USB or not: CDC with Processor Expert

I had a PREN student showing up into my office. He wanted to choose a microcontroller for that project. One requirement put on the table was “it needs USB”. Well, I asked why USB is required. I was not surprised by the answer: “to use USB instead of RS-232”. Wow. So what he really wanted was USB CDC (Communication Device Class). Yep. Most notebooks today have no serial COM port (see “Processor Expert Configurations“). But because “USB is serial” does not mean “USB CDC is simple”. Nope. USB is not simple. But it can be with Processor Expert.

Continue reading

Shared Files maintained by Processor Expert

As outlined in Quickstart for Processor Expert in Eclipse, it is easy to create a new Processor Expert project. There are three shared files which are maintained by Processor Expert. At the same time I need to change them with my code. So how does this work, and how can I configure it to my needs?

Continue reading

Drag&Drop in Processor Expert

I have that wonderful project in MCU10.2 with Processor Expert using Embedded Components. It took me a while to carefully configure the settings, and now it works like a charm. I have another project and need the same components and settings in there. But how?

Continue reading

Configurations with Processor Expert

I have to make an application configuration decision: Using USB CDC or RS-232?

In the lab I use a Tower system which offers both RS-232 and USB connectivity. It uses a FSShell component to communicate with a terminal on the host. Typically this is using an RS-232 serial cable connected to the host. Well, the challenge is that today most notebooks do not have a serial port any more. But they have USB.

Continue reading

MCU10.2 on Ubuntu 12.04 64bit

In my class a student wanted to run CodeWarrior MCU10.2 with Ubuntu 12.04 (Precise Pangolin) on a 64bit notebook. According to the Freescale Website, that version of Ubuntu is not supported. And indeed, if you install CodeWarrior and launch it, it does not work. The splash screen comes up, but then it aborts. Claiming in the workspace/.metadata/.log file that it cannot find the libswt-gtk-java and libxtst6 packages. Continue reading

Go, multiply and detach: Multiple Screens with Eclipse

Multiple screens are a real productivity booster for every developer: it extends your ‘real estate’ and allows you to have more things visible all the time. Personally I always have a dual screen system in use. Well, except when I’m traveling. But I wish I would have it there too! Eclipse started to support the multiscreen environment already a while back. Continue reading