tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.comments2023-11-16T11:27:20.675+00:00Electronics Design BlogMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02330775285331342432noreply@blogger.comBlogger44125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-37304808144379337222018-05-22T08:35:03.789+01:002018-05-22T08:35:03.789+01:00When I started my chemical engineering studies I u...When I started my chemical engineering studies I used a CASIO fx-850P with additional 8k RAM and that was really good computer in that era (1994). After my studies I have started work chemical analysis in a lab and after two year work I started another studies as mechanical engineer - with a HP32SII. When I bought this HP after that I never used any other manufacturer machine. In the university I bought a 48SX and a 15C and these three unit was good enough to solve any engineering problem.<br /><br />In my work as mechanical engineer I have became a calculator collector and I frequently use CASIOs again (my favourite two is a little 50F and a very capable 4000P), but I think the HP is the recommended calculator if you want to make serious engineering work.<br />ZilogRhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08264141488435451883noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-3226817750026352472012-08-02T07:21:55.455+01:002012-08-02T07:21:55.455+01:00Intresting Article.......Intresting Article.......Tittuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05271618971075559953noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-19453680022029785512012-07-28T05:12:25.297+01:002012-07-28T05:12:25.297+01:00Hello,
I enjoy reading a lot and your storie...Hello,<br /> I enjoy reading a lot and your stories are worth reading, nice blog, keep it up............<br /><br /><a href="http://acdmachines.com/Electronic_Anemometers.htm" rel="nofollow">Anemometer</a>acdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15575079952385032346noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-89584103573692446312012-07-27T00:59:57.480+01:002012-07-27T00:59:57.480+01:00The battery life issue is an absolute killer to be...The battery life issue is an absolute killer to be honest (see my follow-up blog). After running down 2 sets of batteries in just over 6 months, being left with a power-less meter at an inconvenient time, I took the batteries out and went back to using the old Fluke 77. The remote head unit looks a great idea, but I haven't yet had a situation where I couldn't just use a long pair of wires instead. Sure, if you have a use for the remote display (and don't expect to use it more than 3 metres away) then it is probably a good fit for your use, but for mine it doesn't really cut it.Mikehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02330775285331342432noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-13636202246334677232012-07-26T05:11:56.010+01:002012-07-26T05:11:56.010+01:00Thanks for the review as I'm looking to buy a ...Thanks for the review as I'm looking to buy a replacement for my trusty fluke 23 of around 28 birthdays and still going strong !! after blowing fuses across the mains. <br /> I service automotive and industrial mobile plant and look forward to the remote option.<br /> So I guess you've had it for almost 2 years now , How do you rate it now? Any problems ? battery life ? <br /><br /> Regagrds<br /> Donald <br /> New ZealandAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-43607803135646023452012-06-26T23:02:55.951+01:002012-06-26T23:02:55.951+01:00Thanks for the comments Chris. I think having had ...Thanks for the comments Chris. I think having had time to stand back from things, it feels like they didn't have much time to commit to what is after all a pilot program. I'm sure they will have learned a lot and not be complacent. MIT, Harvard (et al) haven't stayed where they are for so long without evolving and pushing for ever higher quality.<br /><br />I think even a nominal feel would be difficult to justify. I noticed comments from many students in and around the Indian sub-continent, for whom even $10 would be a prohibitive sum. Being all-inclusive is one of the pillars of the ethos of open-ness.<br /><br />That is not to say that it cannot generate income though. Indeed, if it to succeed and flourish, I do think it needs to generate money. I see no reason why selected appropriate adverts would not be appropriate, and I am sure YouTube monetisation/partnership could generate a very useful income. <br /><br />What I really look forward to is those people (engineers, artists, lecturers, or just fans) who have thought "Pah, I could do better than that" and start to record their own lectures based on 6.002x. This is the real strength of the open ethos. Take what is there, make it better, give it back for everyone to enjoy.Mikehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02330775285331342432noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-49389464035631809132012-06-26T18:08:51.547+01:002012-06-26T18:08:51.547+01:00Good recap. I think many of the things you bring u...Good recap. I think many of the things you bring up are very valid points and would be met with responses like, "Because we're doing what we can with what we have." I think your point about edX being announced has it right, that will definitely change things in terms of quality and availability.<br /><br />A question for you: Do you think you or anyone else has the appetite for paying a nominal fee to participate in this class or any others? Especially if this guaranteed quality because there would be a "skin in the game" aspect to it? Or does that change the model entirely because so many fewer would participate?Chris Gammellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14589570976612842597noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-55607352103868433252012-06-26T01:44:06.241+01:002012-06-26T01:44:06.241+01:00Cheers Tim.
