Where do PICAXE instructors go?

[mrburnette]

I am curious; it is a fault of mine.

But if PICAXE is primarily an educational product and is marketed that way in the U.K. and on the Techsupplies.co.uk website... then where are the educators in the forum... like do they walk among us stealthily and only materialize as "normal" users with their alternate-self masked? Or, are they presented with their own web-site where they hang-out... kind of a private club, online teacher's lounge?

Not an earth shattering question but I know a few educators that visit the forum as regular members but they are not aligned with teaching PICAXE. Where are the teachers?

I am just curious that someone whose profession involves using these products is not here representing their profession. But maybe when they get off work they have no desire to be in this online pub with us less literate.


- Ray

 

[eclectic]

There are several teachers who are regulars,
or at least contributing occasional visitors.

They hail from Australia, France, Finland, GB, and others I can't recall offhand.

e

 

[Dippy]

Yes, and maybe some teachers visit but don't advertise the fact.

I can think of a number of reasons why that might be the case

 

[John West]

I'm planning on becoming a PICAXE teacher, if the business I'm associated with can ever get a PICAXE distributorship. Otherwise, it looks like I may be stuck becoming an Ardweenie teacher, a fate I do not at all look forward to.

 

[mrburnette]

I'm planning on becoming a PICAXE teacher, if the business I'm associated with can ever get a PICAXE distributorship. Otherwise, it looks like I may be stuck becoming an Ardweenie teacher, a fate I do not at all look forward to.

Ah, why not both? It's a big ol' world and to discount the "A.." would be near criminal. My own experience has created a balance where I am at peace with both... amazingly, I have placed the native chips in side-by-side bins and there has been no ugly things a-going-on. Life is simply too short to become too affectionate with any single vendor product.

- Ray

 

[mrburnette]

Perhaps the (c) of the materials that they utilize to teach simply do not allow them to cut-n-paste examples or to provide some simple tutorials. They may not even have the rights to their own materials under some of the restrictive social-posting policies that have been imposed. I guess my thought was that professional microcomputer teachers (robotics, electronics, introduction to..., etc.) would have a larger presence. But I can see how that could have been a flaw in thinking... especially if there are issues with their posts. I was not considering teachers with electronics knowledge or peripheral PICAXE knowledge, simply those that work directly with the devices.

- Ray

 

[techElder]

It's been my experience that teachers are really just students in disguise.

 

[mrburnette]

It's been my experience that teachers are really just students in disguise.

Ah, Grasshopper ... the best teachers are (just students.)
Teachers that are not lifelong students have stopped learning and will soon be poor teachers since static knowledge is constantly being eroded and rewritten by the dynamics of new discoveries from those seeking ever deeper understanding.

What a marvelous time to be alive.

- Ray

 

[Buzby]

... since static knowledge is constantly being eroded ...

What about history teachers ?

 

[mrburnette]

I think that history teachers have a similar issue... their subject queues are constantly being filled on a minute-by-minute basis... so there is never any concern about fresh material Old material is not eroded, it is just re-prioritized based upon the current view and norms.

I guessing (and I have absolutely NO experience or professional insight into historical matters) that the biggest challenge facing a History teacher is to be non-biased on what parts of history to present in a balanced manner. A student will only absorb so much material before becoming constipated (the brain version) so a conscientious teacher must be somewhat selective in presentations yet leave sufficient detail to allow an average student to digest and assimilate the good and the bad that history unfolds.

One hopes, that from these students exposed to history that the balance will give them the insight to make better decisions in the present/future than were made in the past and to understand why good ideas in the past went horribly wrong.

- Ray

 

[Dippy]

"One hopes, that from these students exposed to history that the balance will give them the insight to make better decisions in the present/future than were made in the past and to understand why good ideas in the past went horribly wrong."

- that's been the hope of so many historically....

And it's not only teachers who should be life-long students.
One or two teachers of tech stuff are often less able than some (young) students.

Is there a definition for history, recent history and current?

 

[techElder]

Is "current history" an oxymoron?

 

[mrburnette]

Is there a definition for history, recent history and current?

Feeling philosophical, ugh? Think I am some wooly mammoth with one foot in the tar pit?

How could one cast a definition for recent-history and current-history when history itself ebbs forever into the past? (There are even some scientific articles to suggest that history may ebb into the future, too.) To do so would require a human-centric definition, a king-pin definition if you would agree, to some event in time. Such a definition must be universally excepted among people to represent the same point. I have read that some "remote and isolated societies" do not conceive of time as modern civilizations do; the passing of the sun from morning to morning represents simply that- the sun. In such a society, the terms today and yesterday really have no direct translation. I regret that I cannot produce the material to which I reference, but it is likely some issue of Scientific American, or Smithsonian, or ...

