PINK - Documentation Disappointing

Brian Riley

I received my PINK module today (prompt service as always!) but, I was really hoping for more documentation than there was. There's little available from NetBurner and not a whole lotmore from Parallax. I have come to expect more from Parallax.

The unit is labelled a Netburner SB70 rev 1.2. (difference between SB70 and SB72 appears to be level shifters for RS232/485). However PINK has a single LED (power?) and the NB SB70 has three.

There appears to be a two serial ports TX0/RX0 and TX1/RX1. Can you use both? How?

The email send feature; what if your SMTP server uses authentication?

There is a set of 4 dual pins installed at J3, what are they?

The power connectors at J8 Pin-1 is VCC, Pin-2 is GND and Pin-3 is Vcc; is there a significance of the difference "VCC" vs "Vcc" and what is it in this case? Must you feed power via J3, or can you use the VCC pin (Pin-9) on J5 as is done in the example shown?

The embedded webserver, defaults to "index.htm" as a normal server would?

I know I will find a lot of this by trial and error and judicious application of my DMM, but all this stuff should really be documented and available right out of the package.

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cheers ... brian riley, n1bq, underhill center, vermont

John R.

There are a few threads that answer at least some of your questions in the Basic STAMP forum, as well as the Javelin forum. Specifically the dual serial ports (I belive one is for future use in program transfer to the STAMP) and SMTP issues (currently no support for SMTP authentication, but being discussed).

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John R.

8 + 8 = 10

Ryan Clarke

I don't know how the documentation could be any clearer. There is even a picture of the module up on our website. The device fills a need, and the documentation gives examples of how to access all of the supported features. The SMTP authentication issue has already been brought up here in the forums.

As far as "normal"- are you talking Apache, or IIS?

The connection is assumed to be followed as shown in the documentation as it came from Parallax. The PINK module is a joint venture with Netburner- our firmware was designed for a particular module, attempting to best fill the needs of our customers. For more information on other specific Netburner modules, you can contact Netburner directly.

Yes, there are two serial ports on this module. We did not implement the second port for possible future features (also previously discussed openly here in the forums). We reserved that second port for a reason. We never claimed you could access it or use it (with our firmware as it currently stands).

The pins at J3 are currently not for use by the user. See answer above with regards to the serial ports.

We do appreciate the feedback, and will take it all into consideration as we further develop this new product.

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Ryan Clarke
Parallax Tech Support

RClarke@Parallax.com

Post Edited (Ryan Clarke (Parallax)) : 11/11/2005 12:52:23 AM GMT

Tracy Allen

Here is the product manual:
www.parallax.com/dl/docs/prod/comm/30013-PINK-v1.01.pdf
The manual I received with the product was version 1.0 and the one online is version 1.1, so you know they are busy with it over there!

Look on the CD that comes with PINK to find this file which has further pinout and config information:
ParallaxSB70ConfigGuide.pdf
I don't find that file online at the Parallax web site at the moment.

For the record, here is the PINK product page:
www.parallax.com/detail.asp?product_id=30013
(where it is said to be sold out due to ENORMOUS popularity)

Additional data on the SB70 is available directly from Netburner:
www.netburner.com/datasheets/SB70-Datasheet-R1p3.pdf
www.netburner.com/products/processors/sb70.htm
But you have to realize that the Parallax version is optimized for use with the Stamp. There are many capabilities of the SB70 that are not tapped, currently. I guess you can consider those your wish list and communicate them to Parallax.

The Netburner printed circuit board has "rev 1.2" printed on the bottom, and Brian, is that the version number you are refering to? That PCB number is probably different from firmware versions. I don't know. The CD includes a utility for upgrading the PINK firmware, so it is possible that features may evolve with time and those can be retrofitted to your board.

Documentation can always be improved, but it has to strike a balance between the essentials and intimidating completeness. Some people (like me) will need more tutorials on the networking side, and others will need more tutorials on the Stamp side.

Brian, you mentioned specifically the leds on PINK, that there appeared to be only one, not 3 as shown in the SB70 description. I thought that too, until I turned on the power. The other two leds are sandwiched in under the edge of the ethernet connector. They are there alright! You will see them blinking when there is ethernet activity, for example, when you have a telnet session open with the Stamp.

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Tracy Allen
www.emesystems.com