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MP900c: Tips and Tricks

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stingraze Page Icon Posted 2021-06-20 12:38 PM
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Nice update on getting the temperature and humidity!
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joval Page Icon Posted 2021-07-18 5:57 PM
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Pardon the delay: Honesty is the best policy... but not my only policy!

OK we are concerned with 4 "programs" when upgrading to WinCE.Net4.2... 3 of which reside in the MP900 ROM:

1. Bios 2. Bootloader 3. Kernel/OS 4. The Flashing program

I will use the analogy of the MP900/c as the same as a House with many rooms.

When you first turn on your HPC (or any computer) the first "program" to run is the Bios (or EFI in newer devices). It has the job of providing the "blueprints" of the House: the total number of rooms, the type and location of rooms like Kitchen, bathrooms, bedrooms, garage, pantry, living room, etc. Instead of rooms, the Bios looks for and records "devices" such as RAM memory (a locker room with many numbered lockers for storing things), video display, keyboard, touch screen or mouse, network card/ wifi, storage card, which hard drive ( the ROM in the MP900 case) contains the master boot record and the critically important location of bootloader files and kernel/OS files. etc.

If you shop in a Big Box store like Best Buy or Costco after you pay the cashier and go to leave the store you run into a Bouncer-type person (Bios) who demands to see your receipt and everything in your cart and then checks off each item before letting you advance/ leave. If everything checks out accurately, the Bios then allows the computer to advance to the Bootloader stage by handing the list of devices, their locations and types over to it along with info on the size of RAM, ROM, Storage, video/audio/touchscreen parameter.

So, the Bios creates a blueprint of the computer and then starts/calls up the bootloader , hands it the blueprints along with additional data, then leaves the scene as the Bootloader takes over.

Now, The Bootloader is similar to the Home Moving Truck Operator and the ROM / boot drive is the Truck Load of contents/ furnishings, etc. The Bootloader starts delivering up chunks of the Kernel/OS/packages/files and moves them into various rooms/cabinets/lockers, etc. When done, it starts/calls up the Kernel ( which is similar to a Butler/Bouncer/Security Guard type of fellow), shows it the checklist of what's been delivered, with location and state (coffee pot is on and brewing, AC is off, water and electricity are connected).

Obviously, we assume every entity here is speaking and understanding the same lanquage. You can imagine what happens when the bootloader has difficulty understanding the proper "computer-ese" The wrong bootloader puts the potting soil and insectcide in the refrigerator, the sofa in the swimming pool, the ice cream in the bed, and way, way too much toilet paper in the commode! The kernel given the wrong info locks all the I/O doors and windows so nothing gets processed,or dumps its results down the toilet (because the bios told the bootloader the toilet is a window). (Toilet water means different things if you make perfume vs if you are a plumber). Or the Kernal loads the wrong driver for the wrong device, etc...(Not so "finger licking good"as the good Colonel might say).

more to follow,

joval posted from a J720/Devuan3.16/RasPi/Firefox Hybrid


Edited by joval 2021-07-18 6:32 PM
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Rich Hawley Page Icon Posted 2021-07-18 8:06 PM
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I hate analogies...
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joval Page Icon Posted 2021-07-19 12:57 AM
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Rich Hawley - 2021-07-18 12:06 PM

I hate analogies...


Yeah, well, good thing Einstein and Bohr never used 'em then...

Hmmmm... some hate it when the captain doesn't go down with the ship, too!! Yo comprendo. FYI, no "wedgie" intended.

Once upon a time someone with your appellation was cooking up mischief/recipes with his Hex Editor by promoting the so called "ROM Kitchen." Or am I mistaken? I thought it was good stuff... but desperately needed some understandable credible ANALOGIES !!!

Besides, I'm only about 1/2 way through here. This is my first draft on the how's and why's of MP900/c CMonex ROM 4.2 Upgrade. This stuff is destined to live on for eternity!!! Warts and all!!

Stay tuned, even the Good Guru might learn a thing or two... by analogy!

joval posted on a J720/Devuan/RasPi/Firefox "Hybrid"


Edited by joval 2021-07-19 1:15 AM
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joval Page Icon Posted 2021-07-19 3:32 AM
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Rich,

To your credit though, I can see where my " buffer overflow" analogy might cause a stink!

joval
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joval Page Icon Posted 2021-07-28 3:50 AM
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Anyway, back to the Analogies!

So, when you hit the power button and that HP logo or MP logo shows up on your handheld screen for quite a few seconds... it is covering up the fact that the Bios comes alive and surveys the field for every device, tallies it, and hands it off to the bootloader with info on where to locate the Master Boot record... and then slinks away having done its part.

