No debugger?

inaki · 2006-03-06 20:53

I have read somewhere that the Propeller has no debugger.

Does it have at least the DEBUG output as in BasicStamp ?

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔

Paul Baker · 2006-03-06 20:56

Not specifically, but that said there are existing objects to output data via serial (like PBASIC's debug) or a TV or VGA monitor.

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
·1+1=10

FORD · 2006-03-07 04:18

In that case I guess the first thing we should do is have a serial lcd and get a grip on some serial code as soon as it is available.

I would bet money that Chip has put some debugging suggestions at least in the official documentation.

Martin Hebel · 2006-03-07 05:00

Debugging is not that hard.· Right now there is a FullDuplex library installed, and I think a more robust one is coming.· For example, the following code will send back the value of X at 9600 Baud for me to monitor in the BASIC Stamp's DEBUG Window while I work on my BS2 library.

'' Put a buzzer on A4 and an RC circuit with photo resistor + cap (like in WAM) on A8 
CON
  _clkmode = xtal1 + pll16x
  _xinfreq = 5_000_000
OBJ
   num : "numbers"                           ' For debugging
   com : "FullDuplex"                       ' For debugging
   BS2 : "BS2_Functions"                    ' Create BS2 Object
CON
  Buzzer = 4
  RC = 8

PUB Start  | x
  BS2.Start
  com.start(31,30,9600)         ' initialize serial comms (rx, tx, baud)
  Repeat
    dira[noparse][[/noparse]Buzzer]~~
    dira[noparse][[/noparse]RC]~~
    outa[noparse][[/noparse]RC]:=1
    bs2.PAUSE(10)    
    x := BS2.RCTime(RC,1)
    com.str(num.toStr(x,10))     ' send to DEBUG, 10 = DEC
    BS2.freqout(buzzer,100,x)

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Martin Hebel
Perform an Employer's Survey of Electronic Technologies Graduates· - Click here!
Personal Links with plenty of BASIC Stamp info
and SelmaWare Solutions - StampPlot - Graphical Data Acquisition and Control

Post Edited (Martin Hebel) : 3/7/2006 6:06:07 PM GMT

Guenther Daubach · 2006-03-07 07:51

You may also use a modified version of Dave's sample 04 (see http://forums.parallax.com/showthread.php?p=574524) to display various information on a video screen.

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Greetings from Germany,

G

Jon Williams · 2006-03-07 17:52

I piggy-backed on Marty's idea with some code (numbers to text)·that Chip had written for another demo to create a very simple Debug object for use in my own testing.

''*******************************
''*  Simple Debug Object        *
''*    (C) 2006 Parallax, Inc.  *
''*******************************

OBJ
  uart  : "FullDuplex"



PUB start(baud) : okay


'' Starts uart object (at baud specified) in a cog
'' -- uses Propeller programming connection
'' -- returns false if no cog available


  okay := uart.start(31, 30, baud)



PUB startx(rxpin, txpin, baud) : okay


'' Starts uart object (at baud specified) in a cog
'' -- uses specified rx and tx pins
'' -- returns false if no cog available


  okay := uart.start(rxpin, txpin, baud) 



PUB stop


'' Stops uart -- frees a cog


  uart.stop


  
PUB putc(txbyte)


'' Send a byte to the terminal


  uart.tx(txbyte)
  
  
PUB str(stringPtr) | i


'' Print a zero-terminated string


  repeat i from 0 to strsize(stringPtr) - 1
    putc(byte[noparse][[/noparse]stringPtr][noparse][[/noparse]i])



PUB dec(value) | i, z


'' Print a signed decimal number


  if value < 0
    -value
    putc("-")


  i := 1_000_000_000
  z~


  repeat 10
    if value => i
      putc(value / i + "0")
      value //= i
      z~~
    elseif z or i == 1
      putc("0")
    i /= 10



PUB hex(value, digits)


'' Print a hexadecimal number


  value <<= (8 - digits) << 2
  repeat digits
    putc(lookupz((value <-= 4) & $F : "0".."9", "A".."F"))



PUB bin(value, digits)


'' Print a binary number


  value <<= 32 - digits
  repeat digits
    putc((value <-= 1) & 1 + "0")

    
PUB getc : rxbyte


'' Get a character
'' -- will block until something in uart buffer


  rxbyte := uart.rx

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Jon Williams
Applications Engineer, Parallax

FORD · 2006-03-07 23:58

Thanks John, any chance of some comments to explain some of the symbols in that, remember, some of us don't have any documentation yet.

