C module programming reference
C module programming reference
Hi all,
In the past couple of weeks, I have been working on a micropython math module similar to numpy (sneak peek under https://github.com/v923z/micropython-ulab), and I realised that a programming manual is sorely missing. I have written up a thorough reference of what I needed for ulab, and what I could learn by perusing the micropython code base.
At https://github.com/v923z/micropython-usermod/, as well as at https://micropython-usermod.readthedocs.io/en/latest/ you will find about a dozen simple examples of implementing various python features at the C level. Each feature is dissected, gutted, and explained at length. I hope that you'll find something useful.
Suggestions, corrections, admonitions and the like are more than welcome, either here, or on github.
Cheers,
Zoltán
In the past couple of weeks, I have been working on a micropython math module similar to numpy (sneak peek under https://github.com/v923z/micropython-ulab), and I realised that a programming manual is sorely missing. I have written up a thorough reference of what I needed for ulab, and what I could learn by perusing the micropython code base.
At https://github.com/v923z/micropython-usermod/, as well as at https://micropython-usermod.readthedocs.io/en/latest/ you will find about a dozen simple examples of implementing various python features at the C level. Each feature is dissected, gutted, and explained at length. I hope that you'll find something useful.
Suggestions, corrections, admonitions and the like are more than welcome, either here, or on github.
Cheers,
Zoltán
Re: C module programming reference
Wow, this looks really great, thanks!!! I'm working through your examples in full!
..fyi (not a criticism) your index.rst isn't rendering. Also, I'm not that familiar with IPython etc, and you've left a space for a link here: If you don’t know what ipython magics are, you can read more at … In any case, in usermods_02.rst.
On generating docs from within jupyter... really? couldn't I just cd into a directory and type some command, then open index.html? you say make html but there's no makefile. from where should make be called. sorry, not criticism, just curious.'
UPDATE: frrrrrrpp... decided to have a look at jupyter via the github/ipython-in-depth. ....can we just have the condensed version please? First I was told I could use pip. So I do. Nek minnit, I MUST use conda, which isn't a tool I'm familiar with or want. Then, a warning that conda will install a huge amount of data... (I do embedded for one simple reason. It's small...)
Sorry about all these complaints. I really appreciate your work and it's great, but the buy in to read about it is a bit too much... Here's my perspective: programming is explaining to humans what we want the machine to do. If that weren't the case, we'd all be writing in machine code, or solder. On that basis, the most important thing to do is to explain our programming tools to new users. Jupyter is a magnificent tool for that, but not if nobody is bothered to install it.
Your intro to adding usermods is better than anything else I've found. I'll leave my comments below as is, but mostly now redundant. One thing tho, I added CFLAGS_EXTRA=-DMODULE_EXAMPLE_ENABLED=1 and also added the definition to mpconfigport.mk, but it wasn't until I added it to mpconfigport.h that things worked..
Your library gets me to thinking... it can do the color space conversion so, if you add DCT, it could be the basis of a jpeg/mpeg codec...
For myself, I'm just getting to grips with my first C extension to MicroPython and it's been frustrating having to work through errors in the instructions at http://docs.micropython.org/en/latest/d ... dules.html ... for example, no micropython.mk in the source tree (now py/py.mk I assume. No wait, that's the interpreter source... How the hell do I add a user module...? Do I just have to drop the source in extmod? Ok, I'll try that... mutter mutter...).
UPDATE: getting there, but missing some definition. compiling ports/unix, some precompile string pasting macro not happening...
My make command is:
I also tried adding MODULE_EXAMPLE_ENABLED = 1 to mpconfigport.mk
SOLVED!
added #define MODULE_EXAMPLE_ENABLED (1) to mpconfigport.mk (as per instructions...).
from MicroPython external C modules — MicroPython 1.11 documentation: Note that the exact method depends on the port as they have different structures. If not done correctly it will compile but importing will fail to find the module.
If this is the case, perhaps the author of the port should include an example...
So, in summary ....it would be great to have a minimal example C user module in the master branch, that newbies could hack on and get up to speed. The real learning curve here is not how to write C code, but how to mesh new files into the make. That step could be trivial it the instructions were accurate or if there were a working example. Instead, well, it took 2 hours, and .... reading Makefiles is one of my pet hates.
When I know what I'm doing, I may add an example and update the docs. My final target is ESP32, so I'll add that too.
..fyi (not a criticism) your index.rst isn't rendering. Also, I'm not that familiar with IPython etc, and you've left a space for a link here: If you don’t know what ipython magics are, you can read more at … In any case, in usermods_02.rst.
