Nigel, ive got contrast squares; it’s not a breadboard (I posted the board layout above).
I can't add a pot as there’s not enough space on my board, however maximum contrast is being applied as it is tied to ground.
I’ve almost completely ruled out a contrast problem. It’s an init problem. When I turn it on, I can see a row of black squares on the top row. As my init code is working, another row of black squares appears, and then disappears again.
There is something wrong with the init code, as the busy flag never clears.
As for the USB:
I’ve had infinitely more success and have already got the USB speaking to the computer! This is more than I can say about my stupid LCD.
Using the framework, USB seems to be fairly straight forward, apart from many things I don’t quite yet understand, such as interface/endpoint descriptors, etc.
The problem with my LCD is that I can’t see what’s going wrong, and if I could at least rule out another variable (i.e. are pins being set correctly? Not just what ICD2 says about pin states either, but actually physically testing pins) i might be able to crack it.
I understand what your saying about USB being harder to implement, but at least im not still banging my head against a wall, trying in vain to sort out LCD dilemma.
The problem with LCD, is that if it doesnt work, its very difficult to see why its not working. Im not even sure if my LCD is in correct working order.
When i finally get the LCD working, Im going to make a small board and firmware that i can use to test if a LCD works, hence reducing a varaible.
Thanks.