I think the bootstrap command in PalmDebugger was used only when the EZ Dragonball CPU was in "bootstrap" mode. The bootstrap mode of the Dragonball CPU can only be entered if you connect some sort of button to the appropriate pin on the CPU itself.
Some Palm development platforms (used by Palm Licencees) have a bootstrap button. When the bootstrap (B/S) button is held down during a reset, the CPU will enter a special B/S mode. In this mode, the CPU switches to dedicated microcode, which allows a Motorola-provided program, BBUGV, to transmit raw hex data to the platform, which can be subsequently executed. The uploaded raw hex data is typically a smallROM image which is then started, so it can be bootstrapped to allow initial flashing of a 'blank' flash chip. Now, with all that history, if you actually wanted to do something as risky as flashing a real, physical Palm device, the PalmDebugger command you want to use is the "flash" command. The old bootstrap command in PalmDebugger I think is old, and only worked with EZ Dragonballs (I don't think it works with VZ-based Dragonballs). Also, BBUGV is a better program for bootstrapping a Dragonball. Also, I'm not sure if the FLASH command works in the released version of PalmDebugger or not. It may only be fully functional in a special version called FlashablePalmDebugger, which is used by Palm Licencees. I flash ROMs on our development board all the time, but I have nothing to lose, as I can always re-bootstrap a corrupted flash. But I've never actually flashed a real Palm device, because I think it's much riskier. This doesn't mean you can't do it, but I'm not sure of any "safe" way to do it, or what publically available tools are out there. Doug. -----Original Message----- From: Prashant Verma [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: Tuesday November 13, 2001 00:48 To: Palm Developer Forum Subject: Using the 'bootstrap' command in the debugger Hi, How can I use the 'bootstrap' command of the Palm Debugger to run Debug ROMs on my Palm devices? The documentation talks of a "hwInitFile", but I can't find more details on that. Has anyone compiled a series of steps to flash Palm Devices with Debug ROMs? Thanks, -Prashant _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp -- For information on using the Palm Developer Forums, or to unsubscribe, please see http://www.palmos.com/dev/tech/support/forums/ -- For information on using the Palm Developer Forums, or to unsubscribe, please see http://www.palmos.com/dev/tech/support/forums/
