Choosing the ideal software stack for your embedded device is a decision that influences both its performance and long-term value. With so many tools available, the burden of figuring out where to start can feel overwhelming. This blog aims to help you streamline your software selection, focusing primarily on the lowest level of the software […]

Shipping your product to customers is where some real challenges in software development begin. Once it lands in customers’ hands, delivering the expected and necessary software updates can be a complicated task. Here’s a breakdown of some key considerations to keep your product, and your customers, running smoothly, even after your product has shipped. Getting […]

Not all devices require screens. Some rely on web-based user interfaces or smartphone apps for control and interaction. But if your product needs a built-in screen and you need to decide which to get and what to do with it, the rest of this blog is for you. Elaborate or plain? It’s important to choose […]

Choosing the right hardware for an embedded Linux device is so much more important than your software choices. Making the wrong decision can lead to significant costs and disruptions if you have to change hardware mid-development. Read this blog first before you solidify your choice. Custom or commercial? Choosing between a custom or commercially available […]

Desktop software has many differences from mobile and embedded applications but one of the biggest and most obvious is the screen. How can you take advantage of all that real estate for your application? Six considerations for managing the screen in your desktop application Choosing the right GUI framework Use a flexible GUI framework that […]

Creating applications for cross-platform compatibility is a modern best practice. It increases deployment flexibility and allows applications to reach a wider audience. However, doing it properly can involve some trial and error. At KDAB, we’ve built many multiplatform desktop applications. Here, we’ve compiled a few insights from that process to help you build better software. […]

In our earlier blog, The Smarter Way to Rust, we discuss why a blend of C++ and Rust is sometimes the best solution to building robust applications. But when you’re merging these two languages, it’s critical to keep in mind that the transition from C++ to Rust isn’t about syntax, it’s about philosophy. Adapting to […]

An over-the-air (OTA) update capability is an increasingly critical part of any embedded product to close cybersecurity vulnerabilities, allow just-in-time product rollouts, stomp out bugs, and deliver new features. We’ve talked about some of the key structural elements that go into an embedded OTA architecture before. But what about the back end? Let’s address some […]

Building system images for embedded devices from the ground up is a very complex process, that involves many different kinds of requirements for the build tooling around it. Traditionally, the most popular build systems used in this context are the Yocto project and buildroot. These build systems make it easy to set up toolchains for […]

If you’ve been following our blog, you’re likely aware of Rust’s growing presence in embedded systems. While Rust excels in safety-by-design, it’s also common to find it integrated with C++. This strategic approach leverages the strengths of both languages, including extensive C++ capabilities honed over the years in complex embedded systems. Let’s delve into some […]

We’ve explained some of the architectural elements of building your own firmware over-the-air (OTA) soution for IoT and embedded systems in a previous blog. But what about the hardware requirements? Or processes? Let’s explore issues that are essential to solve for a robust OTA solution. Maximizing flash longevity Modern devices rely on solid-state drives, which […]

The importance of updating your product after it’s in the field cannot be overstated. Not only is it essential for customer satisfaction with feature updates and bug fixes, but also for addressing security vulnerabilities. In this post, we’ll look at some key considerations and methodologies for updating embedded systems. Selecting an update approach Choosing the […]

Developing embedded software is notoriously difficult – how can we simplify the process? Fortunately, there are lots of techniques you can use daily to help streamline your development. Embracing Automation The specialized nature of embedded systems extends the ramp-up time for developers and necessitates a higher level of expertise. Automating hardware-specific tasks, such as deploying […]

In today’s pervasively digital landscape, building software for a single platform is a 1990s approach. Modern applications, even those designed for specific embedded targets, must be adaptable enough to run seamlessly across various platforms without sacrificing efficiency or reliability. This is often easier said than done. Here are some key points to consider when developing […]

The robustness of Linux is widely acknowledged, but it can't quite match the microsecond management of a real-time operating system (RTOS) for time critical situations such as CNC machine instructions, vehicular control, or health sensor collection. If your software must record, manage, or control events within a narrow and precise time window and you’re invested […]

Choosing the right system-on-chip (SoC) is probably your first consideration when designing an embedded product, followed closely by deciding whether to use an off-the-shelf board or design your own. The case for commercial boards in initial designs For the first product in a new line, consider using a commercially available board that features your chosen […]

When designing an embedded product, there’s a lot riding on those crucial first decisions of choosing a hardware vendor and board. Clearly, the hardware you select must be powerful enough to support your product, a challenging determination given that software is usually still in the planning stages at this point in the process. Plus, planning […]

Given a strictly positive integer i, this code will calculate i+1 "equally spaced" values between 1 and 0: If you're looking for a trap, this does actually work for any i > 0. One can verify it experimentally; run the code with i from 1 to INT_MAX. For simplicity, just consider the case j = […]

If you're following our Youtube channel you might have heard me talking about QVarLengthArray. If you're not... you should follow us! But let me give you a quick recap. QVarLengthArray is a Qt container that acts like a vector; its elements are stored contiguously in memory and it has a dynamic size. At any time […]

Wayland is a display protocol, a protocol (and accompanying C library) spoken by a graphical application with a display server in order to communicate about both input to the application (keyboard, mouse, ...) and about output from the application -- that is, the rendered window. Wayland was developed to replace the X11 server on the […]