'... a very good balance between the theory and practice of real-time embedded system designs.' -Jun-ichiro itojun Hagino, Ph.D., Research Laboratory, Internet Initiative Japan Inc., IETF IPv6 Operations Working Group (v6ops) co-chair 'A cl

This primer begins with an introduction to the special tools and issues that face embedded systems developers. It then delves into the details of real-time programming using a real-world, commercial real-time operating system (RTOS). Objects and services that are a part of most RTOS kernels are described and real-time system design is explored in detail. Readers learn how to decompose an application into units and how to combine these units with other objects and services to create standard building blocks called software circuits. This process will yield an understanding of the common design patterns and programme structures.