Quote Originally Posted by LinkMTech View Post
You can set it up for an input from the beginning of the program then still use it later for programming. Just make sure your circuit will still allow the Vpp signal to control it during programming otherwise it will boop at you and report an error.
As a newbie, I was under the impression that the MCLR had to be pulled high when the circuit is powered up, but after reading a little more, I'm not sure. My circuit will have a switch that is either off or on at power up. I'm planning to pull a pin to ground if the switch is on and then I would use internal pull-ups on the pin when it is off. Since I don't program the chips on board, can I use the MCLR pin for the switch, or does it need to be high when the circuit is powered up? That would be awesome if I could free that pin up for use.
Gary