Whats Goin on?!!! I've waited for over two weeks for my order and you wont answer my emails!

dereksherrill, sorry to hear about your problem.

You might try to contact Humberto or Mike through Circuit Labs.

That seems to be their focus now.

Did you order directly through the Nerdkits store?

Ralph

I am not sure, but everything at the NerdKits store now shows "Temporarily sold out".

dereksherrill-

Have you got your kit yet? Which one did you order?

BM

No I haven't received my order yet. I ordered 1 atmega168 and 4 LM34. I was billed on September 3 for $21.34. I have sent 3 emails to nerdkits support with no reply.

I just sent off an email as well, I'll see if I get an answer. I'm really upset to see this happen. Trust me, it isn't what those of us who've been here a long time were attracted to. Humberto and Mike used to be very on top of this forum and responded VERY promptly to customer issues.

I hope this gets resolved soon and I'm really sorry to see a new user get such a bad taste. When you do get your kit, don't be afraid to post any questions here in the forum. There are several of us old timers who are very quick and open to answer any and all questions and problems we can.

Rick

If there is still no word or indication on item being shipped and you payed via paypal I would go ahead and file for dispute and ask for a refund, before you wait too long. Also that should hopefully get their attention. Honestly the prices were always steep on the items sold in the store, but what made it worth it was the excellent customer service and resources. Without these we can get these items alot cheaper elsewhere.

Well, got an email this afternoon that I have recieved a full refund. So now I guess my question is how do I get a Atmega168 mcu from Mouser or Digikey set up to work?

Here is an excellent tutorial by one of our forum members here

http://rs-micro.com/?p=261

Also one good supplier for the Atmega328 which is essentially same as the atmega 168 but it has more memory is Tayda Electronics Here is the link

http://www.taydaelectronics.com/atmega328p-pu-atmega328-microcontroller-ic.html

They are selling them for $3.50 a piece, shipping is reasonable. Only catch is it is from Taiwan so shipping can take a week or two but the prices are so good its worth it.

If you shop around you can usually beat Mouser or Digikey.

In fact I found some 328's with the Arduino bootloader for $2.98.

You can load bootloaders directly using AVR Studio or Rick has a well documented procedure.

Ralph

I like mouser for most things, $2.24 plus $5.00 per order shipping. I usually wait to until I have several items before I order just to spread the $5 shipping around a little more. Although if you buy 10 @ $2.13 and consider $.50 each for shipping you still get them delivered in about a week for $2.63 each. mouser atmega328p

eBay is fun too but like buying from Tayda Electronics it usually takes a 5 or 6 weeks to receive stuff if the vendor is not USA based. Sometimes you can save a lot buying on eBay but for mcu's it's hard to beat mouser.

When you get a ISP programmer so you can set fuses and put the bootloader on new chips, it won't be long until you quit using the bootloader all together and just go with your ISP programmer because it's easier (no switches to mess with). You can get an ISP programmer cheap too so get a couple and have a spare. I recommend getting some spare usb to serial converter cables too. Nothing worse than not being able to work on your project because of a failed usb cable or programmer.

Purchasing an ISP Programmer is inexpensive and practical but if you are interested in a Nerdkit type project you could make a Nerdkit micro into an ISP Programmer. You would require a ATmega with a bootloder installed (as is the case when you get a MCU from Nerdkit) to make into your ISP programmer to load programs onto other micros.

You could try Notor’s ISP programmer approach. My Nerdkit is an ISP Programmer

I have a board set up and a micro dedicated to use as my ISP programmer using Noter’s instructions and code, it has worked very well for me. So far all that I have ever done with my ISP programmer is load boatloaders unto fresh ATmega micros. I probably should expand my understanding and use of ISP programming to take advantage of the ISP.

Unfortunately, since the Nerdkits library is no longer available there is no concise and straight forward set of instructions available. You have to sift through the thread that Noter started and pick out the information required from the 105 posts that are found there.

