PIC-kit3 not working?

[olewolf]

I just purchased a PIC-KIT3 from Olimex, and I'm beginning to think that maybe it isn't working. In each attempt, MPLAB v. 8.89 on Windows XP, MPLAB X on Windows 7, and MPLAB X on Linux report that there's no target. Here's what I've attempted:

• Three different PIC18F2550 chips on a breadboard, and one 16LF1503 on a breadboard.
• With and without a 10k resistor between VDD and VPP.
• By having PIC-KIT3 supplying power to the PICs, and by powering the PICs via an external source. (But not both at the same time.)
• By powering the PIC-KIT3 via USB only, and by supplying it with 7 V DC via an external source.
• Obviously, the PIC-KIT3 VPP, VDD, VSS, data, and clock pins were connected to the corresponding PIC pins, and both of the VSS pins on the PIC18F2550 were connected to VSS.

In all cases, MPLAB downloads new firmware to the PIC-KIT3 as appropriate but always ends complaining that the target isn't connected, and anything that is read from the target is all-zeroes (including the PIC ID and anything else supposed to be in memory).

When I measured the voltage supplied by the PIC-KIT3 (when in that mode), I noticed that the voltage was only 3.1 V (for the 5 V PIC18F2550) whereas the MPLAB status window indicated that the PIC-KIT3 claimed the supply voltage to be 4.88 V. This makes me suspect that the PIC-KIT3 may be broken.

Unfortunately I don't have access to other PIC programmers. Any suggestions what I might do to ascertain that the PIC-KIT3 is indeed malfunctioning?

[olimex]

please check if you really connect correctly ICSP connector the arrow points pin.6 not pin.1

[olewolf]

please check if you really connect correctly ICSP connector the arrow points pin.6 not pin.1

You're right, I certainly didn't expect that. I had actually checked against an image of the PIC-KIT3 pinout, but somehow I must have missed that. Thanks!

(That's evil, though. It reminds me of the time I purchased a dongle somewhere that I had to hack and learned that they had connected the red wire to ground and the black wire to VDD.)