The Pervasive Blog

Smart, connected Service oriented

2009-10-02T13:24:00.000-07:00

Here are three videos about embedded, from the MS point of view. The interesting one is the retro view, from 2007.

1. Microsoft 2019 (Published 2009) General MS video- notice not a desktop or server to be seen. 100% embedded, much surface computing technology. MS has a team working on every single thing you see here. Surface is multi-touch, multi-user, multi-media input and output. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XiqgmAYrd3c&feature=PlayList&p=8C7EA2FCDDE88894&index=0&playnext=1

2. Microsoft 2010 (published 2007) This is the really interesting one. In 2007 MS were showing exactly the 2010 product rollout. Everything you see here is Windows 7 or Windows Mobile 6.5. Point is, Microsoft not only spins a vision, they MAKE it happen. Their vision statement is a product roadmap. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RiTb3-t4YJk&feature=PlayList&p=8C7EA2FCDDE88894&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=1

3. Smart, Connected, Service Oriented Devices (now/Transition, published 2009) This is the ‘embedded’ extension of the current vision. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WoG0yicRl10

Smart, connected Service oriented edge servers- see them here

About Middleware

2009-09-24T10:17:00.000-07:00

We will be hearing more about this. In a diverse world, with many operating systems, languages, technologies middleware is what keeps things togehter. Middleware is 'everyware'.

Lawrence Ricci

2009-09-10T07:21:00.000-07:00

Original post is here:
http://www.internetevolution.com/messages.asp?piddl_msgthreadid=229093&piddl_msgid=195928#msg_195928

Yes! The Internet of Things! This is the substance of Web 3.0. This is where Internet Evolution is going!

Making things connect is what I do, what I have done for a decade. Now that 32 bit embedded CPU’s can cost as little as candy in a vending machine or be as powerful as a desktop (Intel Atom) we have the hardware we need. The gating factor has been software- specifically middleware for embedded devices.

We are getting there. Fortunately, the cloud is ready with Service Oriented Architecture. The internet of things is huge. You probably have two or three computers. You have dozens of ‘things’ that could/should/will connect. Each of these ‘things’ could have vital data, but the data is vital only at certain moments. Devices need to ‘publish’ events and cloud services need to ‘subscribe’ as needed.

Here are some quotes about the Internet of things
L.V.Gerstner – IBM
"...a billion people interacting with a million e-businesses with a trillion intelligent devices interconnected ..."

Paul Otellini- CEO Intel
“The pervasive internet will bring us the tools we need when we need them by proactively anticipating what we need”

Roberto Siagri-CEO Eurotech
“ An embedded computer system is typically any microprocessor-based device that encapsulates a basic process knowledge. Consequence: IT integration is at best an effort in hindsight and at worst ignored altogether. Pervasive Computing provides technology and infrastructure to enable the process knowledge and associated parameters to be distributed within the enterprise. Consequence: IT integration becomes native capability of the system.”

Kevin Dallas, general manager of Windows Embedded
“Smart, connected, service oriented devices”

In in the end, it was said in the beginning by the inventor of the concept-
Mark Weiser, chief scientist at Xerox PARC
Principles describing ubiquitous computing:

The purpose of a computer is to help you do something else.
The best computer is a quiet, invisible servant.
The more you can do by intuition the smarter you are; the computer should extend your unconscious.
Technology should create calm- "that which informs but doesn't demand our focus or attention."

Lawrence Ricci
www.EmbeddedInsider.com

2009-08-24T13:28:00.001-07:00

Eurotech Awareness Day today- we have mission focused on three words:

Disappearing, connecting, augmenting.

Disappearing- think not just small, but almost passive in interaction, think RESTful interface.
Connecting- nuf said. IPV6 sooner or later
augmenting- supporting our presence in our environment.

Lawrence Ricci

Intel to buy Wind River!

2009-06-04T12:03:00.000-07:00

This is big news.

http://seekingalpha.com/article/141400-intel-wind-river-another-player-throwing-its-hat-into-the-ring

I suspect this will cement support for Moblin on the Atom SBC.

My guess is the Intel deal will go through, with Intel. People with software IP, for example IBM, Google and Microsoft, might be slow to co-mingle their IP with all the versions of the GPL. With control of software, Intel will be in the catbird seat for the two big "Bill of Material" items in the sub $400 notebook market- which seems to be the only market that counts right now.

Also, the sub $400 device is a product where 'quick to market' counts, and where the hardware integration of (cameras, voice, inertial sensors) has just begun. The situation is simple for the ODM. Buy an Intel Atom CPU chip with good software support, or buy some other chip and get a hobbyists software kit.

