C6x
Basic
Introduction
Wizard.bmp
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Welcome to the Visual Linker TMS320C6000 Basic tutorial. This tutorial will teach you a little bit about the basics of using the Visual Linker.

To go to the next step of the tutorial, click the 'Next' button. To go back to the previous step, click the 'Back' button. To quit the tutorial, click the 'Cancel' button.

If you wish to run this tutorial in the future, select Help->Tutorials->C6x->Basic.

To get started, click the 'Next' button.
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Open Recipe
FileOpen.bmp
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The first step is to open a Visual Linker recipe.  The setup program installed a sample recipe file to your hard drive.

A recipe describes how to build an application. It is made up of "ingredients" (input files and a hardware description) and "directions" (a strategy for combining the ingredients).

To open the Visual Linker recipe, select File->Open. Navigate to the folder 'Templates\c6x\Examples\Tutorial_1' and then double-click on the file 'Tutorial_1.rcp'.
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Visual Linker Views
TreeView.bmp
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The Visual Linker is composed of four views: tree, list, memory, and information. The tree and list views work together; they operate like Windows Explorer. Selecting an item in the tree shows its contents in the list. Double-clicking an item in the list selects it in the tree.

In general, most operations in the Visual Linker are done via drag-and-drop or the context menu. The context menu appears when you right-click an item. The commands on the context menu will vary according to the type of item clicked.

Take a moment to click on some items in the tree and observe how the list view changes. Right-click on a few items to see the various context menus.
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Information View
InfoView.bmp
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The information view is located below the tree and list views. This view will give you informational messages about the link.

Alert, warning, and error messages will also be posted to this window.

There might only be one or two informational messages in the window now. However, as we drag and drop, more messages will be added.
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Not Yet Placed
NotYetPlaced.bmp
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The Visual Linker has already done some work for you. First, the Visual Linker located the standard C entry point, the _c_int00 symbol. It then completed transitive closure analysis on the symbol, finding all the sections that are reachable from it.

All of these sections have been placed in the Not Yet Placed branch. For a successful link, all items from the Not Yet Placed branch must be moved to memory regions.
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Memory View
MemView.bmp
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Located to the right of the list view is the memory view. The memory view is a display of your link that resembles the memory diagrams in reference books.

When you right-click on a memory space (such as run_view), or an item below it in the tree, the context menu will contain the 'View Memory' option. Use this option to display the selected item in the memory view.

Right-click anywhere in the memory view and select 'Display Controls' from the context menu. This dialog allows you to manipulate the memory view. Click some of the buttons and observe how the memory view is affected.
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Code Sections
CodeSect.bmp
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The next few steps illustrate the various ways of moving items in the Visual Linker. Any of these methods can be used at any time. 

Let's start placing the input sections into memory. We'll place the code sections first. 

Click on 'Code' in the tree. Hold down the left mouse button and drag the mouse to the 'PMEM' memory region in the memory view. Release the mouse button.

An output section named '.text' will be created for you. All of the code sections will be moved into it.
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Variables
Stack.bmp
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Next, we'll place the .stack section. Select the 'Variables' node in the tree. From the list view, click and drag the '.stack' section to the 'BMEM' memory region in the tree.

The next section to place is the '.bss' section. In the list view, click on the first .bss section. Holding down the CTRL key, select each .bss section in the list. Drag these sections to 'BMEM' as well.

Finally, we'll place the '.far' section. In the list view, click on the first .far section. Holding down the SHIFT key, click on the last .far section in the list. Drag these sections to 'EXT2'.
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Constants
EditCut.bmp
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Select 'Constants' in the tree. In the list view, select the '.cinit' section, and then select Edit -> Cut. Click on 'BMEM' in the memory view and then select Edit -> Paste.

Again, select 'Constants' in the tree and press CTRL-X. Select 'BMEM' in the tree and press CTRL-V. This should create an output section under 'BMEM' called '.const'.

At this point, the 'Not Yet Placed' branch under 'run_view' should be gone. This indicates that we have placed everything necessary for a successful link.
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Write Output File
BuildButton.bmp
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The link is now complete, but the output file needs to be written. Click the "Write .out" button in the toolbar. 

The files 'Tutorial_1.out' and 'Tutorial_1.map' will be written to the disk.

Use Windows Explorer to go to the folder '\VisLink\Templates\c6x\Examples\Tutorial_1'. 'Tutorial_1.out' and 'Tutorial_1.map' should be there with the current date and time.
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Basics Finished
Finished.bmp
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Congratulations! You've finished the basics tutorial.

You should now have enough information to perform a link with the Visual Linker.
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Online Help
Help.bmp
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The online help system is a great resource for learning more about the Visual Linker.

Select 'Contents' from the 'Help' menu to view the topics that have been created to help you learn more.

A topic was created specifically to help you get started in performing your own link. In the Help Contents window, look for the topic "Getting Started with the Visual Linker".
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