Help for a windows refugee

[IainDowns]

I'm a long term Windows developer and I have a project underway now which is modifying a linux embedded system to my own needs. The host system is Ubuntu 10.04 and target is arm using CodeSourcery tools. The code is pure C (no c++)/

The embedded sofware is complex and 'open source' so has source code rather than documentation. The system was written with vi and make over some years. The makefile pulls together a few dozen projects and tools in a pretty complex way - but it works.

So far I've been struggling along (more or less succesfully) with gvim or gedit and make. However, it's not particularly productive. The main virtue of gvim is the integration with ctags which lets me navigate the source in a helpful fashion, but I'm finding it struggle to adapt to the (for me) unusual keyboard commands.

What I want is a development environment which can

use an editor in a which which is more or less familiar to a Windows drone (gedit works here).
Run the makefile (which uses an arm compiler) and ideally navigate to any error line.
Find definitions of functions and variables (across all the libraries which are part of the project).
Ideally, find references to functions and variables and other such advanced things.
Syntax and method completion and auto prompt would be nice too, but not essential.

I've tried to use eclipse but failed to make sense of it in this context (I should be able to make a project from a makefile, but it doesn't work). I have to say I've never had much luck with eclipse, though if it worked in this context it would be good.

Any suggestions or help would be very gratefully received!

Iain

[elija]

There are many IDE's available for Linux, I quite like CodeBlocks (link) which may or may not be in your distros repositories. I don't know if it will work with ARM compiler as I'm afraid I'm only a beginner in C.

[Irithori]

fwiw, as I am not a dev but a sysadmin:

In my company we have the reverse.
Unix devs "forced" on a .NET project and therefore VisualStudio2010.
They even sent all engineers (aka me included) on a .NET training and yes: vs2010 is a very powerfull tool.
A bit too much handholding for my personal taste, but what do I know

Our devs essentially do the same as you: Trying to stick to what they know and love.
I am also guilty, as I tried to maintain the windows servers just like unix boxes.

So they install tools like these:
Integrate gvim with Visual Studio - Vim Tips Wiki
VsVim - Visual Studio Gallery

In my experience:
If that "I don't want to leave my comfort zone" approach works at all, then with many drawbacks and issues.
So I took a deep breath and dived into PowerShell, SCOM, AD, all the good stuff

In turn, my suggestion to you would also be to start from scratch and learn the unix tools.
vi(m), gdb, cscope, make tool chain, git, etc

[IainDowns]

Thanks for your replies.

I'm not looking to go mad on this. I do need to run the make with make and I do need to debug with gdb (using ddd as I'm a windows wuss ).

but vi's too different for me - my reflexes don't work (mainly keyboard selection and copy and paste).

Iain

[jonyo]

just generally,, i haven't seen much in the way of making a transition from win to linux easy, if anything, the opposite,

just takes awhile like other stuff and then it starts clicking and just gets waaay better,

might as well be starting out from scratch when starting with linux from win

[Rubberman]

As a source code editor for Linux, I prefer nedit, which provides a GUI with standards compliance, so Windows users will be very comfortable using it (standard menus and keyboard shortcuts). It was developed at Fermi National Lab in Illinois, USA and released under the GPL as open source software. Get it here: NEdit - the multi-purpose X Window System editor

[IainDowns]

I've had a look at NEdit and it looks like it might be a good compromise.

I seem unable to work out how to configure things like tags files (the docs indicate I should use a .Xdefaults file in the user directory, but this seems not to work).

There's also an apparent issue running make - it seems to lose some environment variables or something, or perhaps the current path, but I expect their fixable.

I think one of the frustrations of working in linux after coming from a windows background is that it is generally expected you know how the bits work. In this case I have to have a handle on how XWindow configuration works in Ubuntu 10.04 before I can do some straightforward configuration. And there are MILLIONS of ways of doing the same thing!

Iain

[elija]

I think one of the frustrations of working in linux after coming from a windows background is that it is generally expected you know how the bits work. In this case I have to have a handle on how XWindow configuration works in Ubuntu 10.04 before I can do some straightforward configuration. And there are MILLIONS of ways of doing the same thing!

Iain

Funny that. I've got a new Windows 7 PC at work and I'm trying to configure it and install software and generally get things going. I'm suffering the same frustration as it isn't nice and easy like Linux I guess familiar equates to easy, but in Linux I could have been finished in an hour on this rubbish it's going to take all bloody day!

GAH!

[IainDowns]

Well, I have to admit that when I install a new windows box, it also takes me all day. Mind you that's not because it's hard - its just the time it takes for 10 GB of er, highlighly flexible software (bloatware), to stick itself on the hard disk!

On the other hand, if I EVER have to do network ops and configuration of unfamiliar server programs it IS just as hair pulling as Linux (well not quite, I have some idea where to find help!).

I don't suppose you know where to configure the ctags files in nedit, do you

Iain

[elija]

I'm afraid I've never used nedit.