Embedded Linux

Rating:
Summary: Astonishingly shallow and useless
Review: A major disappointment - most of this book can be found on the Internet using any search engine. Save your money and nerves, and go to the Linux Documentation Project.

Rating:
Summary: Not bad, but...
Review: Because of my job, I wanted to know more and was recommended this book. I've had it for a year and I still haven't finished the entire thing. I'm 95% done. The beginning of the book is fairly good and summarizes embedded linux. The rest of it, with examples it pretty indepth.. or atleast I thought. Reading about the GPL had some interesting points but I found that you can find all this information summarized better on the net.

Rating:
Summary: Not bad, but...
Review: Because of my job, I wanted to know more and was recommended this book. I've had it for a year and I still haven't finished the entire thing. I'm 95% done. The beginning of the book is fairly good and summarizes embedded linux. The rest of it, with examples it pretty indepth.. or atleast I thought. Reading about the GPL had some interesting points but I found that you can find all this information summarized better on the net.

Rating:
Summary: Useless for both junior and senior Embedded developer
Review: Do NOT take this poor-descriptive book from bookshelf! Do NOT be cheated by the name of this book, it's my only comment!

Rating:
Summary: It's OK, but it's a fattened brochure really
Review: In the total absence of competition, this book is very welcome. It's got a nice intro to emb programming on linux, set of info sources, interesting discussions of things like configuring the kernel (with what you need only), linking methods--dynamic vs static, embedded toolkits. It's written quite decently, you won't have to struggle. The comment below about the book's exclusive coverage of x86 platform is absolutely true, and it may or may not be a flaw depending on your particular case. In my case it wasn't -- it just so happens that I'm only working with x86'es. I suspect a lot of people are in the same boat, probably including the author, which would explain this platform preference, that in general, is far from a given in the embedded systems area.

On the downside are a long-established set of tricks that publishers use to make a white paper or a couple of HOWTO pages into a book (and charge accordingly.) The book starts with a load of usual bs about open source, which, if you're at the point of using linux for embedded anything, I'm sure you already know of, and of course it's all available on-line for free, and of course, if you have at least one other book on linux, it's all present there too. The back, as expected, is padded by -- you guessed it -- the full text of the GNU license. I have no linux books that wouldn't have it there, it's a modern and improved (more voluminous) equivalent of the formerly ubiquitous ASCII table. Thank god the Cathedral/Bazaar, or any other pack of inane ramblings of the official linux gurus, offending the English language and common-sense logic with their philosophical lucubrations with publisher-sponsored impunity are not included; let's admit, it could be worse.

So, if the money is not a problem, buy this book, though I'd say its real price should be a half of what it is. The 100 or so pages that contain something of value will make this book useful for many people, and btw, not only to embedded system engineers, but to anyone, since kernel configuration can be used in any environment and is an interesting topic in general.

Rating:
Summary: A Start
Review: John's book is welcome first. I do agree it is very x86 centered but that is better than no books at all on the subject. Maybe we can encourage John to write a followup book with examples based on a real embedded platform.
I found the book was inspiring and useful to someone like myself who makes a living from designing embedded hardware and systems.

That does not mean that it answered all my questions but it sure wet my appetite. John please do a follow up book that uses real hardware.

Rating:
Summary: Worthy attempt falls far short of the mark of being embedded
Review: Linux or not, yet another "embedded" book where the discussion barely mentions anything other than the x86, and where the book is certainly focused solely on x86. With embedded systems making up something like 90% of all computers sold in the world and where the x86 accounts for such a small fraction of these embedded systems, I'd wait for *anything* that isn't x86-centric. I mean, how hard is it to envision getting Linux up and running on an x86? We've been doing it since the days of the floppy-based "dd" releases. One passage in the book tells you to "press CTRL + D" ...hey that's great, if you've got a PC BIOS and a keyboard and an entire lifetime of work in front of where your Embedded Linux project starts.

