One of the reasons control and embedded systems programmers get paid so well is that they must have knowledge of both hardware and software. This tour of the control and embedded world uses an inexpensive board that plugs into any XT or better PC to help provide that knowledge. It has more than enough digital and analog input and output capability for experimentation, and at a very low cost. The instructions are in Word 97 format. If you don't have Word 97, you can download a free reader from Microsoft's web site by clicking on the following icon.
Assembled boards are also available.
Install it on any XT or better computer to begin a very interesting and informative journey. Schools can get the computers free at one of the computer recycling sites . You can take the trip without the hardware, but the impact will be considerably less. It's much easier to understand the effect of the programming if it can be directly experienced. The following will take you from the basics to actually providing output to and getting input from the board.