Cheers, Chris

Jon Williams · 2006-03-08 00:43

There's only a couple mysteries -- perhaps this will help:

z~··· clear z to 0 (false)
z~~·· set z to -1 (true)
<-··· bitwise rotate left

Many of the operators are combined with assignment as in other languages:

x //= 5 is the same as x = x // 5

In truth, I did nothing but assemble the code; the routines were created by Chip.

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Jon Williams
Applications Engineer, Parallax

John Abshier · 2006-03-08 01:28

is

elseif z or i == 1

interperted as elseif z or (i == 1)

or as elseif (z or i) == 1

I almost always use () since I don't trust my memory on how this particular language does it.

Jon Williams · 2006-03-08 05:31

It is interpreted as

· elseif z or (i == 1)

because the == operator has higher precedence than or.

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Jon Williams
Applications Engineer, Parallax

Tom Walker · 2006-03-08 16:12

Jon,
Under "normal" circumstances, precedence would, indeed, make the order clear, but with our experience with the Stamp's interpretation...[noparse]:)[/noparse]

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Truly Understand the Fundamentals and the Path will be so much easier...

Paul Baker · 2006-03-08 17:22

The nice thing about spin is that 9 times out of 10 the order of precedence you want an expression to have is the exact order of precedence that occurs. I think I've only needed to use parenthesis once or twice.

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
·1+1=10

Post Edited (Paul Baker) : 3/8/2006 6:48:48 PM GMT

Jon Williams · 2006-03-09 05:32

This is not a BASIC Stamp...

Tom Walker said...
Jon,
Under "normal" circumstances, precedence would, indeed, make the order clear, but with our experience with the Stamp's interpretation...[noparse]:)[/noparse]

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Jon Williams
Applications Engineer, Parallax

Dave Scanlan · 2006-03-13 17:18

[b]DEBUGGING USING THE VIDEO DISPLAY[/b]

SEE THE THREAD: SPIN CODE EXAMPLES FOR THE BEGINNER (EXAMPLE 09)

[code]
You may also use a modified version of Dave's sample 04 (see http://forums.parallax.com/showthread.php?p=574524) to display various information on a video screen.
▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Greetings from Germany,

G

Guenther Daubach · 2006-03-13 20:26

Dave,

yes, I absolutely agree - a video monitor together with some code like your EXAMPLE 09 is the most valuable debugging tool for the Propeller (much more informative than blinking LEDs). Thank you for posting this example.

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Greetings from Germany,

G

Dave Scanlan · 2006-03-13 22:06

Gunther,

I think Parallax needs to get ready to sell lots of monitors.· Thanks for the support.

Dave

Jon Williams · 2006-03-14 01:27

We found a small one that we will be offering with other convenient components for Propeller development.

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Jon Williams
Applications Engineer, Parallax

FORD · 2006-03-14 03:34

Hello Jon,

What do the display specs need to be to run directly from a Propeller ?

Thanks,
Chris

Paul Baker · 2006-03-14 03:42

NTSC or PAL, RCA plug for direct connection, but the propeller can broadcast on channel 3 easily for a connectionless interface.

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
·1+1=10

Jon Williams · 2006-03-14 03:55

And while I haven't yet tried it myself, you can configure the bits to S-Video output instead of composite -- as many TVs and monitors have S-Video this will probably provide the nicest display.

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Jon Williams
Applications Engineer, Parallax

DJ · 2006-03-14 04:28

When is it comming out?

Jon Williams · 2006-03-14 04:44

As has been stated in several threads, we will provide a release date when everything is ready to ship.

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Jon Williams
Applications Engineer, Parallax

Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi) · 2006-03-16 22:57

Hi All,

After using Jon Williams' debug object for awhile, I found that I needed something simpler yet: just a self-contained object that twiddled an output pin directly -- no inputs -- and provided an inverted signal that would drive my PC's RxD pin without additional circuitry. Here's the result:

[i][b]''*******************************[/b][/i]
[i][b]''*     Simple Debug Object     *[/b][/i]
[i][b]''*   (C) 2006 Parallax, Inc.   *[/b][/i]
[i][b]''*  Modified by Phil Pilgrim   *[/b][/i]
[i][b]''*******************************[/b][/i]

