Mr. Bytes goes to MASTERs 2011

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Microchip MASTERs 2011

C32 Open Discussion group at MASTERs in Phoenix

For those of you attending the Worldwide MASTERs Conference in Phoenix, Arizona on August 25 - 28, please join the compiler team for an open discussion on the MPLAB C Compiler for PIC32 MCUs. We will have an open question and answer session followed by a discussion about the future of the compiler. We would really like to get your feedback and suggestions regarding new features and improvements.

The discussion will take place on Thursday, August 26 at 7 PM. The room number is to be determined.

Please join us! I'd really love to have a good turnout with a quality discussion.

P.S. There is also a C30 discussion taking place on Wednesday, August 25 at 7 PM.

Registration Open for Microchip’s 14th Annual Worldwide MASTERs Conference

Premiere Technical Training Event for Embedded-Control Engineers
The MASTERs Conference is a valuable resource for designing with Microchip products that provides design engineers with an annual forum for sharing and exchanging technical information on the Company’s 8-, 16- and 32-bit PIC® microcontrollers, high-performance analog and interface solutions, 16-bit dsPIC® digital signal controllers, wireless and mTouch™ sensing solutions, memory products, and MPLAB® development systems—including the industry’s only singular IDE to support an entire 8-, 16- and 32-bit microcontroller portfolio.

Read the full press release.

Save the Date for MASTERs 2009: July 27-August 1 in Phoenix, AZ

I saw this article in the Microchip microSOLUTIONS eNewsletter. Can it be time to start preparing for MASTERs already?

Are you starting a new project or even a new job? Do you need to expand your skill set in today’s competitive marketplace? Are you interested in learning about new technology?

Since 1996, Microchip’s annual Worldwide MASTERs Conference has expanded to offer additional technical classes and networking events designed specifically for the embedded-engineering community.

This event offers product and technical training presented by engineers for engineers. With over 90 classes to choose from, whether your training needs are basic, intermediate, or advanced, we have a class to enhance your skill set.

Don’t miss out on the largest gathering of Microchip experts, partners and users at the 2009 Worldwide MASTERs Conference!

July 27 - August 1, 2009 • Phoenix, AZ
Learn more at www.microchip.com/MASTERs

REAL ICE Skydiving photos from WW MASTERS 07

On the first night of the Worldwide MASTERs Conference in Phoenix, a couple of us from the Development Systems team set up a small photo booth. At the booth, guests could stick their heads in a flimsy piece of cardboard showing a skydiver holding a REAL ICE. Who would have thought that so many people would want to put their face on our REAL ICE firmware developer's body?!?

My ugly mug is up and to the right. I also uploaded the photos to Flickr for those of you who aren't satisfied with the prints that we provided at the conference.


Video: Skydiving with the REAL ICE
Yes, he IS crazy.

First day of MASTERs in the bag, two more to go!

Well, we just finished our first day of Microchip's annual MASTERs Conference, and it went very well as far as I could tell. I attended a touchscreen LCD GUI class in the morning, worked at the Development Tools store in the afternoon, and acted as a compiler "expert" at the Ask The Experts booth in the evening. I even participate in the entertainment activities at night. It was a long day, but I met a bunch of interesting people and learned a little about what some of the applications engineering groups are doing.

I'm a little nervous about tomorrow morning because it will be my first time presenting a class at MASTERs. Even though I'm only responsible for about 40 minutes of a 4-hour MPLAB C18 class, I still don't want to put everybody to sleep! It's been about a month since we had our dry runs and submitted our slides to the conference organizers, so I need to take some time tonight to review my slides and interactive demo.

If anybody reading this is currently in Phoenix for MASTERs, be sure to stop by the Ask The Experts booth Thursday or Friday evening from 6:30 to 8:00 pm. You'll be able to talk to members from our MPLAB IDE software team, our compiler team, our hardware/firmware team, and our tool test team. We've already received a good number of suggestions and constructive criticism on our tools, but we'd definitely like to get more. In addition to meeting directly with the Development Systems team, you'll also get some face time with applications developers representing all of Microchip's major product lines including microcontrollers. analog and interface products, and serial EEPROMs. Don't miss this opportunity to get direct contacts on the teams that interest you!

That's all for now. I need to review my class material...

MPLAB SIM MASTERs Classes

Over the past few days, I've attended three MASTERs Simulator-class dry runs. I have to say that the presentations are very well done. The fundamentals class is a good class for people who have never used MPLAB SIM. The debugging techniques and advanced stimulus classes take the material a bit further with stimulus injection, register trace, the logic analyzer, and even the 'Data Monitor and Control Interface' tool. The classes are definitely worth attending if you are looking to take better advantage of the mechanisms that the software simulator provides.

Stay away from the C18 Class at this year's Worldwide MASTERs Conference

I volunteered to help teach the MPLAB C18 class at this year's MASTERs Conference in Phoenix, Arizona. So, unless you're a glutton for punishment, you'lll definitely want to stay away from the class this year. There are plenty of other classes for you to attend. :-)

I also plan to hang out at the Development Systems table in the Ask the Expert booth. You can come by and chat with me and a few other people from the MPLAB IDE, compiler, and hardware teams. At the other tables, you'll find applications engineers from all of Microchip's divisions.

Get all the info you could ever want at the Microchip website <http://www.microchip.com/masters>.