74xx Competition! Part 1

As some of you may know, Dangerous Prototypes is putting on this big competition out for circuits that use discrete logic chips like 7400's or 4000's. In case you haven't seen the prize list, I suggest you cruise on over the dangerousprototypes.com and check it out.

         A while ago (in sixth grade) I built a rocket launch controller exclusively out of 4000 series chips and  555 timer. It was all on a breadboard and pretty messy. Now, in ninth grade, I've decided to get it back together, but this time on a PCB. But wait, there's more! I'm etching it myself, so it has to one-sided. Yes, there will be some jumpers, and the 555 will be replaced by an ATTiny for controllability and simplicity, but the displays and such will all be discrete. The first part I'm etching is the ATTiny and 4017 circuit. It will drive a bargraph display. Later, the divide-by-ten output of the 4017 will drive a 4026 [EDIT: 4029] (BCD count-up/count-down), which will drive a 4511(BCD to seven-segment display driver), and another 4017, the tenth output of which will trigger a relay and thus the rocket. In case that doesn't make sense, here's a super-simple diagram:

Sorry for the poorly drawn lines...

Hi

So... This is the first post on ToasterBotics. I started this blog for a few reasons:

1. To chronicle my continuing adventure through embedded electronics, programming, and making
2. To share what I've learned through tutorials or how-tos or something
3. To ask questions over the internet to get on my projects, or other peoples' projects.

So here is a bit about myself. I really like DIY electronics. I got a bread board just four years ago, and I've already made loads of projects, from 555s, to rocket launchers based on 4000 series chips, to a Pong! emulator on an Arduino. I've tried a BS-2, Picaxe, AVR, and Arduino microcontrollers and found that Arduino is my favorite. I know many people like other ones, but you guys are capable, try to port it over!