But you and I could agree on any mutually acceptable definition. Might I suggest that the definition in and of itself is fluid - that with each separate discussion, one must establish a reference-point; basic electronic engineering... establish a reference (ground) for all measurements... there is no requirement that ground must equate to zero volts.

- Ray

 

[John West]

Ah, why not both? It's a big ol' world and to discount the "A.." would be near criminal. My own experience has created a balance where I am at peace with both... amazingly, I have placed the native chips in side-by-side bins and there has been no ugly things a-going-on. Life is simply too short to become too affectionate with any single vendor product.

- Ray

It's not a matter of affection for a particular vendor's product. It's the difference between utilizing a handy device to get things done, and hitting the books to learn an entire programming language and many specific chip attributes for specialized devices. I'm not planning on becoming a professional micro-controller programmer. I'm not planning on starting a new career in my 60's. The old one keeps me far too busy as is. I'm merely planning on making my projects do what I want done. That means PICAXE.

That's not affection for a particular vendor. It's merely selecting the right tool for the job. It is indeed a big old world, filled with ever more technology toys, and more than ever, choices must be made.

 

[mrburnette]

It's not a matter of affection for a particular vendor's product. It's the difference between utilizing a handy device to get things done, and hitting the books to learn an entire programming language and many specific chip attributes for specialized devices. I'm not planning on becoming a professional micro-controller programmer. I'm not planning on starting a new career in my 60's. The old one keeps me far too busy as is. I'm merely planning on making my projects do what I want done. That means PICAXE.

That's not affection for a particular vendor. It's merely selecting the right tool for the job. It is indeed a big old world, filled with ever more technology toys, and more than ever, choices must be made.

John, with the utmost respect, I think you are selling yourself short. I, too, and in my '60's and I have a personal connection to each point you made. It's not a matter of right or wrong. Really, it is not even about "selecting the right tool for the job"; it is rather about enhancement to your gifted programming capabilities and logical-thinking manner.

Not to argue here, but if you ever want to just take the plunge at $0 cost, I will mail you an Arduino... I have 'em all over the place: UNO's, Megas, and Ray-flavored homebrew... they total 14 boards at present and two tube of chips that someday will see C (or see CC - don't you love rhyming technology stuff?) Downloading the free software is your own sweat, however, and if there is not time or brain-cycles ... no big deal. Just work through the project examples... no hitting the books. In fact, you can learn to program the Arduino on YouTube... seriously.

But the reason you should do this is because if you teach PICAXE well and I'm sure you will, someone will ask about Arduino. You are the teacher... that person is looking up to you; to say you don't know because you are in your 60's and don't have the time for new toys ... well, that is a let down - to yourself. The student will shake it off, but you will not feel good about it.

No one can be completely immersed in every microprocessor or every new chip or ever technological invention... but you can know a little about a lot. Know a little about Java, a little about Javascript, a little about C/C++, a little about Visual Basic (and/or dotNET)... sometimes this means that the hours we are devoting to the fun stuff we like to do like our PICAXE hobby is encroached by other needs, but I will promise you that if you learn C, your BASIC skills will improve.

- Ray

 

[mrburnette]

Is "current history" an oxymoron?

Einstein would say that would depend on your point of reference...

 

[Dippy]

Blimey Ray, you're digging a bit too deep there old chum.
Besides, I didn't say current history. I said "current".

Does history ebb into the past? If we assume a Big Bang start then that is the zero. Surely only 'events' ebb into the past?

The term 'recent history' is commonly used phrase.
I was referring to "current" as in the (again) commonly used phrase "current affairs".
These, typically, refer to things that have happened recently.
Oh what a mixed up world... and I can read Dictionaries ... but hey , the bait was taken. Enjoy. I certainly did

And good old Asimov and his "psychohistory" - brilliant. Discuss.
For people that don't read books -Google.

 

[mrburnette]

@Dippy
Good one, cheers and +1... you set a good hook and I suspect many a fish are witness to that truth.

At least I did not misinterpret "current" affair as E/R affair which would have surely have taken us through an alternate universe.

If we assume a Big Bang start then that is the zero.

. I would argue that the BB is not my choice of reference tic; rather the instant time-space exited from Inflation would be a more acceptable tic, in my judgement. Ummm?

