Using more than one development board at one time.

[HowardJ]

Sometimes, I use two development boards at the one time. In my case, two EASYPIC7s.
The reason is when I am developing a project that uses communication (SPI) between two PICs.
Each PIC has it's own functions, and, for example, the Master could use information it gets from the slave, and do something with it.
At present, I just swap between two projects in MicroC Pro. It's not too bad. Just close one and re-open the second from the recent files list.
I also use two USB lines from my PC, - one to each Board - and both can be online.
However, which USB is connected to which Board is random. (Maybe not random as such, but it's not predictable.)
My solution is to power off the board I am not programming to.
Further thoughts.
There is a USB tab on the MikroProg suite screen, each USB is selectable, but it doesn't indicate which USB is connected to which board.
When the mE programmer is selected from the Icon in the Editor, it immediately starts programming the PIC, but if both Boards are powered, the wrong board can be programmed with the wrong program.
The solution? I'm not sure, or even if there is a solution.
Perhaps some indent for each board, and a corresponding ident for each USB?
It's not a disaster, but can be a convenience thing, especially if one forgets, and the wrong PIC is programmed with the wrong program, and has to be rectified.

[jovana.medakovic]

Hello,

If you connect both boards, you can open mikroProg Suite -> Show device and there you can choose the board which you want to program.
When you choose one board blue led diode (DATA) on that board will blink.

Kind regards,
Jovana

[HowardJ]

Yes, but when you select the Suite, it immediately starts programming!
You can select either USB, but only after the programming has stopped.
IF, it was the wrong board, then bad luck.
Once the first auto programming has occurred, and the Suite window is still open, you could pick a USB.
But, the Suite window closes whenever another window, such as Library Manager, is opened. The suite window disappears!
The only way I know to get it back, is to restart the suite (Tools/ mE Programmer, or Icon) and, of course, it immediately starts programming the (possibly) wrong board again.
There is a window to open, with Tools/ MikroProg Power Options.
The first window to open is the USB window, and a USB can be selected. However, the Blue indicator LED does not work here! As well, it's followed by the actual power window, which has to be closed.
Possible solutions are messy, if indeed this is a problem that other users experience.
1. Park the Suite window to one side, such as Library Manager can be. However, when opening a different Project, the suite would need to be loaded with the current code.
2. Remove the auto programming mode. USB could be selected, and Programming start would be with the Write button.
Users of a single Development Board - and I can be one - would find this tedious. So, the solution is an Option in Options. Auto Programming or not.
I don't know just how difficult and time consuming such an Option would be.
I also may be a lone voice in the wilderness. so, I intend to ask the question in forums, and see what the response - if any - is. If significant users sue two boards at once, then perhaps mE can decide if the effort is worth it.

[jovana.medakovic]

Hi,

What exactly do you mean by auto programming mode? I cannot reproduce it.
When I power on two EasyPIC v7 development boards, I run mikroProg Suite, go to USB -> Show devices and there I can select which board I want to program (blue led diode start blinking). After selecting the board, I need to press Write button in the suite or go to Build -> Build + Program from the compiler. Then, if I want to program another board, again run mikroProg Suite -> USB -> Show device and select another board (using Blue led diode) and program it using Write button or compiler.

Kind regards,
Jovana

[HowardJ]

Hmmm.... OK.
One way.
Click Tools
click mE Programmer
MikroProg Suite starts, and immediately loads the program and writes to the PIC.
Second way.
Click Build Icon (on menu bar)
click Program ( on menu bar)
MikroProg Suite starts, and immediately loads the program and writes to the PIC.
This is what I mean by "Auto programming." It automatically programs the PIC when the suite is started from the Editor.
I can, after the programmer has started and finished programming the PIC, select USB, but not before.
When the Suite starts, the USB tab is greyed out, and I cannot access it until the suite stops writing.
I cannot start the Suite, without it starting to write to the PIC immediately.
IF both development boards are powered, the Board that was used last is the one that begins to write.
I have looked everywhere on the Editor options and toolbars, and cannot find anything that controls the Suite, other than start it.
I do not see how you start the Suite, which then waits for another instruction - USB, load, write etc.
Unless you do not start the suite from the Editor windows?
After some work, I have found that starting the Suite from the Tab on the Start line, does do more or less as you say.
However, which program is loaded? Is it the last one that was built, or do I have to go through the file tree, find the program, select it and write it?
My workaround is to power up the board I want to write to, and power down the other board.

[jovana.medakovic]

Hi,

You can run Suite using the icon from the desktop, go to USB -> Show device and choose the development board. After choosing the board, you can click Build and Program (on the menu bar) from the compiler.
Only in this way you can choose which development board you want to program. Unfortunately, you cannot do it through the compiler.

Kind regards,
Jovana

[HowardJ]

OK, so we agree that, from the compiler, Suite writes automatically?
I would suggest that, this be corrected in some way.
On launch from the compiler, Suite loads, but does not write, but requires the Write tab.
As this will be inconvenient when only one development board is in use. I suggest it is made an option.
OR...
The Suite window is able to be hidden to one side, as are other windows, Library Manager, Project Settings etc.
Suite seems to be a program separate from the compiler. It appears as separate in the list of Programs available in the PC.
Still, mE seems able to adequately interact between the two now, as loading and writing can be done with one click on a menu bar icon.
Therefor, perhaps my suggestion would not require all that much work?

I might add that my quest for others who use two boards at once, yielded the magnificent response number of zero.
It might well be that there are two such users - you and myself - so I guess it is a low priority.

Thank You

[jovana.medakovic]

Hello,

Thank you for your suggestion.
I will forward it to our developer team, so they keep it in mind.

Kind regards,
Jovana