Real Time Linux to become a Reality

1999-11-22

For Linux to take over the world, it must prove itself viable in several, as-yet uncharted territories including desktop, enterprise server and embedded platform. Whilst it still has a way to go in all these areas, an announcement from Lynx suggests that a solution for the embedded platform may be nearing readiness. Lynx expects to release BlueCat Linux by June of next year. This version of Linux will be able to support embedded and hard real time applications (as opposed to pseudo-real time applications) and will be released as open source.

What is significant about this announcement is that Lynx is already a vendor of a POSIX-compliant, real-time operating system and so clearly has some experience to bring to the party. Secondly, the whole issue of embedded systems raises the question of “What’s in the box”. Embedded systems are not visible to the user of the device concerned, and it is this user that is the most susceptible to marketing. Selection of which embedded OS is based on a number of factors, including functionality, manufacturer credibility and access to trained staff. If Lynx can successfully prove itself relative to these three factors then it may have enough to go up against the more marketing-oriented approaches favoured by non-Linux vendors.

It is both unlikely and unreasonable that Linux would take over the world. Microsoft have already proved beyond doubt that the concept of a one-size-fits-all operating system is fatally flawed. However Linux has already proved itself as a capable, general-purpose operating system. If Lynx can demonstrate its credentials in the embedded market, this will further reinforce acceptance of open source Linux in other areas.

(First published 22 November 1999)