I may be biased, but I would suggest getting started with a PIC
programmer and a PIC16C84.  My company offers a package called the
PIC-n-GO that includes our PIC-1 programmer and a PIC16C84 w/data
sheet.  It is available for only $45 in kit form or $65
assembled/tested.

You can have a look at our web page at http://www.itutech.com for
other PIC-related products.

Good Luck!

Chris

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Chris B. Sakkas (chris@itutech.com)  http://www.itutech.com
ITU Technologies (info@itutech.com)    ftp://itutech.com
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