Return-Path: Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org via listexpand id S932095AbVJGAj1 (ORCPT ); Thu, 6 Oct 2005 20:39:27 -0400 Received: (majordomo@vger.kernel.org) by vger.kernel.org id S1751276AbVJGAj1 (ORCPT ); Thu, 6 Oct 2005 20:39:27 -0400 Received: from free.hands.com ([83.142.228.128]:57820 "EHLO free.hands.com") by vger.kernel.org with ESMTP id S1751275AbVJGAj0 (ORCPT ); Thu, 6 Oct 2005 20:39:26 -0400 Date: Fri, 7 Oct 2005 01:38:41 +0100 From: Luke Kenneth Casson Leighton To: Rik van Riel Cc: Alan Cox , linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org Subject: Re: what's next for the linux kernel? Message-ID: <20051007003841.GK10538@lkcl.net> References: <54300000.1128297891@[10.10.2.4]> <20051003011041.GN6290@lkcl.net> <200510022028.07930.chase.venters@clientec.com> <20051004125955.GQ10538@lkcl.net> <17218.39427.421249.448094@gargle.gargle.HOWL> <20051004161702.GU10538@lkcl.net> <20051006000744.GD10538@lkcl.net> <20051006192220.GU10538@lkcl.net> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Disposition: inline In-Reply-To: <20051006192220.GU10538@lkcl.net> User-Agent: Mutt/1.5.5.1+cvs20040105i X-hands-com-MailScanner: Found to be clean X-MailScanner-From: lkcl@lkcl.net Sender: linux-kernel-owner@vger.kernel.org X-Mailing-List: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org Content-Length: 3021 Lines: 80 http://www.eet.com/in_focus/embedded_systems/OEG20021213S0029 It was decided at the beginning that we would design a system-on-chip (SoC) platform, which yields the best unit price when manufactured in high volume. The usual approach would be to license all the technology from third party suppliers, [...] [but] we didn't want to deal with huge NRE and royalty fees. Also, we would not get the necessary know-how that is often a determining factor when designing a new product in today's ever decreasing time-to-market. So, we decided to follow the Linux open source philosophy and build our first platform on open source technology. We took several open source IPs from OpenCores [http://www.opencores.org] and integrate them into an underlying hardware SoC platform optimized for running Linux. [...] ... As the main processor we chose OpenRISC 1200 [http://www.opencores.org/pnews.cgi/list/or1k?no_loop=yes], a 32-bit RISC processor that comes with a stable GNU Toolchain and a port of small footprint Microcontroller Linux, the uClinux. The next critical part of the whole project was to set up a scheme on how to connect all the IPs in a modular way so that we could configure the platform for different embedded applications. [...] We found out that a central configurable block interconnecting the processor and peripheral IPs did the trick. [...] we created a tool that automatically generated this central block [...] and automatically configures Linux kernel and device drivers for that particular application. As embedded developers often find out, it is difficult to start writing and testing software, if hardware designers are still designing the hardware. It is necessary to parallel these two tasks in order to meet ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ today's critical time-to-market schedules. In addition, each group can provide some test cases to the other as we found out. these people designed the _entire_ embedded system - from free software licensed components. the processor design. the software toolchain. the kernel running on the free software licensed processor design. it CAN be done. it HAS been done. convincing yourselves that you "must have hardware before you will get off your fat asses" is _so_ self-disempowering. STOP IT. you - the linux kernel designers - are an extremely powerful group who quite literally could hold the technical world to ransom if you so chose (albeit for a very brief amount of time until someone considered your actions to be the equivalent of a "bus-running-over" event). god help the world when you decide to actually say "thank you for your hardware. next time, consult us on what should be in it _before_ you finalise its design". l. - To unsubscribe from this list: send the line "unsubscribe linux-kernel" in the body of a message to majordomo@vger.kernel.org More majordomo info at http://vger.kernel.org/majordomo-info.html Please read the FAQ at http://www.tux.org/lkml/