Blog

Self Induced Stress

Posted by on 12:11 am in learning | 2 comments

Self Induced Stress

I’m pretty good at stressing myself out. Not for any particular reason; normally just because I find it’s more productive than watching TV. How, you ask? Well, starting podcasts could be one. While they are exciting at the beginning, there is invariably some work that needs to be done. I’ll want to figure out how to get the recording setup to work or make the website more reliable or try and find some kind of funding for it. In the end, it’s driven by my desire to put my voice on the internet, but at the base of it all,...

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How We Record The Amp Hour Podcast

Posted by on 10:36 pm in podcast | 6 comments

How We Record The Amp Hour Podcast

Other podcasts: Check out TheAmpHour.com sidebar to see other podcasts we like. Hardware I use: The Audio Technica AT2020USB microphone. Dave uses the Samson C01U. I use a the Nady MPF-6 pop filter to block air getting to the microphone. I use the Samson SP01 shock mount to reduce vibration in the microphone. And I have the On Stage DS720 mic stand to hold the shock mount on my desk. When I’m out and about or need to record multiple people at once, I use the Zoom H1 handheld. While recording this video, I had my Olympus...

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CNCs And Stuff

Posted by on 12:22 am in engineering, mechanical | 10 comments

CNCs And Stuff

I often find myself worried about where my job might be in the future. It’s not that I worry that my current job will evaporate overnight (though that is a possibility for any and all of us). But it’s more of a general concern, because globalization continues its march onward. In general, I find that globalization continues to be a thrilling enterprise because I see what changes it is made in my own life and my own career; electronics really have gotten more exciting since expanding to the worldwide marketplace. The trend is most...

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New Project — ChipReport.TV

Posted by on 11:41 pm in part review | 3 comments

New Project — ChipReport.TV

So I’ve continued to keep myself busy lately. I have a new project called ChipReport.tv. I’ll be reviewing the newest released parts so you don’t have to work so hard to find them. Here’s the intro video: And here’s the first installment! Around here, I hope to do a site refresh soon, since this blog has gotten a little stale. I think I’d like to transition it to more of a traditional “home page” for all the things I’m working on. Comments welcome on any of the...

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You stop that right now.

Posted by on 4:01 pm in politics | 3 comments

You stop that right now.

No. You just stop that right friggin now. Yeah, I’m talkin’ to you, lawyer/investor/clueless people. Well, if you’re a reader, go read this article from The Economist (my favorite magazine) before we proceed: http://www.economist.com/node/21554540/ The part about Google, Apple, Samsung and other handset manufacturers needing to quickly trade patents seems to make sense at first, right? But that’s not the concern. Those companies have lots of resources at their disposal and I think their rattling of their technology...

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Another site too?!?

Posted by on 12:34 am in podcast | 1 comment

Another site too?!?

Another website? What am I, switching out of electrical engineering and into IT? Well…no. This is the site for the podcast mentioned in the last post. We called the first episode, “Jumping Off” and the second episode is about “Feedback”. We hope you like it! Many more themes, discussions and guests are on the way in the coming months. You can find it over at our new home, The Engineering Commons. Please consider subscribing so you can hear our shows as they are posted. Thanks for...

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Another Engineering Podcast?!?

Posted by on 11:37 pm in engineering, podcast | 16 comments

Another Engineering Podcast?!?

I’m not around here too much anymore. It’s not that I don’t have anything to say, it’s just that I have so many other places to say it. And I may have added another one. As some you may know, I’m the co-host of an electronics podcast called The Amp Hour. It’s a lot of fun and our listeners run the gamut of hobbyists to professionals. Me and Dave Jones talk about circuits and related topics weekly. But something has happened lately. I keep trying to draw the conversation away from electronics during the show...

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How To Write A Resume For Electronics

Posted by on 4:15 pm in engineering, jobs, learning, life | 14 comments

How To Write A Resume For Electronics

I’ve looked at a lot of resumes for electronics positions, so I thought I’d share some of my opinions on what should or shouldn’t be on there. Nothing formatting specific, so much as how to get across your interest and passion in electronics. I used examples that are resumes meant for engineering internships, but a lot of the info can be generalized to anyone. Hope you enjoy the video! Here are those two resumes, if you’re interested: The bad (1st) version and the better (2nd)...

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KiCAD Schematic Tutorial

Posted by on 12:07 am in analog electronics, engineering, learning | 11 comments

KiCAD Schematic Tutorial

Oh hey, remember me? Yeah, I’m the guy that’s supposed to be running this site. Sorry for the long absence. I’ve been consulting, recording my electronics radio show, managing a multi-blogger engineer site and even getting married! Jeez, it’s been a busy time. Anyway, things have cooled off a bit, so I’ve freed up some time (for now, never know what’ll happen). I decided to dive into a new project after a long hiatus from hobby type activity. I plan to put an MP3 player and output stage board into an...

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Featured on EE Web!

Posted by on 12:12 pm in analog electronics, engineering, interview | 2 comments

I was contacted a while ago and dragged my feet, like any good engineer. But today I was the “featured engineer” on EE Web! Exciting! Aside from the fact that it was very nice of them to think of me, I’m just as excited to be featured on there along with friends from the electronics scene! My co-host of The Amp Hour (who probably won’t let me forget who was interviewed first), Dave Jones has been featured in the past. My co-conspirator for the recently completed 555 contest, hackmaster elite Jeri Ellsworth has been...

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