GP32 Interesting...


Blah

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Last week I have been trying to cross-compile Bochs (the portable i386 emulator) to GP32. After days of screwing with configure scripts, libs, and makefiles, I finally got an executable. (today)

But it caused a reboot!

Why?


It was 6 MEGS! So I guess now we know the limit

And the strange thing is, the PC version only 1.69 megs.
 
Blah posted on Dec 27 2005 at 08:55 AM said:
Last week I have been trying to cross-compile Bochs (the portable i386 emulator) to GP32. After days of screwing with configure scripts, libs, and makefiles, I finally got an executable. (today)

But it caused a reboot!

Why?


It was 6 MEGS! So I guess now we know the limit

And the strange thing is, the PC version only 1.69 megs.

Have you tried to use strip command in the final executable?

My Exult port executable is about 18 MB, but after strip it reduces its size to only 4 MB :D

Regards
 
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A GP32 executable is just a binary file - there's nothing to strip. I think your talking GP2X ELF's.

As for the original poster, I think that's called BSS (uninitialised data). On (semi-) structured file formats, the BSS segment just says how much memory to allocate when the file is loaded, but because the GP32 takes unstructured (binary) files, the files themselves are expanded to make room for the BSS segments.

Look through the file with a hex editor and you'll probably find a few megs worth of nothing.
 
Squidge posted on Dec 27 2005 at 11:24 AM said:
A GP32 executable is just a binary file - there's nothing to strip. I think your talking GP2X ELF's.

Ups, sorry, you are right, I thought he was speaking about GP2X :(
 
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@Aapje89: That's not offtopic, its welcome.

It would seem that with 8mb, it is impossible :(

I guess I can configure it to build a 486 with no FPU instead of a Pentium
with a software FPU. And then go down the line again if that doesn't work, disabling more thingys.

But on the PSP, Bochs built with pretty much the same options as I used, left but 8mb of the PSP's 32mb of RAM to emulate the PC with...outlook not so good.

But I bet the GP2X could handle it, and I might get one soon, because I have new money from Christmas and my birthday that I've yet to cash in.

I was trying to get a beta out in the state of the PSP version by Christmas, but it didn't work. Strangley enough it compiles perfectly on a clean install of DevkitARM with the GUI set to "nothing". But setting the GUI to SDL complicates things.

Mainly what I first got was a lot of "<this lib> uses hardware FP whereas Bochs uses software FP" that took some time to fix, hehe.

@Squidge: That may be it, because B2FXEC (FXE0) compressed the binary down to 3 megs. And that was the FXE that rebooted.
EDIT: FXE0, not FXE1, FXE1 doesn't exist.

@Puck2099: Configure sets up the makefile to strip it anyway.
 
Compiling with it set to a 486 with no FPU takes it down to 5megs (FXE-ing takes it down to 2megs) but thats probably still not enough. Also, I can't get it to link to any "crt0.o" I try. I give up. I will however try it on the GP2X, which seems to be a little more port friendly.
 
Blah posted on Dec 28 2005 at 05:28 AM said:
Compiling with it set to a 486 with no FPU takes it down to 5megs (FXE-ing takes it down to 2megs) but thats probably still not enough. Also, I can't get it to link to any "crt0.o" I try. I give up. I will however try it on the GP2X, which seems to be a little more port friendly.
too bad :(, well make sure you try to part it for the gp2x :)

(then its really time for me to get one, hehe)
 
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Blah posted on Dec 30 2005 at 07:40 PM said:
Heh, I don't have one yet, I'm just thinking about it.
Im wondering... why are you the first to try this?, I mean in all this years nobody has tried to port bochs (as far as I know).

Anyways, if you succeed make sure to tell :).
 
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