Ashraf Farrag wrote:

> I hooked it up according to the datasheet, and ever since the first time it
> has been powered on, the first line goes all black
> (all solid / non-blinking cursor characters).  Adjusting the contrast yields
> a lighter/darker all black first line.  The second line isn't on, ever.

Alternating all-black/all-blank lines is the normal power-on state of
LCD modules (at least, all the ones I've tried). One special case is the
little 16x1 displays, most of which are really 16x2 internally; they
come up with the first half of the line black and the second half blank.

If the display never leaves that state, it likely means that you haven't
managed to initialize it. The most common problem is timing, especially
if you're running your 877 faster than Tony Nixon was. (PIC speeds up to
4 MHz generally don't require any NOPs; faster clocks do.) You also have
to remember the long delays during the initial setup.

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