Late Night Question

[---_Won_---]

Please bare with me, oh and don't laugh..

If/when I get a Pandora, I would like to try and port a small (1-2Mb) windows program. The problem is I have no experience with this sort of thing. I don't know a lot about linux, or any programming language (I once made a "hello world" program and a few other things in c++)...

I have this camera LINK it has a basic GUI and a boot screen. Well a while ago I wanted to try and change the boot screen, so I got hold of some firmware for it so to see how it's made up. I was expecting to find some sort of jpg/png file for the boot screen, but the firmware comprised of just two bin. files.

I got a program to open and edit the bin files, saw the contents and thought, I have no idea what I'm doing. I closed the program and gave up.

Now here comes my question. In a case like this would you have to convert the bin files to some other file format so that you can edit it, I mean for the boot screen you must have a image file of some sort, a jpg etc, so where is it!? does the boot screen file just get turned into 1's and 0's?

Back to the windows prog I wanted to try and port. I think it's just in bin format too, so I tought if I can understand how my camera GUI/OS works it may help with porting that windows app...I may be way off the mark here, hopefully someone can put me straight...Cheers

 

[mindlord]

You will often hear developers refer to the "source". These bin files are the result of compiling these source files on the windows platform for the x86 platform and of zero use to you as a programmer. You will hear the developers here say over and over again, no source no port. This is why. If we knew the program you were trying to port perhaps we could locate the source, or find a suitable replacement for Linux.

 

[bigtruck]

In general, bin files are binaries. They are often compiled, executable programs, but they can be other things. I have never edited camera firmware, but if I were to guess I'd say the boot screen is somewhere in that firmware file. Maybe it's encrypted, I don't know. But you're not just going to be able to have some program open the bin file and edit the screen (unless it's a program written specifically for that purpose using knowledge gained by reverse-engineering said firmware.)

As for porting Windows programs, the main requirement is that the source code must be available. This means either it must be open source, or you have the source (you own/wrote the program), or you know someone who does who you can ask to port it. There are other requirements too (not using stuff like DirectX, for example), but that's the main one.

 

[---_Won_---]

Thanks for your replys. You have made it clear how it works, I understand now. Sorry for the stupid question.

but if I were to guess I'd say the boot screen is somewhere in that firmware file. Maybe it's encrypted, I don't know. But you're not just going to be able to have some program open the bin file and edit the screen

It is in there....somewhere, because when I used the firmware it changed the boot screen from it's default..I was expecting to be able to change a few lines of code linking it to my new boot screen file...

 

[MilanC]

Open up your camera, look at the chips inside, find documentation, find the architecture of the chip that runs the firmware, search for boot methods for that arch (for example: some SoC use RedBoot partitions on flash, etc.). Try to see if those bin files are formatted according to some such standard. (or if they're not plain gzipped/bzipped/cpio'd/(or even not compressed) filesystem images (some simple filesystem, maybe like romfs for linux)

 

[---_Won_---]

Open up your camera, look at the chips inside, find documentation, find the architecture of the chip that runs the firmware, search for boot methods for that arch (for example: some SoC use RedBoot partitions on flash, etc.). Try to see if those bin files are formatted according to some such standard. (or if they're not plain gzipped/bzipped/cpio'd/(or even not compressed) filesystem images (some simple filesystem, maybe like romfs for linux)

Thanks for the info, I will give that a bash. *gets micro screwdriver*

 

[parag0n]

Or you could boot off a linux livecd (i'd suggest ubuntu), and see if you camera is detected. (post an lsusb / lsmod in here, and we'll tell you)

 

[MilanC]

Or you could boot off a linux livecd (i'd suggest ubuntu), and see if you camera is detected. (post an lsusb / lsmod in here, and we'll tell you)

He was asking about a program to mod the device's firmware...

 

[parag0n]

Ah, i thought he wanted to prt the software for using the camera too.

Have you tried reshack on the firmware?

 

[---_Won_---]

Ooo I didn't expect to find the thread still active, Thanks for your input. No I haven't tried reshack, I will take a look in a min...I was going to try what Milan suggested, but I can't find a screwdriver small enough to open up the camera.

Edit: I just clocked, reshacker = resource hacker...I did try that before, but I didn't have much luck, I will try again though.

Edit2: Sorry for using thread space with unrelated pandora topics. I originally thought that understanding about my cameras firmware might give me some insight to working with the pandora..

 

[God Ginrai]

Ah, i thought he wanted to prt the software for using the camera too.

Have you tried reshack on the firmware?

I love ResHack! ^_^

-God Ginrai