Logs

Below the heavy stuff (I try to explain, sorry for english, but with google you can find more):

rk3188 has 4 or more UARTs, one of these are used by bootloader and by the kernel as console for output messages. Often manufacturers leave two contacts named TX and RX with TTL level, as “console”. If you connect previous TX pin to RX of “USB To RS232 TTL Converter Module” than with a terminal emulator (I use cutecom on /dev/ttyUSB0 at 115200 8N1) you can see logs of rk3188 running software.

 
flash memory on board (meaning rockchip boards) can be read and written by USB OTG port with utility “rkflashtool”. Before you can use rkflashtool, you must put devices in “rockchip flash mode”. To do so on tablets, you must plug USB cable whit volume-up key down (I don't know if is always true). With rkflashtool you can do everything, read old firmware, write new one. I always recovered my devices after erroneous writing. Someone tells that rk3188 can be always unbrick.

Furthermore flash memory on board is conventionally split (every device changes a little):
0x00002000@0x00002000(misc),0x00004000@0x00004000(kernel),0x00008000@0x00008000(boot),0x00010000@0x00010000(recovery),0x00020000@0x00020000(backup),0x00040000@0x00040000(cache),0x00002000@0x00080000(kpanic),0x0012C000@0x00082000(system),-@0x001AE000(userdata)
I can't write a lot (too difficult), for new linux kernel I use recovery from 0x10000 to 0x20000.

Below commands read write flash memory:

Backup recovery: rkflashtool r 0x000010000 0x00010000 > recovery_original.img
Write new recovery: rkflashtool w 0x000010000 0x00010000 < recovery_new.img
(note: rkflashtool use start length instead of start end)

Build .img depends on what we are putting inside:
kernel_zImage-dtb with initrd →
mkbootimg --kernel zImage-dtb --ramdisk initrd.gz --base 60400000 --pagesize 16384 --ramdiskaddr 62000000 -o recovery_new.img

only kernel →
rk-tools/rkkernel -pack zImage-dtb recovery_new.img

(note: mkbootimg as rkflashtool is rockchip specific tool on internet everywhere)

Build zImage-dtb is explained here: http://androtab.info/radxa_rock/linux310/

However I used following commands (toolchain is in many rockchip kernels release):
TOOLCHAIN=~/Rockchip-GPL-Kernel/omegamoon/toolchain/linaro/bin/arm-linux-gnueabihf-
ARCH=arm CROSS_COMPILE=$TOOLCHAIN make rockchip_defconfig
ARCH=arm CROSS_COMPILE=$TOOLCHAIN make menuconfig
ARCH=arm CROSS_COMPILE=$TOOLCHAIN make -j 2
ARCH=arm CROSS_COMPILE=$TOOLCHAIN make rk3188-lr097.dtb

cat arch/arm/boot/zImage arch/arm/boot/dts/rk3188-lr097.dtb > zImage-dtb

Others links:
http://linux-rockchip.info/mw/index.php?title=RK3188
http://talk.radxa.com/topic/88/linux-3-10-kernel-from-rockchip-for-rk3188-and-rk3288#506

I'm thinking to sell my tablet. All the Chinese manufacturers violate GPL about kernel source.

If Atom (see Z3740) became battery competitive against arm platform and Intel continue full support to linux I'll buy Intel tablet!