Lawrence Ricci

The Internet of Things will happen, and will be different

2009-01-16T08:30:00.000-08:00

The technology to build the pervasive interent is falling into place as we speak. These technologies are real and becoming part of devices today.

I like the Intel Atom CPU , the Nokia NoTA , Websphere and Microsoft .NET framework for example. With these tools, expect the "things" to become "platforms" for content.

The format of the "things" (e.g. small screen and touch) , ther network connect (e.g. costly and poor) the places they are used (e.g. cars and Starbucks) will change the content, in the same way the Internet of 17 inch color screens and broadband changed to content from the Internet of CGA and dial up.

Content will change, new media will emerge on new platforms. This has happened before.

Let us not forget the Olsen Twins got rich not from the TV show, but from the "Direct to DVD" movie industry and a distribution deal with WalMart. The Olsen's may be a small niche of the entertainment industry, but a niche with three commas in its commercial value is pretty nice.

Considering the media of things, I think the content will skew to short segments, suitable for bus rides or waiting in line. My bet is something like the old SNL "Mr. Bill" series, "Celebrity Death Match" or some YouTube favorites like "Two Hot Girls in a Shower" or "Gorgeous Tiny Chicken Machines Show" and of course, "RocketBoom" None of these will get the third comma, but they might well get two commas in their net worth.

Lawrence Ricci
www.EmbeddedInsider.om

Will it Still be MODBUS?

2008-03-24T06:44:00.000-07:00

Technology, to stay in sync, may have to move slowly. Perhaps it will move most slowly in the geographically distributed infrastructure.

I just saw this posting in Energy Business:

Evaluating Pipeline Projects - Dominion Resources is about to make a major investment in its pipeline infrastructure. Its Ohio subsidiary has filed an application with Ohio regulators to replace nearly 20 percent of its 21,000-mile pipeline system over 25 years at a current cost of $2.6 billion. Once approved, modernization will begin next year.

Here is a 25 year plan to a major technology upgrade. What do you bet the the electronics/Controls are based on the 'de jure' Modbus protocol, now perhaps 35 years old? Protocols between things- especially things made by different companies- tend to change very slowly.

Can you name a protocol, still in use today, from the end of the century before last?

Lawrence Ricci

http://www.embeddedinsider.com/

Trust and Web 2.0

2008-03-17T17:36:00.000-07:00

Nicole Ferraro at Internet Evolution ran a quick survey about where people will leave trusted information. Worst- social networks. Next worst- Google.

This survey is serious news.

We live in the world of ‘2’. Peer ‘2’ Peer. Business ‘2’ Business. Friend ‘2’ Friend.

Jeff Jarvis at Buzz Machine tells us: “Distribution is not king, Content is not king. Conversation is the kingdom and the King is Trust."

Trust is all about the relations between 2 entities, and if Web 2.0 can not master ‘2’ then it will be limited.

Lawrence Ricci
http://www.embeddedinsider.com/

Is the Web bigger than Pizza?

2008-03-15T07:58:00.000-07:00

It seems almost every pitch of every value proposition of every website is based on locating pizza shops. OK, I guess the iPhone took this up a notch to Calamari. But pause to think: is the total value of Web 2.0 limited to the advertising budgets for Pizza? Are we in some form of “Irrational Exuberance”

If I want to buy Pizza I look at the magnet on my refrigerator, or stop at the shop on the way to the party. Web has nothing to do with my Pizza buying.

I think the value will be found in deeper values then commerce. The value will be Social affiliation, linked to the objects we use to show or place in social groups. Flashing Bluetooth ear sets may evolve to jewelry. Our new ego-mobile may link us to other ego-mobile owners directly, bypassing, or more like augmenting, the owners group website. Our home may be wired into our homeowners association. Our sports team poster may evolve to a ‘digital picture frame’ with shared content from the players and fans we know.

We need to go past the internet we see through a 17 inch diagonal monitor. It will be the internet that follows us to work, to play. We need the internet that knows where we are and what we are doing- and most important –what we will need

Lawrence Ricci
www.EmbeddedInsider.com

Wearable Computers

2008-03-14T10:44:00.000-07:00

Here is an interesting embedded application- smart shoes for ladies of the evening, developed by the Aphrodite project.

Based on GPS and wireless alarm technology, these shoes are represented as safety devices. While they may have some utility in this function, they are just as likely to be used by pimps to track their stable and count shoes-off tricks to determine money due. But if a women in that line of work wanted to really benefit from tech shoes like these, she would like some nice, colorful messaging on that screen, perhaps on the theme ‘hi sailor, new in town’.