On generating docs from within jupyter... really? couldn't I just cd into a directory and type some command, then open index.html? you say make html but there's no makefile. from where should make be called. sorry, not criticism, just curious.'
UPDATE: frrrrrrpp... decided to have a look at jupyter via the github/ipython-in-depth. ....can we just have the condensed version please? First I was told I could use pip. So I do. Nek minnit, I MUST use conda, which isn't a tool I'm familiar with or want. Then, a warning that conda will install a huge amount of data... (I do embedded for one simple reason. It's small...)
Sorry about all these complaints. I really appreciate your work and it's great, but the buy in to read about it is a bit too much... Here's my perspective: programming is explaining to humans what we want the machine to do. If that weren't the case, we'd all be writing in machine code, or solder. On that basis, the most important thing to do is to explain our programming tools to new users. Jupyter is a magnificent tool for that, but not if nobody is bothered to install it.
Your intro to adding usermods is better than anything else I've found. I'll leave my comments below as is, but mostly now redundant. One thing tho, I added CFLAGS_EXTRA=-DMODULE_EXAMPLE_ENABLED=1 and also added the definition to mpconfigport.mk, but it wasn't until I added it to mpconfigport.h that things worked..
Your library gets me to thinking... it can do the color space conversion so, if you add DCT, it could be the basis of a jpeg/mpeg codec...
For myself, I'm just getting to grips with my first C extension to MicroPython and it's been frustrating having to work through errors in the instructions at http://docs.micropython.org/en/latest/d ... dules.html ... for example, no micropython.mk in the source tree (now py/py.mk I assume. No wait, that's the interpreter source... How the hell do I add a user module...? Do I just have to drop the source in extmod? Ok, I'll try that... mutter mutter...).
UPDATE: getting there, but missing some definition. compiling ports/unix, some precompile string pasting macro not happening...
Code: Select all
In file included from ../../usercmods/example/example.c:2:0:
../../usercmods/example/example.c:24:50: error: ‘MP_QSTR_example’ undeclared here (not in a function); did you mean ‘MP_QSTR_enable’?
{ MP_ROM_QSTR(MP_QSTR___name__), MP_ROM_QSTR(MP_QSTR_example) },
.
.
.
make: *** [build/example/example.o] Error 1
Code: Select all
make USER_C_MODULES=../../usercmods CFLAGS_EXTRA=-DMODULE_EXAMPLE_ENABLED=1 V=1 all
SOLVED!
added #define MODULE_EXAMPLE_ENABLED (1) to mpconfigport.mk (as per instructions...).
from MicroPython external C modules — MicroPython 1.11 documentation: Note that the exact method depends on the port as they have different structures. If not done correctly it will compile but importing will fail to find the module.
If this is the case, perhaps the author of the port should include an example...
So, in summary ....it would be great to have a minimal example C user module in the master branch, that newbies could hack on and get up to speed. The real learning curve here is not how to write C code, but how to mesh new files into the make. That step could be trivial it the instructions were accurate or if there were a working example. Instead, well, it took 2 hours, and .... reading Makefiles is one of my pet hates.
When I know what I'm doing, I may add an example and update the docs. My final target is ESP32, so I'll add that too.
Last edited by bitrat on Sun Sep 01, 2019 9:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
Re: C module programming reference
+1.So, in summary ....it would be great to have a minimal example C user module in the master branch, that newbies could hack on and get up to speed. The real learning curve here is not how to write C code, but how to mesh new files into the make. That step could be trivial it the instructions were accurate or if there were a working example.
Re: C module programming reference
There is the MicroPython external C modules documentation...that's about as minimal as you can get.
And yes, v923z, this looks great! Thanks for your efforts, it's one of the lesser-known aspects of MicroPython development.
And yes, v923z, this looks great! Thanks for your efforts, it's one of the lesser-known aspects of MicroPython development.
Re: C module programming reference
Indeed. Thanks for pointing that out, I will update it.bitrat wrote: ↑Sun Sep 01, 2019 2:44 amWow, this looks really great, thanks!!! I'm working through your examples in full!
..fyi (not a criticism) your index.rst isn't rendering. Also, I'm not that familiar with IPython etc, and you've left a space for a link here: If you don’t know what ipython magics are, you can read more at … In any case, in usermods_02.rst.
One thing that I didn't elaborate on was setting up sphinx. The reason for that is that I didn't want to include all the sphinx-generated files in the git commit. But you are absolutely right, I should've explained what is going on. I stand corrected.
