I'm new to the world of PICs (aside from having read about how great
they are for years, anyway :) and am looking for some advice on the
best way to get started. I've tried reading the FAQ, but I'm it's not
exactly clear on some things.

First, let me state that I run Linux primarily, though I do have
access to Windows (through VMware -- and, yes, this does give me
direct access to the serial and parallel ports). My preference is
towards having options to work in both environments.

So, that said, I have a handful of PICs (18F458, 16LF84A and 16LF870)
and I'm trying to figure out the simplest, barebones (if necessary)
way to get started programming them without having to buy a premade
programmer. It seems to me that I should be able to throw together
some components on a breadboard and get started with next to nothing
from what I've read, but I can't find instructions that directly tell
me so. I've seen a lot of simple programmers out there, but it seems
that a number of them require some form of bootstrapping (because they
use a PIC themselves) or they are for a specific chip that isn't one
of those listed above.

I think a lot of my confusion is likely simply misunderstanding. I'll
ask a few specific questions and then ask for some general advice:

1. Is a programmer designed to work with a 16C84 able to work for the
16LF84A or even 16LF870?
2. Is this (http://www.jdm.homepage.dk/easypic.htm) just too good to be true?
3. Will the JDM design (http://www.jdm.homepage.dk/newpics.htm) work
for any of the above PICs? Based on the one SparkFun sells it looks
like I should be able to use it with all my chips.
4. What programmer software is recommended for Linux?
5. Does anyone know of a PIC C environment that works with the Eclipse IDE?
6. What books do people recommend that are still pretty current (the
ones I've browsed at the bookstore often seem to be pretty old)?

I hope I haven't gotten too long winded, but I'm really excited to get
started and I'm just trying to sort everything out in my head.
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