TI's OMAP3530 system-on-chip (SoC).
(Click for larger view of IBase's IB885)The giveaways are part of TechInsights' "Build Your Own Embedded System" (BYOES) program, which offers hands-on assistance to developers as they build embedded systems at the show. BYOES participants can choose from a variety of classes, several specific to Windows development. The program builds on a similar event at the ESC show last April in San Jose, where TechInsights
gave away Via Artigo pico-ITX kits. In Boston, attendees will now be able to pick one of two intriguing devices, according to whether they prefer Windows or Linux.
TechInsights says its "gift" to those who want to build Windows-based systems will be IBase's
IB885, a "3.5-inch" format SBC (single board computer) announced just last week. The IB885 is notable for apparently being the first-ever device to feature AMD's new Sempron 200U and 210U processors -- which still haven't been formally acknowledged by the chipmaker. The CPUs employ AMD's Sempron core, clocked down to 1.0GHz or 1.5GHz, and offered in a soldered-down BGA (ball grid array). For more information, see our earlier coverage,
here.
The IB885, which on its own measures 5.75 x 4 inches, will be supplied to participants in the BYOES program with a case, 512MB of RAM, and a 40GB hard drive, says TechInsights. It will also come with copies of both Windows Embedded Standard (WES) and Windows CE, according to the organizers. Whether the operating systems are 90-day evaluation editions or have unlimited licenses was not stated, however.
TechInsights' "gift" to Linux enthusiasts is also innovative, since it consists of the
Beagle Board, a recent collaboration between Texas Instruments, Numonyx, and MontaVista. The $150, 3-inch-square Beagle Board (below) is said to be aimed at low-volume embedded developers, hobbyists, and students who want to evaluate ARM's Cortex-A8 and TI's OMAP3 architectures. TI employees began demonstrating the device in June, and Digi-Key
started distributing it at the end of July.
The Beagle Board
(Click to enlarge)The Beagle Board is based on a TI
OMAP3530, the fanciest model in the OMAP35xx portfolio of system-on-chip processors, and one of the first available system-on-chip (SoC) processors based on ARM's Cortex-A8 processor core. Clocked at 600MHz, the OMAP3530 is compatible with Windows CE, and the Beagle Board will reportedly be offered with Windows CE 6.0 in the future. In the meantime, however, TechInsights apparently decided to add Ibase's SBC to the BYOES program because the IB885 is compatible not only with Windows CE, but also with the x86-based Windows Embedded Standard.
ESC Boston 2008Scheduled for Hynes Convention Center in Boston on Oct. 26-30, ESC Boston features a keynote by robot-swarm designer James McLurkin. An exhibition floor will be open on Oct. 28-29, but the main focus is on educational sessions. Major education-session topics include:
- Commercial & open source operating systems
- Debugging, verification & test
- Design-team management
- DSP & multimedia: algorithms & implementation
- Hardware design including programmable logic
- Multi-core & multi-threaded processing
- Real-time development
- Security
- Software development
- Virtualization
- Wired & wireless networking
According to TechInsights, potential Windows-specific classes in the BYOES program will include:
Stated Richard Nass, editor in chief of Embedded Systems Design and editorial director of the Embedded Systems Conferences, "A lot of conferences give attendees a development platform to work on while they're at the event, but ESC Boston attendees get to keep their newly configured kit."
Further informationThe iBase IB885 or Beagle Board are free to attendees who pay the $1,500 five-day pass ($1,800) or the $2,300 all-access fee ($2,600). The all-access pass includes admittance to a "Stroustrup & Sutter on C++" two-day session, as well as access to the concurrent SD Best Practices show. More information on ESC Boston, scheduled for Oct. 26-30, may be found
here.
Related stories: 
