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Forum Index : Microcontroller and PC projects : Newest update to Beginning Maximite
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CircuitGizmos Guru  Joined: 08/09/2011 Location: United StatesPosts: 1425 |
The documentation has been updated (version 1.4). "Beginning Maximite" is now "Beginning Maximite Programming and Interfacing" and is up to 550 pages (I've even reduced the font and paragraph spacing to reduce number of pages). http://www.circuitgizmos.com/files/begmax.pdf I've filled in some code examples, added some examples of graphic output, reorganized, and all in all this is the one-stop document for the CGCOLORMAX and CGMMSTICK. The most recent addition is the FAQ section. I hope to keep adding more to that. This is the table of contents: Contents 4 Preface 11 Quick CGMMSTICK Hardware Interface Example 17 Maximite / CGMMSTICK / CGCOLORMAX Introduction 26 CGMMSTICK / CGCOLORMAX Setup and MMIDE 35 CGMMSTICK Setup 36 CGCOLORMAX Setup 43 MMIDE Setup 47 Maximite BASIC Features 59 Project #1 CGMMSTICK LED Control Example 61 Project #2 CGCOLORMAX Relay Shield Example 68 Project #3 CGMMSTICK Sound Example 74 Note/Frequency Table for SOUND command 78 Project #4 CGMMSTICK Input Example and Analog Input Example 81 Project #5 CGMMSTICK LCD Interface Example 85 Project #6 CGMMSTICK Vacuum Fluorescent Display Example 87 Project #7 CGCOLORMAX1 Serial I/O Example 92 Serial Communications 98 The Serial OPEN Command 99 Serial Input/Output Pin Allocation 101 Reading and Writing the Serial Port 102 Opening a Serial Port as the Console 103 Project #8 CGMMSTICK SPI Interface Example 104 Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI) 108 Project #9 CGMMSTICK I2C Interface Example 111 Inter Integrated Circuit (I2C) bus 115 Project #10 CGMMSTICK 1-Wire Interface Example 117 1-Wire Interface 122 Project #11 CGCOLORMAX LCD Shield Example 124 Project #12 CGKEYCHIP1 Custom Keypad Example 137 CGMMSTICK1 Technical Information 144 SD card insertion (CGMMSTICK1) 146 SD card removal (CGMMSTICK1) 149 J1 Pinout (CGMMSTICK1) 151 CGVGAKBD1 Schematic 152 Schematic (CGMMSTICK1) 155 Firmware Update (CGMMSTICK1) 156 Firmware Upgrade Steps (CGMMSTICK1) 157 CGCOLORMAX1 Technical Information 162 Power Supply (CGCOLORMAX1) 163 Rear Connector (CGCOLORMAX1) 165 Shield Connections (CGCOLORMAX1) 168 Interface Circuits (CGCOLORMAX1) 170 Misc Connections (CGCOLORMAX1) 172 Pin Outs and Function (CGCOLORMAX1) 173 Firmware Update (CGCOLORMAX1) 174 Firmware Upgrade Steps 175 CGCOLORMAX2 Technical Information 180 Power Supply (CGCOLORMAX2) 181 Rear Connectors (CGCOLORMAX2) 184 Shield Connections (CGCOLORMAX2) 188 Interface Circuits (CGCOLORMAX2) 190 Misc Connections (CGCOLORMAX2) 194 Pin Outs and Function (CGCOLORMAX2) 197 Firmware Update (CGCOLORMAX2) 198 Firmware Upgrade Steps 199 CGMMSTICK and CGCOLORMAX I/O Characteristics 204 CGCOLORMAX Composite Output 205 Joystick Connections 206 Example Shields 208 MMBasic Reference 210 Language Constructs 211 Editing, Programming, and Debugging 213 Screen, Graphics, and Keyboard 214 Math Functions 216 Character and String Functions 217 File System 218 Input and Output 219 Language Implementation Characteristics 221 MMBasic language constructs 222 Defined Subroutines and Functions 223 Subroutine Arguments 224 Local Variables 225 Defined Functions 227 Passing Arguments by Reference 229 Naming Conventions 232 Timing 233 Interrupts 234 CLEAR 235 CONTINUE 236 DATA 237 DIM 