SPIN ZONE
add-on for the Propeller platform that
includes the ‘165 and two encoders.
These components don’t take much
space so I filled the rest with pads to
place other components. Figure 4
show the board attached to my
original Propeller platform. Figure 5
shows the output of a simple demo
using the Parallax Serial Terminal
through the programming
connection.
PROPBASIC FOLLOW-UP
Wow, the response to
PropBASIC was really amazing. To be
honest, I was a little surprised, but
then I really shouldn’t be, should I?
Those of us with Parallax experience
have a lot of time with BASIC and
this new tool made moving to the
Propeller easier for some PBASIC and
SX/B users.
Of course, things got even better
when Brad Campbell (an Australian
Propeller programmer and very nice
guy), integrated the PropBASIC
compiler into his BST (Brad’s Spin
Tool) IDE. What does this mean?
Well, if you looked past the Propeller
to something like, say, the Arduino
because of the availability of a cross-platform development tool, well ...
time to drop the single-core
processor and move on up to the
multi-core Propeller. With BST, you
can program the Propeller in Spin,
PASM, or PropBASIC, on nearly any
Windows, Mac, or Linux PC. Now,
that’s cool!
The easiest way to get the BST
IDE and PropBASIC compiler files
you need is through links at
www.propbasic.com.
Before I close, let me correct a
small error in my last column. When
an IDE like the Propeller Tool or BST
is downloading to the Propeller, it is
the Propeller – not the IDE as I
misstated – that makes the adjustment
for baud rate. This makes better sense;
typically, the receiver does the “auto
baud” detection and configuration. I
apologize for any confusion.
Okay, then. Until next time – on
a PC, a Mac, or Linux box – have fun
and keep spinning and winning with
the Propeller. NV
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May 2010 19
