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Thursday, 17 July 2008

Windows CE 6.0 R2 - SDHC Supports with ADMA Sakito's Blog

Sakito's Blog

Wednesday, January 23, 2008 8:26 PM

Windows CE 6.0 R2 - SDHC Supports with ADMA

In the recent Windows CE 6.0 R2 release in Nov 2007, it supports the improved Secure Digital (SD) bus driver that supports SDHC specification 2.00 functionality, for example Secure Digital High-Capacity (SDHC) cards.

http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa918430.aspx

What's new:

1. SD Bus Driver is updated to support 2.0 physical layer specification

2. SD memory driver updated to support SDHC card.

3. SD Host Controller is updated to support ADMA (Advanced DMA) (this require Hardware support in the host controller). This is a sample host controller that comes with Windows CE 6.0 R2, in x86.

QFE installer - automate that procedure

The QFE Installer

Ever had to reinstall Windows CE? Then you had to reinstall all the QFE's as well. Not a nice task, it's lengthy and you have to stay close to your computer because there are about 12 screens you have click through before it actually installs. There is unfortunately no way to install all QFE's without a user controlling the mouse... until now!
The QFE installer installs all the QFE's you downloaded in the exact right order, from oldest to newest, without the need for one mouse click. Just copy the QFEInstaller.exe in the folder containing all the Windows CE QFE's and run it. Source available for free, just drop us a line.

Download QFEInstaller

Keep an eye on this blog for future tips & tricks and more tools for the CE developer!

CE 6.0 build - what to build and when ?- good one

What to build when...

Submitted by Michel on May 1, 2008 - 22:48.

A question that keeps coming back on the newsgroups is "I changed some code, but it does not end up in my image", or "I changed some registry values in platform.reg, but if I look at the device registry, it's not there!".

The source of these problems is build-related. You've got to understand the build system in order to know exactly what to do. This blog post aims to give you a clear handle on "What to build when"!

The first and most important thing to do is to delete two options from the Platform Builder Build menu: Build and Sysgen and Rebuild and Clean Sysgen. These commands will build the entire tree (so including any source in PUBLIC and PRIVATE). For us normal developers these commands do not make any sense. If you're not in the CE development team working at Microsoft you simply don't have all the source code. Rebuilding the entire tree may work, but it will override any installed QFE (QFE's contain updated binaries and sometimes, but not always, updated source code). After rebuilding the entire tree you will sooner or later encounter strange errors that are either very hard to fix, or just impossible to fix. There is no way to revert back to a clean tree once you've done a (Re)Build and (Clean) Sysgen. The only way is to completely remove Windows CE and reinstall. Don't forget to reinstall all QFE's after that as well (download the QFEInstaller tool to help with that).

Now you know why you often see me shouting NEVER EVER DO A BUILD AND SYSGEN! in the newsgroups...

The original menu
The original Advanced Build Commands menu

Step 1.: Right click on the toolbar and click Customize...
Step 2.: Click on menu Build, submenu Advanced Build Commands, then right click on Build and Sysgen and click Delete
Step 3.: Do the same for Rebuild and Clean Sysgen
Step 4.: Close the Customize window. The Advanced Build Commands menu should now have only 4 options: [Sysgen], [Clean Sysgen], [Build Current BSP and Subprojects] and [Rebuild Current BSP and Subprojects].

If you are still using Platform Builder for Windows CE 5.0 the instructions stay the same except the Build menu is Build OS and there's no submenu (everything is under the Build OS menu).

I know that some developers working with CE change code in the PUBLIC and PRIVATE trees. If you do that you need to do a build and sysgen to include your changes in your kernels BUT: You will end up with a corrupted CE installation. If you need to change PUBLIC or PRIVATE code you have to clone the code. Cloning code is in most cases not much more than a simple copy. Copy the sources you want to change to a folder in your BSP, change the sources file so that it builds a DLL instead of a lib and voila, you're done. I know I make it sound easier than it is, but taking a shortcut and modifying code in the PUBLIC or PRIVATE trees will prove to be a long way around in the long run.

Phew! Now that we got that out of the way let's see what build command we've got to use in what situation:

Change Platform Settings: Make image

If you change any Platform Settings (like IMGNOKITL, IMGNODEBUGGER, IMGPROFILER) all you have to do is a Make Image.

Change driver source code in your BSP: Build the driver and Make Image

If you change driver source code, all you have to do is just build the driver (WINCEREL must be set to 1 but it is set by default so unless you changed it there's no need to worry) and do a makeimg. If you only want to debug the driver you can also add the DLL to the Release Directory Modules list (menu Tools) and just restart the device (or reload the device driver on the device) without having to do a makeimg and download to device. Building just the driver is a simple right-click on the driver and Build in the IDE or "build" in the driver's folder on the command line.

