Maximite!

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Grogster

Senior Member
An excellent little toy, but NO SERIAL, SPI or I2C ports... :(

Well, tecnically there are, but the SPI port is used for SD card control, and the other ports are general I/O pins.

I probably would have bought one - the price is right(about NZ$100 for a kit with the MCU already fixed to the PCB), but with no serial or I2C, that limits what it can do, IMHO...

The built-in SD FAT filesystem support a-la Q-BASIC derivitive is a very nice touch, and makes reading and writing FAT filesystem files a breeze.

The fella who designed this thing did tell me that serial is on a planed firmware update, but not for several months.
 
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inglewoodpete

Senior Member
The bare PIC32, mounted on a 0.1" grid breakout board makes a very powerful and flexible microcontroller development platform. The 64 (48 I/O) or 100 (78 I/O) pin versions of the PIC32 (32-bit core) have 512kB Flash and 128kB RAM on board. With a PICkit 3 programmer you could be up and running for under $A100.
 
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rbright

Member
Pixaxe as serial interface

Nice bit of kit BUT no serial at this stage. No stock available of the kit in Perth until mid this month but I've been toying with the idea of using the digital I/O as a external register into a Picaxe then the Picaxe does all of the serial and the MaxiMite just does R/W to the register. Sound practical???
 
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inglewoodpete

Senior Member
rbright said:
Nice bit of kit BUT no serial at this stage. No stock available of the kit in Perth until mid this month but I've been toying with the idea of using the digital I/O as a external register into a Picaxe then the Picaxe does all of the serial and the MaxiMite just does R/W to the register. Sound practical???
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Sounds do-able, 8-bits plus a couple of handshake lines.
 
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Grogster

Senior Member
The PICAXE interface to serial thing sounds like an interesting idea, but personally, I would just wait until a new firmware comes out with serial support - it is on the agenda, but the author could not say exactly when that would be.

Odd, very odd in fact.
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Yes, I thought so too.
As the PIC32 comes in 64 and 100 TQFP packages, I would have thought he would have used the 100-pin package, which probably would have given the extra pins needed for native serial and I2C plus maybe even an extra SPI port.

Perhaps one of the most useful aspects of any MCU is serial in and out, weather that be 8N1 serial, I2C serial or SPI - without it, you can't interface to a lot of things which use serial, and RF data modules are also out of the equation! :D

However, I guess you have to produce a thing which appeals to the majority first, and it has to be noted that serial is on the plan of attack for sometime soon-ish, although he did tell me it would have to be via bit-banging/bit-bashing methods as the serial ports are already in use for other things.
 
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rbright

Member
Serial capability

To quote from an email from the designer:
"Sorry, no serial i/o. You could implement a slow serial interface using bit bashing but I did not put it into the firmware (I had to draw the line somewhere).
Implementing serial is on the ToDo list but it will not be very fast (perhaps 9600 tops). This is because there are no more serial peripherals left on the PIC32 so it will have to be done by bit bashing in C." end quote

What I expect could be an option would go back to earlier techniology and use a UART chip that you will find on original IBM clone PCs which should do all of the interfacing on a miniboard plugged into the rear of the MaxiMite then copy the old code examples around in Z80 / 6800 code to make it all work but by the time you go through that it may be just a quick to do it all on a picaxe. Something for the "one day" list
 
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Grogster

Senior Member
Don't get me wrong - I think the Maximite is a brilliant little concept, and amazing the memory and clock speed of the thing considdering it's tiny IC size! :eek:

But yes - PICAXE already has serial ability, and for me, this is a "Must have", as just about everything I do needs to talk to something serially. :)

...but those are just MY requirements...
 
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donmck

New Member
The new boards with the Arduino Shields are called "DuinoMite", and the new firmware is now being finalized.

see: http://www.themaximitecomputer.com/duinomite-a-maximite-compatible-from-olimex/

Maximite now already has serial I/O and I2C, and the new boards will have 2 UARTS, as well as USB-OTG, CAN, and many other features.

Many users now have PICAXE interfaced to Maximite, as it appears to be a nice bridge to many applications.

Cheers Don...
 
