PIP-OS V7.1.0.8

Work In Progress

Personal Information Processor Operating System
RobCo Industries - "Personal Information at Your Fingertips"

This is the foundational operating system for all Pip-Boy devices, responsible for hardware initialization, ROM loading, and providing core services to the Deitrix ROM or holotape applications.

Features

Core System

• Matrix-style boot display - Authentic boot sequence with cascading characters
• ROM loading system - Automatic detection and chainloading of Deitrix ROM
• Holotape support - Hot-swappable game/application cartridges
• System call interface - Clean API for ROM/holotape programs
• Power management - Battery monitoring and power-saving modes

Version Information

• Version: PIP-OS V7.1.0.8
• Copyright: 2075 RobCo Ind.
• Loader: V1.1
• EXEC: 41.10
• Memory: 64K RAM system, 38911 bytes free

Boot Sequence

Power On → Matrix Display → Hardware Check → Memory Init → 
ROM/Holotape Detection → Load Deitrix/Holotape → Transfer Control

Architecture

Memory Layout

0x00000000 - 0x00000FFF : Exception Vectors (4KB)
0x00001000 - 0x00007FFF : PIP-OS Kernel (28KB)
0x00008000 - 0x0000FFFF : System Services (32KB)
0x00010000 - 0x0001FFFF : ROM Space (Deitrix) (64KB)
0x00020000 - 0x0002FFFF : Application Space (64KB)
0x00030000 - 0x0003FFFF : Graphics Buffer (64KB)
0x00040000 - [RAM_END]  : User Space

Subsystems

• Boot Display - Matrix-style boot animation and messages
• ROM Loader - ROM detection, verification, and chainloading
• System Calls - Display, input, audio, sensor, and storage APIs
• Power Management - Battery monitoring and power modes
• Audio System - Tone generation and boot sound effects

ROM Integration

Deitrix ROM

The official ROM developed by RobCo Industries is Deitrix, the primary operating environment for Pip-Boy devices. PIP-OS serves as the bootloader and service layer for Deitrix.

Repository: https://github.com/RobCo-Industries/Deitrix

ROM Format

ROM Header Structure:
- Magic: "ROM1" (4 bytes)
- Name: "DEITRIX" (16 bytes)
- Version: "303" (8 bytes)
- Load Address: 0x00010000
- Entry Point: 0x00010100
- Size: Up to 64KB
- Checksum: CRC32

Holotape System

Holotape Format

Holotape Header Structure:
- Magic: "ROBCO78" (8 bytes)
- Title: Game/Program name (64 bytes)
- Type: 0=Game, 1=Utility, 2=Data
- Version: Program version
- Load Address: Memory location
- Entry Point: Start address
- Size: Program size
- Icon: 32x32 monochrome image
- Payload: Actual program data

System Call API

PIP-OS provides a comprehensive API for ROM and holotape applications:

Display Operations

• draw_line() - Bresenham line drawing
• draw_point() - Point plotting
• draw_text() - Text rendering
• clear_screen() - Screen clearing

Input Operations

• read_buttons() - Button state reading
• read_dial() - Rotary encoder position

Audio Operations

• play_tone() - Tone generation
• play_sample() - Sample playback

Sensor Operations

• read_sensor() - Sensor value reading
• sensor_available() - Sensor detection

System Operations

• get_time() - RTC time reading
• get_battery() - Battery level
• sleep() - Power-saving mode

Storage Operations

• read_save() - Save data reading
• write_save() - Save data writing

Supported Hardware

The kernel is compatible with the following Broadcom SoCs:

Tier 1: BCM2835 (Raspberry Pi Zero, Pi 1)

• ARMv6 architecture
• Single-core ARM1176JZF-S
• Basic Pip-Boy configuration

Tier 2: BCM2836 (Raspberry Pi 2)

• ARMv7-A architecture
• Quad-core Cortex-A7
• Standard Pip-Boy configuration

Tier 3: BCM2837 (Raspberry Pi 3)

• ARMv8-A architecture (32-bit mode)
• Quad-core Cortex-A53
• Deluxe Pip-Boy configuration

