Search found 26 matches

by hamsterears
Mon Jul 17, 2006 8:57 am
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: A Better Mousetrap
Replies: 7
Views: 3588

No, and I'm not sure where the idea mice like cheese came from.

Cats are far more likely to eat cheese. Mice will only eat it if there's nothing else to eat.

Just about everyone I know who actually catches mice with traps agrees that peanut butter is one of the best baits.
by hamsterears
Fri Nov 18, 2005 7:06 pm
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: My PCB prototyping experiments
Replies: 10
Views: 4096

Re: My PCB prototyping experiments

Suggestion for heating etchant. Put board and etchant in a Ziploc type bag. Run hot water in pan in sink, put bagged board into water. Hot water heats the etchant, bag is easy to see through to check progress, and you don't get etchant all over your fingers while checking. Only works with smaller bo...
by hamsterears
Sat Jul 09, 2005 2:59 pm
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: Ideas For A Sensor
Replies: 31
Views: 12737

Re: Ideas For A Sensor

How about conductive traces on the boards?<p>Use a conductive trace pen, when the chip shorts across the traces it reveals it's location.
by hamsterears
Wed Mar 09, 2005 10:13 am
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: JDM Programmer help
Replies: 9
Views: 4461

Re: JDM Programmer help

Yes, the Futurlec socket (40-pin universal) will take both narrow and wide chips, up to 40 pins. (I bought one for a progammer I was going to build, then lost the schematic.)<p>Quality seems good, and the one I have is labeled "3M", so it seems they managed to find a good source.
by hamsterears
Mon Mar 07, 2005 4:49 pm
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: JDM Programmer help
Replies: 9
Views: 4461

Re: JDM Programmer help

Thanks, that's good to know. The only problem I'm having right now is figuring out where the 8-pin units are supposed to plug into the socket.<p>I was planning on building it with an attached cable, since the PC I'm using doesn't have a 25-pin serial port.<p>BTW, for others building programmers, I'v...
by hamsterears
Sun Mar 06, 2005 10:55 pm
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: JDM Programmer help
Replies: 9
Views: 4461

JDM Programmer help

Okay, finally decided to try building the JDM programmer, and get IC-Prog as the software.<p>However, I do have a question. Has anybody ever used the JDM with the PIC 12F675? Does it work, and are any modifications needed? Sorry, that's two questions.<p>Anyway, the plan ATM is to build it with a sep...
by hamsterears
Wed Feb 02, 2005 7:29 pm
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: Power Supply Question
Replies: 6
Views: 3172

Re: Power Supply Question

Okay, I didn't tell everything, since I didn't want to be too long winded.<p>I have two different power supplies - different manufacturer, ratings, etc. When the first one continued working, I began testing.<p>Both supplies would start up without the resistor. Voltages seem all right. So, I'm assumi...
by hamsterears
Wed Feb 02, 2005 11:31 am
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: Power Supply Question
Replies: 6
Views: 3172

Power Supply Question

Okay, I recently came across a couple ATX type computer power supplies that people didn't have any use for.<p>I also found a website (http://www.nfdc.net/home/cbdb/12%20V%20Power%20Supply.htm) where somebody describes converting an ATX supply into a bench supply. (Note: he says it's not a how-to, so...
by hamsterears
Thu Jul 29, 2004 3:42 pm
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: sensing wall studs through tile over plaster and lath.
Replies: 14
Views: 5625

Re: sensing wall studs through tile over plaster and lath.

Don't know if it would work on a wall that thick, but one method of finding studs is to use an electric razor. Turn the razor on, touch the casing to the wall, and listen to the sound it maks. When the razor is over the stud, the sound changes.
by hamsterears
Wed Jun 18, 2003 3:54 pm
Forum: Computer Programming
Topic: PIC assembly
Replies: 5
Views: 5022

Re: PIC assembly

Okay, just did some looking. Check your copy of MPLAB for a folder called MCHIP_Tools. Inside you'll find a file called P12c508.inc. That's where your "OSCCAL" command comes from. Since I'm not working with that particular micro, I don't have the data sheet, and can't look up specifically ...
by hamsterears
Wed Jun 18, 2003 3:42 pm
Forum: Computer Programming
Topic: PIC assembly
Replies: 5
Views: 5022

Re: PIC assembly

Not sure, because I'm just starting myself.<p>But it looks like an OSCillator CALibration command. Don't recall if the 508 has an internal oscillator, so take this with some salt.<p>Michael Fagan
by hamsterears
Tue Jun 17, 2003 12:56 am
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: SUGGESTION!!! LARRY READ THIS!!!!!!!
Replies: 9
Views: 4216

Re: SUGGESTION!!! LARRY READ THIS!!!!!!!

Sounds good to me. I'd love a place where I could ask questions about PIC programming, since I've just started with them.
by hamsterears
Wed May 21, 2003 10:27 am
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: May 2003 issue
Replies: 18
Views: 8438

Re: May 2003 issue

My copy of the May issue finally arrived on the 20th.
by hamsterears
Fri May 16, 2003 11:59 pm
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: PIC Tutorial
Replies: 0
Views: 1675

PIC Tutorial

Okay, just found a good basic tutorial on PIC programming on the web.<p> http://www.mstracey.btinternet.co.uk/pictutorial/picmain.htm <p>Hope that came through alright.<p>It's a very basic level tutorial for those who, like me, are just getting started with PICs, and need some help with just how to ...
by hamsterears
Wed Apr 23, 2003 8:26 pm
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: PIC crystals
Replies: 2
Views: 2093

PIC crystals

Okay, got the stuff I need to build the programmer for PIC microcontrollers.<p>The question I have now is regarding the crystals.<p>I know the 16F84A I have is 4mhz. Will 4mhz crystals work on, say, a 20mhz 16F628?<p>The reason I ask is that I got a good deal of 4mhz crystals. Like 40 of them, free....