A List of Noteworthy Posts

Here I provide a list of the most useful past posts. This will exclude (almost) all of the non-technical posts and will be updated periodically for new posts. The list is also organized by the most popular post first (excluding Important Information).

Important Information - Generic information about this blog, including my disclaimer.

A Simple ADC Example on the LaunchPad - This post paves the way for the LaunchScope by providing basic examples and explanations of the Analog to Digital Converter (ADC) in the LaunchPad. It is important to understand these principles before trying to understand the LaunchScope code.


Timers and Clocks and PWM! Oh My! - A topic which keeps popping up for beginners is the use of Timers and the generation of PWM (Pulse Width Modulation). This post first describes the basics of the MSP430's integrated timer, and then demonstrates a simple PWM using the timer. The different clock systems of the MSP430 are also touched upon.


Half Duplex Software UART on the LaunchPad - This is my most popular post; the code presented here is extremely useful. I provide basic functions which can be used to transmit and receive data on the Value Line chips that do not have an integrated hardware UART.

NJC's LaunchScope (A LaunchPad Oscilloscope) - An oscilloscope is one of the most useful tools for someone who works with electronics. Though the LaunchScope is a very slow oscilloscope, it uses only the LaunchPad. The code shown in this post can be used in all sorts of projects. Check this post out and try the LaunchScope for yourself!

The DEV.BO is Born! - The DEV.BO is a development board which I am working on which provides much more functionality than the Value Line chips have. This board is based off of the MSP430F5510 and can be used with the LaunchPad for a complete development platform.

Getting a PCB Made - Here I discuss the PCB services I know and use. If you need a PCB made for your project, check this post out.

My Version of Getting Started - This post is where I think you should start with the LaunchPad if you are a beginner. The code presented in this post blinks an LED using just a for loop and can be used on any MSP430. I demonstrate how to import an existing project into your Code Composer Studio (CCS) workspace.

The Launchpad's Example Project Ripped Open - The example project provided by Texas Instruments (TI) for the LaunchPad is quite convoluted and yet can be useful to understand. In this post I break down the example project and explain how it all works.

Using Buttons and Creating a New Project - Using buttons are one of the most important parts of any project, it allows you to interact with whatever you have made. This post shows how to use push buttons with interrupts on the MSP430. I also provide a step by step guide to creating a new project in CCS which is necessary for writing your own code.

Schematic Images and Explanation - This post provides an explanation of the LaunchPad's schematic and contains high resolution images of the schematic. This is very useful for those of you who want to build your own PCB or use a breadboard for prototyping.

Using the USI as a UART - Do you need a Value Line MSP430 to just transmit and not receive data? Do you need to transmit data real quickly? Then this post is for you. I show here how to create a uni-directional quasi-hardware UART using the USI.