A buy versus build "hardware" section is yet another attempt at trying to settle some of the complex decisions in a generic, watered-down way that is only useful for a marketing professional rather than an engineering professional. Does John know that the price of a PC-104 controller and expansion board is extremely prohibitive in any real "embedded" world where quantity is an issue? When was the last time you found a PC-104 expansion board on your automobile ignition timing control computer or in your elevator controller? Maybe John is simply telling us that Embedded Linux isn't ready for real embedded systems yet, and that as long as we stay on the PC we're good to go? No discussion on creating your own bootloader, no discussion on initializing your system in such a way that it prepares it for running the Linux kernel, just, follow these instructions for x86 and it will work...very few "why" answers in this "Embedded mini-HOWTO" for x86.

John does briefly mention just about everything related to some of the decisions you will make in your own embedded Linux projects. Unless you think you'd be happy with a 30,000' view of embedded Linux and/or your world revolves around the x86, then maybe you'll find his anecdotal content useful. John's candid revelation that he used VMware extensively during book development to replace his "host" computer should alert you to the x86-centricity of this book. Also, John, mixes the use of "host" in the very brief chapter on testing and debugging. He initially tells us that we should test on our "Host Computer" as much as possible because that's where the code must eventually run then goes on during a very spartan GDB mention that "you can still use gdb by connecting your host to your target through the serial port." No mention of the "gdb stub" or anything related to real embedded Linux work, but at least you're left wondering when you're a host and when you're not. I'd leave this one on the bookshelf as it is not yet ready for prime time. I even find it hard to recommend it for people doing x86 work as there just is not enough useful detail. The book would be better named "Embedded Linux for x86 and A Discussion of Issues Surrounding It." Sorry John. I know that "bad" reviews are painful, but where are any meat and potatoes in this book? This is almost as bad as Embedded Linux Journal's first "embedded project" where they wanted an "embedded system" with the 100Mbit/s Ethernet *and* the ability to store at least an entire movie on the "target." It seems that few Linux people really do "get" embedded systems. Honestly, I can't imagine that the 40 or so words you wrote about "using" gdb for testing and debugging really covered that topic at all. I'm guessing that you've never really had to debug an embedded system. I didn't see any mention of an oscilloscope or logic analyzer, so I'm thinking that you're way above the hardware, too. Being so separated from the "embedded" in the "system" suggests 30,000 feet to me. I'm not saying that you need to tell your readers what As and 5s do, but I'd like to think that we're at least in the same ballpark playing basically the same game.

Rating:
Summary: Good start for embedded linux world
Review: This was the only book available on embeeded linux in the market. Linux is making roads in embedded systems. But there is very little information available on the subject. This book gives a basic foundation for system engineers who wants to use linux in their embedded projects. The books explains why linux is more pertinent for embedded projects; the advantages/disadvantages of using linux in embedded systems; how to build a smalles possible linux system; choosing the right hardware for embedded linux; Embedded linux tool kits available in the market; how to boot embedded linux from flash memory; Debugging embedding linux. There is a chapter on the success stories of embedded linux (TIVO, Axis Network camera). Embedded linux resources are given in an appendix. The coverage is not exhaustive but presentation of the material is good; John has done a good job.

Rating:
Summary: Astonishingly shallow and useless
Review: What does "embedded" mean? What does "realtime" mean? For someone with no preconceived definition of "embedded", this book could help them feel they have some idea of what it means to do "embedded Linux". For people with preconceived ideas, I think they might feel this book does not sufficiently address the topic. It does not cover all the bases by any stretch of the imagination.

The book is relatively light on content; maybe 150 pages of it; but it doesn't cost much either. For what it is, the content is okay, but I don't think anybody should come away from this book thinking they know all about how to do anything.

I guess I would say this book provides some information about the issues involved in running Linux on a PC-style computer which has limited resources such as RAM and nonvolatile storage, and could help someone with a hardware setup like that to get it going with Linux.

Rating:
Summary: = * * *
Review: What does "embedded" mean? What does "realtime" mean? For someone with no preconceived definition of "embedded", this book could help them feel they have some idea of what it means to do "embedded Linux". For people with preconceived ideas, I think they might feel this book does not sufficiently address the topic. It does not cover all the bases by any stretch of the imagination.

The book is relatively light on content; maybe 150 pages of it; but it doesn't cost much either. For what it is, the content is okay, but I don't think anybody should come away from this book thinking they know all about how to do anything.

I guess I would say this book provides some information about the issues involved in running Linux on a PC-style computer which has limited resources such as RAM and nonvolatile storage, and could help someone with a hardware setup like that to get it going with Linux.