Nathan House wrote:
> Thank you all for your advice!
>
> This page:
> http://www.microchip.com/pagehandler/en-us/technology/ethernet/microcontr=
ollers/home.html
>
> Puts the PIC32 under "PIC Microcontrollers with MAC" instead of under "PI=
C
> Microcontrollers with MAC & PHY" where the PIC18 is. I don't have much
> knowledge of Ethernet
With ethernet you have a MAC and a PHY. The MAC buffers packets, decides=20
when to transmit (performing media access control if needed which is=20
where the name comes from) and decides whether received packets should=20
be kept or discarded.

The PHY converts the digital signals from the MAC into a form suitable=20
for transmitting on whatever physical layer you choose to use.

The original mac-phy interface for 100 megabit was MII which was a 4-bit=20
paralell interface clocked at 25MHz but there are many variants out=20
there (the PIC32 ethernet starter kit seems to be using a 2-bit paralell=20
interface known as RMII).
> or of the OSI model
Don't pay too much attention to the OSI model. Many vendors like to use=20
OSI layer numbers to describe stuff but most real world networking=20
protocols don't exactly fit the model.
>  (this project would be a big
> learning experience for me), but am I right in assuming this means I woul=
d
> need to interface the PIC32 with an external PHY chip=20
It does seem that way.
> such as the ENC28J60?
The ENC28J60 is a combined MAC and PHY with no access to the connection=20
between them, so it's what you would use with a processor that has no=20
ethernet controller at all. Nor what you would use with a processor that=20
already has a MAC onchip.
--=20
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