cannot program formula flowcode buggy directly from flowcode

[elecrobot]

Hi guys

I am having problem while downloading the software into my buggy directly from flowcode software. when i click on "compile to chip", it starts compiling the code and then after sometime it stops and gives me error saying that make sure the board is connected to the usb and plz press reset button. I pressed the reset button as well but still it doesn't work. my buggy now doesn't get programmed by ppp as well. Before it used to. I spoke to matrix multimedia people and the guy told me that i might have deleted the bootloader (can anyone explain what is bootloader) inside the PIC by pressing a wrong button in flowcode. If thats the case can you plz let me know by pressing which button in flowcode deletes the bootloader on the PIC? Also if i have deleted the bootloader than how can i fix it? from where can i get the bootloader? Plz help me urgently i have presentation soon and this needs to be fixed soon. If the bootloader is in CD, can i remove the PIC and program it using MPlab ICD2? I have this microchip programmer. If its not on cd, can anyone urgrently post it here? plz help.

Regards,

Elecrobot

[Benj]

Here is the easiest way to see if you have removed the bootloader software,

1) Make sure that the buggy has power. (test the battery terminals with multimeter if unsure, should be 4.5V or more)
2) Inset the buggy into the USB
3) Switch on the Buggy

If there are lights on at the front of the buggy (RD0 and / or RD1) then your bootloader is still present.

[Benj]

Also there is no way of deleting the bootlader via flowcode. The only feasible way of removing the bootloader is to remove the PICmicro chip from the buggy and reprogramming it using different hardware or short circuiting I/O pins while the buggy is powered.

We will not be releasing the source code or the hex file for the bootloader so it is best to never remove the PICmicro from the buggy.

If you have a buggy that has lost its bootloader then you will have to post the buggy back to us with a note explaining what happened to the buggy bootloader and how it occurred.

[tekruma]

Can I destroy the bootlader if I load the Formula with a c program with help of Buggy?

[Steve]

The BuggyProg program cannot erase the bootloader. To erase it, you would need to remove the chip from the buggy and program it with a standard PICmicro programmer.

[nonaak]

i lost my bootloader for the buggy, afther that i solder the servo pins in the pcb.
is it not poseble that you sent me the bootloader to my mail adres?

i have olso the USB Multiprogrammer (EB006) so that i can reprogram my buggy

manny thanks

[Benj]

Hello

When you switch on the Buggy with the USB cable connected to a PC does anything happen at all? It is unlikely that soldering components to the Buggy motherboard would cause bootloader corruption. Unless of course the PIC was powered at the time and you touched the microcontroller pins with a soldering iron. If this is the case then the chip on the Buggy has likely had it.

Sorry but we cannot release the source code for the Buggy bootloader as it is part of Matrix's intellectual property.

What we can do if your board is less then 1 year old is receive the buggy back from you in the post and reflash the bootloader here. If you decide to do this then please mark the package for the attention of me making sure to detail the problem and also provide your return postal address to send the buggy back to you.

Sorry for any inconvenience.

[Steve]

It will be cheaper to just send the chip back to us for reprogramming, if this is the problem.

[nonaak]

Thanks for the ansers.

I belive its somthing else hapening. i reprogram the orginele firmware and every thing works now. just only i can't program the buggy via usb now.

Flowcode v3 say :
Error: Failed to open:libc.pic18.lib or C:\Program Files\SourceBoost\lib/libc.pic18.lib

failure

I look in my program files for sourceboost, but i don't find it
so maby its not the bootloader but the software on my pc.
and i i put the usb cable whith the buggy, my pc do nothing.

I just order the flowcode v4 upgrade, maby than the problim is over

And i read somthing over BuggyProg.exe, what is that?

I will try some other things, if i not sukseed i will send you the PIC or/and the buggy to you.
P.S. my buggy burt date is 21/07/08. ( so what will it cost to repair?)

manny thangs

[Benj]

Hello

Yes it does sound like a Flowcode issue and not a bootloader problem at all. In the mean time you could try reinstalling Flowcode or downloading and installing the demo version of v4 and seeing if that helps.