a product, it's going to reach more people sighted or blind."

Touchscreens Frustrate

With the popularity of touchscreens, once simple products such as televisions and stereos have become difficult for blind people to use as they often require navigation of multiple menus that need to be seen to be used effectively.

"That's an increasing problem with new digital devices. It's easy to add feature after feature that's buried under menu after submenu," said Mike Starling, chief technology officer of National Public Radio, which is working on accessible options.

Manufacturers have been putting touchscreens in everything from calculators and watches to computers and music players.

Sendero Group President Mike May, who is blind, joked, "Can I ski 60 miles an hour downhill? Yes. Use a flat panel microwave? No." Sendero makes GPS navigational devices that have an audio output for the blind.

There are also screen readers that give an audio reading of a phone's menu. However, they do not yet make using a touchscreen phone easier, said Anne Taylor, director of access technologies at the National Federation of the Blind.

She said the ability to use a device without needing to look at it could help sighted people who are driving or older people whose eyesight is starting to deteriorate.

Barriers to Use

While blind users can buy screen-reading software for US$300 upward, it tends to only work on certain phones, often the most expensive smartphones. Accessible technology is often expensive, and about 70 percent of the U.S. blind population is unemployed.

Taylor is using CES as a forum to present vendors a set of suggestions for product design that she sees benefiting both sighted and blind consumers.

For example, manufacturers could include an easy-to-use start-over button, different sounds for different menus, and controls with good tactile feedback.

Making Progress

Ahead of the show, there were some signs that vendors, while unlikely to give up on the touchscreen trend, may be more ready to consider consumers with disabilities.

Developers at Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) are working on ways to make touchscreen phones, including those based on its own Android mobile software, usable for blind people.

National Public Radio announced a special radio receiver technology and software that would connect a digital radio to a dynamic Braille generating device. It has also created special digital radio channels for readings of the day's newspapers.

Dice Electronics has made a prototype radio that incorporates the NPR technology, and NPR's Starling hopes this will become a commercial product in 2009.

Starling has also set up meetings at CES with other manufacturers in the hope they will include NPR's technology. He said responses to requests for information, which often go unheeded, are much more active this year.

Some manufacturers could use their production facilities to make such devices, as demand weakens for more mainstream products in the economic downturn, he said.

"I think in general there may be a view that accessibility may be becoming the new green," said Starling.