www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOm1bWEQHtU

Before you watch this video, be sure to view the video#1 on Introduction to Embedded systems.

I would like to share my experience with embedded systems. In 2005, I was a student of Electronics Engineering. Back then when I had started to learn Micro controller programming on my own, I had faced a lot of issues, lot of hurdles and lot of questions. But I was madly interested to learn it, whatever it may take, how much ever work it needed, I wanted to program a micro controller and build a fancy application.

I had many unanswered questions in mind:

• What micro controller should I use? How should I use it?
• How to program a micro controller? What is the process?
• What does it take to make a micro controller get to work?
• Is micro controller programming same as computer programming?

Learning Embedded Systems is all about learning to program a micro controller chip. The process of creating an embedded systems applicaiton is as follows:

1. Set out with requirements i.e., set of tasks your embedded system should be designed to perform.
2. Decide the hardware that is necessary for building your system. Assemble your hardware and keep it ready.
3. Write the logic or algorithm on a paper, convert it into code in computer.
4. Compile this code in a computer and obtain a byte code.
5. Burn this byte code into the micro controller.
6. Power on your embedded system and your program in the micro controller chip starts to work.

Let’s discuss these steps with a practical example. Let us say that we wish to build a clock using a micro controller chip. Step#1 is to note down the set of features that we need this clock to possess. Say we need the ability to set the time (hours/minutes/seconds), set 12/24 clock, set/clear alarm etc,. The clock should refresh time every second and show the updated time. The clock circuit should be able to activate an alarm at the preset tme.

Step#2 is to decide the hardware features of this clock. Say we wish to use a 16 x 2 LCD display; first column for displaying the time (hr:min:ss) and second column for displaying the alarm time. We need a 4 button keypad to manipulate various settings in the clock. We want a battery back up system such that if the electric power fails, the battery takes over and keeps the clock ticking.

Step#3 is to write an alogrithm for the clock to display time, to be able to manipulate the time and alarm time using the keypad clicks, to be able to show updated time on the LCD. Code for embedded systems is usually written either in Assembly Language or Embedded C.

Step#4 is to compile this assembly/C code into a byte code. This process is similar to compilation of a computer program to an executable file. In the case of computers, the output file is .exe or .o file. In case of micro controller programs, the output of compilation is a hexa decimal byte code. This code is understood only by the micro controller for which the code has been written. Whereas the code written in C or Assembly language is human understandable.

Step#5 is to transfer this code into the micro controller. This process is a somewhat similar to transferring a picture or a song from a computer to a mobile phone using a data cable. This process of moving the compiled hex code from computer to a micro controller is called burning. Burning is done using a hardware, software and a cable connecting the computer with this hardware. This hardware is also called as Micro controller programmer.

Step#6 is to power your circuit and check the output. If you had written the program correctly and had assembled hardware correctly, your clock should have been working as expected by now.

So for programming a micro controller(burning code), you need Micro Controller Programmer Hardware & Software and a data cable. You need a cross compiler that can compile the code written in computer into hex code that your chip can understand.

This process is called cross-compiling. Guess why?

Because the executable file that gets created by compiling a program that was written in a computer is not executed on the same computer. That is, the hex code is not run on your computer. But that hex code is run on another external micro controller chip. Whereas in the case of a traditional computer program, the executable is run on the computer where it was compiled. Hence micro controller compilers are called cross-compilers.

Feel free to shoot any questions related to these basics steps in micro controller programming. I will get back to you with answers as soon as possible.

Here are few shocking statistics:

• In 2010, IIT received 4.5 lakhs of applications.
• There are just 7,417 seats spread across 15 IITs across India.
• The ratio of selection to IITs is about 61:1
• Whereas the odds of selection in top colleges in the world such as Harvard University and MIT is just 8:1
• India has over 2,297 engineering colleges with annual intake of 8.19 lakh students.
• India has over 1,500 management schools with annual intake of 1.5 lakh students.

In India, where you study is more important than what you study. In that case the students who have failed IIT JEE are totally lost. Where can they fit into? Not that they can’t get into any engineering college, but they could have got into a better college had they concentrated on 12th exams and local Common Entrance Tests.

I call IIT JEE a gamble. Probably the odds of winning a casino game in Las Vegas is more than that of passing IIT JEE. Should your ward take this risk? Should he/she gamble her future?

