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Re: embedded Forth

From rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com>
Newsgroups comp.lang.forth
Subject Re: embedded Forth
Date 2017-01-23 03:43 -0500
Organization A noiseless patient Spider
Message-ID <o64fl2$iim$1@dont-email.me> (permalink)
References <49b3566a-3842-4f9f-a47f-a66590625fef@googlegroups.com> <2017Jan22.180948@mips.complang.tuwien.ac.at> <e20554d8-a66d-4a9d-ad6c-f95fb2c1a66b@googlegroups.com> <e0bca367-5f85-4080-bc57-1514614c69d2@googlegroups.com>

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On 1/23/2017 12:36 AM, hughaguilar96@gmail.com wrote:
> On Sunday, January 22, 2017 at 10:43:16 AM UTC-7, Dale Scott wrote:
>> Thanks Stephen and Anton for your information. How difficult is it
>> to work with new I2C and SPI hardware devices in Forth?
>> "Difficult" is a loaded question but are there any generalities? Do
>> protocol stacks exist for I2C? SPI? In general, how  How would one
>> develop a low-level I2C or SPI device driver in Forth compared to
>> C?
>>
>> Thanks, Dale
>>
>> P.S. At the moment the work is sweat equity, I'm working on a
>> feasibility prototype for a provisional patent a colleague has
>> filed, so $$'s for pro-tools is limited at the moment (but
>> hopefully not forever ;-)).
>
> Can you tell us anything about this provisional patent without giving
> away all the secrets in the patent? Is performance an issue? What do
> you have that is worth a patent, that nobody else can figure out on
> their own? You can't patent the obvious --- it has to be something
> that nobody else would be likely to figure out on their own.
>
> At Testra they had multiple patents, but had lost interest in getting
> any more patents --- you have to explain the whole thing in the
> patent, but then patent trolls will steal your idea, and then you
> have the expense of suing to protect your secrets that you just gave
> away (very expensive, and definitely not going to work against
> Beijing).
>
> Their solution with the MiniForth was that the PLD design can't be
> reverse-engineered from the PLD, so nobody could build a MiniForth
> processor except themselves.

Uh, actually you can.  There are many ways to reverse engineer 
something.  A FSM as simple as the PLD you describe would not be so hard 
to reverse engineer.  Even if it requires monitoring the 
instruction/data stream from memory it is far from an impossible or even 
difficult job to reverse engineer a simple CPU design, especially when 
you have some knowledge of what it is intended to do.

A logic analyzer and a few days would likely do the job.


> That was in 1994. I understand that a lot of processors now have
> internal non-volatile memory and have a security switch that can be
> set to prevent people from obtaining the code. Physical security
> measures such as this are your best bet --- making your code public
> in a patent and then relying on lawyers to sue after your code has
> been stolen is like leaving the barn door open and then relying on
> somebody to go get your horse for you after it has run off.

Trade secrets are fine, but don't count on the simple security fuse.  It 
is not really a hard thing at all to get past those.  Check on the web, 
there are lots of examples of people opening chips and reverse 
engineering if not outright reading the data inside or the chip design. 
The only real security I've seen in ICs is to have a low power static 
RAM with battery backup internal to your chip.  That is *much* harder to 
get around.  I see this in RAM based FPGAs.


> I'm just saying --- most people who are planning on patenting
> something are making a huge expensive mistake --- I have never heard
> of any case in which this actually worked out in a profitable way for
> the guy with the patent.

What about the guy who patented the intermittent windshield wiper?  It 
took him a while, but eventually he won out.