An interesting article! I'm reass...Cheers Tim.<br /><br />An interesting article! I'm reassured to see that I am not the only person who has these opinions. Maybe we are just spoiled with the quality of education in the UK, but it just didn't seem very well designed at all. <br /><br />Cheers.<br /><br />MikeMikehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02330775285331342432noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-22855692238772734062012-06-25T18:48:43.087+01:002012-06-25T18:48:43.087+01:00It sounds as if you had a similar experience to me...It sounds as if you had a similar experience to me with this course - and have similar reservations about some of the teaching methods!<br /><br />If you're interested, my final review of 6.002x is here: http://www.tenpencepiece.net/blog/2012/06/16/mitx-6-002x-post-mortem-2/<br /><br />Regards,<br /><br />Tim.Tim Holyoakehttp://www.tenpencepiece.net/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-86207115786767144892011-12-21T21:42:34.897+00:002011-12-21T21:42:34.897+00:00" Does anyone have any recommendations? I don..." Does anyone have any recommendations? I don’t want to spend more than maybe £150 or so, it doesn’t need to be a fantastic spec. Thanks!"<br />Not sure about across the pond, but have a look for a refurbished "Flip" got one here for $40.00 Canadian and it's more than good enough for the job.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-45896238387050886542011-12-15T00:24:11.399+00:002011-12-15T00:24:11.399+00:00I have a nice post on how to code and create a sta...I have a nice post on how to code and create a standalone arduino clone without a crystal using just the arduino ide as the programming interface. no bootloader needed so you can code blank chips. The details are about 1/2 the way through the post:<br />http://www.toddfun.com/2011/01/01/making-a-custom-arduino-board-to-hack-a-christmas-photo-frame/Todd Harrisonhttp://www.toddfun.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-35780727692649735962011-12-14T03:24:36.761+00:002011-12-14T03:24:36.761+00:00A good set of tutorials there! Happy to publish yo...A good set of tutorials there! Happy to publish your comment. I will be reading them all myself too. Cheers!Mikehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02330775285331342432noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-52968533560023876372011-12-14T03:15:10.589+00:002011-12-14T03:15:10.589+00:00Great article Mike. If your readers are interested...Great article Mike. If your readers are interested I have published an extensive series of Arduino tutorials here > tronixstuff.wordpress.com/tutorialsAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-76917674465770705612011-12-08T07:11:15.665+00:002011-12-08T07:11:15.665+00:00Nice work! You're speaking for a lot of us th...Nice work! You're speaking for a lot of us that liked to use AND program our calculators. My hats off too, to Casio for trying, but they obviously lost their old core development staff. It seems the pinnacle of their programming line (for me) was the FX-4500P to FX-5800P line. You can still buy lots of FX-5800P's on eBay but only from Korea...odd.<br /><br />The best programming feature for me was the retention of the value of the variables in static memory even after power off. Turn it on..start your program..and your "standard" responses are right there where you left them. You could use a prompt string--easily--to explain whatever you want for input.<br /><br />Man, you had one 12 Character Alpha-numeric Line and One 10 digit Mantissa + 2 Digit exponent Line. Sexy. And small. That's all you need.<br /><br />So, for all the new color screen real estate, memory and firmware we gained, we lost equally as much control over the programming of our calculators.<br /><br />We need static memory! We need String handling! Array Variables! Date Handling! Fractions! We need to FORMAT THE DANG OUTPUT!!!<br />Change it's color! Make it Flash! Move it around the screen! Add some graphics! Sheesh!<br /><br />Man...all that power and no way to tap into it. Frustrating...I need a moment..lolAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-80927572093807298172011-12-07T04:14:08.328+00:002011-12-07T04:14:08.328+00:00Yep, I have done quite a bit of development to the...Yep, I have done quite a bit of development to the LCR meter. Unfortunately family and work commitments have meant that I just haven't got it to the state where I have anything significant to show. I'm not sure people would be interested in pages and pages of scribbles and ponderings. The next step is schematic capture and PCB design, and I really need a day or two to devote to that.Mikehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02330775285331342432noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-44551442510394090312011-11-27T01:56:12.155+00:002011-11-27T01:56:12.155+00:00Mike,
Just wondering if you have progressed this ...Mike,<br /><br />Just wondering if you have progressed this project any further?<br /><br />- JohnAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-4615370304772733362011-10-14T20:18:17.345+01:002011-10-14T20:18:17.345+01:00The LCR meter is still around and about. The desig...The LCR meter is still around and about. The design has had a few tweaks here and there, I'm just mainly waiting for a bit of spare cash for the PCB, precision components for calibration etc. I was hoping to have a nice commercial LCR meter which would have speeded up development, but it doesn't appear to be happening now.<br /><br />Sorry about the calculator bias. I have a couple of articles which I wrote for the blog, but just kinda got way too big, so I'm not totally sure what to do with them now!Mikehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02330775285331342432noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-45093937122499582152011-10-13T15:27:59.761+01:002011-10-13T15:27:59.761+01:00Hello Mike,