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manuka

Senior Member
Maximite is Highly Explosive. The others are just Microcomputers.
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Mmm-I see this developing into word play! Back at the "Maximite/Marmite" comment -for those not in the Australian/NZ region,us down under types are raised (& have a near love affair) with a yeast extract based savoury spread called Vegemite.
 
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MFB

Senior Member
Thanks for the update Don. Sounds like the latest version of the Maximite should be able to use PICAXE chips as distributed interfaces via the I2C bus. Leaving these devies to deal with real-time tasks, whilst the Maximite does floating point maths and graphics, opens up all sorts of possibilities for intelligent instruments etc.

Only problem I can see at the moment is that the Maximite is an immature system (compared with the likes of the Arduino and PICAXE) and it needs quite a bit of effort to find out how it's development is progressing. However, I am sure it will soon grow into a very successful product.
 
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MFB

Senior Member
Please could Don or anyone else tell me if there is a home page for the Maximite project that succinctly covers the latest developments. I have tried a few related sites but its difficult to find information on, for example, the addition of the PICAXE friendly I2C feature.
 
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MFB

Senior Member
Thanks, just what I was looking for. Good documentation on the new I2C, SPI and serial ports.
 
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John West

Senior Member
Ah, a modern version of the Commodore-64, but without memory. Interesting. But I already have several C-64's I don't use.

I'll stick to micro-controllers, or just move on up to a netbook if I need more ummph. The netbook is worth the extra bucks to get more speed, a sophisticated OS and built-in display, and memory, and wireless link. TTo me, the Maximite seems like a product whose time came and went about 30 years ago.
 
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donmck

New Member
John West said:
Ah, a modern version of the Commodore-64, but without memory. Interesting. But I already have several C-64's I don't use.

I'll stick to micro-controllers, or just move on up to a netbook if I need more ummph. The netbook is worth the extra bucks to get more speed, a sophisticated OS and built-in display, and memory, and wireless link. TTo me, the Maximite seems like a product whose time came and went about 30 years ago.
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Maximite is not only a computer system, it is also a stand alone Micro-controller system that uses the BASIC language.

The new DuinoMite standard version:
http://www.dontronics-shop.com/olimex-duinomite.html

Costs around $33USD, is 33% smaller than a credit card, (64mm x 50mm) and has Arduino shield capability.

Compared to the C64, the clock speed it 80 times, and the CPU bus width is 4 times, so the PIC32 really screams along.

The whole project is open source, so you can build your own boards, and rewrite the source if you wish to.
This makes it an evolving ongoing project. The language is being updated by the original author Geoff Graham, and the forum users, on an almost daily basis.

Picaxe is a micro-controller programmed in basic, and so is the Maximite. I feel they will complement each other.

such as:
http://codenquilts.com.au/?page_id=231


Cheers Don...
 
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MFB

Senior Member
Couldn't have put it better myself Don. I think that comparing an open source project like the Maximite with the Commodate-64 and thinking that its "time came and went 30 years ago" shows a distinct lack of imagination. Its a bit like saying that the PICAXE is no better than the old 8051 that had an onboard Basic interpreter.
 
hippy

hippy

Technical Support
Staff member
donmck said:
Picaxe is a micro-controller programmed in basic, and so is the Maximite. I feel they will complement each other.
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It's an interesting product but ( to everyone ) let's not step over that fine line between can be used with to suggesting, even if not overtly stated, is better than or should be used instead of, or using the potential of integration as simply an enabler to advertise, promote or sell non Rev-Ed product which breaches forum policy.
 
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MFB

Senior Member
Point taken hippy. I think that Rev-Ed have been very tolerant about this and Arduino related threads. Thanks.
 
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John West

Senior Member
MFB said:
Couldn't have put it better myself Don. I think that comparing an open source project like the Maximite with the Commodate-64 and thinking that its "time came and went 30 years ago" shows a distinct lack of imagination. Its a bit like saying that the PICAXE is no better than the old 8051 that had an onboard Basic interpreter.
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I think I have a pretty good imagination, yet I have limited time to invest in possibilities that are "only limited by my imagination." The PICAXE series of chips already has all of the features and does everything I need done, short of the capacities of a netbook, and for just a few dollars all told. I believe I'll stand by my comments.
 