Silly shoes aside, wearable computers are here. Zypad is one of the best. Zypad is for a practical user, the company that hires a mobile, hands-on worker, who still has information entry and information access as a primary task (not like the above mentioned mobile professionals) . We are left to wonder about the future of consumer wearable devices, sold to the person who uses them, not his employer.

As device become mobile and personal, we need to understand they become less like tools to do a job and more totems to show social affiliation. So many tech companies seem to get this wrong. Microsoft developed the SPOT watch so users could check stock prices in elevators. So what? The reason I wear my SPOT Watch is because it identifies me as an alpha geek. (although I must admit the combo of watch plus Outlook Schedule and Alarm is useful, plus movie times and weather) . But bottom line, a SPOT watch is an alpha-geek totem. Fashion companies understand 'totems', so they know how to differentiate a $10 Timex from a $10,000 Rolex- and they know it's not just $200 of gold and diamonds.

What consumers really need are totems that activate and display based our social affiliation. A cell phone, or an ornamental brooch or ring that reacts when near a Facebook friend could be cool. Bluetooth and a Smartphone, and downloads with the Facebook API, make this possible today. More than affiliation, these devices could show our state of mind, or receptiveness. Remember the mood ring? Why not a real mood indicator with respiration and perspiration detectors?

Could be interesting

Lawrence Ricci

http://www.embeddedinsider.com/

Low cost computing for the poor

2008-03-05T08:59:00.000-08:00

Much has been made of the $100 wind up computer for the 3rd world. http://www.news.com/2100-1044-5884683.html . It has always seemed to me that this was a solution in search of a problem. Certainly, I do not think the targeted markets (the poor of Brazil, China, Thailand, Egypt and South Africa) would list high cost of Dell PC’s as one of their top ten needs.

I came across another approach that is needs focused: health care for poor.

The platform suggested is existing cell phones, probably the recycled type, that are far below the $100 price point, and are backed by in-place networks with government controlled and subsidized pricing. Microsoft is kicking in a million dollars of seed money to study this application http://research.microsoft.com/ur/us/fundingopps/RFPs/CellPhoneAsPlatformForHealthcare_RFP.aspx
It is interesting to see that the need to culturally integrate the platform by inclusion of social networking, etc. is part of the RFP

Certainly, the field of ‘telemedicine’ is being pursued in first world economies with vigor. Much can be done with special purpose devices. http://www.applieddata.net/Devices/Industry_Health_Fitness.asp

I wonder how this will develop?

Lawrence Ricci
http://www.embeddedinsider.com/

Photosynth Technology and Embedded

2008-03-03T07:07:00.000-08:00

Photosynth Technology

Microsoft research continues to working on applications for its imaging technology Photosynth. http://labs.live.com/photosynth/

This technology can pull together multiple images, from multiple points of view, to create a whole. The “World Telescope” takes this to an extreme.

http://www.ted.com/talks/view/id/224

There is another element of this technology that means we will be seeing it in the mobile and embedded’ world. Photosynth not only synthesizes a greater whole, Photosynth summarizes any portion of the data to the degree required by the display device. Photosynth only burdens the ‘viewport’ with as much detail as it needs. Therefore, it is fast, really really fast, and compute efficient. So, for a personal navigation screen, a PDA or cell phone, can zoom in forever if it wants, to the limit of the data resolution on the server.

Lawrence Ricci
www.EmbeddedInsider.com

From This Year's MIT Top Ten

2008-02-22T06:08:00.000-08:00

There is a potential new technology for better MIPS per MW. It is called Probabilistic CMOS or PCMOS. The idea is to allow a few ‘mistakes’ in exchange for much lower power.

http://www.technologyreview.com/read_article.aspx?ch=specialsections&sc=emerging08&id=20246

This could make a lot of sense in a asymmetric multi-processor system- ASMP. One, small CPU could tend mission-critical interrupts, etc. Another CPU could do the heavy lifting of decompression, streaming, etc. This is just theory now. Figure if this works we will see this in two more turns of Moore’s Law.

Lawrence Ricci
The Embedded Insider
www.applieddata.net

Keeping things secure

2008-02-17T09:55:00.000-08:00

OpenID is a standard that seems to have legs.

http://www.news.com/8301-13577_3-9866802-36.html

The Members of OpenID include Google and Microsoft. The benefits of the technology is you, the consumer, do not have to leave your identity information all over the web, where it is subject to loss or misuse. Your profile is kept one place, one place you decide to trust. Your name, password, Mothers maiden name, address, SS number, credit card, etc is kept at the one address. If you visit a new site and want to sign up for a newsletter or buy something, only the information that site authorized to have is transferred from your OpenID supplier. You have only one user name and password to worry about.