Change multiple source code files in your BSP: Build the BSP and Make Image

The safe option, this way you can't forget to rebuild anything. Building the BSP is a simple right-click on the PLATFORM\BSP folder and Build in the IDE or "build" in the BSP's root folder on the command line.

Change platform.reg, bib, dat or db files in your BSP: Sysgen BSP, Copy Files to Release Directory, Build All Projects and Make Image

A lot of steps, but this will still not take longer than a couple of minutes. If you change any of the platform.* files we need to re-filter (Sysgen) those files and make sure the filtered files are copied into the FLATRELEASEDIR (Copy Files to Release Directory). That last action did however clear the project binaries from the FLATRELEASEDIR so we need to make sure those binaries and settings are getting copied into the FLATRELEASEDIR again (Build All Projects) and finally we are ready to Make Image. Now your registry changes will be in the image (check reginit.ini to make sure, last entry wins).

Change some source files and platform.reg, bib, dat or db files in your BSP: Build and Sysgen the BSP, Copy Files to Release Directory, Build All Projects and Make Image

Only difference with previous situation is that you now have to build the BSP to include the source code changes.

Change the workspace configuration (add or delete a component): Sysgen the entire workspace

For most components a simple Sysgen is enough. For some components (like when changing from RAM based registry to Hive based Registry) a Clean Sysgen is needed. This action takes the longest (anywhere from 5 minutes for a small workspace configuration on a very fast machine to a couple of hours for a really big configuration and a very slow machine). A Sysgen is a right-click on the workspace, Advanced Build Commands->Sysgen in the IDE or "blddemo -q" on the command line.

Sometimes it's easier to build from the command line. If you are unsure what command to type you can always perform the action in the IDE first and watch the 3rd line in the build output window starting with "Starting Build:". Behind the colon is the exact command line for that action, eg Sysgen on the BSP: "Starting Build: SysgenPlatform %_TARGETPLATROOT% preproc&&SysgenPlatform %_TARGETPLATROOT% postproc", so on the command line you would type "SysgenPlatform %_TARGETPLATROOT% preproc" followed by enter and the 2nd command "SysgenPlatform %_TARGETPLATROOT% postproc" followed by enter.

If you use the commandline, make sure you never forget "-q" when running "blddemo" as "blddemo" without "-q" is a Build and Sysgen!

I hope this blog post will help you speed up your builds and lower your frustration with the build system!

Good luck!

Offline installation of CE 5.0 R2 update

Offline installation of the CE 6.0 R2 update

Submitted by Michel on May 2, 2008 - 04:23.

The Microsoft installer for the CE 6.0 R2 update is a webinstaller. This means there is no way to download once - install often. Since the complete R2 update is over 1 GB of data it would be nice to be able to download the package to a folder from which you can install the R2 update offline. This is especially handy if you need to install the R2 update on multiple machines.

Another reason would be if you, like me, get errors during installation. When I tried to install the R2 update I got error messages like:

"Error 1335. The cabinet file 'MSI4E0.tmp' required for this installation is corrupt and cannot be used. This could indicate a network error, an error reading from the CD-ROM, or a problem with this package.".

So I dissected the MSI log files and was able to determine some downloaded cabinets were in fact corrupted. The corruption only seemed to occur when downloading using the Microsoft Installer package. When I manually downloaded the cabinets there was no corruption. By looking at the log files I could get a list of all required cabinet files. Since there are quite a few of those cabinets, and I figured this could be handy for more people, I wrote a tool that downloads the entire package from the Microsoft download server into a folder. Once the download is complete (1.1 GB) run the installer (Windows Embedded CE 6.0 R2.msi) to install the R2 update. You don't need to be connected to the internet while installing.

Download the tool (including source): DownloadCE6R2.zip

How to build reliably - almost any platform ?? check this out

CruiseControl

CruiseControl is a framework for a continuous build process. It includes, but is not limited to, plugins for email notification, Ant, and various source control tools. A web interface is provided to view the details of the current and previous builds.

CruiseControl is distributed under a BSD-style license and is free for use. CruiseControl adheres to an open source model and therefore makes the source code freely available.

CruiseControl is maintained and developed by a group of dedicated volunteers.

What is Continuous Integration?

Continuous Integration by Martin Fowler and Matthew Foemmel.

An important part of any software development process is getting reliable builds of the software. Despite its importance, we are often surprised when this isn't done. We stress a fully automated and reproducible build, including testing, that runs many times a day. This allows each developer to integrate daily thus reducing integration problems.

Command Line Build

Submitted by Erwin on May 15, 2008 - 22:31.

This post will show you how to create a batch file that will build your Windows CE OS without using the Visual Studio/Platform Builder IDE.

Often the question is asked how to setup an environment which automatically extracts all information from version control and then builds your code. There are a lot of tools that can help you do that: an open source alternative can be found at http://cruisecontrol.sourceforge.net.

