🐧 Linux / Embedded Prep

Closing the gap toward the Robo embedded lane — what you already own, and the fastest path to fluency · companion to the Comp Framework
The reframe that matters: you don't need a new machine or a course to "start." The Raspberry Pi running your HeaterMeter IS a Linux box — a real Debian system. The moment you SSH into it, you are doing the exact Linux work the embedded role wants. Practice happens tonight, on hardware you already have, for $0.
1 · Asset inventory — what you already own

You're closer than it feels. Each of these is a real, demonstrable touchpoint.

AssetWhat it proves / gives you
Raspberry Pi + HeaterMeterA live Linux (Debian) box you built and run. SSH target, real services, GPIO/sensor I/O — embedded-Linux in miniature. Your #1 practice surface.
Anbernic handheldARM Linux device; emulation firmware. Familiarity with embedded ARM + custom firmware/flashing concepts.
ArduinoBare-metal / microcontroller embedded — C/C++, registers, serial, the firmware layer below Linux. The other half of "embedded."
GM validation / calibration backgroundEmbedded discipline already in hand — CAN, ECU behavior, test/validate-to-spec, safety-critical mindset. This is the part most software people lack.
WSL on your Windows machineA full Linux userland on the laptop you already use — no dual-boot, no new hardware. Your second practice surface.
SAM-FILL: the other things Dom mentioned in the conversation (specific tools / stacks / standards — e.g. Yocto, Zephyr, AUTOSAR, a particular RTOS, MISRA, ISO 26262 tooling). Drop them here as you hear them so the learning path can target them.
2 · The learning path — in priority order

Each step builds on the last; all of it runs on gear you already have.

Step 1 · Linux CLI + bash fluency
Navigate, manage files/processes, permissions, pipes/redirection. ls cd cp mv rm, grep find, ps top kill, chmod chown, | and >, apt. Goal: stop reaching for a GUI.
Step 2 · SSH — remote into the Pi
ssh pi@<pi-ip> from your Windows terminal or WSL. Key-based auth (ssh-keygen, ssh-copy-id). This single skill turns the HeaterMeter into a daily Linux gym.
Step 3 · git from the command line
You already use git through Claude Code — now drive it yourself: clone add commit push pull branch merge, resolving a conflict. Embedded teams live in git.
Step 4 · Shell scripting
Turn repeated commands into .sh scripts — variables, if/for, exit codes, cron jobs on the Pi. Automate something real (a HeaterMeter backup, a log scrape).
Step 5 · The embedded toolchain
Cross-compilers (gcc/arm-none-eabi-gcc), make/CMake, flashing/serial (screen, minicom, picocom), reading a datasheet to firmware. Bridge Arduino-level bare-metal up to embedded-Linux. (Target the specific toolchain from §1 SAM-FILL once known.)
3 · Start tonight (no purchase required)
New machine — optional, not a blocker. A dedicated Linux laptop (or a beefier Pi 5 / mini-PC) is a nice-to-have later, not a prerequisite. The Pi + WSL cover everything in Steps 1–5. Don't let "I should buy the right setup first" become the reason you haven't started — the gear is already on your desk.
4 · How to talk about this with Dom
Linux / embedded prep · Same Solutions substrate · built 2026-06-18 alongside the Robo comp framework and meeting-prep page. Sam's private career page. §1 has a SAM-FILL for the specific tools Dom names — target the learning path there once known.