But if you ask me, that's a part of its beauty. Embedded engineers are wary of new technologies, favoring instead proven methods that have stood the test of time. We take a minimalist approach to our work, the hallmarks of which are reliability and longevity. That's because in many cases no one will ever be able to reset the embedded system, so it must be robust enough to perform at least as long as the hardware surrounding it. I'm proud that unlike many software developers, I know how to work smarter, not just harder.
Embedded design is a much more demanding task than traditional software development.
It requires a different mindset and sometimes intimate knowledge of a system's hardware and software components. As each new version of Microsoft Word gets bigger and bigger, users upgrade their PCs to compensate. Meanwhile, embedded engineers are constantly thinking of ways to accomplish their goals using fewer resources and smaller code. These days you can't open up a single trade magazine without seeing an ad for a new Internet appliance. These so-called Internet appliances aren't embedded systems any more than hot dogs are haute cuisine.