Do you mean design contest, where everybody contributes their marvelous, close to genius projects, complete from HW through SW to complete documentation including a sparky website? Then, based on the most obscure rules, a board of jury choses one to be the winner, and a couple of other sub-winners?

Oh, how boring!

What about comparing your wit on the same task?

What about the most simple task, maybe call it even trivial or basic; so finally all you seasoned professional can show us, the greenhorns, how to do it properly?

What about designing the very basic '51 circuit and/or PCB? Like that one discussed recently, just a socket for the mcu, some power source, reset circuit, a RS232 interface and some suitable connector for possible extensions? Maybe a couple of LEDs, some pushbutton? Maybe some other small features?

I think this should not take too much time for a professional.

The point would be, as many design decisions as possible chould be described or commented upon. For the reader's to learn as much as possible. Published on contestant's 8052.com homepage.

The jury being the audience here. Maybe our Webmaster, Craig, can find out some suitable form of voting, no vote anonymous, requiring to explain each vote.

Oh and the prize? Endless admiration of the '51 users army for the reference design? :-) I could offer to make a few pieces of the winning boards and put them bare into envelope, but I doubt that would appeal to you the very well paid pros... or did someting of that young experimenter remain in you? ;-)


Jan Waclawek