Im looking at learning to develop and program one of the above, and just wondered if anybody could give me any ideas or experiances. I have a good background in IT and basic software development skills. I also have a basic knowlage of Electronics!
I can spend some money on buying some kit but im a bit strapped at the moment so cheap is good. I wonder if anybody could point me in the right direction to buy some kit or links on the web for help wityh choosing or programming?
Many Thanks Si
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Parallax allows us to distribute the BASIC Stamp II HomeWork boards individually. These are a very inexpensive platform to get started with, and include the BASIC Stamp II surface mounted on the board, breadboard, +5V regulator, etc all on a single pcb.
These are normally only sold/available in 10-packs for $400.00 to schools, but we're authorized to sell them individually to students & hobbyists. Not a bad deal for the price.
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All you need with a HomeWork board is a serial cable, 9V battery, and the BASIC Stamp editor/programming software which you can download for free at the link below.
In the downloads section look for the Nuts & Volts articles. You'll find enough complete projects and sample code to keep you busy for a good while.
If you look under the Educational Curriculum downloads section you can download .pdf documents for Applied Sensors, Understanding Signals, Elements of Digital Logic, What's a Microcontroller, Basic Analog and Digital, Industrial Control, and a few more.
Even if you never purchase a BASIC Stamp, these are excellent tutorials.
I do recommend at least starting out with a BASIC Stamp to anyone just getting started with embedded control. They make entry level very affordable, and easy. The sheer number of application notes and code examples definitely lowers the learning curve.
If you outgrow the Stamp and it's capabilities we also carry PIC BASIC & C compilers, development boards, programmers, and other hardware. We have a growing number of project pages for the BASIC compiler here
If you want something really cheap I sugest you to buy some picaxes. This chips are like Basic Stamp but they are cheaper. The only problem I have found with them is that they are slow and that you have to buy them in UK with a no so cheap delivery fee. I wanted to start into electronics just like you and I must say that they are really easy to use, because they are PIC micros with a Basic Interpreter burned on them. The price is very good, because you can buy a lot of this chips for the price of a Basic Stamp. The only things you need to programm them is a pair of resistors and a serial cable. I'm going to try some PICs now, because I need some more speed for some projects I have, specially controlling graphical LCDs. The problemm you have if you want to use PICs is that you have to buy or make a programmer for them. You can't just place a serial cable and programm them. Sorry for my english, but I'm a spanish speaker. The place where you can find this chips is in:
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TEMP wrote: : Hey Group,
: Im looking at learning to develop and program one of the above, and just : wondered if anybody could give me any ideas or experiances. I have a good : background in IT and basic software development skills. I also have a basic : knowlage of Electronics!
: I can spend some money on buying some kit but im a bit strapped at the : moment so cheap is good. I wonder if anybody could point me in the right : direction to buy some kit or links on the web for help wityh choosing or : programming?
: Many Thanks : Si
: --- : Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. : Checked by AVG anti-virus system
A couple of years ago I purchased the Matrix Multimedia PIC Tutorial and development system.
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Spent around $US
200. Although the system is from the UK I purchased it locally (Colorado)
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. The system has a good C compiler and PIC program development utilized Microchip tools such as MPLAB IDE and PPP. It hooks to a PC's parallel port and I've found the system easy to use. I'm developing a PIC controlled electronic ignition for a model airplane engine. I found the tutorial to be a good learning tool.
Also look into PICAXE development system. A friend ordered it from AZ and found it easy to work with. He too is developing an electronic ignition. Search Goggle and eBay for PICAXE and you will find many sources.
They have a PICAXE-08M for nominally 1.25 GPB ($2.25 US). Comparable with the Basic Stamp 1 at $29.95 plus 10-bit A/D, peek and poke, interrupt and PWM.
The PICAXE-18X with 2048 bytes of program storage is about 4.00 GPB ($7.00 US) and is comparable with the Basic Stamp 2 plus many additional capabilities.
All you need is a breadboard, a source of +5 VDC and a serial cable.
The development software and documentation is free from the Picaxe site.
They have quite a number of applications and I have many at
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Plus, most Basic Stamp applications can be quickly adapted to the PICAXE.
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