Looking for controller build hints..

[KA4HJH]

>The HC11 is being phased out, with a supposed direct replacement in the
>HC12.  However, the better development tools are still fairly expensive for
>either of them.

If you have a pre-assembled board (well under $100) and you're 
willing to work in assembler, there are NO development tools to buy. 
All you need is a serial cable and a freeware assembler (and a text 
editor). From the variety available I'd say that the HC11 is very 
much alive, although HC12 prices are dropping into the DIY range.

>Unless you're certain that you need some capability of the HC11 (like the
>ability for the ADC to run free across 4 inputs automatically), there are
>several other controllers worth a look, including the Atmel AVR, Microchip
>PIC and BasicStamp.

For this application (160 pots) I suspect the AVR is the best choice 
out of this group, as I mentioned earlier. The PIC16F8x is very 
attractive (<$6) but I'm not sure I tackle this one with it. Fewer 
pots, yeah.

Terry Bowman, KA4HJH
"The Mac Doctor"

ICQ: 45652354