- Ray

 

[premelec]

In post #42 of the 'parallel' thread elsewhere Ray says:

"There is lots of misinformation. If you can code in BASIC, you can code in C...
after all, a language is just a language... you may not be as fast initially in C,
but you can certainly do it."

Sure and if I take a lot of time I can perhaps - before I die - describe what I want to do in some variant of Chinese languages - however so far American english has served me well and if someday I move to China I'll likely need to learn different language. I certainly want people to know that there are other languages and some more more suitable than others to describe some project.

I used to program a lot in QBASIC and PBASIC with occasional assembly modification and FORTH - presently I happily work with PICAXEs and rather enjoy producing results with reduced instruction capability.

My teachers have been a variety of individuals willing to share their knowledge and help when I needed help - So many people generous with their knowledge and experience. A commercial C programmer told me 25 years ago don't bother learning C as I had no need for it's capabilities - It depends on what you want to spend your time on and I've been very grateful for this forum.

Other than looking at some C** code to discern what particular path was being followed to produce some result I've felt no need to learn the language in more than basic [ha!] detail. I seem to be on a path of learning less computer language as I age rather than more. [76 years old]. Hardware is more interesting... Whatever works for y'all...

 

[mrburnette]

"There is lots of misinformation. If you can code in BASIC, you can code in C... after all, a language is just a language... you may not be as fast initially in C, but you can certainly do it."

Yes, That's a Ray quote for sure - made to a young man who is attempting to learn PICAXE hardware, PICAXE BASIC, and absorb as much information as will be provided. But he is no fool, and asks "Why" and he deserves those answers without bias.

I have never told anyone they must learn C/C++ (except making a strongly worded suggestion to my friend John in #14) ... rather I have suggested to many that doing so would expand their horizons and eventually make them better BASIC programmers. PICAXE BASIC WILL NOT MAKE YOU A BETTER C/C++ PROGRAMMER.

I can repeat this statement over and over - if you are pleased (happy/satisfied) with BASIC, fine ... it will serve you well because you are satisfied.
If you struggle often with advanced PICAXE BASIC trying to make it work - there are options. "Srnet" uses PIC and compiled basic sometimes. Ray (me) has gone that direction and sometimes I elect to use an ATmel. Sometimes I use Shell petrol and sometimes I use BP. I have several boxes of Ti uC boards in the corner that is begging for playtime.

I've been in my share of UK pubs and I know everyone doesn't order the same lager. Not everyone in Colorado drinks Coors. But folks who do drink and who are thirsty will likely take whatever cold beer you buy them at the end of a long, hard day.

Ray

- do what works 4U, but be an inspiration for others to grow and be better. Sometimes this means that they need to venture outside their comfort zone to broaden their view and LEARN.

 

[premelec]

Hi Ray, one phenom I've found is people who have heard the wonders of A* and get a few simple things working with libraries available but have no understanding of what they are doing and eventually fail frustrated rather than learning the complexities - we have some of that on this forum with people trying to adapt code they don't understand. My bias is definitely positive feedback to an individual by getting desired results - make that LED blink and servo swerve... PICAXEs are the best route I know of for this initial success with micros. That's why I recommend them... the excitement thus generated can lead to other platforms - or not... however it's that success of doing it that I think drives it forward. In short learning by rote seems not so hot #include ALL

 

[mrburnette]

I replied premelec and subsequently decided to delete my post.

It is unfair to RevEd for me to use their forum and resources to counter your claim since it turns into too much detail and appears that I support C on the A-uC rather than PICAXE ... fact is, I use many PICAXE chips and have published a few fun Instructables using them.

Regards,

Ray

 

[manuka]

Hark- did someone mention free beer ?!

I've been using PICAXEs in my teaching of electronics at Polytech & Y1 uni since 2002. They're near perfect as "Aha" motivators, as AGONISING weeks may otherwise be spent with low level code just trying to "flash a LED".In later years many advancing students become quite skilled of course, but their final projects often end up using PICAXEs for at least proof of concept -especially since presentation deadlines can then be better met! Arduino approaches are predictably surging,but PICAXEs still can't be beaten as confidence boosters I've found.

In my case here in NZ the educational trick involves initial structured presentation,then encouraging students to become their own motivator as "can do" enthusiasm kicks in. Students on courses I've run for NZ Army have been especially taken with PICAXE possibilities (in spite of their military chain of command background!) & have produced some astoundingly professional end products-many PICAXE based (their choice). See 2011's presentation => https://picasaweb.google.com/113235065280579741262/WeltecPROJ2011#

At NZ high school level perhaps PICAXEs make up only 5-10% of a senior electronics course. Bless their hearts, but most such teachers are too highly stressed with a multi subject workload & endless paperwork to become enthused after hours. I know some who point blank refuse to respond to work email or even Google topics in their own time...