To build your kernel without having to use the IDE create a batch file with the following content:
@echo off SET _WINCEROOT=C:\WINCE500 SET _OSDESIGNDIR=%_WINCEROOT%\PBWorkspaces\YOUR_WORKSPACE_FOLDER SET _OSDESIGN=%_OSDESIGNDIR%\YOUR_WORKSPACE_FILE.pbxml SET _OSDESIGNCONFIG=YOUR_OSDESIGN_CONFIG_NAME

"%ProgramFiles%\Windows CE Platform Builder\5.00\CEPB\BIN\pbxmlutils" /getbuildenv /workspace "%_OSDESIGN%" /config "%_OSDESIGNCONFIG%"> SetEnv.bat cd "%_OSDESIGNDIR%" call SetEnv.bat delete SetEnv.bat cd "%_OSDESIGNDIR%" blddemo clean -q

Note that for CE 6.0 pbxmlutils is located in "%ProgramFiles%\Microsoft Platform Builder\6.00\cepb\IdeVS\" and you use SET _WINCEROOT=C:\WINCE600

You need to replace the first 3 SET variables to match your specific project:

YOUR_WORKSPACE_FOLDER: Workspace folder which is located under the PBWorkspaces (CE 5.0) or OSDesigns (CE 6.0) folder. This is the folder that contains YOUR_WORKSPACE_FILE.

YOUR_WORKSPACE_FILE: The name of your OS Design workspace; the file with extension .pbxml. This file is located in YOUR_WORKSPACE_FOLDER.

YOUR_OSDESIGN_CONFIG_NAME: This is the configuration name you select in the IDE of Platform Builder, eg Emulator: x86_Release. You can also open your .pbxml file with notepad to find out what the configuration name is (search for Configuration Name).

Happy building!

Great link for free win ce apps

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2005/09/04

Monday, 16 June 2008

Honda FCX clarity - next cool thing on the road

Honda FCX Clarity

The most remarkable thing about driving Honda's FCX Clarity prototype isn't how it emits nothing but water, its torquey, 13,500 rpm electric motor, the hydrogen equivalent of 68 miles per gallon or the perverse pleasure that goes with driving a multimillion-dollar automobile. It's the air-conditioned seats. Notice I said driving, because other than the whirring buzz of the motor, the Clarity goes, brakes and turns just like any other car. I had to keep reminding myself I was indeed behind the wheel of a hydrogen fuel-cell powered feat of engineering. Frankly, the Clarity feels like a slightly larger Accord. Again, Honda's latest FCX uses no gasoline whatsoever and behaves just like — no, make that exactly like — a regular car. And those AC seats? They have built-in fans to blow thermoelectrically cooled air, so no ozone-killing chlorofluorocarbons are needed to chill your fat butt. Pretty neat.

Jalopnik Drives the Honda FCX Clarity

The technology behind the Clarity is basically a flashback to tenth-grade chemistry. Tank-stored gaseous hydrogen is pumped into the "stack," which consists of layer upon layer of fuel cells. Inside each cell, hydrogen gas reacts with a hydrogen electrode, causing a catalytic reaction that ionizes the hydrogen atom (electricity is of course nothing but flowing electrons). The electron-less atom (ion) next bonds with oxygen to create water, which recirculates through the stack to keep the electrolytic membranes damp, before exiting the vehicle through the tail pipe. In turn, the fuel cell stack powers an electric motor, which drives the front wheels. There is also an auxiliary lithium ion battery to store extra juice created by the stack, the motor (which behaves like a generator when decelerating) and additional energy gathered from the regenerative braking system. The battery is used during start-up or to assist the engine if the demands of the right foot exceed the power output of the stack. See? Piece of sugar-free cake.

As intense and complicated as all that sounds, you'd never suspect the FCX Clarity was anything but a run-of-the-mill Honda. While some have complained that it looks like a Hondaized Prius, the Clarity is so large as to mitigate that comparison. I maintain it looks like an elongated Accord with Infiniti G Coupe haunches, a chopped front end and a chrome new-gen Volkswagen beard. Sure, it's a little longer than the Hondas we're used to, but that's the price paid for having a fuel tank that can store enough hydrogen for a 270-mile journey while ensuring plenty of back seat legroom and a real trunk. The Clarity is also a bit wider than most Japanese mid-size family sedans because the stack is nestled between the front seats. Hey, you have plenty of elbow room.

The interior is extremely comfortable, nearly luxurious and made from all sorts of high-tech green materials, like corn. The instrument panel is similar to the current Civic but manages to crank up the Fisher-Price-meets-Buck-Rogers chic. For example, a small blue circle appears in the center of the digital dash when the Clarity is "idling." During acceleration the ball grows larger and turns green. Really stand on the go pedal and the ball morphs into a glowing-orange sun. The backseats are especially spacious. There's plenty of legroom, and the door panels are scooped out, giving the back compartment a circular feel.