The Bootloader then takes the bios info and locates the masterboot record where nearby it finds the Operating System files,including it's "Major Control Master" the Kernel (who acts more like a General)!. The bootloader carrries and/or retrieves a MAP of the OS and how it should be configured or setup and starts stuffing RAM memory "numbered lockers" full of various files/programs/data. The bootloader is specific to a given OS usually, reads the RAM like a Map of Italy say for one, vs a Map of New Zealand for another OS. Obviously, if the bootloader instruction reads "go 100 kilometers due north" and the OS maps are different you can never find your long lost cousin again (with that folder of files in his pocket) who you last saw in Genoa, or conversely, in Auckland. So, remember... "BootLoaders Matter" (BLM?)!!!

Now, some BLM's are smarter than others, and therefore, have a bigger "footprint", as these can ,"carry several neighborhood maps" and may "work over" several versions of an OS, but they are larger, demand far more ROMming space, pushing the Kernel and its kind down the road! In the end, however, if things get out of hand, it is the Kernel that gets locked up!!!

more later,

joval

posted on his J720/WPA wifi/Devuan /RasPi/ Firefox Hybrid

Edited by joval 2021-07-28 4:27 AM
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Rich Hawley Page Icon Posted 2021-07-28 8:48 PM
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And it is worth mentioning that the "bios" on these handhelds is on a separate unique ROM chip on the motherboard and is not programmable like a desktop computer where you can go into program mode by adjusting the voltage to the bios chips along with the timing.

And the bios is unique for each handheld due to hardware differences.
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joval Page Icon Posted 2021-07-28 11:48 PM
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Rich Hawley - 2021-07-28 12:48 PM

And it is worth mentioning that the "bios" on these handhelds is on a separate unique ROM chip on the motherboard and is not programmable like a desktop computer where you can go into program mode by adjusting the voltage to the bios chips along with the timing.

And the bios is unique for each handheld due to hardware differences.


Hi Rich!
Thanks for that clarification. I knew that desktop motherboards have a distinct Bios chip that is flash upgradable/programmable. I wasn't aware that HPC's had a separate chip (figured it would maybe be part of ROM chip), nor that it was not upgradable/flashible/programmable ... a nice safety factor in a way.

Hey, Skipper, now we know how you earned the Grand Pooba HE-merit-us.simo Title of "HPC Guru." a well deserved honor, IMO. Well, that and running the HPCNEC site for many years as well contibuting (seems like) half of the all the many great download apps on this site. Many many thanks for that, Sir (salutes the Captain, and bows, showing due respect ),IMHO.

Once this CMonex upgrade write up is complete, with or without appropriate anal-ologies (sp?), I intend to cook up some tastey treats in the ROM kitchen...after reviewing your recipe book again(been many years). If I can manage to learn Linux CLI (PenquinSpeak), I should be ready to venture deep into the heart of Ze Romme Kitchen...

Also, sorry about giving you an ad'tude earlier. Just returned home with the Motorhome(purrs like a kitten now) and had to empty the Grey Water and Black Water waste water tanks... in reverse of that order all while singing "Ol' Black Water keep on rollin.... Pissisiping Moons won't you keep your hiney off me..." Always wear gloves.!! Mask, face shield, IronMan outfit, etc. Your boats have such a chore too???

best regards, Capitano!

joval

( via J720/Devuan +WPA wifi/RasPi Hybrid)

Edited by joval 2021-07-28 11:55 PM
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Rich Hawley Page Icon Posted 2021-07-30 10:14 PM
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Technically...to empty the waste tanks on my boat, I just motor out 3 miles and flip a switch that dumps the tank via a pump. In reality I usually just go out a half mile early in the morning and dump them when no one is looking. Much easier than an RV. Never get my hands poopy.
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joval Page Icon Posted 2021-07-31 3:44 PM
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Rich Hawley - 2021-07-30 2:14 PM

Technically...to empty the waste tanks on my boat, I just motor out 3 miles and flip a switch that dumps the tank via a pump. In reality I usually just go out a half mile early in the morning and dump them when no one is looking. Much easier than an RV. Never get my hands poopy.


Think I'll be swimming close to shore!
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joval Page Icon Posted 2021-09-27 2:07 PM
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"Greetings, greetings Comrads! Is just like Old Country to hear from you again. But, please, am looking for job..."

That used to be the opening message on my telephone answering machine years ago performed by my best impersonation of Mikhail Gorbachev right after the fall of the USSR.

