Joseph Pranevich has written a nice long article on what new things are
coming in the 2.6 kernel. You can see the whole article at
http://kniggit.net/wwol26.html. I am putting the most interesting parts
here.
Interactivity and Responsiveness
--------------------------------
One of the key improvements in Linux 2.6, is that the kernel is finally
preemptible. In all previous versions of Linux, the kernel itself cannot
be interrupted while it is processing. (On a system with multiple
processors, this was true on a per-CPU basis.) Under Linux 2.6, the
kernel now can be interrupted mid-task, so that other applications can
continue to run even when something low-level and complicated is going
on in the background. Of course, there are still times when the kernel
cannot be interrupted in its processing. In reality, most users never
saw these delays, which are rarely over small fractions of a second.
Despite that, many users may notice an improvement in interactive
performance with this feature enabled; things like user input will
"feel" faster, even when the system is bogged down.
[snip]
Scaling Down -- Linux for Embedded Systems
------------------------------------------
One of the two most fundamental changes to Linux in 2.6 comes through
the acceptance and merging of much of the uClinux project into the
mainstream kernel. The uClinux project (possibly pronounced
"you-see-Linux", but more properly spelled with the Greek character
"mu") is the Linux for Microcontrollers project. This variant of Linux
has already been a major driver of support for Linux in the embedded
market, and its inclusion in the official release should encourage
further development in this space. Unlike the "normal" Linux ports that
we are generally accustomed to, embedded ports do not have all the
features that we associate with the kernel, due to hardware limitations.
The primary difference is that these ports feature processors that do
not feature an MMU. ("memory management unit" - what makes a
protected-mode OS "protected") While these are generally true
multitasking Linux systems, they are missing memory protection and other
related features. (Without memory protection, it is possible for a
wayward process to read the data of, or even crash, other processes on
the system.) This may make them unusable for a multi-user system, but an
excellent choice for a low-cost PDA or dedicated device. It is difficult
to over-emphasize this architecture shift in Linux 2.6; all versions of
Linux up to this point were derived (however indirectly) from the
limitations inherent with Linus' initial work on his Intel 80386.
[snip]
--
/ \__
( @\___ Raj Shekhar
/ O My home : http://geocities.com/lunatech3007/
/ (_____/ My blog : http://lunatech.journalspace.com/
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