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Atmel microcontrollers are not cheap compared to STM and Microchip. Why did Arduino select Atmel MCUs such as atmega328 and atmega2560 on their board out of so many alternatives?

user768421
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Simply because the Wiring system that Arduino stole was written for the Atmel chips.

Arduino didn't "invent" the Arduino system - they just took an existing system called Wiring and adapted it slightly and branded it Arduino.

Majenko
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  • I wonder why did Arduino succeed when Wiring failed given that Wiring had first-mover advantage. – user768421 Nov 07 '15 at 13:17
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    It's called Marketing. If you have it then you win. – Majenko Nov 07 '15 at 13:18
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    Actually, "stolen" is quite a bold word. If Wiring didn't want any forks, they should use licence that prevents them, not GPL created exactly to allow them. At least that's for software, can't find licences for actual wiring, but arduino uses open licence for them as well. – Mołot Nov 07 '15 at 15:02
  • @Mołot Maybe "Appropriated" then? Blatantly used and pretty much claimed as their own with little or no reference to the original Wiring project. Actually, "stolen" fits that quite well... – Majenko Nov 07 '15 at 15:11
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    @Majenko AFAIK they posted all references actually required by original licence. Of course, GPL is easygoing about that. But that's what Wiring decided to use. Are you using any sources just the way licence allows you to? Does it make you a thief?.. Would you find it fair to call you thief if you follow licences of code you use?.. OK, they wasn't as nice as they might be, but they fulfilled their duties. It's not like Wiring ever forbade what they did. – Mołot Nov 07 '15 at 15:18
  • This was the first time I've heard of Wiring. It's interesting how little recognition they've received. Also it's not easy to google their name, since the name is so generic. – Jerry Nov 07 '15 at 15:18
  • The site is wiring.org.co and yes, it's hard to search for something that is named after such a generic word. @Mołot The license allows them to use the code without asking etc, which is fine. But they completely stole the whole market segment from Wiring, and that isn't covered by the GPL license. – Majenko Nov 07 '15 at 15:20
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    I don't really get the impression the Arduino crew misrepresented themselves as far as their use of Wiring. And a probably more significant part of what Arduino is about is making the hardware easy to use (IMHO). – sdcharle Nov 11 '15 at 22:34