Linux blasts off in U.S. tactical satellite, Dec 21, 2006

Linux was shot into space Dec. 16, as part of a second-phase Air Force Research Laboratory program aimed at making space more "operationally responsive." The TacSat-2 (tactical satellite) program aims to create "micro satellites" that can be launched quickly and cheaply, to support tactical military operations.

Linux has been mentioned as a potentially leading platform for mobile devices for as long as there have been mobile devices. However, mobile Linux is still largely missing in action.

Swiss robot vendor K-Team is shipping a third-generation model in its flagship "Khepera" line. The Khepera III, which runs Linux on an optional ARM-powered add-in card, adds floor-roving capabilities, the better to support experiments in swarm behavior, K-Team says.

Hong Kong based systems integrator Quataris has updated its all-in-one Pentium 4 based analog TV/PC design. The new Ottimo model, which features an innovative mechanical design, supports processors up to 2.8GHz, comes with 15-, 17-, or 19-inch screens, and is available pre-installed with SUSE Linux.

Technologic reports that its fast-booting ARM-based SBCs (single-board computers) are now available with a Linux-based bootloader capable of launching an alternate kernel or executive.

Rumors of a successor to Nokia's Linux-based 770 Internet tablet are circulating around the Web again, today. Several sites show a blurry photo of a slightly larger, more rounded 770.

Motorola is shipping the first model in its Scpl ("scalpel") line of Linux-based phones set to replace the ubiquitous Razr. The Motofone F3, available today in India, is an extremely low-end phone featuring an "electronic paper" display, breakthrough battery life, and usability features for the illiterate.

Trolltech, perhaps the most successful Linux smartphone software provider, is readying a more comprehensive stack aimed at simplifying Linux-based phone development.

And now for a completely obvious idea: loading Linux onto Microsoft's new Zune digital music player.

The Killer NIC runs a "highly optimized" OS based on an unspecified version of Linux. It comes with a Windows utility that lets users open a Linux shell on the card, where busybox provides a subset of normal Linux system commands.

Microsoft Windows may be the dominant operating system in businesses and homes, but there are some places it just doesn't fit. That is particularly true for the mini-ITX systems that are gaining popularity in single-purpose applications

Ads-tec GmbH is shipping a Linux-powered firewall device for industrial networking applications.

We've all seen plenty of Linux computers on a stick before, right? But check the TurboLinux Wizpy which brings all that portable Linux PC and USB mass storage goodness wrapped inside a DivX capable MP3 player.

MontaVista Software Inc. last week announced the beta release of an integrated development environment (IDE), code-named Project Tsuki, that promises full compatibility with the Eclipse framework. It supports the MontaVista Linux operating system with new analysis features aimed at simplifying embedded Linux development.

It seems like a great idea: making a computer that's somewhere between the size of a cell phone and a laptop, for people to carry around and surf the Web.

One of the first POS (point-of-sale) equipment vendors to adopt Linux will now become one of the first to offer solid-state storage. Wincor Nixdorf's new X-Series, due in January, will be offered with an Msystems mModule uDOC embedded flash disk.

A second reprogrammable open Linux handset has been unveiled, only months after Trolltech introduced its Linux-based Greenphone to the developer community.

There have been a lot of phones claiming to be 'Linux phones' and those that do run a Linux kernel, but they all miss the point of Linux: to be open. FIC is about to change that in a big way with a truly open phone, the OpenMoko.

Sony's PlayStation 3 (PS3), due this month, will not ship with Linux pre-installed, as suggested in March by CEO Ken Kuturagi. However, TerraSoft CEO Kai Staats says his company's Yellow Dog Linux is installable by "anybody who knows how to use a keyboard, mouse, and browser," according to an interview in the Coloradoan.

Trolltech reports that its developer-friendly, Linux-based "Greenphone" was named "best embedded Linux product or initiative" at LinuxWorld, London. Additionally, the company's Qtopia Phone Edition (QPE) stack won a mobile phone tools award presented by a Chinese trade magazine devoted to mobile phone multimedia.

Parisian startup Linutop is readying a compact Linux-based computing appliance aimed at web surfing kiosks in libraries, schools, offices, hotels, hospitals, Internet cafes, and family rooms. The Linutop device features a fanless x86-compatible Geode processor, and flash-based storage for completely silent operation.

Hong Kong based mini-PC manufacturing specialist SD-Omega has added a pair of high-end models to its extensive line of more than 20 Linux-friendly car PC models. The SD631C and PCI-slot-equipped SD631CH support Intel Pentium M and Celeron M processors at over 2GHz, and include car-specific features.

It’s nice to know that if all you really want to do is surf the internet, so you can use The Google, you don’t actually have to spend on a full size ‘puter. The Linutop is a small desktop device that runs Linux, and doesn’t actually have a hard drive.

Gumstix has juiced up the tiny Linux PC based on its gumstick-sized SBCs (single-board computers). The newly shipping 400xm-cf model boasts a 400MHz PXA255 processor, and comes preinstalled with Linux 2.6.17.