As for jupyter, I mentioned why I used that: on the one hand, I had to write the documentation, on the other, I had to compile the code (which was part of the documentation, because I that is what I was discussing), then I had to test the code on the unix port, and sometimes I even had to test python code in CPython. I believe, jupyter is the only reasonable way of achieving all this. I understand that you can always open python, and micropython on the command line, and you can also run make for the documentation on the command line, but I felt that that was driving me crazy.
I think, the simplest, one-click way of installing ipython is anaconda: https://www.anaconda.com/distribution/ . I have never had difficulties with it, and I don't use any extra packages.bitrat wrote: ↑Sun Sep 01, 2019 2:44 amUPDATE: frrrrrrpp... decided to have a look at jupyter via the github/ipython-in-depth. ....can we just have the condensed version please? First I was told I could use pip. So I do. Nek minnit, I MUST use conda, which isn't a tool I'm familiar with or want. Then, a warning that conda will install a huge amount of data... (I do embedded for one simple reason. It's small...)
The thing is, you don't need to install anything. You can clone the repository, and you simply run make. You don't need jupyter. I generated the code and the documentation in jupyter, but you need only the c, and make files, which are included in the underbitrat wrote: ↑Sun Sep 01, 2019 2:44 amSorry about all these complaints. I really appreciate your work and it's great, but the buy in to read about it is a bit too much... Here's my perspective: programming is explaining to humans what we want the machine to do. If that weren't the case, we'd all be writing in machine code, or solder. On that basis, the most important thing to do is to explain our programming tools to new users. Jupyter is a magnificent tool for that, but not if nobody is bothered to install it.
https://github.com/v923z/micropython-us ... r/snippets
I will look into that, thanks!bitrat wrote: ↑Sun Sep 01, 2019 2:44 amYour intro to adding usermods is better than anything else I've found. I'll leave my comments below as is, but mostly now redundant. One thing tho, I added CFLAGS_EXTRA=-DMODULE_EXAMPLE_ENABLED=1 and also added the definition to mpconfigport.mk, but it wasn't until I added it to mpconfigport.h that things worked..
I don't quite know what exactly it should do, but I am more than happy to include it, if you either explain it, or even better, present an implementation.
As I said earlier, just clone the repository, add thebitrat wrote: ↑Sun Sep 01, 2019 2:44 amSo, in summary ....it would be great to have a minimal example C user module in the master branch, that newbies could hack on and get up to speed. The real learning curve here is not how to write C code, but how to mesh new files into the make. That step could be trivial it the instructions were accurate or if there were a working example. Instead, well, it took 2 hours, and .... reading Makefiles is one of my pet hates.
Code: Select all
#define MODULE_SIMPLEFUNCTION_ENABLED (1)
#define MODULE_SIMPLECLASS_ENABLED (1)
#define MODULE_SPECIALCLASS_ENABLED (1)
#define MODULE_KEYWORDFUNCTION_ENABLED (1)
#define MODULE_CONSUMEITERABLE_ENABLED (1)
#define MODULE_VECTOR_ENABLED (1)
#define MODULE_RETURNITERABLE_ENABLED (1)
#define MODULE_PROFILING_ENABLED (1)
#define MODULE_MAKEITERABLE_ENABLED (1)
#define MODULE_SUBSCRIPTITERABLE_ENABLED (1)
#define MODULE_SLICEITERABLE_ENABLED (1)
#define MODULE_VARARG_ENABLED (1)
I hope this helps, and many thanks for the feedback!
Cheers,
Zoltán
Last edited by v923z on Sun Sep 01, 2019 5:37 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Re: C module programming reference
As @mattyt pointed out, the minimal example is under https://docs.micropython.org/en/latest/ ... dules.html. I should also mention https://micropython-dev-docs.readthedocs.io/en/latest/ , which I found useful.uCTRL wrote: ↑Sun Sep 01, 2019 9:09 am+1.So, in summary ....it would be great to have a minimal example C user module in the master branch, that newbies could hack on and get up to speed. The real learning curve here is not how to write C code, but how to mesh new files into the make. That step could be trivial it the instructions were accurate or if there were a working example.
Best,
Zoltán
Re: C module programming reference
Thanks all, and I apologise for my griping. In my defense, I thought a record of my struggles from a newbie's pov might be useful.
============ Anaconda diversion..
Zoltán, I'll install Anaconda, although your examples are so excellent and self explanatory, I'll probably just build them (...and rtfm later, lol).
