-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 From: "myke predko" > Hi Folks, > > There were a few responses to my last (huge) email, I just had a > few points to get back on: And, now for #2? You mentioned in that immense email in several places that you didn't think that a pre-programmed IC was practical. I think it is. You said that the costs would be prohibitive eventhough I believe it was only a week or so ago that someone mentioned that digikey would do PICs for $0.50 each. That's not bad. No worries there, if you ask me. Now, as to this ICD thing, I think that there's a better way of doing it that should make everyone happy. The main complaint has been software compatability, I think. Hear me out for a moment, I think I have something here. Would you believe a bootloader cum ICD that all works from an ASCII dumb terminal? Here's my idea: use a PIC as an interface to the PIC. Use something cheap with a hardware UART, and program into it a bootloader, not for itself, but for the IC it interfaces to. So, you have 2 PICs. One target, one ASCII interface. This should allow graduationn from ICD to true HVP entirely seamlessly. The interface PIC would handle all ASCII interfacing, and not be directly programmable except through an ASCII command for updating firmware. This is, basically, the CUMP idea stripped down for a specific application. It should be cheap enough... A MAX232, a 16F628? and an 18F452 or 16F877, a few support components, and away you go! It should work quite nicely, *I* think. > From: "Brendan Moran" > > 2.Use a ZIF socketed through-hole PIC on its own ICD/programmer > > with a 40-pin IDC connector, and a ribbon cable to DIP connector > > on the other end. This one should support the up and comming 18F > > parts, despite their current unavailability. > > I can live with this. Glad you like it. - --Brendan -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: PGPfreeware 6.5.8 for non-commercial use iQA/AwUBPVFSKAVk8xtQuK+BEQIpXgCfYtjNxUnWlULKdMxNZ5qYg8edejwAoN/B lxE/auZlND8dna/cjTIE3edx =3P/H -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- -- http://www.piclist.com hint: The PICList is archived three different ways. See http://www.piclist.com/#archives for details.