QNX

See also: Operating systems | *Nix | Microkernel

QNX Neutrino is a microkernel operating system that makes fault-resilient, field-upgradable systems much easier to design and implement. QNX Neutrino also offers unprecedented scalability: Developers can build their applications once, then distribute them on a single processor, across a massive cluster of processors, or on an SMP system – all without special coding. QNX Neutrino represents the latest generation of QNX OS technology, and is the product of more than 20 years experience in the embedded market. Source: QNX Neutrino RTOS FAQ (http://www.qnx.com/products/ps-neutrino/faq.html)

The current version of QNX is version 6.

QNX is POSIX-compliant, small and user-friendly. Earlier versions of QNX like version 4, as well as version 6, contained its own GUI: the Photon GUI. Version 6 also supports X libraries. Version 4 supported a wide aspect of hardware and contained a few basic programs, including a browser called Voyager – not to be confused with Voyager for AmigaOS. QNX 4 resided on 1.44 floppy. QNX is free to use for students, hobbyists, or software design enthusiasts but not for commercial usage. It is not open-source, although many open-source apps would run on it.

Some think there’s not much software available for QNX and, relative to OSes like Linux and Windows, this is certainly true. However, one who searches a bit can find binaries for QNX, or even compile software himself. One can update the list of repositories by adding a .qrm URL into the update program. Then, more 3rd party software is known to the updater and the user can install this via a simple click. Neutrino supports the following architectures: x86/Pentium, PowerPC, ARM, StrongARM, XScale, MIPS, and SH-4 processor families.

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