The advantage to using an ISP programmer all the time is there is no program/run switch to mess with. Just type 'make' and the ISP programmer resets the chip, loads the program, and starts it up again. For serial I/O a USB adapter like the nerdkit cable can be connected all the time and your serial program (I use gtkTerm) can run all the time vs using the bootloader where you have to end it, (flip switch) program the chip (flip switch, reset/pwr cycle), and start your serial program again to view serial data.

I'll be glad to help dereksherrill or anyone else wanting to make their nerdkit into an ISP programmer. I used my original Nerdkit ISP Programmer for a long time then I migrated it to an Arduino Nano board and I like that better because it's smaller and with a built-in usb adapter it uses a plain usb cable. Don't have the LCD on it any more either so I added a single LED that blinks if there is an error but the only time I ever see an error is when I cross one or more of the SPI wires to the target chip. My latest programmer uses the at90usb162 with a built-in usb device and links to the LUFA libraries for usb control. It's on a breadboard now and I plan to layout a small PCB similar to the Nano for it. It's on my fun list of winter projects.

Even if the nerdkit guys bring back the library I'm not going to spend any of my time putting anything in it again. Instead I'm thinking of setting up a personal website (more winter fun) with the Nerdkit ISP Programmer documented along with a few other projects. Something similar to what Rick has done although I am thinking about using phpBB3 for a forum style site.

I had a simple forum up at one time - got no takers. However what has to be gone through to keep out spammers either requires a bunch of time to approve every new user, or pay for software that helps to do it automatically. Neither of which is very appealing. The third option is a closed board like the NK guys did where the have a totally closed board.

Thanks everyone for the helpful advice. I'm sure I'll have more questions once I have a chance to review all the information referenced above. Thanks again!

Just going to jump in here and add that I had an almost identical experience at the Nerdkit store. 10 or 12 days after placing my order I sent email asking for status of my order and the only response I got was from paypal informing me of a refund. If this forum flames out for some reason I would still like to have access to the helpful folks who participate. I have no idea of how to pull that off if it became necessary?????

If the site goes down we'll all have to meet up over at Ricks place, RS-Micro. Bookmark it now so you can find it later. I guess we could leave our contact information in a comment on one of his posts, probably the one he will put up when this site tanks.

Thank you.

Really sad to see this nerd kits store falling apart. I wonder if they would be interested in selling the business. The website, logo, etc. I would love to keep it going and take the kits to the next level. Or maybe we could buy it as a community collective and try to expand it somehow :)

I wondered why they didn't try to sell Nerdkits also.

That would have been the logical thing to do, maybe they are able to take a big tax write off declaring it a failure.

Ralph

I don't think so, you have to make big money for a big tax write off opportunity. Maybe there are no buyers at the price they desire or maybe none at any price. Make them an offer.

I agree this is a great site, I personally have not found any other forums that match this one for the kind of information I am interested in. I also would be interested in finding some way to insure it, or something like it, remains on line.

Having said that I don’t think it takes a MBA to understand why the founders have gravitated to their newer venture. What do you suppose the difference in potential revenue would be between the two ventures? I don’t think there would be any comparison Circuit Lab would be generating thousands of annual subscription fees and I imagine would have a much greater general appeal. I believe by comparison Nerdkits would have a very modest revenue potential. To me it seams very natural and expected that time and effort be directed to the business with the most potential.

I personally would like to thank Mike and Humberto for maintaining this site such as it is. I look at the forum just about every day to see what interesting topics are here. I know that Nerdkits has not received any revenue from me lately yet I use and enjoy what amount to a free forum. No fees no third party adds no pressure to buy anything and a very open environment. Thank You.

Darryl

I have to agree with you sask55. I appreciate that the site is still up. Last week I found that I needed a refresher on timer interrupts and the info I needed is still right where I expected it to be. Thanks for your perspective on this.

