Subject: Re: NetBSD on Xscale
To: Reinoud Zandijk <imago@kabel065011.kabel.utwente.nl>
From: Chris Gilbert <chris@buzzbee.freeserve.co.uk>
List: port-arm32
Date: 12/16/2000 01:07:09
On Fri, 15 Dec 2000, Reinoud Zandijk wrote:
> Hi Bryan and Kyle,
>
> i've been thinking of this too .... there are some new challenges/ideas
> however to consider ...  one is that the FP format could be choosen
> different etc... I'm currently not working on this, but i hope one day to
> start on porting NetBSD to the Millipede Imago computer ... wich will (as
> an option, but maybe even as a main processor) will feature the ARM/Intel
> Xscale processor.
>
> Will keep you informed...

I believe that we don't currently support the Xscale chips.  Probably simply 
because there's no systems with them (or at least I know of plans for some, 
but none that actually use them).

However they are being considered for the plans to make arm platforms use ELF 
at some point in the not too distant future. I'm not sure how much work is 
required for Elf support, I believe that toolchain and kernel work is needed. 
 There was some brief discussions that we need to change the ABI as well so 
that we use something more sane, and that'll work with Thumb chips as well, 
oh and have the same binaries for arm26 and arm32 would be good. :)

It's also a matter of time for these things, particularly developer time.  Oh 
and getting developers communicating.  Currently we seem to have 3 different 
bootloaders floating around, the one that Reinoud has done (not looked at it 
yet) the original BtRiscBSD done in C and the arm26 BBBB, which seems a 
little bit mad, (oh and technically the other open firmware boot systems 
possibly counts as another bootloader, but we don't have much control over 
that)

Cheers,

Chris