238 DO LOOP 239 DO LOOP UNTIL 240 DO WHILE LOOP 241 ELSE 242 ELSEIF THEN 244 END 246 END FUNCTION 247 END SUB 248 ENDIF 249 ERASE 251 EXIT 252 EXIT FOR 253 EXIT FUNCTION 254 EXIT SUB 255 FOR TO STEP 256 FUNCTION 257 GOSUB 259 GOTO 260 IF THEN ELSE 261 IF THEN GOTO 263 IF THEN ELSE ELSEIF ENDIF 265 IRETURN 266 LET 267 LOCAL 268 LOOP UNTIL 269 NEXT 270 ON nbr GOTO|GOSUB 272 OPTION BASE 273 OPTION Fnn 274 OPTION PROMPT 275 OPTION USB 276 PAUSE 277 RANDOMIZE 278 READ 279 REM or ' 280 RESTORE 281 RETURN 282 SETTICK 283 SUB 284 TIMER (command/function) 285 WHILE WEND 286 MMBasic editing, programming, and debugging 287 Full Screen Editor 289 AUTO 291 CHAIN 292 CONFIG CASE 293 CONFIG KEYBOARD 294 CONFIG TAB 295 COPYRIGHT 296 DATE$ (command/function) 297 DELETE 298 EDIT 299 ERROR 301 LIST 302 LOAD 303 MEMORY 304 MERGE 305 MM.CMDLINE$ 306 MM.DEVICE$ 307 MM.FNAME$ 308 MM.VER 309 NEW 310 OPTION BREAK 311 RENUMBER 312 RUN 313 SAVE 315 TIME$ (command/function) 316 TROFF 317 TRON 318 MMBasic Screen, Graphics, and Keyboard 319 Graphics 320 Working with Color 328 Color Modes 330 Scan Line Color Override 332 Game Playing Features 333 Loadable Fonts 337 Sprite Definition Files 339 Special Keyboard Keys 341 BLIT 343 CIRCLE 347 CLR$ 352 CLS 354 COLLISION 355 COLOR 356 CONFIG COMPOSITE 359 CONFIG VIDEO 361 FONT 362 FONT LOAD/UNLOAD 365 INKEY$ 369 INPUT (from keyboard) 370 KEYDOWN (keyboard) 371 LINE 372 LINE INPUT (from keyboard) 379 LOADBMP 380 LOCATE 381 MM.HPOS 384 MM.HRES 385 MM.VPOS 387 MM.VRES 389 MODE 391 OPTION VIDEO 395 PIXEL (command/function) 396 POS 402 PRESET 403 PRINT 405 PRINT @ 406 PSET 409 SAVEBMP 411 SCANLINE 412 SPRITE 414 TAB 417 MMBasic math functions 419 ABS 420 ATN 421 CINT 422 COS 423 DEG 424 EXP 425 FIX 426 INT 427 LOG 428 PI 429 RAD 430 RND 431 SGN 432 SIN 433 SQR 434 TAN 435 MMBasic character and string functions 436 ASC 437 BIN$ 438 CHR$ 439 FORMAT$ 440 HEX$ 442 INSTR 443 LCASE$ 444 LEFT$ 445 LEN 446 MID$ 447 OCT$ 448 RIGHT$ 449 SPACE$ 450 SPC 451 STR$ 452 STRING$ 453 UCASE$ 454 VAL 455 MMBasic File System 456 Storage Commands and Functions 457 CHDIR 458 CLOSE (file) 459 COPY 460 CWD$ 461 DIR$ 462 DRIVE 463 EOF 464 FILES 465 INPUT # 466 INPUT$ (from file) 467 KILL 468 LINE INPUT (file) 469 MKDIR 470 MM.DRIVE$ 471 MM.ERRNO 472 NAME 473 OPEN (file) 474 OPTION ERROR 476 PRINT 477 RMDIR 478 WRITE 479 XMODEM 480 MMBasic input and output 481 Communications 482 Interrupts 483 CAN (Controller Area Network) 484 Audio and PWM Output 494 BYTE2NUM 496 CAN 497 CLOSE (serial) 500 CLOSE CONSOLE (serial) 501 I2CDIS 502 I2CEN 503 I2CRCV 504 I2CSEND 506 I2CSDIS 507 I2CSEN 508 I2CSRCV 509 I2CSSEND 510 INPUT$ (from serial) 511 LOC 512 LOF 513 MM.I2C 514 MM.OW 515 NUM2BYTE 516 OPEN (serial) 517 OPEN AS CONSOLE (serial) 518 OWCRC8 519 OWCRC16 520 OWREAD 521 OWRESET 523 OWSEARCH 524 OWWRITE 525 PEEK 526 PIN (command/function) 527 PLAYMOD 528 PLAYMOD STOP 529 POKE 530 PORT (command/function) 531 PULSE 532 PWM 533 PWM STOP 534 SETPIN 535 SOUND 536 SPI 537 TONE 538 TONE STOP 539 FAQ – Frequently Asked Questions 540 ASCII Tables 542 Index 546 Micromites and Maximites! - Beginning Maximite |
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| paceman Guru Joined: 07/10/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1329 |
Holey moley CG - that's getting to be a major tome! I think you're going to have to go to a smaller font  I like all the different projects you've written up in there; they really showcase the sorts of things that can be done.
