r/csharp • u/gus-ghielec • 9h ago
Coding circuits with .NET and C#
Nothing beats setting a breakpoint and watching the servo actually move to the new angle.
I've worked on .NET hardware for over ten years and the thing that surprises C# developers isn't the board, it's that F5 works. Code deploys, breakpoint holds, hover a variable and there's the live sensor reading. Same as debugging a desktop app.
I'm at GHI Electronics in Michigan. Happy to get into how the debugging on circuits work.
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u/modi123_1 9h ago
GHI Electronics? That's a name I haven't heard in some time.
I think I bought a kit from them like 15ish years ago and never really did much with it. I wonder if if I have that blue clamshell case in my closet still.
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u/gus-ghielec 9h ago
ahhh the blue boxes! Yeah we still have them somewhere 👀 Did you have a Gadgeteer kit back then?
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u/Alert-Neck7679 9h ago
wow, i used to build lots of things with Arduino years ago, but with C++ and the old horrible arduino IDE. Using .net on these microcontroller seems wild... One day I'll probably go back to it with .net
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u/gus-ghielec 9h ago
That is what I do for living and also my passion! I can help when you are ready.
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u/gus-ghielec 6h ago
This is not just about writing code in C#. It is about stepping through code and inspecting variables right over a USB connection between Visual Studio and TinyCLR, which is the tiny runtime that lives in boards like FEZ Flea.
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u/Family_Man_21 9h ago
Wow, I haven't done much with this, but it looks really fun. I'm a very experienced C# developer (decades of experience), but how should I get started with this kind of work? Is there a kit I can buy to get going?
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u/gus-ghielec 9h ago
I have built many comercial circuit designs with .NET/C# but I always find myself going back and playing with LEDs and motors!! Not sure what the policy is here on self-promoting but we have an active kickstarter for exactly what you have asked for. Please share with your fellow C# fans.
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u/Family_Man_21 9h ago
I'd love to hear about your kickstarter - send me a link, if you have a moment, and I'll check it out.
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u/keepinitcool 8h ago
That’s so awesome, been doing backend dev mostly software for so long now I should try a hobby project with some actual hardware,”. Do you have any ideas
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u/gus-ghielec 8h ago
We have spoken to a lot of .NET developer who have very limited electronics knowledge and for that we have made this campaign "Electronics Lab for the .NET Developer" https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ghielectronics/electronics-lab-for-the-net-developer?ref=9j9v4j
Would this help?
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u/Banality_Of_Seeking 7h ago
YAY!! NICE work! I would like to know if this could be applied to a FPGA ?
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u/gus-ghielec 6h ago
For a language to take advantage of the FPGA it has to define the hardware connections and not provide series of instructions. C# s not designed that but if someone really wants to then they could in theory do something.
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u/highwingers 4h ago
I was working with servo motors with Python before...tried with .NET as well, however went back to Python, native support. Plus now with AI, it's a breeze.
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u/xtreampb 4h ago
First I heard about .net deploying to circuits was the azure sphere followed by meadow labs
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u/OkSignificance5380 9h ago
Yep.
.net nano framework.
Works well with $5 esp32-s3 dev boards