I understand what you guys are saying. I appreciate that too. I just would love to be able to continue expanding the kit, create addons, bring more people into buying the nerdkits, expanding this community. Maybe i will email them and ask if they have any interest in selling or letting someone else run this mini company. Or atleast a way for us to keep adding to the site

I sent an email a couple weeks ago asking about releasing the forums... I got no response. Maybe you'll have better luck than I.

I use the forums often to refresh and learn, I think they are a very big part of the appeal of this site. I really liked the Nerdkits guild and the tutorials to get started. I think the entire site and concept is very good for beginners right through to very experienced micro users.

Recently, I was asked by a teacher at the local high school if I had any suggestions about kits, projects and ideas that could be included in a basic electronic course they considering offering in the new year, Basically I told him if the curriculum is not too ridged, and they wanted something interesting, with a lot of potential he should take a look at NerdKits. He was impressed with the NerdKits site and was prepared to order a few Nerdkits from the NerdKits store. Unfortunately the Nerdkit store is more or less shut down. Since that appears to be the sole source of revenue for Nerkits it really makes it difficult to be confident about the future of Nerdkits.

I guess what am saying is I think Nerdkits has great educational value, but have no idea how to help ensure it is maintained.

I think their revenue plan has shifted to their once free site "Cirucuitlab". They now have a paid subscriptions over there as well as advertisements.

I don't know if they'll ever come back to the NerdKit Community or if they'll ever fire the store back up. I'm guessing that keeping the forums running isn't their highest priority, but that they don't require much maintenance, and as long as it stays that way, I think they'll leave them up.

Again, this is all just speculation on my part. I still have not heard anything directly from them. They really don't respond much to my e-mails anymore.

Back when I had more or less steady communications with Humberto and Mike I told them they could not maintain the level support they were giving. After two years they were still personally answering my email support questions for free for what $79.00 two years ago?

That plus they should have been constantly expanding their store.

There were lots of things suggested here in the forums of things people would like to have seen in the store.

Even if they couldn,t be the cheapest they should have still made more available.

I'd certainly thank Humberto and Mike for the forum once again if I had contact with them.

Ralph

Have you guys noticed the forum is starting to go out. Like if i click on Customer Testimonials it gives a data base error. the only way i was able to acess this is by clicking on the right where it shows the last post made.

Hi dgikuljot, yes there sections of the Nerdkits website that are not working like the "Manage all my subscriptions"

Same similiar error to the missing Library .

I occasionally hit these links just incase anyone is watching the logs and might fix them.

Ralph

@Ralph Yeah it is pretty sad. I mean this site/ company had allot of potential. I tried every way of contacting them including their emails and all their support emails on circuit lab site. They just wont reply. I do not get why they want to hold on to Nerd kit's if they are completely neglecting it. Maybe they have plans to return to it, who knows.

The problem is that if they do, it may be too little too late. With the lack of activity seen on these forums, it's apparent that all but the few faithful have already given up on it. I keep holding out, longing for the fun of a few years ago when this place was thriving. Now it seems you are lucky to catch a dozen posts a week.

I still check 3 or 4 times a day. Nice to see some activity. You all have helped me more than I can express. I joined a Welding site a couple of months ago. After being insulted because I asked questions they think I should have known I deleted my account. Also the four letter words were very plentiful. This has been one of the best I have found.

Jim

The rss feed is handy to stay up to date on posts on this forum as well as most others. I've had pretty good responses at avrfreaks.net but it is important to search the forum/web before asking for help and then strive to be specific. The arduino forum looks pretty good too although I haven't been there much, just a hit from a web search now and then. I've been looking at arduino lately and I like all the examples they have and the IDE is very easy to use (don't have to worry about makefiles). There are many more projects and working examples in the arduino world compared to nerdkits or anything else. However I am glad I went the nerdkit route and learned the basics before getting into arduino. Guess I was lucky on timing because obviously nerdkits is over and out.

