Hi, new user here :-)

[rog77]

I thought I would stop by and say hello before I start asking my inane questions...

My background is in IT/Networks, with a smattering of scripting.

I've been acquiring bits of electronic parts for a short while, but never found the time to get into it properly, but now for obvious reasons I seem to spend a lot more time in the house, and feel that trying to upskill would be a better use of my time than netflix.

I am interested in learning about MCU, FPGA and embedded programming.

My ambition is to one day build a cheap open source device that has some utility that a few people might actually buy, not because I think it will make me rich, rather if someone parts with cash it means to me that they felt the idea had merit.

It looks like you have a great forum here, and I hope to get involved once I have something useful to contribute.

Wish me luck!

Thanks for reading.

[steviefaux]

My ambition is to one day build a cheap open source device that has some utility that a few people might actually buy, not because I think it will make me rich, rather if someone parts with cash it means to me that they felt the idea had merit.

Hello. Best ideas are the ones where you have an issue and create something to get round that.

My amazing idea in the 80s was as a kid "That bag outside slides nice on the snow. Maybe you could put a board or something similar down. Hold it with string and slide. Like the board of a skateboard".

I'd invented the snowboard. Unfortunately I didn't realise it already existed

[rog77]

Thanks for the advice :-)

What I would like to work on is dirt cheap, but useful, terminals, that aren't Raspberry Pi's.

Yesterday was day one, and so far it's not exactly off to a flying start... Trying to get HDMI out of a Gowin FPGA, but I suspect my messy breadboard wiring isn't helping. Once I have had another go, I will start a thread with photos and screenshots asking for advice.

I suspect my other half is bored of me holding things up and comparing them to the computers used to put people on the moon, or what I had on my desk in the 90's... Hence my being here hoping to find interesting folk to talk to.


I am looking for advice, but not for someone to do all the work for me, where would be the fun in that?

[MosherIV]

Hi

Welcome to the forum.

If you want to get into microcontrollers and embedded programming, I recommend you start with Arduino.
They are ready built micro controller baords. Very simple to start with and easy. Lots of examples out there.
Once you get the hang of using the built in libraries, start to write your own library function.
Your goal is to get to the point where you write your own driver for the peripherals eg the ADC.

Once you can write peripheral drivers, you are ready to graduate to 32bit micros like ARM Cortec M. The STM32 are pretty cheap for dev boards.