Copyright only protects a specific work, trade secrets can't protect you 
from reverse engineering and patents can be expensive to enforce. 
That's why I like niche applications where there is enough profit to 
keep me happy, but not enough for a competitor to be interested, 
especially the big ones.  The other way to protect your work is to have 
a relationship with your customers that goes beyond just selling stuff. 
If you have custom tweaked a design for them, they just plain won't go 
out looking for an alternate source, especially if they are large 
enough.  That's right, I said "large" enough.  A larger company won't 
*care* about cutting you out to capture your profit.  The company I sell 
to won't even consider a new design unless it is $100 million in 
potential sales.  So clearly they won't be interested in the fraction of 
that which they would save by cutting me out.  Also, large companies 
have the problem of right and left hands not knowing what the other is 
doing.  That lets you get away with a lot. :)

-- 

Rick C

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embedded forth Dale Scott <dalescottnet@gmail.com> - 2017-01-21 11:27 -0800
  Re: embedded forth Paul Rubin <no.email@nospam.invalid> - 2017-01-21 11:31 -0800
  Re: embedded forth stephen@mpeforth.com - 2017-01-22 00:52 -0800
  Re: embedded forth anton@mips.complang.tuwien.ac.at (Anton Ertl) - 2017-01-22 17:09 +0000
    Re: embedded Forth Dale Scott <dalescottnet@gmail.com> - 2017-01-22 09:43 -0800
      Re: embedded Forth stephen@mpeforth.com - 2017-01-22 12:19 -0800
      Re: embedded Forth albert@cherry.spenarnc.xs4all.nl (Albert van der Horst) - 2017-01-22 21:25 +0100
      Re: embedded Forth john <anon@example.com> - 2017-01-22 21:04 +0000
        Re: embedded Forth "Elizabeth D. Rather" <erather@forth.com> - 2017-01-22 12:30 -1000
        Re: embedded Forth hughaguilar96@gmail.com - 2017-01-22 20:45 -0800
      Re: embedded Forth stephen@mpeforth.com - 2017-01-22 14:08 -0800
        Re: embedded Forth Paul Rubin <no.email@nospam.invalid> - 2017-01-22 14:55 -0800
          Re: embedded Forth Dale Scott <dalescottnet@gmail.com> - 2017-01-22 20:41 -0800
            Re: embedded Forth Paul Rubin <no.email@nospam.invalid> - 2017-01-22 21:19 -0800
      Re: embedded Forth hughaguilar96@gmail.com - 2017-01-22 21:36 -0800
        Re: embedded Forth Dale Scott <dalescottnet@gmail.com> - 2017-01-22 22:09 -0800
          Re: embedded Forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-23 04:15 -0500
            Re: embedded Forth Dale Scott <dalescottnet@gmail.com> - 2017-01-23 08:41 -0800
              Re: embedded Forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-23 14:32 -0500
                Re: embedded Forth Dale Scott <dalescottnet@gmail.com> - 2017-01-23 11:53 -0800
                Re: embedded Forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-23 15:10 -0500
              Re: embedded Forth Paul Rubin <no.email@nospam.invalid> - 2017-01-23 14:34 -0800
                Re: embedded Forth Andrew Haley <andrew29@littlepinkcloud.invalid> - 2017-01-24 03:14 -0600
        Re: embedded Forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-23 03:43 -0500
          Re: embedded Forth john <anon@example.com> - 2017-01-23 10:32 +0000
          keep secrets (was Re: embedded Forth) "Wolfgang Allinger" <all2001@spambog.com> - 2017-01-23 08:58 -0300
            Re: keep secrets (was Re: embedded Forth) Rod Pemberton <NeedNotReplyHere@xrsevnneqk.cem> - 2017-01-23 07:47 -0500
              Re: keep secrets (was Re: embedded Forth) "Wolfgang Allinger" <all2001@spambog.com> - 2017-01-23 18:18 -0300
                Re: keep secrets (was Re: embedded Forth) rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-23 19:15 -0500
            Re: keep secrets (was Re: embedded Forth) rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-23 14:38 -0500
              Re: keep secrets (was Re: embedded Forth) "Wolfgang Allinger" <all2001@spambog.com> - 2017-01-23 18:43 -0300
                Re: keep secrets (was Re: embedded Forth) rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-23 19:48 -0500
                Re: keep secrets (was Re: embedded Forth) "Elizabeth D. Rather" <erather@forth.com> - 2017-01-23 16:30 -1000
                Re: keep secrets (was Re: embedded Forth) rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-23 22:23 -0500
  Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-22 13:44 -0500
    Re: embedded forth Paul Rubin <no.email@nospam.invalid> - 2017-01-22 13:38 -0800
      Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-23 00:45 -0500
        Re: embedded forth Dale Scott <dalescottnet@gmail.com> - 2017-01-22 22:44 -0800
          Re: embedded forth Paul Rubin <no.email@nospam.invalid> - 2017-01-23 00:48 -0800
          Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-23 03:51 -0500
      Re: embedded forth john <anon@example.com> - 2017-01-23 10:02 +0000
    Re: embedded forth anton@mips.complang.tuwien.ac.at (Anton Ertl) - 2017-01-23 09:01 +0000
      Re: embedded forth albert@cherry.spenarnc.xs4all.nl (Albert van der Horst) - 2017-01-23 13:05 +0100
        Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-23 14:40 -0500
          Re: embedded forth Mark Wills <markwills1970@gmail.com> - 2017-01-24 01:12 -0800
          Re: embedded forth albert@cherry.spenarnc.xs4all.nl (Albert van der Horst) - 2017-01-24 14:38 +0100
            Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-24 19:51 -0500
              Re: embedded forth albert@cherry.spenarnc.xs4all.nl (Albert van der Horst) - 2017-01-25 11:34 +0100
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-25 22:13 -0500
                Re: embedded forth albert@cherry.spenarnc.xs4all.nl (Albert van der Horst) - 2017-01-26 11:36 +0100
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-26 14:07 -0500
              Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-01-26 00:19 -0800
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-26 14:15 -0500
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-01-27 13:08 -0800
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-27 17:54 -0500
                Re: embedded forth Paul Rubin <no.email@nospam.invalid> - 2017-01-27 15:29 -0800
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-01-27 16:28 -0800
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-27 23:58 -0500
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-01-28 11:58 -0800
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-28 15:36 -0500
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-01-28 15:05 -0800
                Re: embedded forth Paul Rubin <no.email@nospam.invalid> - 2017-01-28 15:57 -0800
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-28 21:51 -0500
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-01-29 09:53 -0800
                Re: embedded forth albert@cherry.spenarnc.xs4all.nl (Albert van der Horst) - 2017-01-29 19:32 +0100
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-01-29 11:53 -0800
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-30 01:10 -0500
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-01-29 23:11 -0800
                Re: embedded forth Paul Rubin <no.email@nospam.invalid> - 2017-01-29 23:34 -0800
                Re: embedded forth albert@cherry.spenarnc.xs4all.nl (Albert van der Horst) - 2017-01-30 12:42 +0100
                Re: embedded forth albert@cherry.spenarnc.xs4all.nl (Albert van der Horst) - 2017-01-30 12:36 +0100
                Re: embedded forth ctmalan@gmail.com - 2017-01-30 11:02 -0800
                Re: embedded forth Paul Rubin <no.email@nospam.invalid> - 2017-01-30 11:04 -0800
                Re: embedded forth Andrew Haley <andrew29@littlepinkcloud.invalid> - 2017-01-31 04:34 -0600
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-01-30 12:15 -0800
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-30 10:15 -0500
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-01-30 12:20 -0800
                Re: embedded forth Paul Rubin <no.email@nospam.invalid> - 2017-01-30 14:09 -0800
                Re: embedded forth albert@cherry.spenarnc.xs4all.nl (Albert van der Horst) - 2017-01-31 03:04 +0100
                Re: embedded forth Paul Rubin <no.email@nospam.invalid> - 2017-01-30 20:19 -0800
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-30 17:10 -0500
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-01-30 14:38 -0800
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-30 23:09 -0500
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-01-31 09:32 -0800
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-02-08 18:22 -0500
