I need a bit of help figuring out whats going on with the PIC programmer board that I have just lovingly soldered together, any ideas are welcome!
The board has been constructed as per the instructions and checked alongside a pre assembled board from Velleman of the same design.
I have created a very basic test program (that has been checked and yes it does work ) utilising the onboard LEDs - All on. Using a 16F84A-04, the chip appears to be programmed without any problems but when the board is switched into “Run” mode, no LEDs light. (I am assuming I have found myself with a quirky board that programs ok but has issues with testing the chip)
However, if i touch pin3, JP3 or the leg of C7 connected to the XT with a pencil/screwdriver, ie not connecting back to 0V, I get my lights working! I have altered my code to display different sets of LEDs and they correspond (although even with my temporary “fix”, the LEDs flicker regularly every 2-3 seconds). I have checked any suspect soldering and have drawn a blank. Can this be down to some kind of static discharge when I touch certain components on the board?
As I have already said, any ideas are appreciated! Thanks guys!