Comment your opinions below.

This season of UK education exhibition, the cities covered are Chennai, Bangalore and Pune. I highly recommend this exhibition to all the students who wish to pursue abroad education in 2010 or 2011. I had already attended this program in November when British council conducted this exhibition in Mumbai. I loved it. I am going again this time in Chennai. Luckily I’m in chennai now.

Last time I had the opportunity to directly speak to an experienced professor from a coveted university. I had the chance to take first hand advice from him. Also got contacts of Abroad Education agencies. This led to contacting of those agencies for direct interviews with Coventry University, Kingston University and Robert Gordon University. This is great. Looking forward to talk to more professors this time. So go to such exhibitions as many number of times you can. You will learn more about the colleges and get other information which you can’t get by sitting at home. 

Link to the actual news article at Official website of British Council.

This is not entirely the teacher’s fault according to me. Teachers are overwhelmed with a bunch of requests for recommendation letters. The students typically give minimal or no information about themselves. They simply go to the teacher an year or two after finishing their college and smile at the teacher asking for an excellent letter that praises them. How can the teacher help you if he/she doesn’t recollect any specific things about you? You can’t expect the teachers to keep a note of all the hundreds of students they teach every year.

The point here is NOT to copy paste recommendation letter from the internet and modifying it like most of the indian students tend to do. Those copied letters are useless as they say nothing about YOU as an individual. They speak of somebody but you.  And if you go straight to your teacher and ask for a letter, you may get nothing but an abstract letter that doesn’t pinpoint to the activities that you did.

Don’t give up. Don’t copy paste. There is an awesome solution to this problem. Take a print out of the document below, fill it with necessary details and give it to your teacher. This will help your teacher/professor write an essay that exactly describes the activies that you actually did and gives precise description your character.  Credit goes to Baylor university.

• What is the font size, font type that is to be used for a letter of recommendation?
• How much margin spacing should be used for a letter of recommendation?
• How to format the heading, salutation, body, closing and signature?
• What text  should the introductory paragraph,  concluding paragraph contain? 
• Which areas should the letter of recommendation cover?
• What are the common errors commited in a letter of recommendation?

Here is the answer for all the above questions:

It’s a parents’ choice

In India, the selection of engineering college is parents decision. Students don’t decide which college they want to join. At the age of 18, having just finished their 12^th, they don’t have enough maturity to choose a college to study engineering. Nor do they have sufficient financial authority to take independent decisions. So parents take an active role during this time. It is entirely parents’ responsibility to find the right college for their ward. So this article is dedicated to the Indian parents searching colleges for their children.

Know your child

The first and foremost thing you should do as a parent is to analyze the psyche of your son/daughter. Understand what your child expects from an engineering college. Not just in the academic angle but in a general view. Find out where you ward wishes to study. Does he/she prefer an urban environment or sub-urban or rural environment. Can he/she stay without you? Do they prefer to stay with parents or do they prefer to stay away from parents to learn to be independent? Does he/she have any regional or cultural preferences? Students from South india take time to adjust to cultural differences in North India and vice versa. Find out if your ward is comfortable with the food change and climate change.

Is public opinion useful?

Asking your neighbors or friends for opinion is a good thing. But they can only tell you which college suits them, they can’t tell which one suits your ward well. Their opinion is personal to their situation and not to yours. Their children may be smarter or dumber than yours. Their expectations from a college may be different from yours.

Rely Newspaper advertisements?

Don’t trust newspapers alone. Advertisements are meant to be advertisements. The very purpose of an advertisement is promotion. Don’t believe whatever is written in advertisements. Nothing can be a better check than a personal inquiry.

Get the inside story

I advice the parents to at least go to the college 2-3 times before deciding to join their ward in a college. Visit the college campus and observe. Don’t do anything else. Simply observe. God has given human beings a wonderful skills of deduction from observation. If you observe the college environment for half an hour or so, you will get a little idea about the college, how it works and about the students’ level of thinking.

Asking students for opinion inside college is a bad idea. Because students would not give your their frank opinion inside the college campus for the fear of talking against the college that holds the education and future career. You may ask students outside the college campus for a frank opinion. It is also a good idea to talk to the parents of students studying in a particular college. Again, asking teachers may not be a good idea. Teachers can’t voice a frank opinion against the colleges for which they are working.

