On Fri, 9 Jan 1998, Bill Brooks wrote:

> An undergrad came to me looking for advice on a career path a few days
> ago and she said she was interested primarily in embedded systems. Can
> someone please expand upon what exactly is so repugnant about the field so
> that I can present her with a more balanced viewpoint?

  Point of information.  The University of Wisconsin Platteville
  campus computer science dept chair told me, after I presented
  a one-day Ada 95 seminar there, that he planned to emphasize a
  curriculum of embedded systems to differentiate his program from
  that at the other campuses.  I have not followed up on this
  since last February, but I hope he continued in his resolve.

  U of W Plattesville is apparently aided in its decision for
  Ada and Embedded Systems by its relationship with a local
  company call Avista  (www.avistacorp.com) which also does
  both Ada and non-Ada embedded systems software.

  Perhaps more computer science departments would benefit from
  greater emphasis on embedded systems since we are now putting
  software into every conceivable consumer device, nearly every
  piece of medical equipment, and a growing number of commercial
  avionics environments.

  Richard Riehle