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Written by Rick Swenton
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Sunday, 03 May 2009 18:48 |
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I got bitten by the bug again. Over 16 years ago I developed a microprocessor system to control my Ham Radio repeater. I have not really done much hardware or software development since then. Things sure have changed. I obtained a Parallax Propeller development board to start learning more about this fascinating chip. [I am not affiliated with Parallax. Any views or opinions presented here are my own, including my excitement.]  [From the Parallax Web Site:] The Propeller chip makes it easy to rapidly develop embedded applications. Its eight processors (cogs) can operate simultaneously, either independently or cooperatively, sharing common resources through a central hub. The developer has full control over how and when each cog is employed; there is no compiler-driven or operating system-driven splitting of tasks among multiple cogs. A shared system clock keeps each cog on the same time reference, allowing for true deterministic timing and synchronization. Two programming languages are available: the easy-to-learn high-level Spin, and Propeller Assembly which can execute at up to 160 MIPS (20 MIPS per cog).  The development board is on the right. Just plug in a 9V power supply and a USB mini cable. Download the free Propeller Tool Software and you will be sending demo programs to the onboard EEPROM over USB in no time. The Propeller Tool Software is a full-featured Integrated Development Environment (IDE) that consists of an editor, complier/assembler and USB and serial downloader. Parallax also provides a terminal program so you can interact with the Propeller in real time through a console window. The Propeller Object Exchange contains many source code objects for the Propeller microcontroller. They are created and submitted by Propeller customers as well as Parallax engineers for use by everyone in the community. The object-based high-level Spin language is easy to learn, with special commands that allow developers to quickly exploit the Propeller chip’s unique and powerful features. Propeller Assembly instructions provide conditional execution and optional flag and result writing for each individual instruction. This makes critical, multi-decision blocks of code more consistently timed; event handlers are less prone to jitter and developers spend less time padding, or squeezing, cycles. This is a view of the Parallax 32812 Propeller Proto Board USB. Notice the 15-Pin VGA connector in the upper right. Below it (not seen) is a PS2 Keyboard connector and a PS2 mouse connector. After firing up the Propeller Tool Software I had graphics and text being displayed from some of the demo programs in a matter of minutes. I wanted to try my hand at lighting some LEDs. I soldered a 16 pin DIP socket in line with 8 I/O pins so I could bring a ribbon cable out to the proto board below. Here on the right side of the board I installed a ten segment DIP led display with eight dropping resistors. I had those LEDs blinking on command in no time. I plan to write more about this as I have some time to become familiar with this exciting device. My hope is to develop some useful home automation applications that will include remote monitoring over the Internet. |
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Last Updated on Sunday, 03 May 2009 20:07 |
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Written by Rick Swenton
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Saturday, 30 August 2008 17:24 |
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For the man who has everything. It's been sold out for some time now. At $495.00 it seems to be a real bargain.
Source Page 1
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Last Updated on Thursday, 02 July 2009 11:19 |
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Written by Rick Swenton
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Thursday, 12 October 2006 05:00 |
For the unfamiliar, Big Mouth Billy Bass is an animatronic toy in the form of a mounted fish. When stimulated by a button press or proximity of a human, the fish comes to life, singing and wiggling to one of two preprogrammed tunes.
The secret of Billy’s success is his behavior—certainly not his appearance nor singing ability! The essence or personality of the toy resides in a small CMOS chip, no larger than a fingernail. By replacing that preprogrammed chip with a Linux-based computer or a fully programmable embedded controller, perhaps we can create a Billy whose novelty never wears. Click Here for a cool video of Billy Bass does Bill Clinton. Click Here to go to the web site.
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Last Updated on Saturday, 10 November 2007 13:29 |
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Induction Golf Ball Launcher |
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Written by Rick Swenton
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Saturday, 15 November 2008 21:17 |
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 My friend, Paul Cianciolo, created this masterpiece. This is the "PILE." Portable Induction Launching Equipment. To date, the best time of flight of the golf ball is 9.5 seconds. Greater range testing is pending access to a larger firing range. The link to the full article is here. Paul also operates Rescue Electronics Surplus. Check out his site for hard to find parts! |
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Written by Rick Swenton
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Saturday, 03 November 2007 00:15 |
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Welcome to Swenton.COM.We are not a business. We do not sell any product or service. We're in this only for the pure fun of it. In addition to Swenton.COM we also host and administer some church and school related sites. Enjoy your visit! 
Here's an areal view of Swenton.COM circa 2002. We don't have all those analog monitors anymore! |
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Last Updated on Sunday, 03 May 2009 20:10 |
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Written by Rick Swenton
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Saturday, 30 August 2008 17:50 |
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This is a very cool clock display program for your PC. Go to Scott's SB-Software web site to download. 
Also, from the Klingon Imperial Diplomatic Corps (http://www.klingon.org) comes Klingon Clock 2.0 Be the first Trekker in your solar system with your own Klingon-language talking clock... proclaimed throughout the known universe as "the toughest clock in the galaxy!" This 16-bit application runs under MS Windows (3x, 9x, ME, NT, 2000 or higher) and requires a sound card. The clock shows local time in Klingon - both converting to Klingon digits, and reading the time. If this was English speaking instead of Klingon it would say something like, "Four AM and thirty three minuites."
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Last Updated on Friday, 12 September 2008 14:49 |
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Written by Rick Swenton
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Saturday, 30 August 2008 18:43 |
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Hack a Day serves up a fresh hack each day, every day from around the web and a special how-to hack each week. |
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Written by Rick Swenton
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Saturday, 27 October 2007 19:34 |
 When my daughter was little, she tried to stick a penny into a wall outlet. Whoever said a penny doesn't go far should have seen her shoot across that floor. I told her she was grounded. |
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Last Updated on Monday, 28 July 2008 15:23 |
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