As an aside the latest Silicon Chip -July 2012- has a keen article on PICAXE controlled (& GPS timed) school road safety signs that sell in Australia for ~US$1500, while the official standard comes in at ~ US$50,000. See => www.schoolzonelights.com.au

Stan (40 years an educator)

 

[mrburnette]

@manuka;
I definitely mentioned beer somewhere... I can make the first round free

I can understand anyone being happy to circumvent dealing with low-level (assembly) code in an immersion class. Such things are a rite-of-passage however for college freshmen who need the appreciation of the underlying working registers. In my original thinking regarding this thread, I had pondered why there is little visibility of professional instructors in this forum. Perhaps the simple explanation you gave regarding multi-subject workload actually answers my inquiry. I come from an era where teachers after elementary school were 'slotted' into curriculum areas and generally taught only their subject matter and sometimes a closely related one... perhaps a science and a math course.

Are all of the PICAXE resources copyrighted from external vendors? Do you generate original training material yourself? And, if you do produce original material do you still own that material or does it become the property of the institution/state? The question arises from my curiosity as to why there is so little available training material for PICAXE.

I know some who point blank refuse to respond to work email or even Google topics in their own time...

The same is true in industry. As a retired IT professional, a significant portion of my off-time was spent reading and researching industry periodicals and manufacturer literature or attending OEM training classes. At the time this was considered a personal investment and was the norm for anyone wishing to advance. Younger members of the work force seem to be resisting such intrusion into what they consider their "off" time. Rather than objecting to such behavior, management seems to be sponsoring it by allowing technical members to utilize work time and resources to study for certification tests and take online job-related courses that lead to a certificate. All very strange; perhaps this is why so much outsourcing is occurring in IT; senior management is unaware of the man-hours that are being diverted but they are aware of the work inefficiencies in the organization. Rather than addressing the issue with the middle management, the entire department gets outsourced.

Thanks for the input, Stan.

Ray

 

[fernando_g]

Professor P.H. Anderson, from Morgan State University, is one of the staunchest supporters for Picaxe and Arduino here in the US.

I don't know him personally, but I've read most of his website Picaxe tutorials, and I've learned immensely from them. So, indeed, I consider him "my instructor".

 

[premelec]

I found the PICAXE through Prof Anderson's site and his simple headline "The Amazing PICAXE" - Thanks to Peter Anderson intro I've had much inexpensive success starting with the 128 byte 08 unit which did so much even with that! [I was using Basic Stamp at the time and dropped it...]

 

[manuka]

mrburnette: Make mine a Guiness.

Thanks for feedback, but respect that educational PICAXE users these days increasingly are not budding engineers! Many have absolutely no background or interest in hardcore electronics & just hanker after an end effect.

Typical of those I've assisted are degree level arts & design students who want timing, lighting, sound or motion effects for their creations. I recall one who mocked up a human heart model,which "beat" in accordance with temperature and activity etc. It was a real gem & very lifelike in action!

But to respond to the query-here in NZ a typical "electronics" high school teacher may have 6 or 7 different classes (Physics, Science,Maths etc) + VERY significant involvement in the school sports teams,clubs & cultural groups. Given the slender budgets & limited (or non existent) technical support, most usually also need to source, install, service & repair all class resources too. On top of endless lesson prep, pastoral care,****** meetings,professional development,parental linking, mountains of admin. paper work & -sigh-MARKING, such workload demands are often enough to kill "extra mile" subject enthusiasm...

It's further worth factoring in that the enormous cost of housing these days FORCES many career teachers in their late 20s- early 30s to take on such extra educational work as school management, private tutoring, exam marking and moonlighting - the latter often in sales. They just can not spare the time & energy to tinker when home & family demands are $eriously pressing.

FWIW- & perhaps a slice of wisdom for a new generation of educators - skills developed wrangling & encouraging hundreds of hormonal teens often foster ones own persuasive talents very benefically. I can verify from personal experience that chalk face earned attributes can translate into serious $ elsewhere ! Stan.

 

[mrburnette]

@manuka:
It all sounds depressing. I had a great 3 year assignment teaching adults personal computers and software but I am afraid that the "workload demands" of professionals teachers (in NZ and I assume the greater globe) is an awful lots to ask for the compensation afforded.

