I've used the 188 series part also, it should be a step up from the PIC. Intel
also makes and embedded 386 chip. Its the 386EX, its much like the 188, onchip
DMA, Chip Select Unit (ie. automatic address decoding), 2 onchip RS232
channels, 16 bit data bus, 64Meg address space, onchip watchdog times, onchip
interrupt control unit. Its a highly integrated device and can be DOS
compatible.