CodeScape

Tony McGrath (Leading Software Engineer at Cross Products 1997-2001 & Senior Software Engineering Manager at Imagination Technologies 2001-2017)

• Cross Products:

" Cross Products was the name of SEGA of Japan's debug team located in Leeds. We were responsible for creating the hardware and software debug tools for SEGA's Mega Drive, Mega Drive 32, Saturn and Dreamcast games consoles.

The Tools...

• SNASM Debug 3: Assembler and simple debugger with a dedicated Mega Drive development console.
• Mirage: Time accurate Hard Disk based CD emulator used for Saturn games development.
• DASH: JTAG debug Probe.
• Codescape Debugger: I engineered software for Codescape Debugger, a fully featured GUI IDE for Saturn and Dreamcast (and for general Hitachi SH processor based development used heavily by Harman Becker, BMW, Bosch, Porsche etc.).

We worked extremely closely with Imagination Technologies on the Dreamcast, so when SEGA pulled out of the console market in March 2001, it was a very natural acquisition."

• Imagination Technologies:

IMG is one of the world’s most exciting technology companies. The breadth of technologies and markets it serves involves working with most of the biggest and best semiconductor, consumer electronics, multimedia and App content developers and industry partners in the world. IMG's technologies feature in many of the world’s most exciting products, from the latest smartphones (e.g. iPhone, GalaxyS), tablets (e.g iPad, GalaxyTab) and media players to the future wireless home, connected multimedia-rich cars and much more.

Imagination Technologies’ (IMG) Codescape team creates world class tools for its IP designs such as debuggers, compilers, simulators and utilities for Mips CPU, Meta CPU, MCP/UCC RPU and PowerVR GPU. I lead the team that is responsible for the debugging component of the Codescape tools, the main products being Codescape Debugger, Codescape for Eclipse and Codescape Console.

In 2009 I took the decision to rewrite the debugger (13 years / 1.5 million lines of code) to create a completely cross platform product running on Win32/64, Linux32/64, MacOS32/64 and to work with complex new chips containing multiple SoCs with multiple heterogeneous cores which in turn can have multiple hardware threads running different OSs / RTOSs. This accounts for the lack of hair in my photograph.

Codescape Debugger started life in 1996 (see below) as the debugger for SEGA and now a world class product. See https://www.mips.com/develop/tools/codescape-mips-sdk/codescape-debugger

For an example please see the promotional video I created: https://www.dropbox.com/s/eibuv46ictuh2k9/Codescape8.mp4?dl=0

The 6 stages of debugging...

1) Initial denial: “That can’t happen.” 2) Absolute denial: “That doesn’t happen on my machine.” 3) Initial acceptance: “That shouldn’t happen.” 4) Absolute acceptance: “Why does that happen.” 5) Realisation: “Oh, I See.” 6) Bewilderment: “How did that ever work.” ...--Asagoth (talk) 12:50, 8 September 2019 (EDT)

CodeScape 3

I'm not sure in which version the debugger was when it was used on Dreamcast development... but it looks that CodeScape 3 was the last version used by Sega... its basically the same tool with support for other Hitachi SH processors added over the time... I'm also not sure if these two datasheets are in Retro's Scope... One and Two ...--Asagoth (talk) 17:03, 9 September 2019 (EDT)

Mike O'Brien (Original team member of the design and development of CodeScape)

When Mr. Mike O'Brien (Leeds) stumbled on this... he left a comment... which was the following (sorry guys... I can't save a copy of that page):

"I noticed this in passing. I worked for SEGA development in the 90's. So it's come as a surprise that our security has lasted this long. You are still missing some key tools. One being CodeScape as it was one of the first multi-processor development platforms. This was written by Cross Products the development tools division of SEGA.

The Saturn development platforms were SCSI based communications onto a piggy backed main processor. The Key disks did allow you to run your code without security but on a one shot basis. You have to use the key disk every time. There was no code to make this mode survive a reboot. This only worked reliably on piggy back boards.

Imagination Technology still produce CodeScape. However, the all important black box (CartDev) we produced is now nowhere to be seen today. A working version is a must have. The head count of who new all the details of the processor interface is in single figures. At least you found the wobble. Haha!"...--Asagoth (talk) 19:49, 9 September 2019 (EDT)