Must read first...

Using the application

Operating authorization

Optional equipment

Must read first...

In order to ensure the reliable and stable working of the system "WizardProg Mobile / Expert application + programmer" we recommend that you adhere to the rules listed below. We hope that these simple and not burdensome tips will help you to avoid some of the typical problems associated with the features of mobile devices and their operating systems, for which the operation of the control software for real time complex peripherals, usually, is not a traditional task.

• always operate with a sufficient level of the mobile device battery charge, and if possible, use an external power supply (budget tablets often have a separate connector for the charger - do not neglect this feature);
• connect the programmer to the mobile device only for the duration of pre-arranged operation: it will save the mobile device battery charge;
• before a work session it is useful to manually clear the suspended tasks cache from unused applications, especially when dealing with large-capacity IC memory, as well as in the case where the mobile device RAM is scarce initially;
• you should switch between other running tasks as little as possible while the IC in programming;
• at the time of programming it is better to disable applications that can suddenly interrupt the operation of other programs (I.e. there are chats, instant messengers, communication clients, event monitors, etc.);
• if you are using a mobile phone, we recommend that you switch to a "flight mode" during the session of IC programming;
• take care of the programmer physical connection reliability and stability during operations: mechanical connectors backlash can induce contact jitter and disconnection in unwanted moments;
• try to prepare your data for programming in advance, using external code editors and writing final program edition to the working directory of the application;
• timely save all the necessary and important data, especially that have been read from the IC!
• if your mobile device only just turned on, or you awake it out of the "sleep", then you shouldn't launch the application as long as the system boot process of the mobile device will not completes. Wait at least when the Android status-bar notifies you that WizardProg connection service monitor is waiting to connect the programmer;
• avoid to shutdown WizardProg by removing its image from the list of suspended tasks. Do this only when absolutely sure that the current state of the application allows this action (all the important data were preserved), and in any case do not do that during the execution of the chip programming!
• we strictly recommend finishing the application session by the regular way (Main List menu/Exit). Do not leave a running application (in the cache) until the next session, particularly when any selected device in service, and when you have unsaved useful and important data for that device. Remember: Android OS might stop any cached application at any time without prior notice!

Using the application

The application consists of three main functional modules available to the user in sequence, that reflects a typical operation session with any programmer. Each module is controlled by its own interactive screen, including: the Main Device List (IC Selector), the Device Processing Console (IC Console), the Memory and Settings Editor (HEX Editor).

There are two auxiliary panels available to the user in each of the three main modules. According to the general concept, any left panel is designed to access the History of user actions, the right pane contains the Menu of features and options for each functional module.

It is a two-level list, which represente a group of manufacturers (sources) of specific IC denominations in the first level (with an indication of their number in the group), the second level provides access to the list of ICs from particular manufacturer/source.

The overall device list ranked by the ICs classes. The application can work with such classes as memory devices (E(E)PROM of different types), microcontrollers, PLD/GAL, static RAM, logic circuits. The classes lists are available through the panel with the named tabs in the caption of the scrolling section. The first list always includes all the devices in the current database.

Note: Depending on the version of the devices database the application may not support all of the above classes, so some of the tabs can either be absent or will appear when the database will have updated.

The "Locator" tool filters selected list section by pattern of *XXX*. Thus, in the given section you can find all ICs, whose denomination contains the XXX continuous sequence of symbols in any position.

The left "History" panel of the Main Device List contains two sections. These sections has a lists that are filled with the IC denominations were ever previously selected. It's done to accelerate their re-selection. The Favorites list (4 positions max) is filled by the user. The Recently Used list (6 positions maximum) is filled automatically during the work with the devices database. The repeated selection of the same denomination does not lead to the creation of its duplicate in sections.

The right "Menu" panel of the Main Device List contains auxiliary features and modes that can be helpful at the beginning of the work: the self-test of the connected programmer, smart auto-detector of SPI Flash 25 Series chips, the Settings screen and the given Compendium, etc.

The "Programming Settings" section includes two pads.

1. Programming Options allow you to customize the operation of data programming for the given IC using the following service functions:

• Check Device ID - it may be performed before any operation (not only the Write) to authenticate the device which had been loaded onto the programmer;
• Initial Erase - blank device before programming
• Blank Test - checks the device memory blankness before writing;
• Final Verify - after programming the device the verification is required for memory areas that were recorded and the current contents of the programming buffers;
• Skip 0xFF Writes - during the device programming the data stream transmitted to the chip loses page sized blocks that containing 0xFF in all their cells. In some cases this can significantly reduce the pre-blanked chips programming time, because that option excludes from the total processing those parts of chip's memory, which are considered as empty;
• Autonumbering - this mode is used to program a series of similar ICs requiring special identifying of individual instances. You can setup this mode in a separate configuration screen that appears immediately after the checkmark is set on this option. The availability of this option for all ICs is controlled via the application "Settings" in the "Device Processing" section. By default, this option is disabled.

