Ponderings by Wayne Stallwood http://digimatic.co.uk Tue, 07 Sep 2010 05:02:28 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.2 http://digimatic.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=71&Itemid=28 My Kindle (3G v3 slate grey) arrived on Friday ! 5 Days early and within 24 hours of playing with it I think I am in love. Read below for my initial thoughts. Reviews - Technology Sun, 05 Sep 2010 11:28:19 +0100 http://digimatic.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=69&Itemid=28 As anybody who has tried to work on through-plated PCB's either repairing/modfying or building equipment will attest. De-Soldering components on a through-plated PCB is a royal pain with standard soldering equipment. RoHS compliant Lead-free solder (which can have both a higher melting point and higher viscosity when molten) just adds to the problem. Traditional wick or pneumatic based handeld pump based desoldering techniques tend to either result in lots of frustration or damaged components/PCB's. Lift a pad on a multilayer PCB and you have just created yourself a reasonable amount of work beyond the original repair. There is a solution which is a purpose built reflow tool. If you haven't seen or used one before they are a revelation. Essentially you have a straw like hollow soldering bit which you place over the component leg on the joint. Press a trigger and a vacuum pump sucks the molten solder into a capture vessel. With a tiny bit of practice components will literally be falling into your hand. Unfortunately these solutions tended to be expensive enough that they are out of reach of anything but a very dedicated hobbyist or professional Engineer. However the Duratool Station is eminently affordable and seems to perform very well. Read below for my full review Reviews - Technology Wed, 31 Mar 2010 23:19:36 +0100 http://digimatic.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=68&Itemid=27 Here are some basic soldering tips for beginners struggling to get good clean joints reliably. I have been asked to help a few times with people starting out, usually one of the below points is reason for their pain Soldering is like many things. Once you have a bit of practice the technique becomes second nature and you'll wonder why it seemed so hard to begin with. Usually there is some initial frustration where it seems you can't get a clean joint no matter what you try. Again this is usually down to one of the points below. Computing Tips and Tricks - Hardware Headaches Wed, 31 Mar 2010 23:11:33 +0100 http://digimatic.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=70&Itemid=34 This Article got me thinkinghttp://www.enterprisestorageforum.com/article.php/3894671 (http://www.enterprisestorageforum.com/article.php/3894671) I think it is wrong...very wrong. So many times there has been a brick wall in the development of semiconductors that has been quickly supplanted as per market needs. I don't believe for a moment that Flash memory is any different. Also the article seems to assume a limiting form factor (such as placing the flash in a Hard Drive like enclosure) Why should this be the case. Hard Drive Form factors are a result of the mechanics inside. Once SSD becomes commonplace we can ditch this and put flash chips in any arrangement we like. Already there are SSD netbooks with the SSD on a PCB. Why not place it on a PCI-E card complete with a storage controller and be done with the Hard Drive form factor altogether. Arguably it gets better cooling that way as well. Sure there will need to be some SSD drives in standard 3.5 and 2.5 inch form factors with SATA or SAS interfaces to be retrofitted in existing equipment but why is everyone making the assumption that always needs to be the case ? Rants - General Tue, 27 Jul 2010 01:00:00 +0100 http://digimatic.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=66&Itemid=34 Thought of the moment,My Washing Machine has a glass door so you can see your dirty clothes get cleaned, My Oven door has a window so you can see your food get burnt, you can even buy Fridges with glass doors so you can see your food get cold.So why don't they make Dishwashers with glass doors ? What is going on behind that door they don't want us to see ?Is it anything to do with the adverts on the TV telling me I need to buy a special cleaning fluid so that my Dishwasher can clean itself ? If it can't clean itself then why should I trust it with the dishes ?Answers about the magic elves theory on a postcard to the usual address. Rants - General Mon, 09 Mar 2009 23:45:16 +0100