[i][b]'' This debug object, originally posted by Jon Williams, has been modified to[/b][/i]
[i][b]'' provide output only, and without involving FullDuplex, which uses another cog.[/b][/i]
[i][b]'' Output is provided inverted, so the 3.3V signal level can drive the PC's RxD[/b][/i]
[i][b]'' pin directly. (Note: Not all PC serial ports will work with a 0 to 3.3V signal.)[/b][/i]


[b]VAR[/b]

  [b]long[/b]  BaudClock
  [b]long[/b]  TxMask
  
[b]PUB[/b] start(txpin, baud)

[i][b]'' Initializes the baud delay factor, and the pin direction and level.[/b][/i]

  BaudClock := clkfreq / baud
  TxMask := 1 << txpin
  [b]outa[/b] &= !Txmask
  [b]dira[/b] |= TxMask

[b]PUB[/b] stop

[i][b]'' Changes the pin back to an input.[/b][/i]

  [b]dira[/b] &= !TxMask

[b]PUB[/b] str(stringPtr) | i

[i][b]'' Print a zero-terminated string[/b][/i]

  [b]repeat[/b] i [b]from[/b] 0 to [b]strsize[/b](stringPtr) - 1
    putc([b]byte[/b][noparse][[/noparse]stringPtr][noparse][[/noparse]i])

[b]PUB[/b] dec(value) | i, z

[i][b]'' Print a signed decimal number[/b][/i]

  [b]if[/b] value < 0
    -value
    putc("-")

  i := 1_000_000_000
  z~

  [b]repeat[/b] 10
    [b]if[/b] value => i
      putc(value / i + "0")
      value //= i
      z~~
    [b]elseif[/b] z [b]or[/b] i == 1
      putc("0")
    i /= 10

[b]PUB[/b] hex(value, digits)

[i][b]'' Print a hexadecimal number[/b][/i]

  value <<= (8 - digits) << 2
  [b]repeat[/b] digits
    putc([b]lookupz[/b]((value <-= 4) & $F : "0".."9", "A".."F"))

[b]PUB[/b] bin(value, digits)

[i][b]'' Print a binary number[/b][/i]

  value <<= 32 - digits
  [b]repeat[/b] digits
    putc((value <-= 1) & 1 + "0")
    
[b]PUB[/b] putc(txbyte) | time

[i][b]'' Send a byte to the pin (inverted).[/b][/i]

  txbyte := !((txbyte | $300) << 1)
  time := [b]cnt[/b]
  [b]repeat[/b] 11
    [b]waitcnt[/b](time += BaudClock)
    [b]outa[/b] := [b]outa[/b] & !TxMask | (txbyte & 1 > 0) & TxMask
    txbyte >>= 1

My PC works fine with the Propeller's 0 and 3.3V signal levels (in lieu of -10 and +10), but this may not work for everyone.

-Phil

Post Edited (Phil Pilgrim) : 3/18/2006 5:15:39 AM GMT

mike101video · 2006-06-03 19:20

Hi All,
Just started to get my Propeller chips up and running ( Been using javelin and BS2's for a while.)

I used the PC_Debug example ( From N&V) running at 460,800bps and it works fine. Running at 9600bps, the output stops with a corrupt character in hyperterminal. Any-one experienced any issues running at a lower speed?

Any help much appreciated,

Mike

PS - I really want to get this running as I am (still) putting together and Videocamera remote controller. 2 cogs will be Sony LANC to controll video cameras, 1 cog for PWM for the Pan/Tilt controller, and I will still have cogs left over for user interface, debug, etc. This is the answer to my dreams. ( LANC is serial at 9600bps - with some twists, which is why I am trying things out at a lower speed.)

Oliver H. Bailey · 2006-06-06 12:11

Hello Everyone,
I'm using the I2C object with the Matrix Orbital LK202-25 which Parallax sells (although I don't know if the Parallax version has the I2C Interface). This allows me to extend the interface the EEProm is connected too and have debug output without using any additional pins. I'm working on a SPIN object that will support the LK202-25 I2C Commands. This little device also allows a 5x5 keybpard to be attached to it allowing LCD output and keyboard input without using additional Propeller pins. I use this very setup throughout Embedded Systems Desktop Integration with the BASIC STAMP. I'm currently porting that over to the propeller. When completed there will be a debug supervisor that will hopefully offer single step, register display, and some other goodies for assembly program debugging.

Regards,
Oliver

No debugger?

Comments