Further research has led to the following conclusions: 1. The PIC and LCD have similar power-up rise time requirements, so the h'3' three times method is NOT required under normal conditions. Simply sending h'2' and then, e.g., h'28' will work fine. 2. The 3x h'3' + h'2' + h'28' method has the following useful purpose: if the LCD gets 'lost' due to improper addressing or improper commands sent, then this software initialization sequence will reset the Hitachi controller. 3. All things considered, the more complex sequence is more robust, but generally unnecessary. ================================================================ Robert A. LaBudde, PhD, PAS, Dpl. ACAFS e-mail: ral@lcfltd.com Least Cost Formulations, Ltd. URL: http://lcfltd.com/ 824 Timberlake Drive Tel: 757-467-0954 Virginia Beach, VA 23464-3239 Fax: 757-467-2947 "Vere scire est per causae scire" ================================================================