Hi stderr, On Fri, 25 Jun 2004, stderr wrote: .. > > In cooperation with Advanced Research and Competency Developement > > Institute, we are organizing a seminar on embedded linux. Quick info: > > > > Course Name: Fundamentals of Embedded Linux > > Schedule: 22-24, 30-31 July 2004 > > Course Fee: PHP 17,000 > > ?? Ha! Mahal naman ?? > I thought youd get Stallman to be your guest speaker :)
In defense of the course and its fee: 1) Since early this year, many local companies have realized that there is an increasing demand for embedded linux development outsourcing from abroad. To take advantage of the present opportunities, they decided to hire a foreign speaker to conduct the training for the same set of modules for the cost of USD2,500/participant/module or PhP140,000/participant/module. Upon learning this, I said wait. This can be done by local experts. After which I started talking and convincing the organizers that we already have embedded linux knowhow here and we can offer the same or better set of training without losing valuable foreign exchange. If there is anything we have left out, that is the right time to pull someone from Silicon Valley. They were convinced. Now, even though my time is almost filled every week I reorganized my schedule to put time developing the course just to prove that "we can do it". Summary: Each participant saves PhP123K per module by putting this initiative. 2) Embedded Linux is a different world than the linux we are familiar with. Here you deal as close to hardware as possible and codes are as optimized as possible. You deal with different sets of open source software due to resource limitations (eg cpu, memory, etc) and hardware/architecture variations (mips,arm,i386,ppc). When I started out with embedded linux, an important lesson I learned is that things I do on PC can not be necessarily done on small systems. For example, you *cant* use X11 on your embedded system. You have to have a simpler X server demanding not less but very minimal resource. That is where you go for alternatives like microwindows. Furthermore, you *cant* use Qt nor Gtk/Gdk because they have big footprints. You have to use flnx or better yet X toolkit intrinsics in case you are stuck with X11. Summary: There is an invaluable experience in embedded linux development we are offering in this course. 3) Embedded Linux developers are rare in this country. Many local software/electronics engineers simply dont have that kind of exposure. It is expected since Embedded Linux as a field that has been there for only around 2 or 3 years. Many embedded systems developers are still stuck with assembly language programming and In-Circuit-Emulators (ICE). The world has changed. Silicon prices of 32-bit architectures are dropping. It doesnt make sense to continue with 8-bit processors when you can make powerful systems out of linux for almost the same price. We must move forward and embrace new technologies fast. Else, we will miss the boat again. It reminds me about this cellphone supplied by Smart and manufactured in Taiwan with Windows CE which I believe can be done better if Linux was used. If only we have many Embedded Linux developers here, that cellphone would have a locally made embedded linux and applications. Summary: If there is any organization in the Philippines who can offer the same course for P5k-P10k with more qualified speakers, take it. It is a good offer. .. > No, thanks I'd rather stick to my docs. The speakers have no control on the fee. It is the organizers' job. Honestly speaking, speakers dont get much if that is your impression. However, we believe that by sharing our knowledge we can make embedded linux industry a big dollar earner for this country. That is going to benefit most of us and especially members of PLUG in terms of job opportunities or personal ventures. And what is 17K or $300 if a 4-month oursourcing project will generate income of USD300K? That is only 0.1% investment even if you multiply it with the number of engineers to finish the project! My analogy to your comment that the fees are high is like this. Suppose I am a high school graduate and I want to get a job that pays me well. My question is should I send my self to a good college and accept the consequences of paying tuition fees? Or, should I just believe in my self, buy or download some online documentations and teach my self. Of course there are people who can do good in the latter option. They are rare and should belong to the national treasure. For the average like me, I will send myself to a good college. I can earn my money back several times in the future. rowel -- Philippine Linux Users' Group (PLUG) Mailing List [EMAIL PROTECTED] (#PLUG @ irc.free.net.ph) Official Website: http://plug.linux.org.ph Searchable Archives: http://marc.free.net.ph . To leave, go to http://lists.q-linux.com/mailman/listinfo/plug . Are you a Linux newbie? To join the newbie list, go to http://lists.q-linux.com/mailman/listinfo/ph-linux-newbie
