Real time Java has a place
[From the JavaLobby newsletter. -Thomas]
Real time Java has a place
While I don’t profess any great knowledge about embedded systems, I have an eager mind which always loves to learn new things, and embedded systems have always been an interest of mine. Last week I wrote about a process that was implemented on a FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) that ran Java natively.
Over the past week, many of you wrote in with links to RTJ documents. This week I thought I would take a little time to discuss some of the links that were sent to me and encourage more discussion. Earlier this week, Ted Kosan wrote to me about a great embedded Java resource called JavaDevices.org . The site contains links to books, applications, vendor websites, and mailing lists. I was amazed to find that the RTJ specification was JSR 1. The very first one! It’s amazing that something that was the very first JSR hasn’t gotten any more exposure or made more progress. Ted also mentioned that part of the problem with the adoption of Java in the embedded space isn’t the technology, but rather the education. This site tries to explain the problem more clearly. As the site explains, regular embedded systems developers aren’t really trained in OOP and so Java may be difficult for them. It also says that for Java developers, the concept of tight coupling to hardware, interaction with system resources, and limited resources can be complicated. Both of these things make the uptake of Java in the embedded space continue at a slow rate. There are millions of Java developers and millions of embedded systems programmers, but there are only 10s of thousands of embedded Java developers. What we need is a combination of software engineers and computer engineers.