Our drive started at the ritzy Fairmont Mira Mar Hotel on Ocean Drive in Santa Monica, where Autoblog Sam turned north onto Pacific Coast Highway and wound his way through Malibu and that city's recently charred canyons. I looped us back. While dealing with stop-and-go traffic in Malibu, we were surrounded on all sides by Hybrids. Every fifth car seemed to be a Prius. At one point we even found ourselves behind a Ford Escape Hybrid with a license plate that read, "NO HUMMR." I was reminded of Star Trek IV when Kirk and the boyz warp back to the year 1986 and Bones finds a woman hooked up to a kidney dialysis machine. He feeds her some pills made from super futuristic technology, unhooks her from the apparatus and declares the then contemporary state of medicine, "Barbaric." All around us people were driving vehicles that in their minds are atop the environmental food chain. Yet they're still emitting loads of dirty old carbon dioxide (and whatever else) into the atmosphere derived from a tank full of Middle Eastern crude. Meanwhile we're zooming past all of 'em, dripping only water while nestled comfortably behind the wheel of the future.

Malibu, California

Naysayers, Ron Paultards, the blindly patriotic and those not convinced that human activity is cooking our globe will all roll their eyes and dismiss the FCX Clarity as nothing but vaporware. A passing fad. A cynical gesture by Honda aimed at appeasing "environmental nazis," CAFE standards and nothing else. All that's fine, as people said similar things about Henry Ford's Model T. But even if you hate Al Gore and despise Ed Begley Jr., there's no way $100 for a barrel of oil (up from under $60 one year ago) makes you happy. Something has to give, and give in a big way.

Ford Model T

Coincidently, 2008 marks 100 years since Ford put America on wheels by rolling out the Model T. It's also the year Honda will begin leasing FCX Clarity models (and their home-based, natural gas powered hydrogen refueling stations) to select customers around Southern California and in Japan. Yes, the natural gas emits CO2, but only half as much as petroleum. More important, tank-to-wheel energy efficiency is more than double that of Honda's existing hybrids, and three times that of their small internal combustion cars like the Fit. And remember, if the hydrogen is created using green energy — solar, wind, geo-thermal, hydro or atomic — there are no greenhouse emissions whatsoever.

At this point you probably want to know how fast the FCX Clarity accelerates, its top speed and how many Gs it pulls around corners. Well, Honda didn't bother to say much about the Clarity's performance other than it's comparable to a "2.4-liter internal combustion vehicle of similar size." So, we have to guesstimate. As the 100 kW (136 hp) electric motor creates 189 ft-lb of torque from zero rpm, zero-to-60 times are most likely in the low seven-second range. Never forget that Americans buy horsepower and drive torque. Top speed is limited to 100 mph. Much more impressive is how effortlessly the Clarity cruises. At one point the speedo indicated 53 mph and I was convinced I'd accidentally switched the display to metric. A moment later we passed one of those police "your speed is" contraptions that indicated 53 good old American miles per hour. The ride, helped out by the long wheelbase, is outstanding. The Clarity weighs in at 3582 lbs. A four-cylinder Accord weighs 3,433 lbs. and the V6 model weighs 3600 lbs. Going around a corner, you'd be hard pressed to detect a difference between the three. But performance is hardly the point.

Honda FCX Engineers and their Baby

Every year I go to New York to watch the Packers play the Vikings. We watch the game at your typical sports bar with a dozen or so TVs hanging from the walls. One year a Giants or Jets game finished up early and the local station switched over to the Green Bay/Minnesota game we had until then been watching on Satellite. However, the local channel's feed was about ten seconds ahead of the satellite. "Turn it off! Turn it off!" one of the more colorful patrons began screaming, "Turn that fuckin' TV off!" We tried to reason with him, explaining that it doesn't matter if one feed is ten seconds in front of the other. "No way man," he shot back, "That's the future!"

Climbing out of the FCX Clarity and back into my own car, I couldn't help but feel the same. Sitting in the world's most heinous traffic surrounded by millions of my fellow Angelenos all burning countless zillion gallons of gasoline, how on earth is all this going to change? Where's the hydrogen infrastructure going to come from, if it comes at all? I don't know. Honda is going to stick a few refueling stations in and around Los Angeles along an already existing hydrogen pipeline (common in industrialized areas) but obviously that's not enough. Their home energy station is pretty damn useless if you live in an apartment. And the $600 per month lease is no friend to most of us. Honda (and Ford and Toyota and GM and every manufacturer investing in fuel cell technology) has a real chicken-and-egg situation on their hands. Fortunately the Honda FCX Clarity is one hell of a chicken.