All the discussion and input has given me an appreciation to why professional educators are not an easy to identify species in the forums.

- Ray

 

[IronJungle]

A few comments...

++1 to PHAnderson and the service he provides.

Also, nothing wrong with a "non engineer" wanting to "blink a light" and learning the PICAXE to do it. My opinion is that is all about learning what tools (PICAXE or otherwise) are there to see an idea become a reality (or even experience the failures on the way).

My beef is always the person that posts something like "I'm new to electronics and programming but want to make the HID headlights on my Rice Burner car pulsate with the beats per minute on my MP3 player divided by my engine RPMs multiplied by the phase angle of the moon times PI". Then when someone tries to help and suggests they start by just blinking as LED they come back with "PICAXE sucks".

Okay.... IronJungle.... Calm down now....

 

[manuka]

"I'm new to electronics and programming but want to make the HID headlights on my Rice Burner car pulsate with the beats per minute on my MP3 player divided by my engine RPMs multiplied by the phase angle of the moon times PI".

Sounds reasonable enough to me-a 20X2 should handle it well. Petrol or diesel engine?

Teaching is certainly a calling, with the "in your face" stresses NOT for everyone. Although interspersed with other work (military,farming, technical,medical & research labs + IMMENSE global traveling), I put in ~10 years teaching at high school level (UK & NZ) during the 1970s,& was actually reluctant in 1980 to move on from the final school. Growing family pressures rather dictated events, & of course the dawn of PC age (with it's demand for "switched on" instructors) was too tempting to ignore.

FWIW -aside from education-my academic background was in electronics,chemistry & physics,with much of my initial electronic training being '50s-'60s era valves/tubes based! That was a time when- to quote- "half of what you know will be redundant in 5 years, & half of what you'll then need to know has yet to be invented".

Fast forward 30 years & my youngest son (~21) looks soon graduate in Sciences (Bio), & is considering a teaching career!

Stan.(semi-retired!)

 

[tinyb]

A teacher here.

been teaching Picaxe since the silicon chip articles in 2003 (and many great followup articles by Stan). I read the forum mos days, post questions when I can solve the students problems but we need at least 27 hours a day to finish the core work and get sleep and a bit of family time. I have started many educational tutorials for my classes and for others to use but run out of time to make them pretty for people out side my class. A teacher in SA has produced a new platform for picaxe in the process of writing some stuff for him. Tried to picaxe the Sparkfuns Inventors kit - finished the code but haven't finished the blog or the documentation.

I am just curious that someone whose profession involves using these products is not here representing their profession. But maybe when they get off work they have no desire to be in this online pub with us less literate.

Hippy, Dippy WestAussie, etc are the best teacher out there, the stuff I have learnt from them that I know implement in the classroom has been excellent - i don't need to add or couldn't as I don't have the depth of knowledge (like many teachers this is only a minor aspect to my teachin although one of the most enjoyable - where else can i pass off my hobby of building a web controlled nerf gun as a work expence?)
Teach both picaxe and ardunio to most students - it is about best fit for the job - picaxe is taken up better first.

thanks
tiny

 

[fernando_g]

My beef is always the person that posts something like "I'm new to electronics and programming but want to make the HID headlights on my Rice Burner car pulsate with the beats per minute on my MP3 player divided by my engine RPMs multiplied by the phase angle of the moon times PI". Then when someone tries to help and suggests they start by just blinking as LED they come back with "PICAXE sucks".
....

And when a schematic is requested, they reply with a blurry and out of focus mobile-phone image of a handrawn schematic without any values attached to the components...

Now seriously, of the several forums that I troll, this is one of the most civilized.

 

[manuka]

tinyb: Thanks for feedback. The PPP looks very attractive! Any pricing? MicroZed of course already sell a Aust$22 28X2 based shield. They also now handle some superb Aust$5 Dorji 433 MHz ASK TX/RX modules that have shown themselves as little darling performers. The Dorji TX is more powerful (but still legal), while the sensitive RX works on far more versatile supplies -most cheap 433 MHz RX demand a tight 5V. Ranges are much enhanced as a result & performance versatility is likely to be superior to your Seeed modules.

Ahem- pages at www.picaxeprotoplatform.com need proof reading! All manner of typos etc jumped out at me -even during a first coffee... Stan.

