SageBIOS BSP Turns Gizmo Into Most Open Source x86 DIY Board Available

DENVER - Oct. 22, 2013 - PRLog -- Sage Electronic Engineering, the custom design and tools provider specializing in open source bootloader solutions, has just released the SageBIOS™ BSP for Gizmo. This comprehensive board support package can benefit embedded developers significantly. By supplying the coreboot®-centered SageBIOS™ code base, Sage is giving GizmoSphere developers free payloads and drivers to enable peripherals, considerably shortening their design cycles.

The SageBIOS™ BSP is the final piece of open source intellectual property (IP) that makes Gizmo the first x86 development board to be fully open source, end-to-end: hardware, software and now bootloader solution.

With this latest release Sage continues its mission to support GizmoSphere, the x86 open source hardware and software initiative launched jointly by Sage and AMD. Sage engineers co-designed the APU-powered Gizmo development board and its companion, the Explorer I/O breakout card. In addition Sage donates its SmartProbe® JTAG development tool to every Gizmo Explorer Kit sold and includes a limited-time license for the Sage EDK, an integrated development environment (IDE) for debug and development. Furthermore, the company’s firmware specialists developed the coreboot-based SageBIOS code that gives designers a head start.

“With SageBIOS, we took the first step of commercializing coreboot as a bold alternative to traditional BIOS,” explains Scott Hoot, President and CEO of Sage Electronic Engineering. “We extended and crafted the code into the firmware solution of choice for many recognizable products on the market today.”

“Now we’ve taken this the next step to empower developers with board support packages that we call SageBIOS BSPs. With our BSPs, we have tried to make everything needed available in a manner that will alter the way x86 firmware is developed.”

Sage has created SageBIOS BSPs for a number of processor platforms including the AMD Embedded G-Series SOC and the Intel Sandy Bridge. These and other SageBIOS BSPs are available for purchase, but the BSP for Gizmo is made available to the GizmoSphere community free of charge.

With any of these specialized BSPs, developers can save time and money while taking advantage of cutting-edge advances in open source coding. The SageBIOS BSPs supply customized solutions created by a team of developers who fully understand coreboot and apply their extensive knowledge to integrate this open source code into products.

Sage is committed to fostering open source design projects, which build community and free developers from the burden of royalties and licensing fees. Our full spectrum of products and services makes life easier for the prudent embedded developer. The SageBIOS™ BSP for Gizmo provides a fully tested starting point that lets GizmoSphere designers control development and enjoy the freedom to create, optimize, and economize.

To access the SageBIOS™ BSP for Gizmo download, please click here (http://marketing.se-eng.com/acton/fs/blocks/showLandingPa...).

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Sage Electronic Engineering, www.se-eng.com, provides embedded developers with design resources to succeed in open source development. The company offers board support packages (BSPs) to help customers optimize boot code, build better products, and bring them to market faster. Sage helps customers around the globe achieve fully customized open source solutions through SageBIOS™, a coreboot® distribution. Knowing that advanced development tools are critical to design process success, Sage offers the Sage EDK and the SmartProbe® to give developers a complete system view for maximum visibility and control.

GizmoSphere, www.gizmosphere.org, is an independent initiative created to meet the open source development needs of embedded developers around the globe. It serves as a resource center providing guides, downloads, schematics, board design documents, news and other information pertinent to the embedded development community. GizmoSphere offers the Gizmo Explorer Kit, which brings the power of a supercomputer and the I/O capabilities of a microcontroller to x86 open source development in one convenient, affordable package. GizmoSphere members are welcome to exchange ideas through forums on the website.