> Alternatively, I am thinking about buying a new board

> Can anyone recommend something suitable?

Quite a few PIC programmers for sale on www.ebay.co.uk
(even a Magenta 880 !!), a selection to suit all budgets

I've used a PICStart Plus for a long time, and although it's a
tad slow (as in glacier-creeping-down-a-valley ? Well, not
quite that slow), it's reliable and has Microchip support. But
I would maybe like a second programmer one day. I've
slightly followed the threads on programmers and would
probably go for one of Olin Lathrop's

http://www.embedinc.com/products/index.htm

Whenever possible I always buy the best tools I can afford,
it pays off in the long run if you're serious. The PS+ was quite
expensive at the time I bought it, compared with the low-parts
count DIY programmers of the day


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