Writing serial data, just once after read

Question

I have developed a program and the idea is that when it receives serial data (any single character) it returns a single random number.

I have it working but it returns 3 x random numbers one after another for each read that it does and I can't figure out why.

int led = 13;
char incomingByte = 10;
long randNumber;
// the setup routine runs once when you press reset:
void setup() {                
  // initialize the digital pin as an output.
  pinMode(led, OUTPUT);  
 Serial.begin(9600);   
}

// the loop routine runs over and over again forever:
void loop() {

//  delay(1000);               // wait for a second

   if (Serial.available() > 0) {
                // read the incoming byte:
                incomingByte = Serial.read();
                // say what you got:
              //  Serial.print("I received: ");

                randNumber = random(1, 2000);
                Serial.println('PL' + randNumber);
                  digitalWrite(led, HIGH);   // turn the LED on (HIGH is the voltage level)
                  delay(1000);               // wait for a second
                  digitalWrite(led, LOW);    // turn the LED off by making the voltage LOW

}

}

Answer 1

When you enter a single character into the Serial Monitor and press Enter, three bytes are sent: the character, a carriage return, and a linefeed. Serial.read() only reads a single byte, so data is available three times.

Either loop reading until no more bytes are available, check for and discard any CRs and LFs, or use a serial terminal that doesn't require pressing Enter to send data.