Post by thread:What about RICE17A Emulator ??

At 01:52 PM 3/3/99 +0100, you wrote: >Hi there, > >I am looking for a PIC emulator to emulate 16c76's in circuit. > >Any suggestions, bad experiences, very good ones ... about the RICE17A >PIC Emulator from Advanced Transdata Corporation ? > >if interested, info can be found on http://www.adv-transdata.com I would recommend the Tech-Tools Mathias unit very highly over the Rice system. I've used both, and the Rice is very difficult. The Mathias is much more flexible and tech suupport is fantastic. Better IDE, too. See it at http://www.tech-tools.com Andy \-----------------/ \ /---\ / \ | | / Andy Kunz \ /---\ / Montana Design /---------+ +---------\ http://www.montanadesign.com | / |----|___|----| \ | \/___| * |___\/ Go fast, turn right, and keep the wet side down!

As a contractor, with 24 years experience, I've used them all, on various customer sites. Last year I bought a RICE17A for my office, (replacing a collection of old Clearview's and an early Manthis), and I've been very happy with the upgrade. Although I'm an assembler, type of guy, I've used the RICE17A with customer code written in C and even used it with a project written in Pic Basic Pro, (customer's request of language). I found the latest versions of their IDE, easy to use, and pretty solid. I needed a 17C752 pod for a 'high power' sound engine project. They had the pod in stock, and the fairly complex project completed without a hitch. But..... my direct dealings with the company have been less than great. They may 'try' at customer support, but I cringe at the thought of making a phone call to them. I always go to their Web page first.... :-} DennisB Bart Stofferis wrote: {Quote hidden}> > Hi there, > > I am looking for a PIC emulator to emulate 16c76's in circuit. > > Any suggestions, bad experiences, very good ones ... about the RICE17A > PIC Emulator from Advanced Transdata Corporation ? > > if interested, info can be found on http://www.adv-transdata.com > > Kind regards, > > Bart, on6hf

>but I cringe at the thought of making a phone call to them. >I always go to their Web page first.... :-} Ah, Horro? Dis Chen. Har I can herp you? It wasn't my idea of fun either. The complaint I had was that the thing was so enclosed and I'm constantly changing projects (I have two Mathias units running almost constantly) and it was such a pain to change crystal, pods, etc. The internal PLL and easy pod swap, plus a decent IDE, make the Mathias a no-brain decision for me. Plus they speak Texan instead of Asian. Andy \-----------------/ \ /---\ / \ | | / Andy Kunz \ /---\ / Montana Design /---------+ +---------\ http://www.montanadesign.com | / |----|___|----| \ | \/___| * |___\/ Go fast, turn right, and keep the wet side down!

I like the fact that the RICE device is enclosed, because it's robust. They should make the cover removable without tools, but it's the right idea. While it is important to make the emulator easy to confure for different processors, I'd say the way the Mathias does it is NOT the right one. I don't like boards sticking up and boards sticking out, and the type of connectors used are NOT designed for easy or repeated insertions. The design is very amateurish, kind of like a first prototype. I'm sure the only reason the new owners don't change it is because it would cost too much. The fact that they needed to put insulating material on the bottom of the boards so they don't short on your work surface is a big red flag. And while it's nice that the IDE is simple, it also is very amateurish. It bugs me that compiling with PCM takes 5-10 times longer through it than through MPLAB or the RICE IDE. The RICE system has its share of IDE bugs and difficulties too. And yes, I think that they would benefit from hiring a native english speaking technical writer to generate extensive documentation. But I also think the childish ridiculing of the accent was uncalled for. When I've spoken to them on the phone, they've been clearly Asian, but have always tried hard to solve my problem. However, I'm NOT recommending that device, just adding more information. Personally, I'd like a device which uses MPLAB as it's IDE. I use it to write code, simulate code, and program parts; I'd also like to use it to emulate. Noticed Microchip is putting their emulators on sale (impending product dump?). Any opinions on them? Bruce Cannon Style Management Systems spam_OUTbcannonTakeThisOuTjps.net http://www.jps.net/bcannon (510) 787-6870 1228 Ceres ST Crockett CA 94525 Remember: electronics is changing your world...for good! > {Original Message removed}