UPDATE:
...last time I tried one of these notebooks (I believe it was SageMath) I downloaded a VM. It was brilliant! Installed Node-RED the same way. also brilliant. I expect there's something now with containers like Docker, but probably only on Linux. For the record, I use virtualenv for everything, but was blindsided by Anaconda informing me half way thru the install that it would replace my python installation... I don't think this is acceptable. Maybe if I reboot, but not keen, given the number of terminals I have open.
I think things might have been easier on Linux. (I'm using WSL on Windows 10 for this... Maybe I'll try it from scratch on my own machine, as I'd like to see Anaconda working, as it looks like fun )
... was expecting Navigator but have Anaconda Prompt (miniconda3) so what now? Is that it?
============ end of diversion
As I said earlier, I was confused by the instructions for adding external modules to make in MicroPython external C modules where they say:
I think a cookbook approach would be good here (ie: step 1, step 2, step 3), aligned with a working example in the source tree, perhaps just for the unix port. Maybe it should also be in tests, so it's maintained.
The docs at Welcome to MicroPython Development Documentation are also really useful. Perhaps a link could be added to the MicroPython external C modules page?
Finally, and this is probably worthy of a separate post ...and maybe not entirely a MicroPython question at all:
In the development docs, at Adding a Module, there are some comments on memory layout:
UPDATE: It's ok, I'm figuring out how to read the map file One thing I've discovered is that while global data appears in the map file (application.map, under COMMON), static data (char[N]) doesn't. Does that data get space allocated when the module is imported? Where? I've found it's declaration duplicated in the file ports/esp32/build-GENERIC/genhdr/qstr.i.last Does that mean it's being interned as a qstr? Why would that be, when it's writable? (disclaimer: it's a while since I've needed to worry about available RAM.. also, I have yet to read up on QSTRs..)
Also, the differences between the two sets of instructions (Adding a Module and adding a MicroPython external C module) raises the question: what is the difference? Are these effectively the same or fundamentally different? Does 'external module' mean a dynamic 'import' and is the other module statically linked to the interpreter?
Thanks everybody. I hope this isn't hijacking your op, Zoltán. It does seem mostly relevant, but I can start another thread if you'd prefer.
Cheers,
Bitrat
============ Anaconda diversion..
Zoltán, I'll install Anaconda, although your examples are so excellent and self explanatory, I'll probably just build them (...and rtfm later, lol).
UPDATE:
... translation: "have you tried restarting windows?" A) replace my python installation. really? B) shame it didn't workCannot see Anaconda menu shortcuts after installation on Windows
After installing on Windows, in the Windows Start menu I cannot see Anaconda prompt, Anaconda Cloud and Navigator shortcuts.
Cause
This may be caused by the way Windows updates the Start menu, or by having multiple versions of Python installed, where they are interfering with one another. Existing Python installations, installations of Python modules in global locations, or libraries that have the same names as Anaconda libraries can all prevent Anaconda from working properly.
Solution
If start menu shortcuts are missing, Microsoft recommends rebooting your computer or restarting Windows Explorer.
If that doesn’t work, clear $PYTHONPATH and re-install Anaconda. Other potential solutions are covered in the “Conflicts with system state” section of this blog post.
...last time I tried one of these notebooks (I believe it was SageMath) I downloaded a VM. It was brilliant! Installed Node-RED the same way. also brilliant. I expect there's something now with containers like Docker, but probably only on Linux. For the record, I use virtualenv for everything, but was blindsided by Anaconda informing me half way thru the install that it would replace my python installation... I don't think this is acceptable. Maybe if I reboot, but not keen, given the number of terminals I have open.
I think things might have been easier on Linux. (I'm using WSL on Windows 10 for this... Maybe I'll try it from scratch on my own machine, as I'd like to see Anaconda working, as it looks like fun )
... was expecting Navigator but have Anaconda Prompt (miniconda3) so what now? Is that it?
============ end of diversion
As I said earlier, I was confused by the instructions for adding external modules to make in MicroPython external C modules where they say:
I expected to find micropython.mk in the repo somewhere. I've now figured all this out and it makes more sense.micropython.mk contains the Makefile fragment for this module.
I think a cookbook approach would be good here (ie: step 1, step 2, step 3), aligned with a working example in the source tree, perhaps just for the unix port. Maybe it should also be in tests, so it's maintained.
The docs at Welcome to MicroPython Development Documentation are also really useful. Perhaps a link could be added to the MicroPython external C modules page?
