Page 23 - Making PIC Microcontroller Instruments and Controllers

l{lcEocot{tRollEn u |T
to At{ tNlhoDuctloN to THE Ptc 16F87?A

so we can activate the featues we need for each particular project. Understandjng
tiners and counters is a pal1 of this. The enlire interactioD oI the microcontroller with
its environment is determined by the VO pins and how they arc configured, so know
Ing ho$ tu conrigurc lhe T/O i\ \ef) impofldnr
The datasheets are available as PDF (page description format) files on the lnternet
from the microEngineering Labs Web site or from the Microchip Technology Web site.
These should be downloaded onto your computer for immediate access when you need
them. Keepingawindow open spesi{ically for this dataisvery handy. Even so, you will
wart to prinr out some of the infomlation to have it in "in you| hands."
that will support our needs as lhey
Of parlicular interest are the areas of &e datasheets
apply to the following areas:

: Undersianding and becoming familiar with what has already beer defined by the
Compiler software as il relates to the software
r Gefting familiar with the addressing and naming conventions used in the datasheet
I Understanding the use of the varioLrs areas of memory on the MCU
t Leaming how to assign ard use the yO pins to oru best advantage
I Understanding how to use the PICBASIC PRO software eflectivcly
r Getting familiar with the general register usage as it is implemented for the control
of the timers and counters

A FAST INTEN ET CONNECTION IS PRETTY
MUCH A MUST

You absolutely have to have an Intcmel connection, and il is veryhelpful to have more
than a standard phone line conneclion. so get the fastest connection you can afford. You
need the connectron because so nuch of the information you need is on the Internet. A
cable modem is strongly recommended. II you and a couple of neighbors can get
together and folm a local area network (LAN) and share a wireless modem set up, it
becomes a really inexpensive way to get fast Internet service. The Wi-Fi signals have
no problem reaching all the apartments in a small building and sometimes even the house
next door Relatively inexpensive amplifiers and repeaters are available to incleasc
signal strength where necessary.

DOWNLOADII{G DATA SHEEIS
for ihe PIC16F87XA.
One of rhe fi$t things you need to download is thc datasheets
You will, in ali probability, end up using the etaller and less expensive PIC 16F84A
for a lot of your initial projects, so it might be best to download the iffolmalion fbr
that microcontroller while you are aI it. As mentioned befbre, these files arc available
js
from the Microchip Techrology Web site and the information free. However, thc two
documents consist of about400 pages, so you probably will not want to prifit it all out
You will, however, want to have soml3 ofthe more commonly used infonnation prinled
so you can refer to it whenever necessary. The rest should be slored on yourcomputer
so you car call up o( search for what you need when necessdry.