Future Support

• BCM2711 (Raspberry Pi 4) - Planned

Building from Sources

Requirements

• ARM bare-metal toolchain: gcc-arm-none-eabi
• GNU Make
• Optional: QEMU for testing (qemu-system-arm)

Build Instructions

cd build

# Build for Raspberry Pi 2 (BCM2836)
export BCM=2836
make clean
make

# Build for Raspberry Pi 3 (BCM2837, requires aarch64 toolchain)
export BCM=2837
make clean
make

# Run in QEMU (for testing)
make run

Build Configurations

The Makefile supports different build targets:

• BCM=2835 - Raspberry Pi Zero/1 (ARMv6)
• BCM=2836 - Raspberry Pi 2 (ARMv7-A)
• BCM=2837 - Raspberry Pi 3 (ARMv8-A in 32-bit mode)

Output Files

• kernel7.img - Bootable kernel image (32-bit ARM)
• kernel8.img - Bootable kernel image (64-bit ARM, if applicable)
• kernel7.elf - ELF binary with debug symbols

Boot Messages

Authentic PIP-OS boot sequence:

*************** PIP-OS(R) V7.1.0.8 ***************
COPYRIGHT 2075 ROBCO IND.
**************************************************

Initializing subsystems...
  [OK] Power management
  [OK] Audio system
  [OK] System call interface

Starting boot sequence...

LOADER V1.1
EXEC VERSION 41.10
64K RAM SYSTEM
38911 BYTES FREE
NO HOLOTAPE FOUND
LOAD ROM(1): DEITRIX 303

**************************************************
PIP-OS READY
Battery: 75%
**************************************************

Related Projects

RETROS-BIOS

BIOS for terminals, main bootloader
Repository: https://github.com/RobCo-Industries/RETROS-BIOS

MFBootAgent

Second stage bootloader for RETROS-BIOS
Repository: https://github.com/RobCo-Industries/MFBootAgent

UOS

Terminal OS, loaded after MFBootAgent
Repository: https://github.com/RobCo-Industries/UOS

Deitrix

Official ROM and user environment for Pip-Boy devices
Repository: https://github.com/RobCo-Industries/Deitrix

Performance

Boot Performance

• Cold Boot: < 5 seconds to Deitrix
• Matrix Display: 3-5 seconds duration
• ROM Loading: < 1 second
• Holotape Detection: < 500ms

Runtime Performance

• Display Update: 30 FPS minimum
• Input Latency: < 50ms
• Audio Latency: < 20ms
• Sensor Reading: 10Hz minimum

Memory Usage

• Kernel: < 28KB
• Services: < 32KB
• Free for ROM: > 38KB

Development

System Architecture

PIP-OS follows a layered architecture:

1. Boot Loader Layer - Hardware initialization and boot display
2. Kernel Layer - Memory management, scheduling, device management
3. Service Layer - Display, input, audio, sensor services
4. User Space - ROM/holotape execution environment

Adding Custom ROMs

ROMs must implement the ROM header format and use the PIP-OS system call interface. See the Deitrix repository for examples.

Creating Holotapes

Holotapes are self-contained applications that run in a sandboxed environment. They must include a valid holotape header and use only the approved system call API.

References

• Peripheral manual for BCM2835 ARM chip
  BCM2835 ARM Peripherals

• Circle - A C++ bare metal environment for Raspberry Pi
  https://github.com/rsta2/circle

• Raspberry Pi 3 tutorial
  https://github.com/bztsrc/raspi3-tutorial

• OSDev's Raspberry Pi Bare Bones
  https://wiki.osdev.org/Raspberry_Pi_Bare_Bones

• Learning OS development using Linux kernel and Raspberry Pi
  https://github.com/s-matyukevich/raspberry-pi-os

License

Copyright 2075 RobCo Industries
"Personal Information at Your Fingertips"

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Easter Eggs

• Konami Code: Special boot animation (↑↑↓↓←→←→BA)
• October 23: Special message on the Great War anniversary
• Gary Mode: All text becomes "Gary" (for Vault 108 residents)

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War. War never changes.