Compilers, Assemblers, Debuggers Oh My

I've been spending time reviewing what development tools exist for the PIC microcontroller line. It's overwhelming.

There is the free Microchip PIC Assembler. I want to re-introduce myself to assembly language programming. I know some who believe wanting to program in assembly is masochistic in the extreme. It can be painful, yet you gain a deep understanding of what's exactly going on inside the CPU.

I may sound like a grumpy old man, but the majority of today's programmers have never used an assembler or even reviewed the op-codes for the CPU's they use. Of those I know, most have no interest either. To them the computer is just a "virtual" object that executes their code. This attitude certainly contributes to the abundance of bloatware in the software industry. Why optimize code for size or speed when there are always bigger harddrives, larger RAM chips and faster CPUs? Besides the code as to be out the door yesterday so there's no time...

Sorry, just pining nostalgicially for past jobs as a grunt programmer. :)

Back to tools. There are a number of C compilers, BASIC compilers and even a Pascal compiler. I want to avoid BASIC if possible. I worked for six years using a version of BASIC that was years ahead of it's time back in the mid-1980's. I know when done right BASIC can do good things. Yet it does separate you from the hardware, as would Pascal.

Assembly is intense, and remains an option. The C compilers look the most interesting. I never liked C when I wrote business applications. I can't understand why it was once such a popular tool for high-level applications. I've always seen C as a glorified Assembler with great data structures. Which is great when working in an environment with limited resources or you need to twiddle bits, but lousy for a business app.

There are several C compilers from various vendors. Microchip offers a free version of their C compiler, targeted for the PIC18 series, with the limitation of a 12K code size. I don't know if I'll be using a PIC18, but the compiler availability makes it attractive.

Also I need a development board for the PIC line. Microchip offers a basic development board for around $50US. I've read it's the most popular tool used. However I discovered another development board that supports a very wide range of PIC controllers and had some wonderful bells and whistles. It's offered by MikroElektronika based in Belgrade. Their EasyPIC 3 Development System is a little more than twice the price of the basic Microchip board, with a lot more features.

Before I buy I'll checkout some newsgroups and websites. Unless I hear very bad things about the company I suspect this will be my choice. If you buy the development board from them they offer a discount on any of their related compilers. I'll keep you informed.