I don't know if my comment is going to help, but I'm in a position simila= r to yours. I'm a very experienced software engineer (Delphi, VC++) and som= e past experiences in assembler for Z80, IBM4381 and 8086. As you, I have a big project in hand, but I decided to start learning fir= st with a few toy examples and then attack my problem head on. I bought this tutorial board from mikroeletronica (spelling?) for $149 an= d I got it delivered last thursday. So far I'm enjoying it a lot. It has leds= , buttons, temp. sensor, ADC, LCD (optional), and a RS232 (db9) port, with lots of examples (basic and pascal). The nicest thing is that I don't nee= d a programmer, as it is built in in the board, connected to my computer via USB. Very easy to use. So far I'm learning a few examples in assembler, just to get a good grasp= of the internal architecture, but I believe I'm going to buy their pascal compiler for $149. It's IDE is very similar to Delphi's, which is second nature to me. Hope it helps Padu .--. .- -.. ..- ----- Original Message ----- From: "Mcgee, Mark" To: Sent: Monday, October 04, 2004 2:38 AM Subject: [PIC] Newbie help getting started > I apologise for this noddy question, but I've searched the FAQ,and now = I'm more confused than ever - there just seems to be too many options availab= le! > > I've just discovered the PIC chip, and I want to use it to produce an RS232 output from a temperature controller (Maplin, UK model number FE33L= - fyi), which outputs a 13-bit proprietary BCD sequence which lasts 18ms, every 15 seconds. > > I did find some RS-232 code snippets in the archive, which should be useful, but I suspect I may need some help with the input side of things.= .. > > But first things first! > > I've downloaded MPLAB, but I'm not sure how I should go about programmi= ng the chip. This is a bit of a one-off project for now, so I don't really want to start spending =A3100's on equipment. Is there an easy DIY seria= l interface (to PC) circuit I can make? > > I did see a "K8048 PIC Microcontroller Programmer Kit" available from Maplin at =A324.99 - which seems pretty reasonable - is this any good? I= s there anything else I'd need to add to the kit or is it all inclusive? (= I assume a serial cable!) > > Software wise, I've been reading the John McDonough tutorials, and he mentions using an application called FPP which I can't seem to find reference to on the FAQ. Or is there a better alternative? > > A bit about my history - I'm a computer programmer (C++), I've also programmed in 'C', and Z80, 6502, 68000 and 8086 assembler in the past, s= o the programming doesn't cause me too much concern. > > Many thanks > Mark McGee > > =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D =3D=3D > This message is for the sole use of the intended recipient. If you received this message in error please delete it and notify us. If this message was misdirected, CSFB does not waive any confidentiality or privilege. CSFB retains and monitors electronic communications sent throu= gh its network. Instructions transmitted over this system are not binding on CSFB until they are confirmed by us. Message transmission is not guarante= ed to be secure. > =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D =3D=3D > > > _______________________________________________ > http://www.piclist.com > View/change your membership options at > http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist > _______________________________________________ http://www.piclist.com View/change your membership options at http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist