On Sat, 14 May 2005 15:32:18 -0400, Olin Lathrop wrote:
>=A0Even better, I would use 1uF ceramics. =A0These are now readily avail=
able and
>=A0about as cheap as 100nF. =A0Some of the MAX232 type chips work with 1=
00nF, and
>=A0some require at least 1uF. =A0I haven't seen any variant that doesn't=
 work
>=A0with 1uF. =A0This will also give you a stronger and cleaner + and - v=
oltage
>=A0drive.

Olin's suggestion is a good one and I've been doing the same thing for
the past couple years on all my new designs.=20

Another good tip along the lines of "killing two birds with one stone"=20
is to use a MAX3232 instead of a MAX232(A). They are pin compatible=20
with the MAX232(A), about the same price as a MAX232A and (most
importantly) work with 3V to 5V supplies. I do more 3V designs these
days than 5V so it's really nice to only have to stock one part for
either voltage. They also work with ceramic caps (I use 470nF to 1uF)
and they're made by the usual suspects - Maxim, TI, Sipex, ST, et. al.

Matt Pobursky
Maximum Performance Systems=20

--=20
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