I believe the AllMax apparently connects via the parallel port, so I wouldn't think that the network card would be a problem. Perhaps your machine is "too fast" or requires special software for faster computers. Anything faster than about a Pentium-100 was considered "fast" by EE-Tools.

You might try contacting EE-Tools, you never know, you may get lucky. I didn't have much luck with their support, nor did another user who emailed me. Feel free to check out the email exchange below.

I really don't know. I gave up on EE-Tools two years ago.

Craig Steiner

*** MY INITIAL SUPPORT QUERY TO EE-TOOLS:

Date: Mon, 28 Aug 2000 9:59 AM
From: Craig Steiner [craigsteiner@vaultbbs.com]
To: Technical Support Staff [support@eetools.com]
Subject: Re: RomMax Problem (again)

I reported earlier that I am having problems with my RomMax device.

I have now moved the RomMax back to the Pentium-120 where it used to work. It is consistently reporting an error when trying to burn at 1800h, with both M27C64A chips as well as D27256 chips. I am highly confident that all the chips are fine, and especially the fact that two different chip types with different memory sizes are failing at the same address seems suspicious to me.

Can you please confirm whether this would suggest a hardware problem with the RomMax or what could cause all chips to fail when writing to 1800h? I can READ all chips fine.

A prompt reply is urgently requested as this is holding up my current development contract.

Craig Steiner

*** NO REPLY FROM EE-TOOLS

I received no reply from EE-Tools. That same week I purchase an EPROM Emulator from Logical Design Tools, eliminating my dependency on the non-functional EE-Tools programmer.

*** EE-TOOLS RESPONDS 2.5 WEEKS LATER:

Date: Wed, 13 Sep 2000 11:07:03 -0700
From: Technical Support Staff [support@eetools.com]
To: Craig Steiner [craigsteiner@vaultbbs.com]
Subject: Re: RomMax Problem (again)

Make sure that their is no network card in your computer. Load the Rommax
software in a straight DOS environment. Make sure you loaded version 2.0L of
the software. If, after trying the above your unit still has problems on your Pentium-120 then your interface must have gone bad when you moved it to the faster computer. Please call us at 408-734-8184 if you would like to get an rma number to send the unit in for repair.
Thank you,
Support

*** I REPLY INDICATING I HAVE A NETWORK CARD - SO WHAT?

Date: Wed, 13 Sep 2000 12:10 PM
From: Craig Steiner [craigsteiner@vaultbbs.com]
To: Technical Support Staff [support@eetools.com]
Subject: Re: RomMax Problem (again)

I have and need a network card installed. Why would that matter?

Craig Steiner

*** EE-TOOLS TELLS ME ROMMAX DOESN'T WORK WITH NETWORK CARDS

Date: Wed, 13 Sep 2000 12:42:48 -0700
From: Technical Support Staff [support@eetools.com]
To: Craig Steiner [craigsteiner@vaultbbs.com]
Subject: Re: RomMax Problem (again)

The network card interferes with the interface card. So most of the time the
programmer wont work. Thats why it has to be removed.

*** I ASK THEM HOW TO USE IT WITH A NETWORK CARD

Date: Wed, 13 Sep 2000 12:47 PM
From: Craig Steiner [craigsteiner@vaultbbs.com]
To: Technical Support Staff [support@eetools.com]
Subject: Re: RomMax Problem (again)

I thought those kind of conflicts went away with the 80's. So what's the solution if I need both the programmer and the network card?

Craig Steiner

*** EE-TOOLS SUGGESTS I BUY ANOTHER PRODUCT

Date: Fri, 15 Sep 2000 09:38:40 -0700
From: Technical Support Staff [support@eetools.com]
To: Craig Steiner [craigsteiner@vaultbbs.com]
Subject: Re: RomMax Problem (again)

The only solution is to buy a programmer that connects to the parallel port.

*** I REQUEST A REFUND FROM EE-TOOLS

Date: Fri, 15 Sep 2000 11:58 AM
From: Craig Steiner [craigsteiner@vaultbbs.com]
To: Technical Support Staff [support@eetools.com]
Subject: Re: RomMax Problem (again)

How can I return my programmer and obtain a refund? I wasn't advised when I purchased it that it would be incompatible with probably the most common type of interface card used in the business world. Having to decide between the RomMax card and a network card is not a valid nor acceptable situation, nor is removing the network card whenever I have to burn a chip.

Craig Steiner

*** EE-TOOLS TELLS ME HOW TO GET REFUND

Date: Fri, 15 Sep 2000 13:30:11 -0700
From: Technical Support Staff [support@eetools.com]
To: Craig Steiner [craigsteiner@vaultbbs.com]
Subject: Re: RomMax Problem (again)

Please contact the company or store you bought it from. It you bought directly
from us, please let us know the invoice number.

*** I GIVE UP

At this point I gave up. I had purchased the product from a local reseller here in Mexico over a year before. There was no way the reseller was going to refund my money a year after the fact and I decided not to waste any more time with EE-Tools.

*** I RECEIVE A SIMILAR PROBLEM REPORT FROM ANOTHER USER:

The following month, in October 2000, an 8052.com user wrote me to ask if I knew how to get better software for his AllMax unit. The emphasis in the email is mine.

Date: Tue, 3 Oct 2000 22:38:51 -0700 (PDT)
From: (User Identity Hidden)
Subject: Question on programmers
To: [craigsteiner@vaultbbs.com]

Hello Craig, my name is ***** (you wouldn't guess!). I am currently working with atmel uC (2051) and want to make some test on AVR. I do this in my spare time since I have a full time job as project engineer at an automotive restraints company. My problem is my programmer.

I got more serious on programming an the first programmer I had was one from Atmel/Insight. I got in Dec. last year an (Universal (?)) EEtools Allmax+ programmer but, eventough they release software revisions, the support for this model is much less than their top of the line Topmax. I had some email contact with their technical support staff, but the last answer was something like 'we are not currently spending time on this model anymore'.

I want to keep upgrading my programmer since it costed about 850 USD (with the customs fee and import tax). Do you know someone that knows a way to upgrade the library? I have not posted this since I don't want to get a copyright discussion on the forum. I am actually just getting familiar with the forum an haven't posted or replied messages. I would appreciate any help you can provide with this.

Regards

*** I WRITE THE REVIEW

Having received the email above I realized that I wasn't the only one to have problems with EE-Tools and their customer service. That's when I wrote up my negative review; in fact, that's when the Product Reviews section at 8052.com was created!