Content originally posted in LPCWare by NXP_Support on Fri Jul 10 16:34:00 MST 2015
Hi Dill,
Sorry for the delay in responding. Great questions!
Quote:
[color=#36f]Are the lpcopen version numbers meant like new version = new features, bugs fixed or do they all bring support for different devices?[/color]
As you pointed out, each LPCOpen release is targeted at certain MCU devices and boards, providing a platform for the examples to run and be tested on without modification. The MCU and board for the release are cited in the left most column in the LPCOpen download table.
The far right-hand column is the 'Version history and known issues' link. (If your display does not show this column, please click in the table and use the keyboard cursor to scroll to the right.) For the 2.17 release history, you can see that most of the releases from 2.00a to 2.17 are to add support for specifc devices. There was a known issue cited in release 2.11 that you should check for in earlier releases.
To date, LPCOpen releases have been primarily to add support for devices and boards, with bug fixes along the way. We are putting systems in place to provide more responsive bug fix updates across our products. The first results of these new systems should be integrated into our standard release flow by the end of this year for some devices, and then roll out across the rest of the Cortex families.
Which version to use? Check the revision history for updated LPCOpen releases for the device you are using so you can decide if it is worth the porting effort (if any) to your board. Note that the next major release version (LPCOpen v3.xx) will change the directory structure to work better with the tool chains we support, so that update will not simply be a 'drop in', but we will provide documentation for migrating v2.xx projects to v3.xx.
Consistent interface across NXP MCUs? Yes, that is a primary objective, but some 'common' peripherals vary significantly on different MCUs. Unfortunately, the API's have changed in some cases from device to device to take advantage of additional peripheral features.
Best regards,
-NXP Support
