Sean Breheny wrote:

> At 10:59 PM 10/7/97 -0500, you wrote:
> >Ok, I am looking into the world of electronics and I really like
> doing
> >this sort of stuff.  Let me warn you...I'm only 16 and you're
> probably
> >thinking I should have some socializing to do or something,
> but...well you
> >get the point.
>

There's no reason why you can't do both. I'm 18 and have been in
electronics for abt 4 years. I Design and build all sorts of projects
and program during the week and during the day on weekends, but on Fri
and Sat nights and sometimes during the week, I hang out with my
friends.

> > Anyway, I have been looking at other
> >microcontolers, and I have been thinking about purchasing a pic
> >programmer.  If I do get one, what would you guys (and gals, gotta be
>
> >P.C.) recommend
> >that I get, I have been searching around web sites, and I found some
> good
> >stuff at ITU technologies, one of them being a "Warp 3" programmer
> that
> >claims to program everything (for around $130) and a less expensive
> one
> >that doesn't program
> >those exotic ones like the 14000 and what-not ($50).
>
> I like the advice given by the others on the list. I have a little $50
>
> programmer that will do most of the 16xxx series pics but since I have
>
> wanted to experiment with the 17xxx and 14xxx seriesl, as well as the
> 16c5xx so I wished that I had a more universal progammer. If you want
> to go
> the route of the cheap programmer, I would think that you ought to
> build
> one. You obviously have the necessary experience and I have a friend
> who
> built one for about $2 and it does most of the PICs($2 because he had
> some
> parts in his junk box, about $15 from scratch)
>

I think Sean Is talking about me here. Oh, and Sean I made an adapter
for it to program 17Cxx without using lots of wire and  a breadboard.
:-)  If you look around, there are alot of sites, well, a lew at least,
that have schematics for PIC programmers. Most are fairly simple, since
the pc does most the work, the programmer just applies + voltage and
programming voltake and is an interface since you obviously have the
connect the pic somehow the che pc, and you cant just pic some random
empty place on your motherboard.

> >called a pulse amplifier, I rigged up one of the school's pH probe
>

Do THEY know this??? :-)

Hey, just do whatever and HAVE FUN.

Louis Marquette