armcortex-m3gcclinuxstellaris
I've searched around quite a lot, but haven't found an easy(ish) way to load programs onto the Cortex M3 using Linux.
I have tried using the summon-arm-toolchain https://github.com/esden/summon-arm-toolchain/ but it was having problems downloading one of its dependencies.
Does anyone know of any other options?
Regarding the ARM Cortex-M3:
Linux requires an MMU (Memory Management Unit). The ARM Cortex-M3 does not have one. It is impossible to run the mainline Linux kernel on the ARM Cortex-M3.
However, there is a variant of the Linux kernel for MMUless processors called uCLinux.
ST's Application Note on uCLinux
However, as others have noted, Linux is unlikely to be practical on the M3. It won't run without external RAM. I believe that even the largest Cortex-M3 parts only have 1MB flash, so you'll likely need extra storage too.
At the risk of sounding like a broken record...
PSoC5 is your answer! (It's amazing how many times PSoC is the answer)
The PSoC5 MCU has an ARM Cortex M3 core, and a bunch of other brilliant features that practically no other MCU has. Unlike other MCUs, setting up the peripherals is as fun as eating ice cream, and you can even create your own in Verilog! The IDE is pretty good, and totally free.
The Development Kit is great, and full of features and comes with the programmer, which you can use for your future projects. It's not too expensive.
Best Answer
The
Ccompiler I use for my Cortex M3 is Soucery Codebench Lite Edition. There are some alternatives like YAGARTO. You need to write (or find) a linker script that fits your MCU.You also want the CMSIS package for your MCU. That contains all the register definitions.
For flashing and debugging I use OpenOCD, this allows to use GDB as frontend for both tasks. The EKS-LM3S1968 board is shipped with a JTAG-to-USB chip supported by OpenOCD.