[flashrom] Re: Questions About Flashrom Of Gsoc

[Buhrow, Simon]

Hi Hui,
> > My current devices are a Windows 11 laptop (processor 11370H, Tiger Lake-H35) and a Mac. Is it possible for me to try out some patches on my computer? Also, could you provide me with any resources or introductions to chip packaging (DIP32, PLCC32, DIP8...)?

As it´s never a good idea to experiment with the workhorse itself, I would recommend to do tests on extra hardware. (There might be some things you can test with software dummies, someone else must tell you about that). A very cheap programmer often mentioned here is the CH341A Programmer, however there are many other affordable programmers with ftdi chips, the raspberry pi and other manufactures as well (https://www.flashrom.org/Supported_programmers).

About basics of packaging you can find on https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_integrated_circuit_packaging_types . Flashrom itself typically does not care about packaging (as you can see in flashchips.c are no packaging info). That´s only important for wiring between programmer hardware and flash chip. If you have a programmer with a DIP-Socket on board, you can use any supported Flash in a DIP package (with <= pins than the socket).
> > and decided to start my job with "Find chips without voltage data." What can I do about it?

I checked the “.voltage” of the chips given in flashchips.c and I couldn´t find any chip without voltage data in flashchips.c So I think it´s obsolete. Could anyone with wr-permission correct this article? (or tell me where I´m wrong… :-) ).
> > Is it necessary for me to install an IRC client on my computer?

I think the webclient works fine so far, however there might be some benefits of having it installed locally.

Hope this helps,

Simon

Von: Anastasia Klimchuk 
Gesendet: Freitag, 11. März 2022 09:54
An: Hui Xiang ; flashrom 
Betreff: [flashrom] Re: Questions About Flashrom Of Gsoc

Hi Hui,

First of all, I wanted to say, you replied to me only and not to the mailing list (and I only noticed now). Most likely you clicked the "Reply" button instead of "Reply All". I am adding the mailing list back, but for future please keep in mind to Reply All.
The most important reason is that if you send your questions to the mailing list, then everyone in our community can help you! Which is really good. You will have various questions, and you never know who is the best person to answer. So, pay attention that the mailing list is on the To line ;)

Some things I can answer:
> > The platform Gerrit is mentioned in the "Development Guidelines." All I know about it is that it is a code management tool. Are there any tutorial videos or articles that I can use to learn more about Gerrit?

Gerrit is also a code review tool. Gerrit has an official website with lots of presentations, look here https://www.gerritcodereview.com/presentations.html , hopefully that's useful!
> > I went to GitHub's official Flashrom mirror.

You can browse all code on GitHub, no problem, and yes it can be a convenient way to browse. Just keep in mind GitHub is a mirror, so that's pretty much only for browsing code. When you start with trying to make changes by yourself, you need to set up flashrom git repository locally. When you come to that point, open https://review.coreboot.org/admin/repos/flashrom and choose your desired method to clone the repository. Supported methods are HTTPS and SSH. The same method will also be used when you push your changes to Gerrit later.
> > My current devices are a Windows 11 laptop (processor 11370H, Tiger Lake-H35) and a Mac. Is it possible for me to try out some patches on my computer? Also, could you provide me with any resources or introductions to chip packaging (DIP32, PLCC32, DIP8...)?

I am wondering if someone else can take these questions? We need community help on this :)

Thanks!

On Thu, Mar 10, 2022 at 6:59 AM Hui Xiang <[e-mail]> wrote:

Dear Anastasia,

Thank you for your response. I read the "Contributor Guidelines" and have some questions.
> > "work with our git repository."

I went to GitHub's official Flashrom mirror. The repository contains a large number of files. Which file would you recommend I start with if I want to familiarize myself with the current codes on GitHub? The platform Gerrit is mentioned in the "Development Guidelines." All I know about it is that it is a code management tool. Are there any tutorial videos or articles that I can use to learn more about Gerrit?
> > "downloaded and built flashrom as well as applied some patches."

My current devices are a Windows 11 laptop (processor 11370H, Tiger Lake-H35) and a Mac. Is it possible for me to try out some patches on my computer? Also, could you provide me with any resources or introductions to chip packaging (DIP32, PLCC32, DIP8...)? I looked them up on Google, but there is not much information about them.
> > "Check Easy projects or ask for simple tasks on the mailing list or on IRC."

I went to the "Easy projects" page and decided to start my job with "Find chips without voltage data." What can I do about it? Could you provide me with any tips and advice? Thank you very much.

I joined the IRC channel through Libera. Chat. My nickname is Hui_Xiang. Is it necessary for me to install an IRC client on my computer? Thank you for looking into this for me. I appreciate it.

Best Regards,

Hui

From: Anastasia Klimchuk <[e-mail]>
Sent: 09 March 2022 01:50
To: [e-mail]; Hui Xiang <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: [flashrom] Questions About Flashrom Of Gsoc

Hello Hui,

Nice to meet you! Great to know that you are interested to work with us this Summer of Code!

It is very good that you looked into the list of project ideas and are interested in one of them, and your experience in C is very relevant.
> What resources can I use to learn more about it?

First thing, please have a read of our Contributor Guidelines https://www.flashrom.org/GSoC especially the “Contributor commitments & requirements” section, and see if you can gradually start with p.1 “Prior to project acceptance, you need to demonstrate that you can work with the flashrom codebase”. It is important that you complete all steps from 1 to 5.
Definitely tell us how it goes! You can reply to this email, tell us what steps you did successfully, or if not, what are the problems.

Also look into the “How to contact us” section, join our IRC channel and say hello! :)

Just in case, if you haven’t read these already, here are official guidelines for gsoc program:
https://google.github.io/gsocguides/student/
Rules https://summerofcode.withgoogle.com/rules (at least check p.7 from here)
> What skills do I need to improve to get accepted from Flashrom?

For the project you are interested in, good knowledge of C language is a critical skill.

Thank you!
Anastasia.