Check the serial port voltages. I have seen some flaky levels on RS232 for
laptops. Sometimes it only works if you have the AC power connected. Some
laptop designers cheat on the serial port ands use a 0 - 5 volt swing
instead of the -12 - +12 swing and sometimes the other end has problems. If
you can test the programmer on a desktop computer.
As an alternative you may have a bum programmer but a test on another
computer could help confirm what is happening.


At 01:12 PM 6/20/98 -0300, you wrote:
>I have received my picstart plus programmer and after 4 hours of swearing I
>am ready to send it all back.  The programmer isn't recognized no matter
>what I seem to do - here's the sequence of events;
>
>- I have Win95 on a NEC Versa 550 laptop - it has a com1 serial port on
the back
>- I had MPLAB 3.4 downloaded from the mChip web site and have been using that
>- When the picstart arrived I tried it with the MPLAB3.4 and it would not
>  recognize the programmer on com1 when I went into the "Options-Programmer
>Configuration - com port" selection in MPLAB
>- Figuring it was that the version of MPLAB was different than that supplied
>  with the programmer, I installed the 3.x MPlab from the four 3 1/2 disks.
>- There was no "install.exe" on the disks like the documentatino said - just
>  some cryptic icon - anyway, I clicked on that and the installation seemed
>  to work fine
>- Re-tried the options-programmer config-com port thing and still the same
>  answer - does not recognize the programmer
>- Manually set up the com port for 19200,8,n,1 and H/W flow control like the
>  documentation said (same documentation that pointed me to the non-existent
>  .exe install file earlier) - still same problem.
>- Shut off the fifo stuff for the com port in windows as mentioned in the
docs
>  still same problem
>- lookl for the comm.drv in the system.ini file - it's the way it should be
>- yank the pcmcia card out - which should look like com2 anyway - still same
>  problem
>- multiple resetting of the picstart plus programmer by disconecting and
>  re-connecting the 2.5mm power plug - still same problem.
>- re-boot the computer, reset the programmer - same problem
>
>What the hell is going on? Is there something not right with this thing and
>Win95?
>
>george c
>
>
Larry G. Nelson Sr.
mailto:L.Nelson@ieee.org
http://www.ultranet.com/~nr