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donmck

New Member
hippy said:
It's an interesting product but ( to everyone ) let's not step over that fine line between can be used with to suggesting, even if not overtly stated, is better than or should be used instead of, or using the potential of integration as simply an enabler to advertise, promote or sell non Rev-Ed product which breaches forum policy.
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True, thanks Hippy.

I'll drop off at this point and if the lads have questions, they know where to come.

BTW
When Bob Nicol of Microzed Australia passed away, Stan Swan asked me if I wanted to take on Picaxe. I told him no, as I was starting to get long in the tooth, and saw that amount of work Bob needed to put into magazine projects to promote Picaxe in Australia, and considering the few dollars these devices sold for, I deemed it too difficult for the return. Nice to see Picaxe still going strong.

BTW2
I had a Pickaxe product years before this current one evolved. (circa 1994-5) Different spelling. Here is the remains of a very old page:
http://www.dontronics.com/pickaxe.html

Cheers Don...
 
Buzby

Buzby

Senior Member
@Pumper

Can you program in flowchart ?. Does it do SPI, Serial, Unio, 1-wire, IR in and out, FORWARD, Servo, Pause, Wait, etc - all without any code libraries ?. Can an 8 year old understand it ? Can you brick it, then recover at the push of a button ?. Has it got a very helpful support form ?. Is it a staple element of many school curricular ?

It is ridiculous to compare two systems, unless the two systems are aimed at the same market.

Which is better, a Ferrari race car or a John Deere Tractor ?. John Deere don't say their tractors will do 250kph, but lots of farmers still buy them. I've not seen many Ferraris spraying 3 tonnes of pig muck over a field.

If I wanted to build a project that needed VGA and 'proper' maths I would not choose PICAXE, but that is no reason to knock PICAXE.

The Marmite is what is is, and the PICAXE is something different. Not better, not worse, it's different. ( Wasn't that Steve Job's saying - Think different ? )
 
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MPep

Senior Member
@Everybody,

Just remember folks that this is a PICAXE forum.
The original poster only pointed Maximite out for other's interest.

At the time interfacing capabilities were limited, but the system is new, and therefore more features are being added, and indeed now have been.

They are for different markets, functions etc. They can, and do, complement each other where needed. As Buzby, mentions they are different, that's it. Great analogy of the John Deere vs Ferrari. :)

MPep
 
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boriz

Senior Member
I'm in love.

I missed this topic the first time around. First time I've seen Maximite. Looks great. Especially like the retro-programming. Now I'm off to look for small screens and keyboards.
 
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MFB

Senior Member
The situation just seems to be getting worse! At least we will never have these open source 'issues' with the PICAXE.

Could the Maximite benefit from the Arduino example? This rather boring (compared to a 32-bit PIC) hardware has become very useful and popular due to the efforts of a very active open source community.
 
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Grogster

Senior Member
Just a quick post after reading my way through this.

I have a Maximite SM1(all surface-mount and pre-assembled), and as you all know, also use PICAXE on an almost daily basis. :D

The Maximite is cute and has potential, but the PICAXE is still my weapon of choice. Maximite is a very clever little thing, but perhaps the open-source aspect is coming back around to bite the product... ;)

There are certain advantages of a closed-source system such as PICAXE, the most obvious probably being stable code development, as every guy and his dog are NOT contributing code to the source and creating a bit of a bloat problem.

...not that I am trying to rain on open-source - I'm not.
 
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Grogster

Senior Member
Well, I have to look at the colour one.
This has the potential to be the main processor of a project, driving a colour screen, with PICAXE based peripherals doing other things.
 
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MFB

Senior Member
The open source issues seem to have been resolved and the firmware is stabilizing. The hardware platform is diversifying and now offers a choice that includes a basic chip on a breakout board to a single-chip colour microcomputer in a box with VGA, keyboard and SD card connectors fitted. The Maximite could be used as a dedicated display and storage computer (rather than a pensioned-off PC) as the centre of many PICAXE based instrumentation and control systems.
 
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