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Questions for the textbook

**Chris Simmonds, Mastering Embedded Linux Programming, Packt
Publishing 2015**

<Hubert.Hoegl@hs-augsburg.de>, April 2016

Chapter 1: Starting Out
=======================

Pages 1 to 12.

1. Why does your TV run Linux? (6 item points)

#. What hardware conditions must be given to run Linux?

#. What skills do you need to start a Linux project?

#. What are the main players?

#. Name the "four elements"

#. What do you know about Open-Source licenses?

#. Beagle Bone Black. Write down the main technical data.

#. What is Qemu? How can I use it?

#. For which purpose do you need the uml-utilities?


Chapter 2: Learning About Toolchains
====================================

Pages 13 to 39.

1. Which components are in the standard GNU toolchain?

#. Compare native and cross toolchains.

#. What are the capabilities of the target CPU, which are essential for
   the toolchain?

#. What reports the command ``gcc -dumpmachine``?

#. Which C libraries do you know?

#. Which alternatives do you know to get a toolchain?

#. Create a toolchain using crosstool-ng!

#. Follow the istructions in the "Anatomy of a toolchain" section.

#. How do you cross-compile a program?

#. How do you compile a program which uses the GNU autotools?



Chapter 3: All about bootloaders
================================

Pages 41 to 68.

1. Describe the three phases of booting.

#. Which information is passed from bootloader to kernel?

#. What is a "device tree"? 

#. From which technology are the device trees derived?

#. Device tree basics

   XXX add a device tree example here which should be explained (reg, phandles,
   interrupts, include files, compiling a DT)

#. Which bootloaders do you know? (which is the most widely used?)

#. Describe the steps needed to compile and install U-Boot.

.. Omitted: Porting U-Boot to a new board (p. 61)

.. Omitted: KConfig and U-Boot (p. 62)

#. Describe how to use U-Boot? Cover the following items:

   - Environment variables
   - Boot image format
   - Loading images from cards and network
   - Start the Linux kernel

#. How can you automated the boot process?

#. Which are the board specific U-Boot files?

#. How to build the Barebox bootloader?



Chapter 4: Porting and configuring the kernel
=============================================

Pages 69 to 94.

1. When was the Linux project started?

#. Which three main jobs has the kernel?

#. Describe the structure of *user space* and *kernel space* and how
   they interact.

#. How does kernel version numbering work? What kernel version
   do you use?

#. What are *mainline*, *stable* and *long-term* kernels? 

#. How is the kernel licensed? Can you run proprietary (closed) 
   applications in user space?

#. Questions about the kernel sources

   1. How many files has the current kernel for your board?

   #. How does the kernel configuration work?

   #. How do you run ``menuconfig`` for cross-compilation?

   #. How do you configure the kernel with a default configuration
      for the BBB?

   #. How do you compile a zImage or uImage?

   #. Which information is displayed when you compile the kernel? 
      How can you display all commands to the output?

   #. How do you compile the device trees?

   #. How do you compile and install modules?

   #. What does the kernel need after it has started?

   #. How does the initialization of user space work?

   #. How are the kernel log messages organized? Which 
      messages are displayed if the log level is set 
      to 7?

   #. What is the kernel command line and where is it
      described?


Chapter 5: Building a root filesystem
=====================================

Pages 95 to 128.  


Chapter 6: Selecting a build system
===================================

Pages 129 to 157.


Chapter 8: Introducing Device Drivers
=====================================

Pages 197 to 227.


Chapter 12: Debugging with GDB
==============================

Pages 295 to 321.

Chapter 14: Real-time programming
=================================

Page 353 to 373.