Also mourning the apparent loss of this site. I Hope to be able to follow over to RS micro to keep learning from all of the knowledgeable contributors here. Thanks for the help I have gotten from the forums over the last couple of years and thanks to Mike and Humberto for starting Nerdkits and making this technology accessible to me.

It has been awhile since I checked out the forums, but it is sad to hear that this community may vanish. I have read a lot of great information here on the forum over the last several years.

I'm currently using an atmega 328 in a video conversion project, for I2C control of a video clock generator, as well as generating VGA video. Noter's I2C code has been really helpful. The code is 100% assembly because of the delicate clock cycle timing video applications require.

If the forum disappears I'll be sure to check out RS-Micro, and hopefully we can find a new home on another forum.

Nerdkits is how I first learned about micro controllers. All you ever hear about in the tech media is Arduino, but we all know that you don't need a dev board and a big set of libraries to get the job done. Loading my own bootloaders and writing in assembly I feel a bit like MacGyver, and I owe that to Nerdkits and their hands on kit & tutorials.

I ended up facebook stalking Mike and Humberto lol to ask them about taking over the site. Since the message would have ended up in their other folder, I had to pay a dollar each to get it sent to their inbox. I will let you guys know if they reply or not. Atleast this way we can know for sure if they are getting our messages and ignoring them or if they truly haven't heard from us.

So Just wanted to update the community real quick. Thanks to facebook I was able to see both Mike and Humberto have read my message many days ago. Even after me requesting that the community is waiting on an answer, and to just let us know yes or no if they are willing to let someone else take over, they never responded. So now I am sure they don't really care. Only thing that makes me a little angry is that can't just simply respond and say no we are not willing to do this. Instead they just choose not to respond at all.

dgikuljot-

This mirrors my own efforts. I contacted them and waited months. Finally let them know I was no longer interested in taking over their existing setup. That's why I'm trying to create a newer, better one.

BM

So is it offical this site is dead? I stop by here off and on and lately it has seemd as though almost nobody is here. Glad to see the faithful few still talking here. I have been meaining to get back into playing with the micros just have not had time. It is frustrating that there is no word from mike or humberto, would be nice just to know what they are up to and that they no longer wish to conintue the project.

Probably could use atmel's zero cross detector circuit - http://www.atmel.com/images/doc2508.pdf.

Oops - posted that on wrong thread.

I'd say it's not official until you can't sign on. Could happen any day, who knows. I think most folks have either left for good or are so disgusted they just don't post anything. I'll answer a few questions if I can but that's about it for me. Sure not going to post anymore projects or anything that takes any time to speak of because it might just all be gone the next day anyway.

I have my computer mirrioring the entire site if it ever goes down so that at the least we can have access to all of the old threads and all of the information that is contained. But I hear you not wanting to contribute anything that requires a lot of time due to it just being poof gone one day. Thanks again for all your input Noter...

Well we need things to talk about, so leedawg how does that site mirroring work?

LOL, Glad to see your still active here ralph always enjoy your input on things.

As for the site mirroring great question not really that technical its an open source software that I have used for a few years called HTtrack, basically it will take any website you want and download all of the content to your local drive and reconfigure all the hypertext links so that they link appropriately on the local file system of your computer. I have it to set to update every couple of days and pull down any new content that is found. WOrks great if there is a web site that you want to puruse and you are going to be on a plane or something where you will not have online access to the content. You can pull it all down ahead of time and then browse it offline. Also works great for cases like this where there is a lot of information but you are worried the resource will one day be gone so you can preserve websites that you really like just the way they are.

Check it out its at http://www.httrack.com/

I figure if the site ever goes down I can just put a link to the offline version I have on my web server and allow people to browse it at their leisure none of the forums would work for posting new content but you could at least read all of the threads and projects, would have been nice for the library section of the site before it went bad...

Speaking of things to talk about what new projects have you been working on. I remember you were working on an RPM sensor long ago... Any other micro controller boards you hang out at..

