README-PocketPC

MICO on PocketPC
----------------

MICO is known to run on Compaq's handheld iPAQ under Linux, thanks to
a full fledged GCC development environment for this platform. Getting
MICO run under Microsoft's PocketPC is a bit more of a challenge. This
README describes how to integrate MICO into your MFC based PocketPC
applications.

MICO has been tested with Microsoft's Embedded Visual-C++ which can be
freely obtained at:

http://www.microsoft.com/mobile/downloads/emvt30.asp


Here is a step-by-step procedure how to integrate MICO into your
PocketPC MFC application:

- define a new MFC based PocketPC project
- use the AppWizard to create a little null-application
- untar MICO to some directory. This directory will be referred to
  <mico-home> in the following
- add search paths for MICO include files. Inside the IDE,
  go to Tools/Options, then select tab "Directories". Add
  the following search paths for include files (note: order
  _is_ significant):  <mico-home>\include\pocketpc
                      <mico-home>\include
- add a #define: go to Project/Settings, then go to tab "C/C++".
  In the category list select "Preprocessor". Add the define
  _POCKET_PC in the entry field "Preprocessor definitions".
- deselect pre-compiled headers: in the same tab as before,
  select category "Precompiled headers", then click on
  "Not using precompiled headers"
- add the MICO-ORB files to your project: go to Project/Add to
  Project/Files and add the following files to your project:
      <mico-home>\orb\ir_ppc.cpp
      <mico-home>\orb\orb_ppc.cpp
      <mico-home>\orb\os-pps.cpp

That's it!

Please note that this only 'imports' the MICO-ORB into your project.
Obviously there is no IDL-Compiler running on the PocketPC device. The
code that MICO's IDL-Compiler produces is portable across all
supported platforms. This means that you can build the MICO package
under Linux, run the IDL-Compiler to generate the stub and skeleton
files and then add those generated files to your MFC project.

There are still plenty of things to do to make it nice:

- write some makefiles so that MICO can be build from command
  line.
- get rid of all the warnings (and actually taking a closer
  look at the severity of those warnings).
- look for places in the code marked with NOT_IMPLEMENTED
  and provide a PocketPC implementation
- enhance the build process to generate a DLL that several
  PocketPC applications can share.

Feel free to work on those TODOs. Please send feedback over the MICO
mailing list.