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-02-09 01:46 -0800
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-02-09 05:11 -0500
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-02-12 01:30 -0500
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-02-12 10:21 -0800
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-02-12 19:37 -0500
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-02-14 13:26 -0800
                Re: embedded forth Gary Bergstrom <forthprgrmr@gmail.com> - 2017-02-14 11:36 -0800
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-02-14 18:13 -0500
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-28 21:51 -0500
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-01-29 10:20 -0800
                Re: embedded forth Cecil Bayona <cbayona@cbayona.com> - 2017-01-29 12:38 -0600
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-01-29 11:49 -0800
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-02-04 04:22 -0500
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-02-04 17:54 -0800
                Re: embedded forth hughaguilar96@gmail.com - 2017-02-04 20:26 -0800
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-02-05 07:53 -0800
                Re: embedded forth hughaguilar96@gmail.com - 2017-02-05 11:08 -0800
                Re: embedded forth hughaguilar96@gmail.com - 2017-02-05 11:39 -0800
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-02-08 06:46 -0800
                Re: embedded forth luser droog <mijoryx@yahoo.com> - 2017-02-13 19:17 -0800
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-02-15 06:23 -0800
                Re: embedded forth hughaguilar96@gmail.com - 2017-02-15 11:09 -0800
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-02-15 15:24 -0800
                Re: embedded forth jkn_gg@nicorp.f9.co.uk - 2017-02-16 09:49 -0800
                Re: embedded forth hughaguilar96@gmail.com - 2017-02-17 09:12 -0800
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-02-17 12:47 -0800
                Re: embedded forth hughaguilar96@gmail.com - 2017-02-17 16:18 -0800
                Re: embedded forth luser droog <mijoryx@yahoo.com> - 2017-02-16 08:43 -0800
                Re: embedded forth Alex <alex@rivadpm.com> - 2017-02-05 20:47 +0000
                Re: embedded forth hughaguilar96@gmail.com - 2017-02-05 13:36 -0800
                Re: embedded forth Alex <alex@rivadpm.com> - 2017-02-05 23:18 +0000
                Re: embedded forth hughaguilar96@gmail.com - 2017-02-05 21:10 -0800
                Re: embedded forth Alex <alex@rivadpm.com> - 2017-02-06 11:12 +0000
                Re: embedded forth hughaguilar96@gmail.com - 2017-02-05 21:15 -0800
                Re: embedded forth hughaguilar96@gmail.com - 2017-02-05 22:45 -0800
                Re: embedded forth albert@cherry.spenarnc.xs4all.nl (Albert van der Horst) - 2017-02-06 12:04 +0100
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-02-08 03:08 -0800
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-02-08 06:39 -0500
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-02-08 07:15 -0800
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-02-08 15:49 -0500
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-02-09 01:14 -0800
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-02-09 05:19 -0500
                Re: embedded forth Ilya Tarasov <ilya74.tarasov@gmail.com> - 2017-02-09 03:48 -0800
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-02-05 16:08 -0500
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-02-07 21:59 -0500
                Re: embedded forth albert@cherry.spenarnc.xs4all.nl (Albert van der Horst) - 2017-01-28 11:10 +0100
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-28 06:15 -0500
                Re: embedded forth albert@cherry.spenarnc.xs4all.nl (Albert van der Horst) - 2017-01-28 19:48 +0100
                Re: embedded forth rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2017-01-28 14:37 -0500
                Re: embedded forth mhx@iae.nl - 2017-01-28 07:48 -0800
                Re: embedded forth albert@cherry.spenarnc.xs4all.nl (Albert van der Horst) - 2017-01-28 19:53 +0100
                Re: embedded forth mhx@iae.nl - 2017-01-28 15:49 -0800
        Re: embedded forth "Wolfgang Allinger" <all2001@spambog.com> - 2017-01-23 18:46 -0300

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