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Linux Port for N64?
Mr. Roboto writes "The tales of a guy trying to port Linux to his N-64. This page has source code and technical data, which should make lots of you happy." Not really, now I have to go out and buy one.
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when i read this i just heard that videotape of nancy kerrigan in my head (the one right after tonya's boyfriend whacked her), "whhhhyyyyyyy!!!??"
I hate to say this, but this is very very old. As in, May of '98.
"Last Updated: 5.30.98"
I'm assuming he hasn't gotten very far. Oh well.
- Jeff A. Campbell
- VelociNews (http://www.velocinews.com)
- Jeff
The Dreamcast is probably a more interesting target for a Linux port. If it can run WinCE it should have room for Linux. You might even run Emacs on it (shudder. . .)
Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from a rigged demo
--Andy Finkel (J. Klass?)
Ray, his professor, wanted to know "whether porting Linux to the N64 was feasible."
The author of the page determined it was not (or that he does not have enough time to do it), so instead he sets a simpler goal for himself:
My end goal is to develop a cable and interface a PC and the N64. For example, I want to have the N64 be able to browse a HD, or a PC issue simple commands, such as changing the color on the monitor.
I really think the lead-in for this article is misleading. He's not porting Linux to his N64.
--
He lives in a world where those who do not run the client software of the omnipresent meme are unacceptable.
My response to the "why port Linux" posts? How about:
1) As a educational exercise.
2) To develop a version of Linux suited for embedded environments based on the N64's processor.
3) For fun.
4) For the same reason people waste time posting redundant "why"s about 18-month-dead projects mentioned on Slashdot.
I wish I had the link, but I've already seen X on an N64.
:-) -- All you're doing is writing a ROM image. You do *not* need to rip the thing apart to run Linux on the pig. All the info (hell you can even get detalled info / memory maps / etc on the hardware) is available from dextrose or #n64dev on efnet. All this scope tracing / etc is bullshit if you want to really program it / port Linux to it.
:-)
And why's this guy taking everything apart to learn? dextrose has compilers, assemblers, disassemblers and all manner of documentation on programming this fscker.
Get yourself a Doctor V64 or, what I use, a Z64 and start programming. I like the latter because it's smaller, doesn't use CDs or take up a parallel port and (upon taking it apart) is an embedded 386. The V64 is a 6809 (IIRC) machine with a lot more custom circuitry.
My goal for it is to hook up a network card to it's internal PC/104 slot and get rid of the need for a Zip drive altogether. Boot via BOOTP, grab games from my server via TFTP. The source for the BIOS is available on the 'net and all it is ATM just OpenDOS with some custom executable to run the embedded PC <-- N64 part.
There's no need for custom hardware. Hell a simple ROM emulator would work. There *are* tricks to doing it in hardware (they have a lock chip on each cart IIRC) but if you got one of those V64jr units you could hack it and put a ROM emulator on that if you *really* felt you needed to. (the V64jr lets you read/write to its onboard memory with a parallel port so a ROM emulator is not necessary, but most good ROM emulators let you have breakpoints and other good things for development). From what this guy's website said, he was using custom hardware to read/write to N64 memory. Waste of time / energy / effort! Proprietary interface!
My brother already programs for the N64 (just simple stuff but his time is limited too
Mind you now, if he was the curious sort like myself, he'd have done it just for fun.