Depending on the characteristics of the selected IC, some settings may not be available for modification.

2. Write Range It allows you to restrict the IC memory address range, which will be engaged in the subsequent programming operation. It may reduce the run time of the IC programming if only a separate section of its memory needs a rewrite. It affects only the first and main memory segment of all available for the selected IC. The default interval is equal to the total size of the IC main memory segment. Some devices do not allow you to assign absolutely any interval and can only be programmed from zero to the specified address, or require that the size of the interval was strictly a multiple of its physical memory page sizes.

The "Information and Management" section focuses information about the characteristics of the selected IC, the controls for some specific programming settings, checksums for memory segments and the current fuses configuration if they are exists at the selected IC type. There is a button for HEX Editor call and a button "Start" that calls Operations Menu.

From the Operations Menu you can select the desired operation. It opens the operation monitor window in which you can choose the field of programming, then confirm selected operation and observe its progress in a mini-log window.

The Erase operation, generally refers to the entire available memory of the device, so the area selection panel is absent in the erase operation window. At the time of an operation with the programmer the UI controls are blocked, however, remain accessible the home screen button and the task list button of the mobile device, as well as the system status bar.

The left "History" panel of the Device Processing Console is the same as in the Main Device List.

The right "Menu" panel of the Device Processing Console, in addition to auxiliary components, allows you to call the "loading wizard", which allows to read binary or IntelHex files with required firmware to the program buffers in the HEX Editor.

The left "History" panel consists of two sections. The Last Read Buffer section contains up to three links to these images that are extracted by explicit read operations from one of the last serviced IC. The images can be loaded into any available memory buffer of device that now selected. For these images there are specified data size, IC denomination and the type of the read area: BASE/CODE - the main program memory, DATA/OTP - secondary data segment or protection area, EXTRA - other additional memory segment for the certain types of ICs. Recently Saved Files section contains six references to the files in the directory WizardProg/firmwares/*, those having the most recent date of changes.

The right "Menu" panel of the HEX Editor, in addition to auxiliary components, allows you to call the "loading wizard", which allows to read binary or IntelHex files with required firmware to the program buffers in the HEX Editor. The following commands are also available:

• writing data of the buffers to external files;
• management of the buffers content: cleaning, pattern filling, pattern searching.

Importing files with firmware

All the work with the files is realized in the space of the home directory of the application (usually: /sdcard/WizardProg/firmwares). To make your file available through the app - put it in a working firmwares folder by using any third-party file manager for Android. Inside the firmwares folder you can create subfolders for structured storage of your firmware files.

The saving of the obtained (downloaded from the ICs) firmwares is currently organized quite primitive. When you save the contents of the given buffer, you can choose a name for it, and file type (binary/IntelHex, the extensions are offered automatically). In this case, you can place the file only in the space of firmwares folder (its subfolders or other internal filesystem space are not available for storing your files using the application capabilities). In the next versions of the application is planned to significantly enhance the ability of the data saving manager.

Operating authorization of the "WizardProg Expert" application

The "WizardProg Expert" mobile application is created as an extended and paid version of the free "WizardProg Mobile" application. Due to having the paid form of distribution, the application requires periodic operating authorization, which had confirm the legality of owning a copy of the "WizardProg Expert" application and the fact of its acquisition through Google Play.

Authorization is performed using the Internet. The authorization mechanism is closely connected with the Google Play system and it, as a rule, works automatically, without the need for intervention of the owner (user) of the application. In order to successfully fulfil the authorization process while working with an application, the owner (user) of the "WizardProg Expert" instance must provide:

• the presence of the active Google account on the used mobile device, using which data the user purchased the "WizardProg Expert" application from the Google Play store;
• the presence in the software of the used mobile device of the Android system application named "Google Play Services" in the running state;
• the possibility (at least periodically) of providing the user's mobile device with access to the Internet to perform the authorization of the "WizardProg Expert" application installed on it.

