Recent content by gee

A larger die will, with everything else kept the same, be easier to cool than a smaller die. But if "everything else isn't kept the same", it's entirely possible for a smaller die to have better cooling than a large one. It all depends on the die itself (how thick its silicon base is), the...

I've programmed AVRs for several years and have only on a few occasions used assembly code on them. Nowadays, assembly code is something you resort to for the "10% of your code that takes 90% of your CPU time" situation when you need to get more speed. I don't really know what the whole...

Agreed. I personally wonder why they didn't add power pins to eSATA.

The Biax fixtures I was referring to above are self-ballasted bulbs like your standard CFL. They have a folded linear tube instead of a spiral tube, but they're the same thing otherwise. As for the bulbs you're referring to (also named Biax) I've got several fixtures around the house that...

Don't buy your bulbs at walmart or whatever - they're crap. Hit up a lighting supplier and buy professional bulbs. I run GE Biax FLE13TT3/827's everywhere. 15000 hour lifetime which I can vouch for, 2700K color temperature that doesn't burn your eyes, etc.

What you're after is a Tyco Electronics "Commercial MATE-N-LOK", 4-pin, .200" pitch. Here's two from Digikey: http://search.digikey.com/scripts/DkSearch/dksus.dll?Detail&name=A25430-ND http://search.digikey.com/scripts/DkSearch/dksus.dll?Detail&name=A14374-ND

I wouldn't bother with the Trailblazer radio. It's hard to mechanically mount, you'll need to get mating electrical connectors from a scrapyard, etc. The reason it doesn't power up could be caused by anti-theft coding in the radio or something similar - I know in later GM's the radio itself...

Grab a copy of the Abraham Pressman power supply book (aka the 'bible'), there's a whole chapter on compensation. Compensation strategies are different based on whether the supply operates in voltage or current mode. I'm a bit rusty on compensation (haven't done an offline supply in a couple of...

I see CapXon. They made a bunch of bad capacitors (part of the taiwanese bad cap scandal, along with Fuhjyyu annd other makers) with an incomplete electrolyte that create hydrogen gas and bulge. And that's what you've got there. When you replace these capacitors, make sure you get ones with a...

Actually, another thought.. Try a green LED (~2.5V) in the flashlight. Or swap in NiMH's and try a high brightness red LED (~2.2v) instead.

Oh, and to answer your first question... you can't really do much with a white LED running off 2 alkalines. You're better off replacing it with another halogen.

They'll certainly run your radio if you parallel them up. How long depends on the radio, whether you run 2 or 4 speakers, and how loud you run your music. Two batteries in series will give you a 12V, 3.5AH effective battery - meaning if your radio draws 3.5 amps, it'll last about an hour...

This chip should be a bit easier to work with, an Atmel "qTouch": http://www.atmel.com/dyn/resources/prod_documents/qt220_103.pdf You'll need to put flat electrodes behind the buttons, a buried wire won't directly work unless you do something like make a coil with a flat shape. There's a...

I've personally designed equipment which uses lead-free BGA parts, thousands of units fielded, and I've never had a failure, warranty or field return which could be explained by a solder ball fracture. Hell, the majority of things around you (cellphones, iPods, television sets, game consoles...

I can't stand those steel wool things! wetsponge4lyfe. Here's another Hakko 936 vote. I use a 936ESD as my home machine, and my workplace has 936ESD's all over the assembly line. They're dead reliable and do a good job. Some notes: - For most day-to-day soldering, don't put the...