...... C compiler. Which did you use ?. ................
Dave (BC)
FWIW I've had to use a variety of C compilers - I use C and C++ for PCs, and Paradigm C++ for embedded x86 (TERN) boards. When we started using PICs (app 2004) I bought the IDE from
Forest Electronics (Fored) as, at that time, it seemed to offer the best value combination for dipping our toes into the PIC world.
The Fored "Wiz-C" system (IIRC, originally branded "PIC-C" / "Pixie" but changed possibly due to copyright issues) has an IDE with an ANSI compiler, a text editor (albeit with some quirky keystrokes), a graphical building blocks editor where you drag & drop elements (which I don't use), in-circuit debugging, and, most importantly for us, a simulator. Whilst there is no native version control system, I use the same Subversion/Tortoise which I use across other development toolsets as well.
The Fored system has done OK for us, once I got used to it; the code it produces is good, tight and reliable; and we have developed a number of systems which both I and my clients are happy with.
Fored do provide updates and bug fixes (although the Yahoo group can be a quicker resource); but the biggest problem for Fored, as a small development outfit, seems to be keeping up with the perenially evolving PIC family (both in terms of processor definitions and also adding new support libraries) - this may not be an issue in a hobby environment but can be in a commercial one.
Was it the right thing to buy in 2004? yes, even in hindsight, I still think so.
Would I buy it again now if I was starting over again with relatively little PIC experience? quite possibly.
Would I buy Fored now for serious, open-ended commercial development? knowing what I do now, almost certainly not.
Am I going to stick with Fored? .... that's a harder question. We have a certain investment in Fored, something in capital terms but far more in terms of time and developed code. However, since starting with Fored, we have also built up a significant Proteus ISIS/ARES system. We already use the Proteus mixed-signal simulation - but Proteus also have MPLAB integration and a PIC simulator. If, for example, we move to using dsPIC (which is not supported by Fored) we will have to move to a new IDE and compiler, and in fact last winter I started a low-priority project to assess the implications of migrating to either Microchip's own, or HiTech C compiler.
Dave (IOM)