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User Interface - Windows or Linux?

I'm not sure if this is possible, but I will give him time.

I am creating a device where I have to add a user interface, and not a normal operating system user interface. I am thinking about installing Windows CE (or .NET MICRO) or Linux, but I'm not sure which OS will allow me to do this. In addition, the software (UI) will load instantly and does not display the OS. Hope this makes sense.

My question is: is this possible?

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Judging by the required level of customization, I would suggest GNU / Linux . I do not think that Windows will allow you to use your own interface, not your own.

On GNU / Linux, you can choose one of several user interface providers or make your own. In addition, everything is configured in GNU / Linux, you can create your own built-in distribution with the requirements of your application.

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If you want to create your own user interface, you should probably Linux or something like that. Perhaps you can do this with Windows too, although I doubt it will be easy / simpler than with Linux.

If your device is more like a mobile device (something like a mobile phone or tablet), you can also take a look at Android, which is based on Linux, and it is highly customizable for developers.

For other devices, you might want to take the open source Linux distribution and redesign it to suit your needs. Then you would have the benefits that you would like from this distribution, but you could also configure it.

EDIT: I know that some netbooks (like EeePC, I think) use the lightweight Linux distribution as an “ultrafast” and “ultra lightweight” operating system. The case may also coincide with Android, as it is a lightweight Linux distribution, but I'm not quite sure.

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Unlike the obvious misunderstanding, you can certainly create your own interface under Windows CE. The default source for the shell comes with Platform Builder (even with the eval version), as well as the minimal shell, but you can certainly create any shell you want or modify what Microsoft sends to suit your own needs . This is a fairly common requirement.

CE is not like Windows. You can also determine exactly which parts are included in the OS, so you can choose which drivers and components of the OS meet your requirements and go into the OS, and you can add security that allows you to run only your applications.

Tools to speed up your OS are not very easy on both sides, but Platform Builder is a little easier to get a functional OS than Linux tools if you have no experience with Linux tools at all.

EDIT

This question may be worth a look too.

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The .Net Micro Framework is very flexible with a user interface ... so much so that you can display whatever you want on the LCD. Now, if you need a real-time operating system, I would suggest you look for such ones. But if you need simple development on an embedded platform, I would highly recommend the .NET Framework.

Oh, and someone was working on a tiny version of WPF for the .Net Micro Framework ... this is what I used as my starting point for my user interface. Here is another link

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This is done all the time with embedded systems. What do you generally write OS OS.

Are you developing a hardware embedded device?

Some sample systems.

PARADIGM C ++ PROFESSIONAL IDE . Borland C ++ 4.5 with many built-in extensions. I used it.

PocketPC and Windows CE may be candidates.

There is also Windows Embedded .

Edit: For clarity, below for the X-Ray Generator, where all the code I created was the OS. This is not a Win-Embedded, not a pink mobile phone.

If you have memory (Compact Flash card, SD card or enough memory, etc.), create and save all user interface elements as bitmap images. I used GIMP to create graphic elements and HEXWorkshop to convert them to binary format, which the device “understood”.

Hot spots (regions / rectangles) are created in the user interface that act as buttons or something else that can trigger events that mimic OnClick, etc. Hope this should get you started. Find the Win32 "OwnerDraw" buttons. It will show you a good methodology for this, especially if you are in Windows Embedded.

If you're interested in Linux, go here: http://www.linux.org/dist/ they have a tiny linux distribution for embedded systems.

NTN

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What do you mean by instant download? If you are using any OS that already exists, you will need to load it as usual. I doubt you want to write your own OS from scratch, so I would recommend using something cheap / free and lightweight so that it loads quickly (linux). Then simply configure the OS to run the program as soon as it loads, and ask the program to display its own user interface on the GTK + canvas, or if it should be really unusual, a web element of the canvas.

I heard that some system may change the boot process so that it doesn't display anything, but I never did. If anything allows you to do this, this is Linux.

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GNU / Linux is the best choice. Very flexible, it is widely used in a variety of materials from embedded systems to handheld devices. Of course, to create a new desktop does not require too much (well, depending on complexity). I would also suggest Android, this is an open source thread, as many user interfaces have been created to date. Windows has nothing to do with this (imho). And, importantly, the Windows device manufacturing license is not free, is it?

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There are many possibilities for a fully customizable user interface in Windows CE

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