First PIC course well-attended

The first Microchip PIC course held at South Africa's National Amateur Radio Centre last weekend was well attended by an enthusiastic group.

A number of lessons have been learnt from this first event which will be implemented in future courses.

It turned out to be impractical to have every one bring their own PC, mainly because just about every PC is formatted differently. This resulted in a lot of time being consumed before the actual course could begin.

Changes have been made so that the 4 hours allocated can be used more efficiently. These changes will overcome some of the problems experienced, such as badly organised PCs and finger trouble which erodes the amount of time spent on the actual work.

In future, participants will not be required to bring their computers. All the relevant click by click instructions will be printed and given to each participant.

The learning board supplied at the course will not be reprogrammed at the course but will contain all the firmware on board for the lecture. Reprogramming will be done by each participant in his own time.

The course fee is R200. However if your PC doesn't have a serial port, it is essential to order a USB programmer at a cost of R235.

At the end of the course participants receive a Microchip certificate of attendance as well as a choice of 2 projects printed circuit boards. Visit www.sarl.org.za, click on activities, select RTA and follow the link for a description of the projects.

The next course will be in Port Elizabeth on 16 December 2008. Dates and arrangements for Cape Town and Durban will be announced as soon as the local clubs have finalised the arrangements.

Source: The South African Radio League