This could be very important in the mobile device space. Desktop users can put passwords on a piece of paper in the desk drawer, or can keep themselves signed on to websites. Mobile users, and their mobile devices, have no such luxury.

Still to be worked out is how to keep the ID secure for unattended devices, things like RTU controllers for electrical power or pipelines. “Security thru obscurity” for embedded devices does not work- you can see some interesting hacks on the whitepaper you can get here:

http://www.applieddata.net/Embedded/Security.asp

A good working definition of disaster is when the mainline press use the term "embedded" and "Exploit" in the same sentance.

More News on Menlow/LPIA

2008-02-04T08:40:00.000-08:00

Intel is releasing info on their low power initiative slowly. Here is one link

http://blogs.zdnet.com/Ou/?p=987&tag=nl.e539

George Ou did a good job of sorting out comments on the impending release from comments on the Intel roadmap. That roadmap has also been the subject of some Intel PR recently, and some people are expecting performance on release day that is really planned for subsequent CPU's. Unrealistic expectations aside, Intel really has been pretty clear that Menlow is just the first step down a side branch of Moore’s Law; they have plans and target specs reaching out 10 years.

Our development team lives ‘between the lines’ of press releases like this, but all seems consistent with what we know about the impending product release. You can see our target product specs here:

www.applieddata.net/catalyst

Lawrence Ricci
http://www.embeddedinsider.com/

2008-01-21T09:45:00.000-08:00

Voting Machines are in the news again. Understandable.

This from the New York Times, Jan 16 2008

The solution is for all votes to be recorded on paper records. Voters can then verify that their choice has been accurately reflected — and the paper record can be used as a backup for the electronic machines.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/16/opinion/16wed1.html?_r=2&scp=1&sq=a+quick+fix+for+electronic+voting&oref=slogin&oref=slogin

We can have security and electronic voting too: Here is a piece of election equipment that is automatic, user friendly, handicapped accessible, but creates a paper ballot~

http://www.applieddata.net/Devices/ballot-marker_AutoMARK.asp

This device is just a ballot marker (it does not store or tabulate votes, it only marks ballots for the disabled) but it had to go through the same certification ringer as DRE (Direct Recording Equipment).

Moving back to paper is not a bad thing. For all history, our important information has been coded on more archaic media. We communicate with friends and family via email, but wedding invites go on vellum via snail mail. If you buy a house, the paper to do it gets a big embossed stamp. If you ever sign a treaty or trade agreement with a sovereign, it will probably have sealing wax on it.

We should not begrudge ballots their proper place anointed by a slightly retro technology.

The ‘funny’ DRM link is off YouTube.

2008-01-20T17:08:00.000-08:00

Well, the funny YouTube link from the last post is gone. It violated copyright of the original movie maker, and you-tube pulled it. And this is the core of the issue around DRM. The link was built from an incredibly dramatic and well acted German docu-drama about Hitler’s end in the bunker. The creator of the work took offences at its use.

Captions of Sony/Toshiba marketing speak were overlaid, and these made the clip funny- to me. I'm sure some people felt mocking Hitler was disrespectful (and about them I could care less). But what if it was a movie about the twin towers, Lee at Gettysburg, Crockett at the Alamo, Nathan Hale at the Gallows, or Leonidas at Thermopylae?

The creator has some rights to control his work- I never want to see Mickey mouse or Bugs Bunny porn.

The HD Wars are Over

2008-01-17T05:41:00.000-08:00

Just before CES Warner announced exclusive support for Blue-Ray. Here is a link that will show the reaction of the HD camp. (Very funny, and a bit of 'adult language', but worth it)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=friS4OOcdgQ

On a serious note- The DVD Wars were all about DRM, the movie studios do not want to go the way of the recording studios. The reason I go to CES is you get to meet some real experts in topics like DRM, guys like Robert Weber ManagingRights.com. He knows the world is filled with grey areas and 'it depends' but I got the drift that he felt Sony had cleaned up their DRM act.

Sony, after many false starts with a 'root kit' and other unpopular mechanisms, went to a virtual machine model for DRM. The secure path from Disk to Player to Computer to Display is controlled not by the computer, but by a VM, running on the computer. The opinion is that as hackers advance, Sony and the studios can just update the VM.

