Pic will not run

[Scampy]

Well I think I've discovered the cause, the tactile switches I have are not the same as the ones used in the schematic and either have different pinouts or I made an error in the schematic... bottom line is the reset, and programming buttons are directly shorted to gnd when fitted. But that't the reason we prototype stuff - to work out issues and refine the design.

The quality of the board is OK, but I think they have used lead free solder as a lot of the joints, especially when connected to the ground plane took a lot more heat to get a good bond, and then they didn't look as neat as older boards when stuff was all leaded. But then for around £8 a board including shipping I can't really complain.

The issue with the RTC was the battery in the holder. It was taken from an old project and needed cleaning, after that it worked fine. I'll look at the DS3231, but for this project the accuracy of the 1307 is fine, but thanks for the suggestion.

[towlerg]

Did you note that 3231 would save you thr cost of a crystal.