> Dale,
>
> While I haven't actually tried a BUSY bit read (I use a delay too), it
> seems
> rather simple. The way I see it is:
>
> RS=Low
> R/W=High
> E=Low -> High
> Read Bit-7
>
> No offense, but is that how you're doing it? If it is, and the LCD still
> goes
> schitzo, then I'll work on this as a weekend project (teenagers have more
> free-time than working adults <g>). If I figure it out, I'll be more than
> happy to post the code!
>
>
well, i'm not Dale, but:

yes, that's how I'm doing it. except E toggles low->high->low.
and with a 4-bit interface, you're supposed to do it twice.

That's the way it is supposed to work in theory. In
practice, you need to change the data lines from
input to output in order to read the data. And as
soon as you do, the LCD (at least mine, and
apparantly Dale's as well) goes south.

As stated previously, it works fine on an 8051,
where you don't have to change the pins from
input to output. The LCD easily overpowers
the weak pull-ups. But now i'm trying to get
it to work on a PIC.

Perhaps my LCD is half-dead/ESD impaired?

If you figure it out and post the code, that
would be greatly appreciated.