I will jump in to the 'what new projects have you been working on' question.

A while back I 'adhered' two strain gauges to breaker bar, and am making a torque wrench. Signal condition is proving to be a little tricky.

Also I've got plans for a sun strength data logger to put next to the garden I plan to start soon, any ideas on how to measure sun strength? I might also try to measure moisture content.

I want to get the nerdkits talking to the raspberry pi so I can have data in a net work folder, I would love to put the data in a dropbox folder so I could get it from anywhere with internet, but raspberry pi and drop box don't work together (yet?).

I also have all the parts to make the OBD project except I don't understand the code so I couldn't modify the code if I wanted to.

I also want to use the EL wire somewhere cool in the apartment car or clothes

Yep lots of stuff I want to do, I will post after I've got something to show. Also I should do a write up for my masters thesis crap which used a nerdkits.

Wow scootergarrett, I'd love to see your "masters thesis crap which used a nerdkits" that would be cool.

Thanks leedawg, I am going for that site mirroring of the Nerdkit site also.

I have been totally engrossed in 3D printing for the past year and a half.

I just actually started printing last week so I am still calibrating the printer

but it is really neat to see things you design come out where you can touch them.

The RPM was a large 3D printer/CNC mill that I still have not received yet, which is ok since I haven't clean out and set up my shop yet.

Ralph

@ scootergarrett

Wow sounds like all kinds of fun projects like your idea of a digital torque wrench lot cheaper than the snap-on one.

As far as your sun measuring device I actually just ordered some light sensors that are great at quantifying light they are made by parallax TSL230R. It takes in the light from four quadrants then has a built in ADC that puts out a digital pulse train that is proportionate to the light coming into the sensor. IT also has a built in configurable prescaler to change the pulse train to suit the needs of your project so 8 bit can measure it with ISR's without getting overwhelmed. I am not sure they are in production any more though I bought a few on ebay, and originally got them at radioshack. I am sure there are others that do pretty much the same thing.

@Ralph

no worries glad I could offer some bit of help im pretty much a noob at the micros compared to most of you guys but still find them fun. AS for 3D printing that is awsome which printer do you have? I have been looking into buying one seriously for some time now as well. Funny you should mention CNC mill, I am picking up a Bridgeport series I with DRO this sunday. I had plans of buying a CNC retrofit kit for it possibly in the future or just finding another CNC machine down the road that runs on an R8 spindle. What type of CNC machine you looking into getting? DO you have a lathe and mill? Would love to hear more bout your machining projects.

Lee

This is my favorite light sensor because it's inexpensive and easy to use.

BH1750FVI Digital Light Intensity Sensor

Paul what is the ADDR connection?

Ralph,

That's your I2C Address line.

BM

Does the nerdkits.com still exist on the original nerdkit servers? When I point my browser at www.nerdkits.com I get a page that seems to indicate that the nerdkits.com domain name is for sale. I am guessing it was not renewed by it's original owners. So... will anybody see this post? and if so where is it hosted.
Is it too late to use leedawgs suggestion to have an offline replica of the site?

I'm not sure what's going on, but when I go to http://www.nerdkits.com , I go right to their site like usual. Are you sure you aren't seeing an expired certificate message? I know that seems to have expired. I know there are many of us who don't expect the site to last much longer, but we keep plugging along.

What really bothers me most about the probable demise of the nerdkit site is the fact that other than a few minor squabbles and bumping of heads, most of us have really gotten along quite well. It seemed that, unlike many other forums, there was a spirit of helpfulness that you don't see many places these days. People seemed sincerely happy for others at their success and offered help and advise on their failures. I will sorely miss that comradery.

Rick

Rick

I agree about the good spirit of this site. I joined a welding site & asked a question. I was told that if I did not know the answer then don't even try to weld. I have been welding for over 50 years & just found out that I don't know how....

Any way this has been & is still a very good informative site.

Jim