I haven't started experimenting yet as I have company now. The question is: Why was the Atmel AVR ATmega168 chosen instead of an 8 Bit PIC chip? Are they better or easier to program or what? What are the differences?

Hi Jalex,

One of the big reasons we chose the Atmega child is that there is a C compiler for it. We find C offers a great middle ground as a higher level programming language that is still relatively easy to program in, but still low level enough to give you the flexibility you need in the low level envirionment of a microcontroller.

There are plenty of other subtle differences but for the most part anything that can be with one family of microcontrollers can be done with the other. In most cases it is a matter of personal taste and the AVRs are just what we were used to working with.

Humberto

Hi Humberto That's perfect for me. I know C, C++, and MS Visual Basic. Here is what sold me on your Kit. I bought a PIC16C711 and when I tried to figure out how to interface it with a computer I could not figure out how to do it simply and cheaply then found the data sheet confused me even more. Jim