[Balloon-svn] r1213 - balloon/branches/menuconfig

Author: nick
Date: 2010-08-24 11:53:08 +0100 (Tue, 24 Aug 2010)
New Revision: 1213

Modified:
balloon/branches/menuconfig/README
Log:
some brief notes on usage added

Modified: balloon/branches/menuconfig/README
===================================================================
--- balloon/branches/menuconfig/README    2010-08-24 09:52:10 UTC (rev 1212)
+++ balloon/branches/menuconfig/README    2010-08-24 10:53:08 UTC (rev 1213)
@@ -1,3 +1,40 @@
+*** menuconfig prefix ***
+This menuconfig branch introduces parameterised builds based on configuration choices
+created by a fork of the kernel menuconfig as used in buildroot
+
+The "packages" are a set of config/makefiles listed in the package directory
+Most of the existing modules are left in place as per Wookeys build tree.
+U-boot support is an exception and is a suggested implementation scheme.
+
+to configure an [sub]system, use make [subsystem-]menuconfig. Then make.
+eg make menuconfig, make kernel-menuconfig.
+
+The full implementation of make [subsystem-]dist, make [subsystem-]install
+is yet to be fully fleshed out.
+
+This branch is work in progress centred on developers (me especially)
+who needed a rebuild system rather than a full distro rebuild. It also uses more
+modern versions of buildroot which eases rebuilds considerably.
+
+I have implemented kexec in buildroot (that works) so chain kernel loading is possible.
+My choice would be to remove yaffs from bootldr (unless someone wants to port mtd *again*)
+and have it boot into the initrd kernel (no modules) from where there are a number of choices.
+I implement a pluggable scheme where a configured memory stick can build a complete system.
+Also an extension where if vmlinuz in forunt in the first yaffs partition and "noboot" is not present,
+that kernel is kexec'd. As we only mount a small /boot yaffs partition, boot time is not slowed by
+remounting a potentially large uncheckpointed full rootfs.
+I have demo'd a memory stick based distro with surprisingly tolerable performance.
+
+This needs moving to a faq/howto really.
+
+There is gathering momentum at TCL to base release 2 on this scheme. All opinions/critics invited.
+
+Nick Bane
+nick@cecomputing.co.uk
+nickbane1@gmail.com
+
+------------------------------------------------------------------
+
 These are the sources from which all the balloon release files are made.

There is some complexity about how things are built and configured.