The PepperPad 3 appeals to both computer neophytes and Linux hackers, suggests CarryPad Editor Steve Paine in an enthusiastic mini-review. Paine praises the device's user-friendliness, as well as its open, hacker-friendly, x86-based architecture.

Navicore is readying a version of its European GPS (global positioning system) software for Nokia's Linux-based 770 Internet Tablet. Navicore Personal 2007 brings a variety of "Internet enhanced" navigation features to the 770, and will ship in November, standalone or with a Bluetooth GPS receiver.

Basic real-time support is now in the mainline Linux kernel, making it easier for developers to build embedded Linux applications.

Technologic continues to reduce the boot time, price, and size of its embedded boards and systems targeting remote sensing and other power-critical applications. Its new $100 ARM9-based TS-7400 board can boot Linux in 1.1 seconds, and is available as part of a tiny WiFi-enabled system.

UK-based Pinnacle Audio used embedded Linux to build an ultra-high-fidelity, hard-drive-based music server capable of storing roughly 9,000 CDs, with lossless compression. The Athenaeum comes with a Linux-powered Nokia 770 Internet Tablet, which serves as its remote control, and it features a 24-bit, 96kHz digital-to-analog converter.

Chris Greene, product manager at Monster Cable, Brisbane, Calif., described the components of the Linux-based system and provided rough, preliminary pricing.

Nokia has still no plans to adopt Linux as a platform for its mobile phones, at least for now.

Infrant will soon ship a Linux-based storage device designed specially for serving up digital media files, including videos and music files. The Repertoire has no playback capabilities, but can store up to 3TB of media, and stream or transfer it using most common, standard, open protocols.

Market research firm Venture Development Corp. (VDC) has published its annual re-cap of the Embedded Systems Conference (ESC), held in Boston the week of Sept. 18. VDC's report highlights several announcements of potential interest to developers and companies in the embedded Linux market.

You may not know what Linux is, but there's a good chance you use it every day.

A small company has begun building its line of tiny, gumstick-sized single-board computers (SBCs) into miniscule packaged PCs that displace around 68 cc of volume and come with Linux pre-installed. Suggested apps for the teeny "Netstix" Linux PCs include webservers, printer servers, IP-telephony servers, security appliances.

Neuros Technology is offering Linux hackers first dibs on beta units of its next-gen DVR (digital video recorder). The Linux-powered device can record MPEG-4 video from cable or broadcast TV, DVDs, etc., and transfer it to portable media players, or serve as a network music player.

Every now and then, you stumble across a software system that you never think about. Such is the case with a Linux-powered helicopter simulator being developed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. And no, you can't run it on your PlayStation 2.

Mobile Linux application platform vendor Trolltech ASA predicts that the first phones running an open version of the OS, to which native apps can be downloaded, will appear in 2007.

Trolltech hopes the Greenphone could help grow the mobile Linux market by encouraging developers to create applications for Linux-powered devices

Software developer Wind River Systems has been getting some traction lately, as seen with the strength of its second-quarter results. On the news, the stock price rose 6% to $10.83. But the big issue is whether the company can sustain this growth.

Access executives Tomihisa Kamada and Didier Diaz discuss the Access Linux Platform and the future of the Palm community

Hi-Mobile.net once again kindly stepped up and sent us in the next-generation Motorola Linux-based ROKR-E2 feature phone. In the tradition of the ROKR devices, the E2 is also built around the idea of music on the go, while it's the first Linux phone to have an initial retail cost smaller than $256. Read inside for our detailed review, video and pictures.

Hanbit Electronics and Pepper Computer will ship a third generation Linux-powered webpad "on or before September 30th," Pepper confirmed Aug. 31. Compared to its predecessors, the Pepper Pad 3 boasts speedier web browsing, faster and more comprehensive multimedia support, smaller size, reduced weight, and numerous hardware enhancements, according to the company.

Skype on Aug. 31 introduced a pair of cordless VoIP phones that work without being connected to a computer, via a DECT base station that attaches directly to broadband and POTS lines. One of the two -- the Philips VOIP841 -- uses Linux as its embedded OS.

Access is betting that the Palm community could use a little push from a penguin.

Linux-based robots are tricky to create, but Michael Surran's Robotics class found out it can be done.

Industrial camera maker Prosilica has released an x86- and PowerPC-Linux SDK (software development kit) for use in communicating with its line of Ethernet cameras.

Japan's largest mobile operator will power-up a 3.5G network next week, and launch a Linux-based phone capable of using it. The N902iX phone, supplied by NEC, offers features most U.S. and European users can only dream of -- such as 3.6Mbit/s peak download speeds.

A Bangkok-based company is shipping a tiny, sub-$100 PC capable of running Puppy and other lightweight Linux distributions. NorhTec's MicroClient Jr. measures 4.5 inches square, draws 8 Watts, and has a 166MHz Pentium-compatible processor with three integer units. It targets thin-client, kiosk, and electronic signage

Devicescape has renamed its WiFi client software stack, and added support for a "one-button" secure WiFi configuration standard. The Devicescape Agent, formerly "Secure Wireless Client," offers a standards-based "Easy Access" feature aimed at making secure WiFi network configuration trivial for "service-enabled" consumer electronics devices such as network-ready cameras and music-players.

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