Summary
The toolchain is always your starting point: everything that follows from that is dependent on having a working, reliable toolchain.
Most embedded build environments are based on a cross development toolchain which creates a clear separation between a powerful host computer building the code and a target computer on which it runs. The toolchain itself consists of the GNU binutils, a C compiler from the GNU compiler collection – and quite likely the C++ compiler as well – plus one of the C libraries I have described. Usually the GNU debugger, gdb, will be generated at this point, which I describe in Chapter 12, Debugging with GDB. Also, keep a watch out for the Clang compiler, as it will develop over the next few years.
You may start with nothing but a toolchain – perhaps built using crosstool-NG or downloaded from Linaro – and use it to compile all of the packages that you need on your target, accepting the amount of hard work this will entail. Or, you may obtain the toolchain as part...