>>  Also does anyone have any links where I could get a basic grounding in
>>electronics quickly? ie. I know if I connect an LED to an output on the
>>PIC and
>>to GND without a resistor I will probably burn out the PIC due to excess
>>current, but why? and how do I know how much resitance to put between the
>>LED and
>>GND??
>
>You can buy (or borrow from the Library) Horowitz and Hill's _Art of
>Electronics_.

Probably showing my age but RTL and CMOS cookbooks were pretty
good for reference.

I'd also consider something like "Electronic Workbench" software so
you can virtually build almost anything and see what it does before
you buy one part or heat up the iron. There was a shareware program
out a while ago that let you drag a pic and other parts onto a virtual
breadboard then run and load your program and see the results, like
mplab but much more basic. They did a "upgrade" and ruined it but I'd
think there were others that would get you playing quick.

Unless RatShack is your only option, try and find a wholesaler or distributor
or retail store that has the parts. It will be a lot cheaper.  Or learn how to
desolder and go to garage sales ;-]

Dave

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