Whats happened to your precision LCR m...Hello Mike,<br />Whats happened to your precision LCR meter project? Seems like you have gone calculator mad ;)<br />Regards RichardRichardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03334788932039122718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-18898930604688072422011-07-04T23:16:49.785+01:002011-07-04T23:16:49.785+01:00Excellent review Mike. Thanks, a good detailed rev...Excellent review Mike. Thanks, a good detailed review obviously from someone that know's what they are talking about. The wireless display is too good to pass up especially working on vehicles at home...I'll deal with the con's. And as a professional myself, I will go with none other than a fluke. I've tried various multimeters trying to be frugal...and none of them come close to a Fluke! Each one has failed me except a Fluke. All we use is Fluke at work, I work in the offshore oilfield and ships as a Remotely Operated Vehicle's technician...only had a problem with a few but with good reason's why, they were damaged, not equipment failure.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-45016698215048664482011-06-16T18:13:52.621+01:002011-06-16T18:13:52.621+01:00Got my HP 48G in university 17 years ago and I won...Got my HP 48G in university 17 years ago and I won't be getting rid of it anytime soon. Hardly ever use the graphing capability but it cost so much I won't replace it until it dies!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-62768180795108018162011-06-16T08:22:32.332+01:002011-06-16T08:22:32.332+01:00Nice post! I would say you should just check ebay ...Nice post! I would say you should just check ebay for a 25 year old HP 48SX. I still us mine today and it seems to have everything you're looking for in a calculator... except it is not NEW. Pooy on NEW! All the new calculators do look like toys or phones.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-76275332998104928542011-06-14T20:09:25.211+01:002011-06-14T20:09:25.211+01:00What always confused me is that while processors g...What always confused me is that while processors get more powerful, calculators are getting slower and slower. I bought a casio fx-991ES for university, which is so slow that I can actually type faster than it can display the numbers I'm typing (even when I switch off the "math mode" where the term appears like it would be when written by hand). This is seriously annoying because it doesn't seem to have a buffer, so digits will get lost (imagine typing 1000 very fast and getting 100). Also, the user interface isn't very well thought out. When I want to use an arcsin, I would think typing "arc" followed by "sin" would be the logical thing to do. Not so with the casio. After typing "arc", a menu shows up on the screen, allowing to select between sin, cos, tan with the number keys 1 to 3. Very annoying in my opinion.<br /><br />I have since gone back to using the fx-115s, my first scientific calculator, which also has much nicer keys than the fx-991ES.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-33293415812216277782011-06-14T16:56:41.597+01:002011-06-14T16:56:41.597+01:00I'm an A Level Maths/Further Maths student at ...I'm an A Level Maths/Further Maths student at the minute, and whilst I'm not a calculator connoisseur like yourself, I do have to say I like my Casio fx9750gii rather a lot - I've upgraded the firmware to that of the fx9860gii, which gives me the very useful 'math' display mode with surds and pretty matrices etc as well as pointless spreadsheet and 'e-activity' functions.<br />It's programmable, and I've made a few useful programs (one that transforms the unit square by and 2x2 matrix and another that finds quark compositions of hadrons given their characteristics, among other things).<br />Perhaps not up to your standards, but I recommend it!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-38095312898707275592011-06-14T16:08:46.583+01:002011-06-14T16:08:46.583+01:00All the calculators made today are rubbish. I sti...All the calculators made today are rubbish. I still use my HP 28S (from around 1991), I have a few 32s II's which I love, but my favorite is an 11C that I inherited in my lab drawer many years ago. I'm partial to RPN, but HP only makes a few now, and they don't have the feel of the old ones.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3933619678696660447.post-43325169486025831492011-06-14T10:09:40.718+01:002011-06-14T10:09:40.718+01:00The calculator is one of the few gadgets that does...The calculator is one of the few gadgets that does not change. Nice example is the HP 12C. It is the longest ever produced electronic gadget, and you can still buy it today. 30 years already the time stands still.<br />Same with the smaller calculators. The chip for the simplest credit card calculators never changed since the seventies.<br />Some exotic models aside, calculators are the least changing gadgets there are.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com