Mailing List Archive

Rahul (rahul.thakur@clear.net.nz) scribbled:
> I am an absolute n00b with respect to Embedded development and I have been
> googl'ing for some days now to find some starters resources for getting
> started with embedded development but not happy with results.

Somewhat similar situation here. The first thing I had to realize is
that there was _no_ cookie-cutter method to embedded development. I've
seen it described as a "black art", and honestly, that's pretty on the
mark. Each target (pda, processor, board, whatever) needs to have a
toolchain, a c library, a kernel, a root environment, etc. All tuned to
that particular target.

I would suggest picking one target and doing a project for it first. There
are a lot of devices entering the market with high potential for being
targets. Hell, just on my desk I have a wrt54g wireless router(mips?), a
nslu2 network storage appliance (ARM XScale), a sharp zaurus (ARM XScale),
and an ipod (ARM no mmu). At work I have an embedded PowerPC board.
Way too many distractions. :)

And unfortunately, the powerpc board at work takes priority. There's no
challenge with it though as it already has a serial console (no need to
solder), and we got the TimeSys toolchain with it.

> I have a few queries:
> (1) How can I set up my gentoo installation for embedded development ? Does
> gentoo comes with embedded development tools ?

Simple answer: Yes, but not like emerging a package. Gentoo has crossdev,
which is a script for building cross-toolchains, but it takes a bit of work
to get success. google for 'crossdev', search bugs.gentoo.org, and the forums.

There are other scripts available out there in the wild. Hunt around
uclibc.org, especially if you want to use uclibc (small substitute for
glibc).

> (2) Where can I find literature to get started with embedded development on
> linux ? Where can I get tools and manuals ?

Busybox, uclibc, crossdev, and crosstool are a few good keywords.
O'Reilly (Publisher) has a book or two on embedded development. You may
want to sign up for the crossgcc mailinglist.

> (3) I am interested in developing for handhelds/PDAs using linux as an OS.
> Are there any emulators available that I can set up to develop for a
> particular target device ?

With the price of targets coming down, most folks just buy the
target. I haven't seen a mention of any emulators. However, keep in
mind, I'm about as new as you are.

Side note: I was spoiled with Gentoo being within a day or two of
current releases. The embedded world doesn't seem to move that fast.
Be prepared to try older versions of packages when building your
toolchains.

hth,

Cooper.

Sorry for the ramble... :)

--
gentoo-embedded@gentoo.org mailing list

Hi Cooper,

Thanks for taking time for a detailed reponse.

Here's something about emulators I want to share and that I
got to know yesterday:

- Looks like http://www.handhelds.org/ has a few resources.
- Xcopilot is one with uClinux, and then there is ARMUlator.

Have been trying to get to www.uclinux.org, looks like they
got problems with the server :(

It would be nice to put your notes on one of the
gentoo-embedded pages. I am happy to put these up if anyone
on the list can tell me what is the best way to go about it
and even maintain them as I learn more about embedded
development.

PS: There's an article that I bookmarked y'day of setting up
Xcopilot, I can post a link here for other n00bs like
me'self!

Cheers,

Rahul


----- Original Message Follows -----
> Rahul (rahul.thakur@clear.net.nz) scribbled:
> > I am an absolute n00b with respect to Embedded
> > development and I have been googl'ing for some days now
> > to find some starters resources for getting started with
> embedded development but not happy with results.
>
> Somewhat similar situation here. The first thing I had to
> realize is that there was _no_ cookie-cutter method to
> embedded development. I've seen it described as a "black
> art", and honestly, that's pretty on the mark. Each
> target (pda, processor, board, whatever) needs to have a
> toolchain, a c library, a kernel, a root environment, etc.
> All tuned to that particular target.
>
> I would suggest picking one target and doing a project for
> it first. There are a lot of devices entering the market
> with high potential for being targets. Hell, just on my
> desk I have a wrt54g wireless router(mips?), a nslu2
> network storage appliance (ARM XScale), a sharp zaurus
> (ARM XScale), and an ipod (ARM no mmu). At work I have
> an embedded PowerPC board. Way too many distractions.
> :)
>
> And unfortunately, the powerpc board at work takes
> priority. There's no challenge with it though as it
> already has a serial console (no need to solder), and we
> got the TimeSys toolchain with it.
>
> > I have a few queries:
> > (1) How can I set up my gentoo installation for embedded
> > development ? Does gentoo comes with embedded
> development tools ?
>
> Simple answer: Yes, but not like emerging a package.
> Gentoo has crossdev, which is a script for building
> cross-toolchains, but it takes a bit of work to get
> success. google for 'crossdev', search bugs.gentoo.org,
> and the forums.
>
> There are other scripts available out there in the wild.
> Hunt around uclibc.org, especially if you want to use
> uclibc (small substitute for glibc).
>
> > (2) Where can I find literature to get started with
> > embedded development on linux ? Where can I get tools
> and manuals ?
>
> Busybox, uclibc, crossdev, and crosstool are a few good
> keywords. O'Reilly (Publisher) has a book or two on
> embedded development. You may want to sign up for the
> crossgcc mailinglist.
>
> > (3) I am interested in developing for handhelds/PDAs
> > using linux as an OS. Are there any emulators available
> > that I can set up to develop for a particular target
> device ?
>
> With the price of targets coming down, most folks just buy
> the target. I haven't seen a mention of any emulators.
> However, keep in mind, I'm about as new as you are.
>
> Side note: I was spoiled with Gentoo being within a day
> or two of current releases. The embedded world doesn't
> seem to move that fast. Be prepared to try older versions
> of packages when building your toolchains.
>
> hth,
>
> Cooper.
>
> Sorry for the ramble... :)
>
> --
> gentoo-embedded@gentoo.org mailing list
>

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