Compatable Hardware
LPC Xpresso 1769 from NXP
This is my personal favorite. It's cheaper, but more versatile, but a lot more work to put together. (You enjoy hacksaws and soldering irons, right?)
The LPCXpresso 1769 comes in a plain paper envelope. (To protect my privacy?)
and here it is:
The LPCXpresso LPC1769
The board is made in two halves: the left half is the JTAG programmer, the right half is the board itself. The left half does not work with any Linux / Open-source tools; ie: it is worthless. We will cut it off with a hacksaw.
Yes, really.
Using a hacksaw to remove excess hardware.
Make sure to cut to the JTAG side, and away from the LPCXpresso itself:
Board is mostly cut
Board has been cut
We will touch it up with a dremel tool and a flat file:
Ground planes are the (horrible, evil) bane of my soldering existence. This board has 3 ground pins. Let's solder them first:
Three ground pins
LPCXpresso with most headers installed
Ethernet kit from Switch Science (some assembly required)
Ethernet (and all other headers) mounted onto the Xpresso
I like to add epoxy in between the two boards, for extra strength:
Epoxy between main board and ethernet board.
Getting ready to mount the LPCXpresso:
The final board, with LPCXpresso1769
Once you have more than two eFirmatas, it's easy to lose track of which one is which. So I shall christen thee: bluestripe.
A strip of blue electrical tape, to identify the board.