Finally, and this is probably worthy of a separate post ...and maybe not entirely a MicroPython question at all:
In the development docs, at Adding a Module, there are some comments on memory layout:
This seems quite important, as I don't want my text in my ram, but there is very little detail, and nothing about esp32, which is my target. The ports/esp32 directory only seems to contain .ld files autogenerated by the espressif esp-idf. Can anybody suggest some introductory docs relating to all this?The second file you will need to add to is esp8266.ld, which is the map of memory used by the compiler. You have to add it to the list of files to be put in the .irom0.text section, so that your code goes into the instruction read-only memory (iROM). If you fail to do that, the compiler will try to put it in the instruction random-access memory (iRAM),
UPDATE: It's ok, I'm figuring out how to read the map file One thing I've discovered is that while global data appears in the map file (application.map, under COMMON), static data (char[N]) doesn't. Does that data get space allocated when the module is imported? Where? I've found it's declaration duplicated in the file ports/esp32/build-GENERIC/genhdr/qstr.i.last Does that mean it's being interned as a qstr? Why would that be, when it's writable? (disclaimer: it's a while since I've needed to worry about available RAM.. also, I have yet to read up on QSTRs..)
Also, the differences between the two sets of instructions (Adding a Module and adding a MicroPython external C module) raises the question: what is the difference? Are these effectively the same or fundamentally different? Does 'external module' mean a dynamic 'import' and is the other module statically linked to the interpreter?
Thanks everybody. I hope this isn't hijacking your op, Zoltán. It does seem mostly relevant, but I can start another thread if you'd prefer.
Cheers,
Bitrat
Re: C module programming reference
I forgot to mention yesterday that in my reference, each module is a minimal C example that you can start to hack right away. I stressed this point also in the introduction, and this is something I find very important: each example is stripped to the bare minimum. I am also annoyed, when people try to explain something with a piece of code that contains five totally unrelated concepts.uCTRL wrote: ↑Sun Sep 01, 2019 9:09 am+1.So, in summary ....it would be great to have a minimal example C user module in the master branch, that newbies could hack on and get up to speed. The real learning curve here is not how to write C code, but how to mesh new files into the make. That step could be trivial it the instructions were accurate or if there were a working example.
I hope this clarifies the issue,
Zoltán
Re: C module programming reference
It is OK, but you might get more relevant responses, if you open a new thread with a more descriptive titlebitrat wrote: ↑Sun Sep 01, 2019 8:05 pm
Finally, and this is probably worthy of a separate post ...and maybe not entirely a MicroPython question at all:
In the development docs, at Adding a Module, there are some comments on memory layout:This seems quite important, as I don't want my text in my ram, but there is very little detail, and nothing about esp32, which is my target. The ports/esp32 directory only seems to contain .ld files autogenerated by the espressif esp-idf. Can anybody suggest some introductory docs relating to all this?The second file you will need to add to is esp8266.ld, which is the map of memory used by the compiler. You have to add it to the list of files to be put in the .irom0.text section, so that your code goes into the instruction read-only memory (iROM). If you fail to do that, the compiler will try to put it in the instruction random-access memory (iRAM),
UPDATE: It's ok, I'm figuring out how to read the map file One thing I've discovered is that while global data appears in the map file (application.map, under COMMON), static data (char[N]) doesn't. Does that data get space allocated when the module is imported? Where? I've found it's declaration duplicated in the file ports/esp32/build-GENERIC/genhdr/qstr.i.last Does that mean it's being interned as a qstr? Why would that be, when it's writable? (disclaimer: it's a while since I've needed to worry about available RAM.. also, I have yet to read up on QSTRs..)
Also, the differences between the two sets of instructions (Adding a Module and adding a MicroPython external C module) raises the question: what is the difference? Are these effectively the same or fundamentally different? Does 'external module' mean a dynamic 'import' and is the other module statically linked to the interpreter?
Thanks everybody. I hope this isn't hijacking your op, Zoltán. It does seem mostly relevant, but I can start another thread if you'd prefer.
Cheers,
Bitrat
Cheers,
Zoltán
Re: C module programming reference
Hi all,
I have tried to fix the issues that Bitrat pointed out in his first post. You can find the new version of the docs under https://micropython-usermod.readthedocs.io/en/latest/, or https://github.com/v923z/micropython-usermod/.
All code segments are left unchanged.
Zoltán
I have tried to fix the issues that Bitrat pointed out in his first post. You can find the new version of the docs under https://micropython-usermod.readthedocs.io/en/latest/, or https://github.com/v923z/micropython-usermod/.
All code segments are left unchanged.
Zoltán