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Setting Fuses
As mentioned before, fuses are used to set a couple of things that might need to be set before the actual software starts to run. As a beginner you should not tinker with most of those settings, because it is possible to lock yourself out of in-system programming.
Installing the Software
As mentioned, there are many options when it comes to software. One standard program, which is available for many operating systems is avrdude. Unfortunately, it is a command line tool, which makes it less than ideal for beginners. But there are GUI frontends available. I decided to use AVRDUDESS for this tutorial. And it is quite easy to use.
What Hardware do I need?
Obviously you need the controller. This can be any Atmel ATtiny or ATMega. You need a circuit board to put the controller in (the "target board") and you need an ISP programmer. Since ISP uses a serial format, the programmer can be rather compact.
Introduction
Many of my projects use AVR controllers from Atmel. And they need to be "programmed". This means that the software needs to get written into their internal program memory.
For beginners, this can be a major stumbling block in any project. And I do get lots of questions in connection with programming. So I decided to write this tutorial. But my intention is not just to give a list of buttons you have to press. Instead I want you to understand what you are doing.
This tutorial assumes you have a Windows PC and use an USBasp programmer. They are available from your favourite auction website (very cheap, ready made, from China). Alternatively you can support their creator Thomas Fischl and buy his kit.
Several people asked me how you connect an ISP programmer to an ATMega8. It never occured to me that this could be a problem for anyone. But anyway, here is a schematic.
Over time, I will write a tutorial on how to program AVR controllers.
Please note that the header shows Atmel's standard pinout for the 10-pin ISP header. Most programmers use that same pinout. But to be safe you should check your ISP programmer's manual.
I hope this is useful for someone!
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