The "WizardProg Expert" application does not use any data network (including the Internet) directly in its work. The mediator in the communicating process with the authorization server of applications purchased on Google Play is the Android system application "Google Play Services". If, for some reason, "Google Play Services " is excluded from the working software of the user's mobile device, then periodically performed authorization, as well as perfect work with the application that is not authorized in time, becomes impossible. A similar situation occurs when there is no connection to the Internet at the time of the authorization request. In this case, you should take care to return the "Google Play Services" to the active state on the user's mobile device and/or to restore the mobile device's Internet connection. In such cases, the application reports the impossibility of continuing normal operation as follows:

After purchasing the "WizardProg Expert" application and when you connect the programmer to the mobile device for the first time, the initial session of operating authorization is performed, so if the "Google Play Services" system does not get access to the Internet at this moment, it will not be possible to continue working with the application (application functionality will be significantly limited).

After an unsuccessful session of the required authorization, the rightful owner (buyer/user) of the application can continue working with the application in normal mode at any time, providing an Internet connection to his mobile device and repeating the authorization request "manually".

You can find out about the authorization status of the application in the "Authorization" section of the "Settings" menu of the application. Here, if this is required by the state of the application, you can repeat an authorization request in "manual" mode by clicking on the "Authority Request" option which has an active state in this case.

When the application received the operating authorization, its validity until the need for renewal is determined by the Google server, requests to which are sent via "Google Play Services". The application or user, for its part, does not have the opportunity to influence this process, nor does it have to control the validity periods of the next authorization assigned by the Google server. Nevertheless, the general principles, according to which the server assigns the next dates for extending the authorization, are known:

• The first authorization is issued to the application by the Google server for a period not less than the period of the possibility to refuse the purchase, according to the rules of shopping in the Google Play store;
• Each next time authorization is valid for a period not less (and as a rule, obviously greater) than the period of the previous authorization.

During the validity period of the current operating authorization, the "WizardProg Expert" application does not need to connect the Internet and its normal operation is completely autonomous.

Since the periodicity of authorization checks is established by the Google authorization server in the regulatory manner, during the operation of the application, a scenario is quite likely which the need for the next authorization arose when it was impossible to access the Internet from the user's mobile device. If a similar situation is foreseen in advance or is considered as potentially possible, then we can prepare for it. When considering a scenario of long-time autonomous operation of the application (without a mobile device accessing data networks), the following should be taken before permanently disconnecting a mobile device from the Internet:

• In the system settings of the mobile device, open the list of running applications;
• In the list of applications, select "WizardProg Expert";
• Depending on the version of Android OS being used, find the operations "Clear Cache" and "Clear/Reset data" among the settings/properties of the application;
• Perform both operations in the proposed way (click on the buttons).

As a result, the "WizardProg Expert" application will be unloaded from the memory of the mobile device while simultaneously deleting the internal cached data. Next, having checked the availability of Internet access, you should re-launch the "WizardProg Expert" application in the usual way (from the Home screen or the Launcher screen). Then you need to connect the programmer to the mobile device, which will lead to the receipt of a new authorization for the next period, during which the application will no longer need access to the Internet and it will be able to work completely autonomously, using latest cached data of the authorization just recieved via "Google Play Services".

Optional equipment

Communication USB 2.0 cable with OTG (On-The-Go) support. Currently, the market offers a lot of USB-OTG cables of various lengths and designs. The ideal option for working with the "WizardProg Mobile" application is USB-OTG cable MicroUSB-BM/USB-BM type, no more than 1ft in length.

USB-OTG adapter (MicroUSB-BM / USB-AF type) often comes bundled with a mobile Android device directly. This adapter can be used with the "computer-printer" USB-cable (USB-AM / USB-BM type) or with a similar type adapter (see photo below).

To ensure the stable work and reliable connection the overall length of the link wire between the mobile device and the programmer should be kept as minimum as possible, with a minimal number of intermediate connections.

Additional adapters. Designed to program ICs in packages other than the DIP. The simplest adapters are widespread. For instance there are PLCC package adapter (PLCC32 → DIP32 and PLCC44 → DIP40) and SO package adapter (SOP/SOIC 8/16 → DIP) with different pitches of contacts in the connector.

There are adapters used for servicing Flash ROM of 25 series with a 1.8V programming voltage. These adapters can be ordered or made independently, using special schemes.

Specialized versions are available only in programmer distribution kit or by order directly from the manufacturer, and are allowed to maintain VSOP, TSSOP packages using special algorithms. Specialized adapters are composed of a combination of different basements and headers for mounting the IC.