Q. How can I decide if I want to compile my own firmware?
- People who got GenBoard/VerThree from WebShop implicitely have GenBoard/Manual/License/WBSensor so usually use the WBO2 enabled precompiled firmware release from GenBoard/UnderDevelopment/FirmwareChanges that gets testing (developers use it too, on their vehicles). Remember, in any case, WhatEverYouDoYouDoItAtYourOwnRisk.
- v2.2 users are more experienced (because at that time everyone compiled his own firmware) and build their firmware themselves. Anyone is encouraged to release compiled firmware for whatever board/LCD/... versions, after sufficient testing.
- some use the firmware for special applications, they usually compile themselves
Q. I have Windows and I want to build the VEMS firmware. What do I need?
- Visit http://sourceforge.net/projects/winavr Download version 20040720 WINAVR package (13MB).
Q. I get "cannot find the file specified" or similar error.
- Verify that avr-gcc is in your PATH (countrary to rumours, it works from cmd not just sh, if the necessary programs are in the PATH).
Q. I get some "library" related problems
- Verify that you don't have unrelated entries in the LIB variable. unset LIB (in sh) or set LIB="" (in cmd) usually works.
Q. I am still having problems getting the Gcc Compiler to work correctly. Who will help me?
- visit [AVRfreaks AVR GCC forum] Use the search function in the left column. Ask a question on the forum if searching the archives gets you nowhere.
Q. I have linux. Is there anything for me?
A. Some linux rpm packages are here:
http://savannah.nongnu.org/download/simulavr/binaries/RPMS/i386/
I successfully used them on debian using alien --to-deb conversion.
The above link for linux rpm's is obsolete. I searched on the AVR freaks site and came up with this software under tools, but I'm not sure which we would recommend to use.
http://www.avrfreaks.net/Home/gensearch.php?keyword=linux+rpm§ion=0
There was an annoying optimization bug (combine bug) fixed on 2003.jul.11.
in mainstream experimental gcc (not only avr).
If your package contains an older gcc, you must use gcc -O0 for several
files (button.c and lcd.c comes to mind) or get a newer version.
[Building your own C cross-compilers for Atmel AVR under Linux/x86]
Please copy the testprogram (that tests wether a gcc has the bug) here:
....
I think I've run into it (again?). I used this gcc version:\nÿ1ÿ
(not on the machine I usually compile on) on 2005-03-15 to compile my firmware (with -O2 I guess), and there was a serious compilation error.
corr.ve_hp was all around the place, so was pulsewidth. The car behaved badly (it's a miracle that it ran at all!) MegaTunix showed on the VE 3D view that the dot was not on the VE patch where it should have been. Since I was experimenting with megatunix, I thought it was some megatunix configuration thing. I didn't reproduce on table yet, but it's 99% that this was the case.
The ..v8 on GenBoard/UnderDevelopment/FirmwareChanges
has vems.hex compiled with the good compiler - it also tested OK.