L293

Hi LMR!

I have a teeny problem - I'm playing with stepper motors for my next robot, the plan is to have an 18M2 sending serial packets to a pair of 08M2s which each will control one stepper, to save outputs on the 18.

My problem is this, when I have the 18 running into the L293 driver the motor runs perfectly, but when I use an 08 nothing happens and it gets hot (I fear the magic smoke)...

I discovered how much braking power a Solarbotics GM9 can have when you short the terminals. I need that stopping power to make a robot that is suspended from a wire, wound around a spool, powered by a GM9.

But I also need to be able to power the motor in either direction. My platform of choice is the Picaxe 28 project board with a L293D motor driver chip.

How do I tell the L293 to short the terminals of the motor? I tried
high 4 high 5 ' both inputs high
and
low 4 low 5  ' both inputs low
but my motor will not brake.