I suppose the last and cruelest defection from the HD-DVD camp was Microsoft. Microsoft bypassed the whole battle with a Warner deal for Video on Demand direct to xBox 360. http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2006/nov06/11-06TVMovieDeliveryPR.mspx As if that were not enough, it seems future xBox systems may ship with Blue Ray disks

From Reuters:

LAS VEGAS — Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox video gaming unit still fully backs Toshiba Corp.'s HD-DVD high-definition DVD format but could consider supporting Sony Corp's rival Blu-ray technology should consumers want it, an executive said Tuesday (Jan. 8). "It should be consumer choice; and if that's the way they vote, that's something we'll have to consider," Albert Fennell, group marketing manager for Xbox hardware said when asked whether Microsoft would support a Blu-ray DVD accessory in the event that HD-DVD failed.

DRM and its close cousin IRM (intellectual rights management) will be an important part of future embedded system designs that hold copyright media (Movies, music) or confidential information (HIPPA records, personal Id's)

Back from CES!

2008-01-11T10:43:00.001-08:00

More than 140,000 of us attended CES 2008, crawling over 40 acres of exhibits, resulting in a human density matched only by a Tokyo subway or perhaps Hugh Heffner’s Jacuzzi. Somewhere in there was embedded system news, and the keynotes of Microsoft and Intel were the place to start looking.

Each keynote drew perhaps 5000 attendees. The line to get Microsoft tickets was 4 hours long.

These indeed were keynotes of note- The Sunday pre-show keynote was reported to be Bill Gates’ last public appearance on behalf of Microsoft. In counterpoint, Intel CEO Paul Otellini's is new at the helm of Intel, and this was where he opened up a bit on Intel's path forward. The two men were interesting contrasts.

Gates took the stage after a hilarious introductory video on the subject of his last day at Microsoft. Self-deprecating executive humor has been a traditional feature of Gates or Balmer presentations; this was the best. Gates presided over the keynote in his trademark polyester sweater and six dollar haircut letting various MS group managers talk about the consumer business. The presentations were not techy. Most of the MS keynote highlighted business achievements, which were impressive. For example, Xbox consoles outsold both Playstation and Wii; and Xbox games sales outsold both together!

The crowd at the Gates keynote was tech heavy. Everyone I talked to had Visual Studio 2008 installed

To the extent the presentations were on emerging technologies, Gates spoke to us directly. Everything he chose to highlight himself was ‘embedded’. Specifically, Gates demoed a UMPC format device with camera that would recognize everyone in your contacts folder, and reference them to any events, notes or journal entries. The same recognizer technology could look at a streetscape and identify any building, and if a theater, show what movies were playing and how to book tickets. It was pretty easy to see how this path forward was a natural extension of the current location-enabled Windows Mobile Live Search.

The other noteworthy Gates demo was “Surface Computing”. Hitachi, Panasonic and others are also betting on surface computing, but their systems are relitivly primitive- projection TVs on a touch panel or such. The Microsoft offer is some optical/projection hybrid I do not understand, which allows multi-user, multi-touch operation. The HMI of the device is Silverlight, and this demo, like all MS demos, was not of a device, but of a web-connected database application.

Otellini's Intel demo was even more exciting. In past years, I have always thought Intel management was great because they kept focused on their technology and kept Moore’s Law running. Now I think Intel’s management is great because they are looking ahead with clarity and meeting the big platform needs. At CES Intel started touting their new semiconductor technology based on Hafnium doped silicon. If you remember, a few years ago it seemed Moore’s Law might be reaching an asymptote. Otellini feels this Hafnium technology puts those concerns to rest, and Intel is planning for five more cycles- ten years- of Moore’s law evolution.

Otellini also demoed a UMPC format device (albeit leashed to some quad core Pentiums) with features similar to what Gates demoed earlier. The Intel keynote was conspicuously devoid of any mention of Microsoft, although Adobe “AIR” was suggested as the HMI technology of the future.

The coolest thing Intel did was demo a virtual band system, where musicians in different locations could collaborate. At first Otellini called up a few musicians on the web, and then added a live singer- Steve Harwell of Smashmouth. Then, using another package, Intel created an animated avatar of Steve, and put the whole band together in a virtual garage. Cool.

Intel brought back Smashmouth for a totally rocking, non virtual party after the Keynote

CPU power will be key to realized Intel’s vision- and they see this in an integrated context- for example a bi-direction multi-lingual translation device that knows the target language by GPS setting. Apart from delivering ten more years of increasing processor power, Otellini promised continued efforts to promote WiMax to bring fast wireless downloads/uploads to wireless, edge-connected devices. His vision for the internet is not a place you ‘go to’ via a browser. His vision is an internet that finds you, via all the devices in your everyday life, and understands your context and anticipates your needs. It brought to mind the line from Terminator “I will be back”.

So, CES was cool, very cool, but past Intel and Microsoft I have little to say today. Keeping up with the pace was tiring, and it is good to be home. I will update more on later posts- any questions??

Lawrence Ricci
The Embedded Insider