It seems to happen with every update of the MDK IDE that previous applications are broken ( eg either the file_config.c is changed to look or use new #defines etc).
When I got 4.5 I simply just placed the new precompiled libs in the project to get things working again as I was in a hurry.
I have now found time to sort out the code repositry and looking a the source code for RL I see its not been updated since 4.23 and there does not appear to be an update available.
I belive I have the right license to have the source ode and have been waiting for the RL updates to appear as they have done in the past eg get the MDK update and a couple of weeks later out come the RL Libs updates.
Does anyone have a later version of RL ARM than 4.23 or an I going to have to jump through hoops again eg NDA signed again.
Thanks
well things have changed
last year the FS and USB were provided all that was needed was an NDA
this year for the FS, USB, and TCP/IP comes as bundle at £16K and £36K for multiple product lines.
ouch
In my opinion, it's just crazy. Highly unlikely I'd get that purchase order approved :(
Thanks for the info.
DJR
This is fantastically insane! Why pay these absurd sums of money? I can get myself a consult to write the god damn thing from scratch for this price, or use open source which is widely available. Preposterous M
Because Keil either don't like their libraries and want to stop people from using them so they can silently drop the products.
Or they think companies can afford to just use critical libraries without access to source code to protect the investments.
Somewhere (maybe in the ARM organisation), there seems to be a problem - someone have lost track of reality.
I do my best to stay away from Keil library functionality, just because the signals sent out from Keil is unacceptable.
Good grief.
I wanted to make some modifications to the HTTP server. Faced with the prospect of having to shell out stupid amounts of money just for the privilege of being able to modify and compile the source ourselves, I've given in and written my own HTTP server from scratch to replace Keil's, but which remains compatible with the same API callbacks and FCARM output.
I can understand Keil being very careful with the source for things like the TCP/IP stack and USB, which contain a lot of IP. But the HTTP server really isn't rocket science, and people are bound to want to extend its limited API.
Keil would manage quite well with just NDA agreements. Then they can sue for ridiculous amounts of money if someone do forward the code to a competitor - but we customers can still protect our interests by not using critical functionality we don't have the ability to fix in case there is a critical bug or a need for an improvement that Keil specifically don't want to introduce.
The current price is only there to kill of the customers - or set at that random price by someone who just computed hours spent all through the years and making the incorrect assumption that a few source code sales should finance all of Keil development for a number of years backwards in time. In short - someone who have smelled some funny fungus.
@Trevor,
You posted
I can understand Keil being very careful with the source for things like the TCP/IP stack and USB, which contain a lot of IP
Well, as I stated above there are some outstanding open source packages out there, some are provided by NXP itself. This entire situation makes no sense at all; is the added value of Keil stuff that big that it is worth the expense? As I passionately declared in the past, my employer cannot pay, and even if we could it is probably better to invest the money in more productive endevours - it is not that there is no alternative. But it is not just the sources; With this set of Pricing policies in place, keil are going to rid themselves of medium to small (particularly small) clients. The world economy is crumbling; budgets are tighter than ever. this is not smart!
They rid themselves of larger corporations too.
When I originally asked them about the cost of the libraries, it was a cost per seat for the sources too...
Hello,
I would like to clarify a few things on behalf of Keil/ARM.
1. The source code publishing policy changed with the introduction of MDK-Professional with MDK v4.20 in March 2011. ARM signed agreements with existing RL-ARM customers to give them access to the RL-ARM source code for a transition period that ended on 31 Dec 2011.
2. The source code for the Flash File system, USB Host&Device and TCPnet components is available with a tiered pricing structure for Singe Product, Single Product Line and Multiple Product Line use. The exact pricing can be obtained from local distributors and is very competitive when compared to other commercial offerings.
3. The source license is NOT a per seat license. We require a MDK-Professional license for every developer using the sources, but that requirement can be rescinded for larger orders to remain competitive.
That being said, I understand that it can be frustrating when a product that you have become used to stops being available (or changes price and licensing), but these changes happen. The MDK-Professional product is very successful in the market and is being sold to independent developers, small and big companies alike.
We have no intention to "silently drop" the product or keep our customers from using it - in that case we wouldn't invest into expanding the middleware offering, as has recently happened for NXP LPC1800/4300 and Freescale Kinetis.
Kind regards, Johannes Bauer ARM Keil Product Manager
Thanks for clarifying, Johannes.
On a positive note, my experience with Keil and MDK-ARM in terms of support for fixing library bugs and support for various platforms has always been prompt and very good. To report an issue with the TCP/IP-related components (as I have done on a few occasions) and to have a fix provided to us usually within 24 or 48 hours is very reassuring.
Johannes
It would reassure me more if I knew I had a working example I could refer of something that closer to a real world application.
To be honest your examples of using the Libs are very poor. Fine for showing a single lib at a time ( and only more recently 2 at once).
Get your support to dev a project using RTX controlling a USB host MSD and also being able to log data to a SD card on the system as well as communicating via TCP/IP to a third parties kit.
Have Data thats used by the TCPIP updated by the content of the USB MSD.
( No its a not a project I need - but if you feel you must add CAN and all the mashings that go with it (eg transport protocol and BCM support) and get the emWin going all together and you might be closer ;) )
My experience of knitting together the RTX, FS and USB controlling a host MSD was not the best in the world and especially dissappointing in regards to USB Lib. If you want more detail I am happy to provide it in private.
To me having the source code was about saving time. If there is a problem now I feel I would have to jump through hoops to prove something wasnt right time that could be spent elsewhere.
Now I have to decide what do we do about the tools and libs.
Interview without coffee is the order of the day I think
Danny