DIY Memory Cells?

[masterens]

Hi all,
I am new to this site, so correct me if this is in the wrong category or something.
Anyway, here is my question:
Is it possible to create PROM memory (once-write-and-then-only-read-memory) yourself? I have found that memorycells you buy are quite large, and you have to buy them in groups. But I want to design my own cartridge with code and all that stuff. Is that possible? Or can I use an old Floppy with my device. I am not yet sure what I will be using, but I am thinking of a PIC16 µc or a Teensy with some Texas Instruments Multiplexers. Do you have any advice about this?

Thanks in advance, masteRens

 

[blueroomelectronics]

Old floppy, Cartridge for what device?

SD cards are cheap and easy enough to use with most microcontrollers.

 

[3v0]

Most PICs have EEPROM, will that work for you ?

Not sure what you are trying to do.

 

[Nigel Goodwin]

Sorry, but it sounds a really silly idea - and microcontrollers (such as a PIC) come with internal memory anyway, and can't use external memory.

You could certainly make hardwired ROM, or even PROM, but it will be massively larger, and massively more expensive than what you can buy.

 

[masterens]

Thank you for your replies.
I am making a new kind of cartridge, lets give it the name COOLRIDGE for now.
I want to make some memory in it, so a device that is compatible with it would be able to read some data of it. EEPROM would also work, the goal is transferring data to a COOLRIDGE, and then taking the COOLRIDGE out (no more electricity) and placing it in another device that would read the recently stored data.
OTHERWISE, if I cannot make a cartridge myself (for some reason, like "it isnt possible to make memory"), I could also use floppies, but I am not sure how to write and read them.

Does anyone have any advice (prim. on the first question)?

EDIT: I had not yet read your reply, Nigel, but the goal isnt to make µc code and executing it with a µc. I just want to write some 1s and 0s to a cartridge and read it later.

 

[blueroomelectronics]

Ok, lets try again. What is the mystery device you want COOLRIDGE to interface with? Why would you want to make memory it's cheap as dirt for scads of it. Floppies are err so 1990's can you even buy them anymore? How much memory do you need?

 

[Nigel Goodwin]

Thank you for your replies.
I am making a new kind of cartridge, lets give it the name COOLRIDGE for now.
I want to make some memory in it, so a device that is compatible with it would be able to read some data of it. EEPROM would also work, the goal is transferring data to a COOLRIDGE, and then taking the COOLRIDGE out (no more electricity) and placing it in another device that would read the recently stored data.
OTHERWISE, if I cannot make a cartridge myself (for some reason, like "it isnt possible to make memory"), I could also use floppies, but I am not sure how to write and read them.

Does anyone have any advice (prim. on the first question)?

EDIT: I had not yet read your reply, Nigel, but the goal isnt to make µc code and executing it with a µc. I just want to write some 1s and 0s to a cartridge and read it later.

You've already answered your own question - EEPROM

 

[masterens]

Thank you for your reply.
The mystery device is a gameboy-like device that uses buttons to let signals that are stored in the cartridge through and so make music and screen info. I would need 256 to 512 bytes. Kinda like ROM memory works.

EDIT: Nigel, again, I missed your post. Are there EEPROM memorycells available on the market? And around 256-512 bytes? And would it cost under, maybe, 7 dollars? I need a lot of those cartridges, you see?

 

[blueroomelectronics]

Is the gameboy like device an actual gameboy? If not what is it? What sort of interface does it have?
Short answer is an EEPROM (512bytes is not enough for anything aside from a lores B&W image or some MIDI notes) MP3's and JPGs will usually much more ie megabytes.
Is this a school project?

And yes EEPROMs are dirt cheap, 24LC32 is 4kb of EEPROM and is about $3 quantity one. But you need to interface it and the device will determine what that requires.

 

[Nigel Goodwin]

Thank you for your reply.
The mystery device is a gameboy-like device that uses buttons to let signals that are stored in the cartridge through and so make music and screen info. I would need 256 to 512 bytes. Kinda like ROM memory works.

EDIT: Nigel, again, I missed your post. Are there EEPROM memorycells available on the market? And around 256-512 bytes? And would it cost under, maybe, 7 dollars? I need a lot of those cartridges, you see?

EEPROM's are freely available on the market, and many are much larger than that - I'm not sure you can still get them that small?.

However, as BIll says, you're been so vague it's difficult to give meaningful answers, and that's a puny amount of memory.

 

[masterens]

It is not an actual gameboy, I am making my own gaming system that I can paste into a school book (not realy a school project)
I am not going to use JPG's, noooh. Black and white LCD, analog writing to a built in speaker for music (alright, maybe midi), and 16 'environments' that respond differently to buttons. You might be right, I might need around 1024 or something.
Hang on, I just notice I got a new reply

EDIT: Nigel, I seem to keep missing your posts. Is it possible to write and read EEPROM with a PIC?

 

[blueroomelectronics]

Which microcontroller are you going to learn? The market is saturated with inexpensive gaming systems including black & white old gameboys that are commonly hacked. You're not going to be able to DIY something smaller or cheaper.
Why not just mod an old gameboy?
**broken link removed**

 

[Nigel Goodwin]

It is not an actual gameboy, I am making my own gaming system that I can paste into a school book (not realy a school project)
I am not going to use JPG's, noooh. Black and white LCD, analog writing to a built in speaker for music (alright, maybe midi), and 16 'environments' that respond differently to buttons. You might be right, I might need around 1024 or something.
Hang on, I just notice I got a new reply

EDIT: Nigel, I seem to keep missing your posts. Is it possible to write and read EEPROM with a PIC?

Yes, you can read and write them with anything - but you seem to have no idea of the space requirements, pictures and sound (never mind programming, which can be smallish) require large amounts of memory.

 

[masterens]

It could design my own some kind of JPG black and white file, and sound is not that big at all, in midi shape (right?)
What space do you all recommend me to use and how expensive is that? I dont want to mod a gameboy, because that is already done for you. It really is for getting experienced with memory usage and using unknown factors. Don't worry, I have a 7-year experience with programming, and have already made some languages, so that would not give problems.

 

[blueroomelectronics]

Ok then pick a microcontroller almost any will do and you can get started. Dig through the digikey catalog so you can get an idea on what sort of stuff is available.
Since it's a one off learning experience why do you needs lots of cartridges at low cost?

 

[masterens]

I was hoping to make some games for myself and friends, and of course, it wouldnt be smart to make a gameboy for pretty cheap, and make the games-cartridge intrinsic value super high
EDIT: I dont think that catalogue will be of much use, since shops barely sell these in my country. I think i'll have to go to Amsterdam to get A µc.
I missed a post again, wait a moment. Read it in the next message by me

 

[blueroomelectronics]

Cheap hardware and expensive games is how the console industry works.

I'd recommend if you want to pursue this then try to make your own gameboy cartridge. When you've mastered that then maybe you'd be ready to start the much more expensive and difficult DIY game machine route.

 

[3v0]

Do you know how to program ?

 

[masterens]

Yes I do
@blueroomelectronics
But I wouldnt know the API of the Gameboy Color? It's much simpeler to create your own

 

[blueroomelectronics]

Did you read the hack a day site stuff? Have you Googled for how to write your own Gameboy firmware? Some folks even turned it into an oscilloscope. No it's not easier to start from scratch.