Careful while paying admission fees

Do not pay the admission fees to unauthorized agents. Be sure to pay only to authorized agents registered with the college. I have known a case where parents of student from Bihar have lost 1 lakh rupees by paying to an unauthorized agent in Bihar.

College that fits your budget

Carefully plan your budget and decide whether or not to join your ward to a college. Think long term. Be sure whether you will be able to pay fees for all the 8 semesters in span of 4 years. I have known parents who had to sell their lands to pay fees of their students owing to the lack of forethought about the fees.

Placement is not everything

Career placement is not the only criterion for selecting a college. You should carefully examine the teaching standards of teachers in the college, facilities provided by college for education, food and health.

Make the best use of what is available

And after joining a particular college, you can’t compare the facilities of a particular college with other colleges. Once committed it’s done. You can do nothing complaning about the facilities in the colleges. Try to make the best use of the facilities given by that college.

About the author: Kanniga is a Professor in Bharath University, Chennai. She has a teaching experience of over 10 years. She holds Masters degree in Engineering and Business Administration.(M.E, M.B.A). Professor loves her work as worship. You can ask education related questions to professor via email kannigatruth@yahoo.com

Coming back to the topic,  let me give a disclaimer first. This tip is only useful for those aspirants who have written Statement of Purpose on their own and are ready with a basic draft. I am certainly not a proponent of plagiarism and unoriginality.

The biggest difficulty that an average Indian student faces after having written a basic draft for SOP is polishing it. How to add Business English to it? I mean how to add words that make the essay sound professional, polished and sophisticated? What to write when you run short of ideas to write?

Don’t worry at all. Just get a prospectus book of a University that offers the degree that you wish to pursue. Prospectus Book only. Not an ebook or website of the University. Now go to the pages where there is an explanation for why you should study at that University. This page(s) is very important to you.

Let me explain you with an example how to proceed. Here is a quote from Kingston University”s Business Programme Postgraduate prospectus.

We know that undertaking postgraduate study is a major commitment and we want you to succeed, whether you are hoping to use your qualification to stand out from the crowd when applying for jobs, to help you gain that all-important promotion, or simply to expand your knowledge of a subject that interests you. We pride ourselves on offering you top-quality teaching, support and resources, and are keen to provide you with a programme that suits you and takes into account your work and life commitments.

Now edit these lines and write it from your perspective. Here is what I wrote for starters.

I am committed to undertaking postgraduate study as I wish to stand out from the crowd when applying for jobs. I also wish to expand my knowledge in a subject that interests me — XYZ subject. I believe that ABC programme at your University suits me taking into account my work and life commitments.

I hope you got the point. All the Universities in the world market their study programmes with the help of marketing material and prospectuses. They explain in great detail how an educational degree from their University can benefit you in your professional life. A simple trick is to take inspiration from their ideas and make them yours. The more prospectuses you refer, the more ideas you get, the better. But beware, don’t use the prospectus of the University that you are applying for!

Is this not a KEKA idea?

A venn diagram to choose Business Schools

I guess this diagram says it all. This post doesn’t require any further explanation.

Comment below on your version of understanding of this picture.

Thanks Alex Tzukerman

Ever wondered how life would be at London School of Business. Here is a sneak peak from the diary of a student of London School of Business(class of 2011).

A Month's schedule at London School of Business

Wow that’s a lot of homework for a month’s time! Hey but wait, before you draw conclusions about tough life at LBS, here’s a video of LBS students’ Christmas tradition – all students wear Santa costumes and hang around the London city centre to share the Christmas spirit, party and have fun.

So what’s your reaction about life at LBS. It rocks there, doesn’t it.

Dream high my friend!

Thanks Alex Tzukerman.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=fiK5-oAaeUs

I’m running short of words in praise of this video. See it yourself to experience the feeling of watching a genius speak about Indians and Asians in general.

Highlights of this video:

• Hans Rosling praises Indian students for their hard work and intelligence.
• Predicts precisely the date and time of India’s uprising to match the Income per person in the developed countries.

This video can shut the mouth of all those Indians who rant about under-development in India(including me). All in all, a great source of inspiration for Indians.