Ok all great comments.

I am using a '51 derivative that doesn't have HW I2C and don't really want to go buy another test environment, that's why I was looking around at SW I2C.

I figured the code from the code library would be best since all the others I found seemd to be tuned the the specific ICs they were using.

Looking at the code and the specs from the MAXIM appnote, I've noticed that the code did not follow the requirements that the appnote states.
The "stop" signal didn't end properly (I think thats the best term I could call it).
As I interpret it, the "Stop" signal should have SDA going from low to high while SCL is high. Forgive me if I use the wrong terminology of high and low. I just base it as looking at the schematic of the signalling in the appnote.
Which should leave SDA and SCL high after the signal, but the code has SCL being low.

Regardless I get nothing happening on my slave IC.
I've done everything I can think of from adding in delays to removing them completely to see if anything happens and I get nothing.

I have changed the address to my device, even trying it with the bits reconfigured from MSB and LSB, but to no avail.



I've even asked MAXIM if they have any kind of "test's" I can perform on the chip with an ohm meter or anything else to make sure the IC is actually working.
I got 2 samples from them but nothing happens on either 1.

I'm wondering if my '51 is actually fast enough to run the delays for some of the timing. 11.059200 MHz crystal
But I didn't see anything in the appnote about a limit on the amount of time a whole transmission should actually take.