Error compiling...wiring.c:324, on Win2K, AMD processor

Development Tools IDE 1.x
1

I've got the Arduino IDE v. 1.0.5 installed on Windows 2000 on a clunker PC in my workshop, near the electronics bench: AMD K-6-II, 500 mhz, 380 mb of RAM. Followed the instructions in the wiki here to replace the usbser.sys driver with same file from an XP machine, and the Uno board is seen fine by Windows and the IDE on a COM port.

The problem is that NO sketches will compile, even the most basic; I get:
"Error compiling. C:\...\arduino\wiring.c: In function 'delay'

[same path]...\wiring.c:324: internal compiler error: Illegal instruction"

This happens whether the sketch has a 'delay' in it or not. The identical problem on Win XP was posted in:
http://forum.arduino.cc/index.php?PHPSESSID=51qq2p4nc3uvu197cnai1dkjg7&topic=119102.0

and he never got an answer. I suspect there's an incompatibility with JRE 6 and the AMD processor, because I've loaded v. 1.0.5 of the IDE on another Win2K PC with Intel Pentium 3 processor and it works fine (slowly, yes).

I just know far too little about the workings of JRE to consider trying to replace those binaries with older ones -- even supposing the Arduino current version would work with an older JRE. Maybe there's an older IDE version using an older JRE that I could try?

I searched hard and could find no documentation anywhere as to the system requirements for various versions of Arduino IDE. Are detailed hardware and software (OS) requirements listed anywhere?

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I think it has to do with the build settings used to build the avr cross-compiler. If it uses the x686 instruction set (it probably does), you will get the error you mentioned on an AMD K6. You could try building the compilers yourself, using build settings that match your PC, but it's probably easier to get hold of an old PC with a proper CPU, like a Pentium 2/3/4 or AMD K7 (Athlon) - or even better than that. Also, RaspberryPi's can run Arduino, so that is another low cost alternative.

Pieter

3

I think it has to do with the build settings used to build the avr cross-compiler. If it uses the x686 instruction set..

thanks Pieter, I think you are on the right track. I've got a recent Debian (3.2.xx) installed on the same machine, and with that OS the Arduino IDE 1.0.5 will compile, upload, etc. -- does me little good however because the heavy load of Debian + Arduino makes it glacially, painfully slow. So I think solution is to get a faster/more RAM machine as you said.

Experiment that might interest some, trying to find lightweight OS to run Arduino on: with Bart PE (barebones XP) running from a CD on the same machine, the IDE actually opened and seemed to run briskly. Same compiling problem due to AMD K-6/JRE incompatibility, so I didn't get very far with the trial.