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Programming Embedded Systems in C & C++
by by Michael Barr - Review by Joe Mizer—NOCCC. - July 02, 1999 at 00:11:17:
Embedded software is in almost every electronic device designed today. There is software hidden inside our watches, microwaves, VCRs, security systems, cellular telephones, and pagers. Each embedded system is unique and customized to a particular application. Controlling the hardware and interfacing with the user is the central function of most embedded systems. The major topics are as follows—Testing memory chips, Writing / erasing Flash memory, Verifying non-volatile memory, Interfacing to external devices, Optimizing for size and speed, Designing / using device drivers, maximizing C++.Written for the programmer who desires to control hardware rather than just a screen or print output and is familiar with C or C++ and data structures. Advanced knowledge of the hardware is not necessary, since that is well covered in the book. Even better information, as far as the hardware is concerned, is that the examples are based on a circuit board by Arcom Control Systems. The board is “TARGET188EB-SBC and retails for $195.00. When you mention this book, you also get the Target Development Kit that normally would cost $100.00 extra. This is a good way to make your own project. This could be a security system that should also be able to control your attic fans and sprinkler system. What better way to learn about embedded systems than to end up designing something useful for yourself. First, start with the examples in the book such as Das Blinking Lights.
This has been a perfect book for me since I am revising some code that talks to the outside world. The example I am doing is almost exactly the same as the example in the book, because I am turning on alarm lights to indicate the operational status of a machine. Because of the concise style used, each of the chapters is short, presenting only the necessary material. References in the book also give the details on how to download the example code, including an embedded operating system and other examples. Additional references are made for other sources to continue your studies. I have found the book very interesting and useful and well worth the list cost of $29.95. The ISBN # is 1-56592-354-5 and is available at Barnes and Noble and other book stores, or directly from O’Reilly on the Web at www.oreilly.com
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