Introduction

You have encountered a problem while using a compiler released by TI. This article recommends steps to take before contacting TI about your problem.

Read the Manual

Manuals for TI Compilers

Each CPU family has a set of two manuals. The Compiler User's Guide describes the compiler and associated runtime libraries. The Assembly Language Tools User's Guide describes the assembler, linker, hex conversion utility, and other associated utilities. All of these manuals are available on the TI code generation tools page.

Manuals for GCC Compilers Released by TI

  • MSP430 GCC User's Guide
  • The ARM GCC compiler manuals are part of the compiler installation. If you have Code Composer Studio (CCS) installed, then these manuals are in a directory location similar to:
C:\ti\ccs1011\ccs\tools\compiler\gcc-arm-none-eabi-7-2017-q4-major-win32\share\doc\gcc-arm-none-eabi\pdf

Application Notes and How-to Articles

Check the Code Composer Studio Documentation Overview to see if one of the notes and articles addresses your problem.

Specific to TI Compilers

The following two recommendations are relevant to TI compilers, and not GCC compilers.

Check the README

The compiler installation includes a file named README.html (newer releases) or README.txt (older releases). It contains information about the changes to the compiler introduced in that release.

Understanding Diagnostics

If a diagnostic is confusing, consider searching the internet with the text of the diagnostic.

It may help to add the option --verbose_diagnostics. This causes the compiler to echo the problem source line, with a marker on the point where the problem starts. If you build in CCS, look for the verbose diagnostic in the Console view, and not the Problems view.

Search the Forum

Use the search box featured on the E2E forum home page

Questions about the Language or Library

TI does not document the C or C++ language, or the related libraries. These topics are covered in many books, web sites, videos, etc. which are widely available.

Many common questions are answered on these web sites:

Contacting TI

Post about your problem on the E2E forum. For details on preparing a test case, please see the article How to Submit a Compiler Test Case.