I don't remember seeing a link to the library anywhere in it - that would be a big help for any MM 'beginners'- but I could easily have missed it! I can't see there'd be any problem at all giving a link to it from Hugh or Geoff's point of view (best to check though) but I'm not sure if you'd necessarily want it. Greg |
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| CircuitGizmos Guru Joined: 08/09/2011 Location: United StatesPosts: 1425 |
I don't point directly to the on-line library in the document, but I do point to Geoff's site where the library can be downloaded. 550 pages is a lot to print out. If I make the font smaller, I can reduce the number of pages to about 500. I keep adding to the document, though, so it will still grow. Micromites and Maximites! - Beginning Maximite |
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MicroBlocks Guru Joined: 12/05/2012 Location: ThailandPosts: 2209 |
I think splitting it in 2 pieces might be worth while. The first part is a very thorough description about the hardware and its uses. From page 220 it is a MMBasic reference that would be a good Part 2. If i would have a printed version i would prefer a split like that as i can use them independently. A smaller PDF is also faster in opening and searching. Microblocks. Build with logic. |
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James_From_Canb Senior Member  Joined: 19/06/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 265 |
I agree. I prefer a hard copy of the first part for the description and projects, and a searchable pdf for the language reference. I know I could print the first half, but I would still have to search the whole document to find something in the language section. But it's not a make-or-break issue. A great effort. Thanks. James My mind is aglow with whirling, transient nodes of thought careening through a cosmic vapor of invention. Hedley Lamarr, Blazing Saddles (1974) |
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| CircuitGizmos Guru Joined: 08/09/2011 Location: United StatesPosts: 1425 |
Loading the doc takes three seconds, searching for "playmode file" which is at the end of the doc from the very beginning is under a second. It is pretty fast for me. I use foxit for a pdf viewer. There are some format changes I'd like to make that would reduce the number of printed pages, but I don't want to get hung up on format. Micromites and Maximites! - Beginning Maximite |
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| MicroBlocks Guru Joined: 12/05/2012 Location: ThailandPosts: 2209 |
You are forgetting people who don't have a quick computer or are unable to download and open the pdf in foxit. Think iPad, chromebook, slower laptops etc. The pdf file takes about 50 seconds to download on a 1Mb adsl line and about 20 seconds to render. Then not all pdf readers are created equal and searching a document for a specific word can take as long as 20 seconds. Some even do a search after each letter typed in , pretty dumb but readers like that exist. (Chrome browser for example, one of the most used browsers i might add). Having two pages of that document open at the same time is what is done a lot in practice. I know because i see people doing it all the time. iPads or Android tablets are particular popular for having documentation while your busy on a project. In a few hackerspaces i have been and go to i see it all the time. Ignoring those uses would be a pity. Downloading the whole pdf again to use it in another window or tab wastes a lot of memory (i know not noticable on a 8GB or more 'super' computer) and slows it down even more even when it is already in cache. Microblocks. Build with logic. |
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| paceman Guru Joined: 07/10/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1329 |
Just loaded it again on my system and it took 33 secs with Adobe Reader. That's only for the first time in a session though; after that it's quick from cache. My notebook is a seven year old 1.6 GHz NEC running XP SP2. I've got other Win 7 notebooks but use this mostly because all my old "good" stuff is on it - guess I'm lazy! Searching is very fast - no problems. It's not a big deal for me though because I seldom access it. I've usually got Geoff's MMBasic Manual running in the taskbar when I'm coding. |
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bigmik Guru Joined: 20/06/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2914 |
Hi Rob, All, I thought I would try it... Adobe Reader 9... about 1- 1.5sec to load and about 2- 3 sec to search for playMOD file typo on your example Rob. This is on about a 3or4year old AMD system win7 64 bit that was CPU upgraded to 6 core phenom AM3. I do have a 120G SSD though Regards, Mick Mick's uMite Stuff can be found >>> HERE (Kindly hosted by Dontronics) <<< |
