LinuxDevices: An Approach to Solving the “Device Driver Crisis”

“This whitepaper describes an approach to solving the ‘device
driver crisis’ that plagues both the embedded and non-embedded
computer system markets. SciTech claims its System Neutral Access
Protocol (‘SNAP’) device driver architecture, the result of over a
decade of research and development, represents a new paradigm for
device driver development that is radically different from
traditional methods and that can drastically reduce the complexity
of OS- and processor architecture-related device driver
support.

“SciTech says its SNAP driver architecture centers around a
unique Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL), combined with pre-compiled
binaries for each specific processor family that run on any
operating system (including Linux/embedded Linux). According to
SciTech, SNAP takes the concept of sharing source code and
radically extends it–to sharing fully tested and certified
portable binary driver images. Additionally, SciTech’s SNAP tools
are released under a commercial/LGPL dual-license, with a free
download of the LGPL version available, enabling developers to use
the tools to create free, LGPL drivers…”

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