Roman wrote...

>2. Is it worth learning the 18F instruction set? I know
>the main use of these chips is for larger projects which
>suit a higher level language, but i'm more interested
>in having the extra processing power especially once the
>18 and 8 pin 18F chips are obtainable.

Well worth the small effort, in my opinion.

It may well be that the 18F series were intended for larger
projects and to be more compiler-friendly; but I'm finding the
18F is more assembler-friendly as well: no more ROM paging; three
independent FSR's/INDF's; auto increment/decrement available on
the FSR's; hardware multiply; table lookups in hardware;
common-sense branch instructions; and lots more RAM.

I'm well along with my first big 18F452 project, and my
impression is it's much, MUCH easier to work with than the PIC16
parts I've been used to.

Most of what I do is low-volume, high-ticket stuff in which
development cost ends up being a significant part of the product
piece cost; and I expect the 18F will give me big savings.  Every
programming task just seems a lot more straightforward than with
the 16's- which in my mind makes them more hobbyist-friendly,
too.

>Any other tips etc are appreciated. :o)

Get Microchip's ICD2.  It works nice, and if it ever does stop
working, the round package allows it to do double-duty as a
hockey puck.

DD

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