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Bill.b Senior Member Joined: 25/06/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 226 |
HI Rob well I have an eight year old pc , first of the dual core 2.1g processors and the file loaded within 1.5 seconds and serching for the PlayMOD File was on the screen just as soon as i hit the second click of the mouse. I have no complaints about the size of the document. Bill In the interests of the environment, this post has been constructed entirely from recycled electrons. |
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BobD Guru Joined: 07/12/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 935 |
Like Bill, the file loaded in about 1 to 2 seconds and the search was so quick that I couldn't time it. I am using PDF-XChange Viewer on Win 8 32 bit with standard disks and an over-clocked quad core i5 processor. It's even faster after caching from the first time. Bob |
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| paceman Guru Joined: 07/10/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1329 |
I suspect that most of the time taken for the first load is due to the AVAST anti-virus check. It rotates the little ball during the loading anyway. When I'm at the notebook and doing things it loads slowly the first time, after that it's quick, presumably loading from cache and without the AVAST check. If I've been away from the notebook for a while, maybe two hours or so and load it, then the first time it's slow again, presumably getting another check-up? Seems a bit strange that it doesn't flag it as 'previously checked'. Greg |
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| MicroBlocks Guru Joined: 12/05/2012 Location: ThailandPosts: 2209 |
On PC's a big doc is not a problem. I just tested it on an iPad2 (1Mb adsl wifi) with the standard browser. Opening (downloading) takes 45 sec. Searching for ABS( takes 20 seconds and gets 5 hits. There is not an easy way to save this document for later, so the next use i need to download it again. Scrolling through the document stalls every 5-6 pages for rendering, up or down does not matter. This prevents fast scrolling, so you will be forced to use the search. Once it is loaded, the searching and scrolling stays too slow for use. If i use the MMBasic manual from geoff, that one downloads in 3 seconds. And a search for ABS( take 3 seconds.Obviously it has less info. All this with a freshly started iPad2 with full battary and excelent wifi connection and no other programs running in the background. I am trying to point out that if you use an iPad or Android the usefullness of a pdf is directly related to its size and complexity and number of images. The current trend is that more and more PC's are being replaced with tablets. I see it with people from teenager to around 25-30. They almost exclusively use a mobile device. On my Asus eee laptop it is just fast enough to not disturb the flow of work. Again on my PC i have no problem whatsoever with the size and speed, but why not choose a solution that will make all those users of iPads and other tablets happy. An online HTML version would be another option, with an index it will probably be the easiest to work with. Microblocks. Build with logic. |
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| CircuitGizmos Guru Joined: 08/09/2011 Location: United StatesPosts: 1425 |
(Good on you, Mick. I didn't catch the typo when I typed it here.) You can see that it would be hard for me to ever perceive that there would be any type of load/search issue if the issue doesn't affect me. Based on the feedback here it is only an issue in minor cases. I will still see what I can do to make the total document size smaller, however. Micromites and Maximites! - Beginning Maximite |
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| MicroBlocks Guru Joined: 12/05/2012 Location: ThailandPosts: 2209 |
I have installed iBooks. Made sure the PDF is stored on the iPad itself. Opening is quick, about 2-3 seconds. Searching however is still extremely slow. About 25 seconds for ABS( Scrolling through pages goes quick. Bookmarking important pages will allow quick jumps, minimizing the need for searches. I have page 6 as a bookmark which allows me to use the index to jump to the right place. In short. iBook makes it workable. A good reader is the most important. Someone knows a good one on an Android tablet? Microblocks. Build with logic. |
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| JohnS Guru Joined: 18/11/2011 Location: United KingdomPosts: 3802 |
There are free tools to split PDFs. Does it split OK with any of them? Would a PDf-to-html converter make it better for tablets? John |
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