EMBEDDED SYSTEMS
Built-in OSes are low-profile by definition. Like the gears in a Swiss watch, a good embedded system runs an appliance flawlessly while keeping out of sight. Not surprisingly, when Intel, IBM, Nokia, Ericsson, and AOL all adopted new Linux-based embedded systems in the past year, lesser-known companies providing the software didn't make a lot of noise about it - and still aren't - even as industry leaders like Sylvania join in.
Linux has become such a hit for consumer devices that longtime embedded leader Lynx renamed itself LynuxWorks. Bill Weinberg, at rival MontaVista, thinks the move was a smart one: "In the next few years, we'll be seeing the remanufacture of everything with any kind of embedded intelligence, mostly to make it all Net-native."
Linux's real appeal to appliance-makers may be its lack of branding requirements. Sylvania's Linux-based TV, slated to ship this summer, does not call attention to its operating system. Besides, in the world of everyday appliances, desktop software brands may be less a seal of success than a kiss of death. Windows-powered cell phones, anyone?
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