LinuxDevices.com: New system-on-chip runs native Java … plus Linux

[ Thanks to LinuxDevices.com for this link.
]

“Imsys (Sweden) used the occasion of JavaOne 2000 in San
Francisco to unveil an unusual new system-on-chip microprocessor
that supports native on-chip Java bytecode execution — but also
runs embedded Linux. The device, called the Cjip, achieves a
high degree of on-chip functionality via an unusual approach:
dynamically alterable microcode.“

“What’s inside? Actually, it’s difficult to say exactly what’s
in the device. That’s because, unlike “normal” processors, its CPU
employs semi-soft, rather than fixed, microcode. According to
Imsys, two-thirds of the Cjip’s microcode is fixed, while the
remaining third is loaded on startup from an external ROM or Flash
device. As a result, the instruction set is reconfigurable to match
the requirements of a given application. Cjip has exploited that
inherent flexibility by developing libraries of virtual
peripherals, which Imsys calls “Veripherals….”

“The other supported software alternative is Linux. Since the
Cjip supports multiple dynamically switchable instruction sets, it
can be optimized for C or C++ based applications, in addition to
Java. Based on this capability, Imsys has created an embedded Linux
port, which is also freely available to support system designs
based on the Cjip.”

Complete
Story