LPCXpresso 2014

lpcware · ‎06-15-2016

Content originally posted in LPCWare by R2D2 on Thu May 02 07:05:58 MST 2013
Is there any intention to explain in this forum what LPCXpresso will be in 2014?

Will it support C++? Will it be still limited to 128k? Is it time to look for another toolchain? This old PR is weak:

http://www.nxp.com/news/press-releases/2013/05/nxp-acquires-code-red-technologies.html

lpcware · ‎06-15-2016

Content originally posted in LPCWare by ktownsend on Mon May 13 04:12:31 MST 2013

Quote: R2D2
I don't think so. 23660 employees and no strategy? That's no hot-dog stall. I'm receiving dozens of their Press Releases and nothing about plans with LPCXpresso after 2 weeks?

I guess I'll win a part of my 2010 bet: NXP is buying CR but not seriously attacking Atmel (free IDE for all chips) or MBED (support with easy usable libs).
That a dï¿½jï¿½ vu from 2005 (ARM bought Keil) and not the big step forward.

I don't see the lack of strategy here. They saw an opportunity to pick up a useful tool vendor at a reasonable price, which aligns well with their strategy of making 'tools' a non issue to get started with LPC or move from 8 to 32-bit. I don't think it's a threat to Keil or IAR which position themselves differently in the market, but free is a compelling argument when you're first thinking of making the switch the ARM or 32-bit.

What I suspect is still being discussed is much less 'strategic', and more practical (though I'm just guessing from the outside): How are we going to pay these new CR salaries? Do we keep the paid model to finance the new expenses, or do we go 100% free and assume the extra expenses as a marketing expense. That's not so much a strategic issue as budgetary, and is what I expect explains the radio silence on the outcome of the purchase.

lpcware · ‎06-15-2016

Content originally posted in LPCWare by R2D2 on Sun May 12 06:21:22 MST 2013

Quote: KTownsend
My guess, though, is that they're still trying to figure this out internally themselves.

I don't think so. 23660 employees and no strategy? That's no hot-dog stall. I'm receiving dozens of their Press Releases and nothing about plans with LPCXpresso after 2 weeks?

I guess I'll win a part of my 2010 bet: NXP is buying CR but not seriously attacking Atmel (free IDE for all chips) or MBED (support with easy usable libs).
That a déjà vu from 2005 (ARM bought Keil) and not the big step forward.

lpcware · ‎06-15-2016

Content originally posted in LPCWare by ktownsend on Sat May 11 06:09:37 MST 2013
In terms of CR in 2014 ... I'm as curious as you. My guess, though, is that they're still trying to figure this out internally themselves. I'd love to see C++ and drop the paid limits ... or at least C++ and keep the paid model for 128KB+, but I guess we'll all have to hold our breath in anticipation.

lpcware · ‎06-15-2016

Content originally posted in LPCWare by ktownsend on Sat May 11 06:06:19 MST 2013
I guess having to learn multiple tools is just what feels (for better or worse) normal to me with embedded development, and that will probably never change. Is it a PITA? Sure! ... it's also why I stick with GCC and a good old makefile/linker script, since it's the only relatively constant tool that I'm sure will be here years from now.

For IDEs, though, I guess I've just gotten used to switching between LPCXpresso, Crossworks, Keil and a Makefile. Personally, I prefer to work in Crossworks, but given the cost LPCXpresso is a compelling choice for a lot of people, so I need to support that as well, and I know I'll never have one IDE on my desk since it does change vendor to vendor.

Again ... I see absolutely zero signs that that will change soon, except sticking to VI/nano and make + GDB.

No single IDE does everything I want (at least for the prices I can pay!), and at the end of the day I take what I /can/ afford for debugging, and rely on GCC and the command-line when it really matters and for production builds.

LPCXpresso is far from perfect, but Keil has it's issues as well and the price tag is a lot harder to swallow.

It comes down to personal taste, but I'm only interested in GCC as a viable/safe long term solution, so if you need something that plays well with other MCUs, I'd really recommend taking a look at Crossworks for ARM. If you're looking for an affordable option for LPC chips, though, LPCXpress does represent a pretty good value for your money.

Kevin

lpcware · ‎06-15-2016

Content originally posted in LPCWare by graynomad on Thu May 09 01:05:12 MST 2013

Quote:
I'm at a loss to understand why you would look for something else?

[B]C++

[/B]

lpcware · ‎06-15-2016

Content originally posted in LPCWare by R2D2 on Fri May 03 01:38:51 MST 2013

Quote: KTownsend
I...if LPCXpresso is working for you now, I'm at a loss to understand why you would look for something else?

In my little world things are changing. Customers are asking for stuff like Smart Metering, Wireless or IOT. So looking for new chips and testing them costs me a lot of time. And my PC is full of IDEs, toolchains, SDKs... I'm paid to do embedded stuff, not to waste my days with downloading, installing and updating dozens of SDKs.

That's probably not new for NXP. And probably there's a clear strategy and concept behind that. And I'm reading CEO blah blah, campaign blah blah and crowdsourcing blogs (http://blog.nxp.com/is-crowdsourcing-the-next-big-thing-in-high-tech-b2b-marketing) but nothing about real things. So what to do with my projects? Using EM773 or JN5148 and hoping that there will be one free or upgradeable tool for all chips sometime, or just use AS6?

But anyway I'm just a little customer, reading this forums since years and trying to estimate if migrating to NXP chips is making my daily work easier. I'm not interested in campaigns. I was reading this forum to be informed about Cortex M0/M3 chips and tools, but that's probably not the purpose of this forum. Was somehow a misunderstanding on my part.

lpcware · ‎06-15-2016

Content originally posted in LPCWare by cfb on Thu May 02 15:28:55 MST 2013

Quote: KTownsend
I'm at a loss to understand why you would look for something else?

For anybody who was planning to develop exclusively for the LPC platform I would agree with you.

However, anybody who was planning to use the same development system for non-LPC platforms as well by eventually upgrading to the full Code Red Suite would now need to reconsider.

lpcware · ‎06-15-2016

Content originally posted in LPCWare by ktownsend on Thu May 02 10:46:19 MST 2013

Quote: R2D2
Is there any intention to explain in this forum what LPCXpresso will be in 2014?

Will it support C++? Will it be still limited to 128k? Is it time to look for another toolchain? This old PR is weak:

http://www.nxp.com/news/press-releases/2013/05/nxp-acquires-code-red-technologies.html

If NXP has bought the toolset, and if LPCXpresso is working for you now, I'm at a loss to understand why you would look for something else?

I don't have any inside information, but I'm 99.999% sure you can be more confident in LPCXpresso's long term existence, simply because a company like NXP doesn't have the same financial pressures that a small, independent tool vendor faces.

I'd love to see C++ support, but your guess is as good as mine now, and maybe they'll keep the free/low-cost model to cover some of the salaries of formerly CodeRed staff, etc. But my guess is this is probably still be worked out inside the company!

lpcware · ‎06-15-2016

Content originally posted in LPCWare by CodeRedSupport on Thu May 02 07:59:55 MST 2013
We have nothing to announce yet. However, I can confirm that LPCXpresso will continue.