 

[Jamster]

First page, first paragraph - "or 12 pin PICAXE chip"
I started

 

[tinyb]

I will pass them onto joel. I don't have admin rights at the moment. some pricing is on the page but he is developing a good range of 'shields'.

like the 433s - still playing with the original purchase from jaycar and altronics 7 years ago - play more with the xbees now. love the shied base and have it working with many of the a* shields i have.

thanks
tiny

 

[joely87]

Hi All,

I saw a few hits come in to my website from the PICAXE forum and was excited to see what you were saying about it. Thanks TinyB for the posting. I was reluctant to post my own products on the forum but as this thread very much relates to the material I am currently working on I though it would be OK. Stan I do apologize for the lack of proof reading on the website. I have looked over and fixed a few errors but please understand that was never suppose to be a professional website it was a blog site that has got out of control. As TinyB mentioned I am working in South Australia as a second year Design and Technology Teacher. As many of you would understand trying to juggle a life outside of school in the first few years is difficult without starting projects such as the PicaxeProtoPlatform. Currently, I am the, PCB designer, website designer, datasheet and tutorial writer, email support person, videographer, video editor, sales, postage etc... so please feel free to give feedback understanding it is a one man show and most of the work is done during holiday periods.

I am currently working on a series of videos they are split into three section, getting started (soldering and test programs), ProtoPLATFORM tutorials (demonstrating a range of components being used with the ProtoPLATFORM), and demo videos (which show some simple potential applications the PicaxeProtoPlatform could be used to prototype ideas). I am currently filmming and uploading many of these videos but my internet is so slow that it is limited to about two per day. Check out what has been uploaded so far: http://www.picaxeprotoplatform.com/videos/tutorials/

There are currently have 14 different PCBs (not all of them are available in the shop but will be in the new few weeks), and this is continuing to grow as I find time to prototype an idea design the artwork and trial each new batch of boards. There are some early versions in my blog: http://www.picaxeprotoplatform.com/home/blog/

Stan I purchased a set of the Dorji 433 MHz ASK TX/RX modules from MicroZed and using your tutorials found there range was fairly similar to the Seeed units (approx 100m with %100 correct data transitions). I decided to use the Seeed units due to the price, and size to fit on my boards. I had some trouble using these but after contacting Dr_Acula, and reading Stans articles I found they were really easy to use.

I completely agree with TinyB that the teachers are the members on this forum that spend much of there time helping others resolve issues. I would not have got nearly as far as I have without all of you that have given input into some of my projects over the past few years.

Thanks for all of your support! Hopefully the material I am developing will give me an opportunity to give back some of this knowledge to the PICAXE community.

Joel Phillips

 

[tinyb]

your welcome joel. you have a good product that could be useful in the introduction to micros and electronics. every bit counts

thanks
tiny

 

[mrburnette]

@Joel,

This is exactly the kind of information I was inquiring when I started this thread. While Google gives a lots of resources for PICAXE, I wanted to narrow my time to viewing sites that were being supported by those who are in the educational sector. Your stuff is great and I applaud the effort you are taking to post this information.

This forum is great for information sharing and Q/A dialog, but sometimes we all dance around trying to respect the fact that RevEd is in the marketing and product business for educational supplies. When I'm on the Arduino forum, there is very, very little that I have to worry about provided I play nice. There is a great change going on in the world regarding microcontrollers and their use and the sharing of code and designs and a considerable part of this is being driven by the Arduino and variants. While the PICAXE is still a player and a great product, I have been openly critical of the proprietary nature of the firmware and the limitations of PE in providing greater code integration. This is not an open call to discuss the merits of my arguments in this thread as there are other threads already open and not too stale, but I do not wish to appear a PICAXE zealot; rather anyone that has followed me knows that I'm all about using whatever tools are most appropriate without much regard to brand.

- Ray

 

[mrburnette]

@tinyb:

Teach both picaxe and ardunio to most students - it is about best fit for the job - picaxe is taken up better first.

Excellent! In the just-for-grins department, you may appreciate this comparison: PICAXE-amp-Arduino-%28code-size-comparisons

- Ray

 

[tinyb]

@tinyb:
Excellent! In the just-for-grins department, you may appreciate this comparison: PICAXE-amp-Arduino-%28code-size-comparisons

Did read that series of posts with excitment - was around the time i was going through the process of picaxeing the sparkfun's inventors kit.

It's like do i teach long division, short division, just use the calulator, fractions in simplest forms and mixed numbers, hexadecimal maths or just plain binary? each one has a place and is best used in the correct situation (teaching just using the calulator is no good when the NAPLAN doesn't allow them)

thanks
tiny