whiteoaks7
New Member
Forgive me if this is an old question, if it is perhaps someone can direct me to an answer... The question goes like this - once upon a time I used to program PICs using Assembler. This was a masochistic passtime but I was paid for it! The PICs were destined for automated test gear and had to be rigorously controlled in both hardware and software to prevent the manufacturer making revisions that would invalidate all sorts of things. When I was free to choose hardware for my own projects I wanted to get away from Assembler (I flirted briefly with C - very briefly then found the PicAxe. Since I was used to PICs this was a logical progression.
But now I've got to wondering, just what is the PicAxe architecture like? The hardware is defined and is a PIC which implies that the embedded software is different. So what happens to the program I write, how does it become machine code? I read references to a compiler. The code written in Assembler for a PIC is assembled into machine code then loaded into the PIC hardware. Does the PicAxe compiler create machine code directly or some intermediate code that the PicAxe then operates on (I've written compilers that have done both). If, on the other hand, the Basic code is loaded into the PicAxe then it's not compiled but interpreted - I'm guessing this doesn't happen because it would be awfullllllllly slow. So, is the PicAxe a PIC with extended software - there must be something going on because of the differences between the PIC and PicAxe functions available. If so, is the PicAxe embedded software in any way revision controlled and do we get to know when revisions change? Educate me please...
But now I've got to wondering, just what is the PicAxe architecture like? The hardware is defined and is a PIC which implies that the embedded software is different. So what happens to the program I write, how does it become machine code? I read references to a compiler. The code written in Assembler for a PIC is assembled into machine code then loaded into the PIC hardware. Does the PicAxe compiler create machine code directly or some intermediate code that the PicAxe then operates on (I've written compilers that have done both). If, on the other hand, the Basic code is loaded into the PicAxe then it's not compiled but interpreted - I'm guessing this doesn't happen because it would be awfullllllllly slow. So, is the PicAxe a PIC with extended software - there must be something going on because of the differences between the PIC and PicAxe functions available. If so, is the PicAxe embedded software in any way revision controlled and do we get to know when revisions change? Educate me please...