On 3/13/2014 4:07 AM, [email protected] wrote: > Hi Beagle users, > > A little about me before I explain my question. I'm an experienced > electrical engineer with a heavy background in micro processor > implementation and programming as well as PCB layout for high speed digital > design. I'm fluent in C and C# and open to learning other languages. I am, > however, totally new to SoC (and embedded Linux OS) concepts outside a > basic knowledge of computer system architecture. I am currently at the > stage of working out if the Beagle bone black is the correct starting point > for me. > > My interest in the Beagle Bone is for product development with a view to > commercialization. This will require a re-design of the board architecture > into my own PCB design and I am attracted to the BBB as it is fully open > source and the processors are available commercially (unlike the RPI). > > So, my question is. If I simply cloned and populated a PCB, matching the > circuit diagram of the BBB and plugged an SD card in (with OS flashed on), > would it work. Or is additional software required to be loaded onto the SoC > device? If so, is this bios / boot loader available?
Everything is available, but there is a minor amount of content that isn't in the schematic/pcb design files. There is an EEPROM that contains board ID information, and if you're using the standard software, your board won't boot properly unless you load appropriate contents into this EEPROM. If you're not familiar with Linux on ARM, the boot sequence is: * SoC ROM contents * MLO (Memory LOader), part of uBoot * uBoot * Linux kernel * Normal linux boot There is source available for everything you need, and you can modify the uBoot loader if you want to leave off the EEPROM. > Additionally, if I develop a program to run on Rasbian. How easy would it > be to port it onto a BBB OS (such as Debian)? Assuming you're not doing anything really hardware specific, you should be able to directly port code from Raspbian to Debian on the 'Bone or most any other platform. Anything accessing hardware drivers will need to be reviewed for the new target. -- Charles Steinkuehler [email protected] -- For more options, visit http://beagleboard.org/discuss --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "BeagleBoard" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
