How to program hardware? [closed]

Question

I am an adept Visual Basic programmer. I wish to learn about how people program hardware. For example I have seen people create an LED watches, boxes etc. How do you achieve this? Can it be done using VB or Java? I have some experience in reading C, C++ code. I am only aware of IO in the C and C++ language.

Answer 1

Probably you are looking for a programmable microcontroller. If you have experience in C/C++/Java, checkout Arduino. Its chip is programmed using a C like language. This "How tos" page might help you get started. There are also some good books that will help you move forward:

1. Programming Interactivity.
2. Making Things Move DIY Mechanisms for Inventors, Hobbyists, and Artists

Wiring is a platform similar to Arduino.

Also have a look at the Forth programming language. There are lot of interesting "tiny computers" that you can program with this rather unusual language. Here is a partial list:

1. Forth Inc
2. Greenarrays
3. Zilog Z8
4. PIC18Fxx2

Two famous Forth books:

1. Starting Forth
2. Thinking Forth (A classic in Software Engineering literature.)