On Wed, 11 Aug 2010 10:54:55 -0700, "Todd Lyons" said:
> Hello all, I'm a linux sysadmin, but originally an EE by education.
> I'm very technical and have a decent to thorough understanding of c,

Cool. Welcome to the Piclist.

> 1. From what I can tell, to use c as the programming language, I have
> to be using a PIC18 or higher, and with PIC16 or lower, I must use
> assembly.  Yea or nay?

No, there are C compilers for all versions. But with each
sub-architecture you have different choices. If you are planning to use
a typical character LCD then you will want a PIC that runs on 5 volts.
More on that later.

> 2. In my project, I will need a display of some sort, a relay output,
> a few buttons, a remote temp sensor, and maybe a pot (or could use
> buttons to move target temp up/down).  I don't have the means to
> design and build my own board, but when you make a project, do you
> typically use some prefab board?

Sometimes. It depends what gets you there quickest. But if you can't
make your own board, you pretty much have to get a prefab board unless
you want to use solderless or solderable breadboard, or else just hand
wire it on perfboard. That sort of limits you to through-hole devices.
Nothing wrong with that.

> 3. I'm interested in using piklab and gpasm/gplink under Linux, but am
> willing to use the MPLAB IDE if I have to.  My limitations are that I
> just don't know Windows like I know Linux.  Any recommendations or
> experiences would be welcome.

If you want to use Linux and use a high level language then you should
probably limit yourself to compilers available for Linux. Although you
can use Wine for some things, going native is a lot less frustrating. So
for C compilers, that means SDCC or HiTech. You might look at JALv2 for
a non-C programming language. And for a programmer that works well under
Linux you can't go wrong with a PicKit2.=20

> Part of my personality is that I'm impatient.  I want to do things and
> make big dreams now!  So I'm working on learning first, and not just
> trying random stuff :-) (which is what I typically do).

Have you looked at using an Arduino? It uses an AVR instead of a PIC,
but it is great for instant gratification, and you can wire between it
and a solderless breadboard while experimenting.

Cheerful regards,

Bob

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