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Technology Stocks : All About Sun Microsystems -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Mephisto who wrote (20468)	9/30/1999 1:22:00 PM
From: Prognosticator	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 64865

An embedded system is a computer inside something where you don't think a computer would be. Your microwave oven. The petrol pump. Your car. Your wrist-watch. Current embedded systems usually perform one or two tasks really well, but don't do much else. Embedded systems are starting to network together, in the future for example your petrol-pump will talk to your wallet to arrange payment (Jini), the wallet will talk to the credit cards (Java Card). Your wallet will talk to the credit-card company server (Enterprise Java). It's going to be Java everywhere. An embedded consumer system is constrained by price: people by the cheapest widgets, all other things being equal. The "embedded space" is the universe of all embedded computers, the "desktop space" is what's left after you subtract the "embedded space". Hope this is helpful. Check out WIND if you are interested in software for embedded systems, they are the current leaders, and another fine company IMO. Just in case you are wondering, yes. The embedded space is vastly greater than the desktop space, both in reach and in terms of dollar revenues. P. Disclaimer: I own shares in WIND, and this is not investment advice.