JustJ

Ok here's the deal:
I want to build a few small electronical gadgets (like one of the led clocks of ThinkGeek.com) but I've never done anything like that. I thought about using PIC's but I never worked with them before and I don't have any of the equippment you need. So, is there any easy programmable (prefeably something like basic ... you MAY flame me for that ^^ ) cheap chip with a few inputs and a fer outputs.
Thanks in Advance,
J

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star882

There are certain microcontrollers, like the Basic Stamp (which runs BASIC) and the Java enabled Jessica Simpson (which runs a reduced version of Java). But both of those are expensive. The free compiler "gcc" supports compiling code for many different architectures, including some microcontrollers.

I suggest buying a cheap router that can run OpenWRT. For as little as $10 or less, you get a microcontroller, 8MB or more of RAM, 2MB or more of Flash, sometimes some nice I/O connections (such as USB host), a case, power supply, PCB, etc.

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TCPA would take your freedom! Say NO!
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HDTV the way it should be:
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Originally Posted by A friend of mine who has a Linux kernel named after his girlfriend.

If I was VirtualBox, I could load my virtualization module into Hannah and boot up another kernel in the same address space.

JustJ

I love the idea of the Router. :)
Is there any easy way to control about 30 Leds with it?

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star882

Use some free GPIOs to drive a simple SPI or I2C bus. Then run LED drivers from the bus and there you go!

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TCPA would take your freedom! Say NO!
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HDTV the way it should be:
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Originally Posted by A friend of mine who has a Linux kernel named after his girlfriend.

If I was VirtualBox, I could load my virtualization module into Hannah and boot up another kernel in the same address space.

JustJ

Ok I think I get the Idea.
Any Hardware recommendations?

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arby

Take a look at the MSP430F2xxx family from Texas Instruments. Cheap, and inexpensive development tools. You can find info at www.ti.com.