Andrej, a recent factorite, enquired about the MP900 just the other day... which made me realize , yes, I have been neglecting the little MP900 critters because of my fascination with the "wee ones": Jornada 720 (with devuan/linux + Raspberry Pi symbiosis).

So, I pulled out one of the MP900's, battery dead, plugged in charger, turned it on, restored recent backup with Aironet 350 wifi and Opera browser and
VxUtil (auto time/date update) etc. programs.

Then, using above mentioned tips/tricks... began surfing the net reading wickedpedia articles on spacex inspiration space flight. Very pleasant... as a stand-alone device it is with the aironet wifi or alternate Ambicom WL54 very functional in WinCe 4.2 mode.

It's biggest shortcoming is that it cannot render captcha security verification (can't log in to HPCFactor, etc), nor any media sites like youtube. That and being limited to WPA wifi.

Enough said, I will continue my ROM upgrade discussion and look into using remote desktop to obtain a more complete internet role (but not stand-alone).

joval (via J720/Devuan/WPA/RasPi/Firefox hybrid).

Edited by joval 2021-09-27 2:11 PM
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joval Page Icon Posted 2021-09-27 3:27 PM
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Now finding, as the internet evolves, that Opera 5 mini no longer renders many websites using javasript, etc. And Opera now has a pop-up saying it saves on 90% on data... haven't seen that before.

So,the Opera "window on the net" for the MP900/c may be shrinking if not closing.

joval ... from j720_32Mb/devuan/WPA/Raspi/Firefox combo

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Jake Page Icon Posted 2021-09-27 10:44 PM
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I've noticed the same on Opera Mini for WinMo 6 on my HTC X7501. Many sites can't be brought up.

On the other hand, I just brought up 68k.news on the Psion Web Browser, a browser that's insanely antiquated, and wasn't even good when it came out. And that was with a 115K IR connection. So at least we can get to the news, albeit limited news.

Jake
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frisser Page Icon Posted 2022-02-28 1:04 PM
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I would like to add the Explorer replacement. It is a lot faster!
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You can download the lastest/updated version here
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joval Page Icon Posted 2022-05-24 12:17 AM
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For Hilachas_007's request for help on the MP900/c CMonex v2.0 ROM upgrade:


Here are the files needed, they can be placed on a CF card format as Fat 32 (Fat16 NOT required), in this recommended order. These are all from the repository ( http://repository.hpcfactor.com/public/cmonex/ ) as XIP_CMONEX_V2_0.zip download... which INCLUDES the bootloader upgrade already:

UPDATE.exe ..... starts the update beginning first with bootloader, then V2.0 Rom Image
UPDBL.NBO ...... contains the new bootloader 4.1 image
XIP.Bin .............contains the new CMonex_V2.0 image

That's all you need (the Bootloader P530_42 2.02 + 4.10BL isn't needed, is redundant and complicates things, IMO). Anyone disagree??? Rich Hawley is the expert maybe he will (anchors-a-) weigh in!

Copy these files to at least a 60MB CF card formatted as FAT32 in the order shown, place the CF card into the front CF card slot.

On AC power or full battery, Turn on your MP900/c and navigate to storage card, and click on UPDATE.exe.

A new screen appears with a progress line and bootloader comment. It automatically checks for the bootloader and will start its upgrade to v4.1 (if needed... if already v4.1 it will say bootloader not found) and proceed to updating CMonex V2.0 image.

It will say Welcome to Cmonex V2 and then slowly erase the old image and then slowly update new image. Takes a few minutes then says "Update complete, please hard reset device (ie., unplug AC, remove main and backup coin battery... then put batteries back in, etc.). Don't forget to close the battery latch.

Reboot and the new CMonex 2.0 image/logo should show up.

In some cases: on Reboot all you get is a dark black screen and you might think your MP900 is bricked... but it isn't. Just unplug the AC, remove all batteries, place CF card in the CF slot.... then press BOTH C and F keys (C+F) down and plug in the AC power, hold them down and release in a few seconds... soon the Bootloader line on top of screen will show and complete the upgrade as per above. I just double checked this on one of my MP900's.

Enjoy,

Joval

Addendum: FYI, I think CMonex's directions have a few errors... like FAT32 CF format works fine, also, all the scary warnings about the bootloader being correct ... I believe she wasn't aware that the upgrade program has a safety factor that automatically checks for it before erasing the ROM. I have included the details on the C+F trick also should things go wrong.

Edited by joval 2022-05-27 2:16 PM
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