Getting Started with PIC Microcontrollers: Tips and Tricks for Beginners

[Chandra214]

Hi,
I have just started to look into PIC ALP coding. i am also fortunate to work on one the PIC controllers, though i am responsible for hardware design only, i want to develop some firmware knowledge.
If such a question has been answered previously please give me the link, or your precious suggestions are welcome.

 

[Chandra214]

oops i missed the question..
how can i get started with PIC programming and how is it going to help my career?

 

[idris]

micro programming knowledge is pretty transferable, so starting on pic or atmel mc's is much of a muchness. basically, pick up a couple of mc's, a development board (the arduino is good and, if you build it yourself, cheap), and some basic components. build a 5V power supply (you'll just need a 7805 and some caps), connect the mc to power / ground / isp as indicated by the datasheet, plug in your isp cable and serial cable, and then have a play with the code. try something basic first - like, "turn on pin 1". have a led hooked up to it so you can tell that it works.

it's very useful as a skill, though i don't know how much consumer micros are used in industry. embedded systems programming in general is huge, though.