# 524: This Isn't a Movie

- Show: [Embedded.fm](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm)
- Published: 2026-04-16
- Length: 1h 14m
- Episode: 524
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2026-04-16-524-this-isnt-a-movie
- Listen: https://embedded.fm/episodes/524

## Summary

Nathan Jones, a former US Army instructor and current embedded systems educator writing for DigiKey and EmbeddedRelated, discusses the trade-offs between superloops and RTOSs, arguing that superloops avoid the race conditions inherent in pre-emptive scheduling. He details his work on hardware security, explaining how differential power analysis can extract AES keys using the ChipWhisperer tool, and highlights the impact of the EU Cyber Resilience Act on product design. The conversation also covers his upcoming workshops at the Embedded Online Conference and CppCon, as well as his reflections on writing, teaching, and managing the mental load of consultancy.

## Chapters

- [0:06](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2026-04-16-524-this-isnt-a-movie#t=6) Introduction and Background
- [5:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2026-04-16-524-this-isnt-a-movie#t=300) Writing for DigiKey and EmbeddedRelated
- [9:59](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2026-04-16-524-this-isnt-a-movie#t=599) Superloops vs RTOSs
- [19:17](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2026-04-16-524-this-isnt-a-movie#t=1157) Hardware Security and Power Analysis
- [23:46](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2026-04-16-524-this-isnt-a-movie#t=1426) EU Cyber Resilience Act and Compliance
- [21:43](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2026-04-16-524-this-isnt-a-movie#t=1303) ChipWhisperer Workshop and Attacks
- [44:47](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2026-04-16-524-this-isnt-a-movie#t=2687) Exception Handling and Faults
- [50:32](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2026-04-16-524-this-isnt-a-movie#t=3032) Consultancy, Burnout, and Career Advice

## Topics

- [Embedded firmware](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/embedded-firmware)
- [Security & privacy](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/security-and-privacy)
- [Careers & education](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/engineering-careers-and-education)
- [Policy, trade & tariffs](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/policy-trade-and-tariffs)
- [Founder wellbeing](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/founder-wellbeing)

## Most relevant to

established companies

## Mentioned

- DigiKey (company)
- EmbeddedRelated (company)
- FreeRTOS (product)
- ThreadX (product)
- Zephyr (product)
- ChipWhisperer (tool)
- ChipWhisperer-Nano (product)
- NewAE Tech (company)
- Colin O'Flynn (other)
- Jasper van Woudenberg (other)
- The Hardware Hacking Handbook (product)
- MITRE (company)
- Embedded Online Conference (other)
- CppCon (other)
- Hardwear.io (other)
- Pragmatic Programmer (product)
- West Point (other)
- ChatGPT (tool)
- Claude (tool)
- Wireshark (tool)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [038 - My Favorite Random Number is 5](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/unnamed-reverse-engineering-podcast/2020-08-23-038-my-favorite-random-number-is-5) (Unnamed Reverse Engineering Podcast)
- [An Interview with Colin O'Flynn - Aspirated Adamantine Attacks](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2015-03-05-an-interview-with-colin-oflynn-aspirated-adamantine-attacks) (The Amp Hour)
- [Modern Embedded Systems Programming with Miro Samek](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-pragmatic-embedded-podcast/2022-01-18-modern-embedded-systems-programming-with-miro-samek) (The Pragmatic Embedded Podcast)
- [Ep 387: Superhuman Clocks, CAN in USB-C, and the Joys of Bare Metal](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hackaday-podcast/2026-09-18-ep-387-superhuman-clocks-can-in-usb-c-and-the-joys-of-bare-metal) (Hackaday Podcast)
- [Hardware Security with Matt Brown](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2025-07-17-hardware-security-with-matt-brown) (The Amp Hour)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2026-04-16-524-this-isnt-a-movie. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to Embedded.fm.