# Update on 'next' branch and 3.7 release

**URL:** <https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/update-on-next-branch-and-3-7-release/225339>\
**Category:** GNU Radio\
**Created:** [December 30, 2012, 9:29pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/update-on-next-branch-and-3-7-release/225339 "2012-12-30T21:29:57Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![aris](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/a/258eb7/32.png) [@aris](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/aris)\
**Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 9:29pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/update-on-next-branch-and-3-7-release/225339/1 "2012-12-30T21:29:57Z")

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tl;dr - This is an update on the status of development work on the GNU  
Radio repository ‘next’ branch that will eventually become the 3.7.0  
release, and a call for testers.

As a reminder, the new 3.7 API release is primarily a code  
reorganization  
and clean up, to accomplish two goals:

1. To remove the gnuradio-core top-level component that has accumulated  
hundreds of blocks, distribute those blocks into several new top-level  
components grouped by function, and create a lean, gnuradio-runtime  
component that has the least possible code and dependencies needed to  
perform the work of the GNU Radio scheduler and flowgraph management,  
and,

2. To rewrite GNU Radio blocks using pure virtual interface classes,  
following the “private implementation” pattern, clean up header file  
documentation, ensure consistency in directory location/layout among  
components, correct areas where coding guidelines have not been  
followed,  
and in general, try to make the GNU Radio source code tree more readable  
and understandable. A wiki page that describes the new code organization  
is  
here:

[http://gnuradio.org/redmine/projects/gnuradio/wiki/Coding\_guide\_impl](http://gnuradio.org/redmine/projects/gnuradio/wiki/Coding_guide_impl)

The overall method to accomplish 1) has been to create new top-level  
components, organized like 2), on the master branch (and released as  
part  
of 3.6.x), which duplicate the blocks in gnuradio-core, merge these up  
to  
the next branch, then remove the old-style blocks from gnuradio-core on  
the  
next branch. This allows users to start migrating their code to use the  
new blocks now. To this end, the following new top-level components  
have  
been created on master (some of these have been there for a while):

gr-blocks (non-signal processing blocks)  
gr-analog (blocks typically used for analog waveforms)  
gr-digital (blocks typically used for digital waveforms)  
gr-fft (blocks implementing Fast Fourier transforms)  
gr-filter (blocks implementing FIR, IIR, and related functions)  
gr-wavelet (blocks implementing wavelet transforms)

On the next branch, the blocks that have been reimplemented in the above  
new components have already been removed from gnuradio-core. In  
addition,  
two new (mostly empty) components have been created as placeholders for  
future, planned work:

gr-channels  
gr-fec

Though there are still blocks to migrate out of gnuradio-core, the bulk  
of  
this work is done. The main task remaining for 1) is the implementation  
of  
the new gnuradio-runtime, which is in progress.

So, we are calling for more testers to check out, compile, and do  
testing  
of the next branch. Normally, work done on the master branch gets a lot  
of  
exposure, as it is what we make our stable releases from, but there is  
less  
testing of the next branch. While the QA unit testing code passes, it  
is  
the Python and GRC examples which tend to show up issues that aren’t  
part  
of the unit testing suite.

This leaves the conversion of blocks for 2) above in the top-level  
components outside of gnuradio-core.

Already completed:

gr-fcd (blocks for interfacing with the FunCUBE dongle hardware)  
gr-video-sdl (blocks for interfacing with the libsdl video library)  
gr-trellis (blocks for trellis-coded demodulation)  
gr-utils (misc. utils for working with GNU Radio data files)

Not yet started:

gr-atsc (blocks for ATSC digital TV demodulation)  
gr-audio (blocks for receiving and generating audio)  
gr-comedi (blocks for interfacing with the libcomedi hardware library)  
gr-noaa (blocks for demodulating NOAA satellite protocols)  
gr-pager (blocks for demodulating FLEX pager protocols)  
gr-qtgui (blocks for creating QT-based display objects)  
gr-shd (blocks for interfacing with Symplex Communications SHD devices)  
gr-uhd (blocks for interfacing with Ettus R. USRP devices)  
gr-vocoder (blocks implementing a variety of voice codecs)  
gr-wxgui (blocks for creating wxPython-based display objects)

This is a relatively small number of blocks (compared to the hundreds  
already converted from gnuradio-core), but must be done on the next  
branch,  
as the changes must happen in-place and would break user’s existing code  
compiled against the master branch.

There are other new features that have been implemented on the next  
branch  
that will be part of the 3.7, including some of the work done at  
HackFest  
2012, which we’ll be documenting as part of the overall release notes  
for  
3.7.0.

Please, feel free to ask any questions and Tom or I will be happy to  
answer  
them.

Thank you,

Johnathan C.  
Corgan Labs

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![jconley](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/j/90ced4/32.png) [@jconley](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/jconley)\
**Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 10:33pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/update-on-next-branch-and-3-7-release/225339/2 "2012-12-30T22:33:37Z")

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On Sun, Dec 30, 2012 at 3:28 PM, Johnathan C.  
[removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid)wrote:

> This leaves the conversion of blocks for 2) above in the top-level  
> components outside of gnuradio-core.

If you are willing to help us with any of these components, please be  
vocal  
about it so we know what’s getting done and by whom so we don’t have any  
duplication of efforts here!

And many thanks in advance to those willing to help us on this!

> gr-audio (blocks for receiving and generating audio)  
> gr-comedi (blocks for interfacing with the libcomedi hardware library)  
> gr-noaa (blocks for demodulating NOAA satellite protocols)  
> gr-pager (blocks for demodulating FLEX pager protocols)  
> gr-qtgui (blocks for creating QT-based display objects)  
> gr-shd (blocks for interfacing with Symplex Communications SHD devices)  
> gr-uhd (blocks for interfacing with Ettus R. USRP devices)  
> gr-vocoder (blocks implementing a variety of voice codecs)  
> gr-wxgui (blocks for creating wxPython-based display objects)

Quick note here, gr-qtui has already been converted to the new 3.7  
structure.

> Johnathan C.  
> Corgan Labs

Tom