Comments for Charles J Gervasi http://cgervasi.com/blog Thoughts on Electronics and Technology Wed, 10 Aug 2011 23:35:29 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 Comment on Buy Your Own Tools by Mark Walter, P.E. http://cgervasi.com/blog/?p=54&cpage=1#comment-638 Mark Walter, P.E. Wed, 10 Aug 2011 23:35:29 +0000 http://cgervasi.com/blog/?p=54#comment-638 I've been a practicing engineer for 30 years now. Ever since my first job I started gather tools of my trade and taking them with me. It seems I am in the minority as I don't see the other engineers I work with doing this. To me having my own tools makes perfect sense. Most of the tools are common everyday items, something that should be available at any decent engineering lab. Yet by having my own tools I don't have to spend time looking for what I want: I know what tools I carry and exactly where they are. Sure comes in handy when I work after hours and the technicians are not around to ask where they keep their wire strippers. In addition I modified or made small hand tools for specialized purposes. It always feels good to bring out a particular tool I've built and use it to solve a problem. In addition to hand tools I also include software tool in my bag of tricks. There are many specialized and often inexpensive software tools that can be found to make my life easier, be it a text editor, plotting program or just a simple Excel spreadsheet template set up to manipulate data in some particular manner. Mark Walter I’ve been a practicing engineer for 30 years now. Ever since my first job I started gather tools of my trade and taking them with me. It seems I am in the minority as I don’t see the other engineers I work with doing this.

To me having my own tools makes perfect sense. Most of the tools are common everyday items, something that should be available at any decent engineering lab. Yet by having my own tools I don’t have to spend time looking for what I want: I know what tools I carry and exactly where they are. Sure comes in handy when I work after hours and the technicians are not around to ask where they keep their wire strippers.

In addition I modified or made small hand tools for specialized purposes. It always feels good to bring out a particular tool I’ve built and use it to solve a problem.

In addition to hand tools I also include software tool in my bag of tricks. There are many specialized and often inexpensive software tools that can be found to make my life easier, be it a text editor, plotting program or just a simple Excel spreadsheet template set up to manipulate data in some particular manner.

Mark Walter

]]> Comment on TI Switcher Module Touts “Higher Efficiency than a Linear” by CJ http://cgervasi.com/blog/?p=73&cpage=1#comment-570 CJ Fri, 15 Jul 2011 21:13:54 +0000 http://cgervasi.com/blog/?p=73#comment-570 Yes, exactly. It's kind of absurd. This switcher has higher efficiency than a linear regulator. I can't imagine someone using a switcher in some application where Vin is close to Vout and a linear provides almost as good efficiency as a switcher. Yes, exactly. It’s kind of absurd. This switcher has higher efficiency than a linear regulator. I can’t imagine someone using a switcher in some application where Vin is close to Vout and a linear provides almost as good efficiency as a switcher.

]]> Comment on TI Switcher Module Touts “Higher Efficiency than a Linear” by Richard Percifield http://cgervasi.com/blog/?p=73&cpage=1#comment-569 Richard Percifield Fri, 15 Jul 2011 20:45:38 +0000 http://cgervasi.com/blog/?p=73#comment-569 You know what this really about? This info is for the salesperson. It allows him or her to give it to the purchasing department and give them a feature to sell. You know what this really about? This info is for the salesperson. It allows him or her to give it to the purchasing department and give them a feature to sell.

]]> Comment on Will Information Technology and Automation Result in a Long-Term Shortage of Jobs? by Cherish http://cgervasi.com/blog/?p=56&cpage=1#comment-202 Cherish Fri, 18 Mar 2011 03:44:50 +0000 http://cgervasi.com/blog/?p=56#comment-202 The down side to this is the expectation that a select number of people will still continue to work 40 hour weeks while the rest will be unemployed. The advent of technology hasn't reduced the working time for all of us: it has stayed the same for some of us, while the rest become under or unemployed. Ironically, those who are working have had huge losses in free-time as industrialization and technology have progressed. This has a pretty negative implication for economic policy...and it's going to continue to get worse. The down side to this is the expectation that a select number of people will still continue to work 40 hour weeks while the rest will be unemployed. The advent of technology hasn’t reduced the working time for all of us: it has stayed the same for some of us, while the rest become under or unemployed. Ironically, those who are working have had huge losses in free-time as industrialization and technology have progressed. This has a pretty negative implication for economic policy…and it’s going to continue to get worse.

]]> Comment on Low-Value High-Frequency Decoupling Caps Are a Myth by Bill http://cgervasi.com/blog/?p=15&cpage=1#comment-68 Bill Sun, 06 Feb 2011 06:16:48 +0000 http://cgervasi.com/blog/?p=15#comment-68 I agree with you. Here is a study that demonstrates it is measurably better to use a single value cap for decoupling, and that value should be the highest reasonable value in the package size of use. http://www.interferencetechnology.com/uploads/media/ITEM_01.pdf I agree with you. Here is a study that demonstrates it is measurably better to use a single value cap for decoupling, and that value should be the highest reasonable value in the package size of use.

http://www.interferencetechnology.com/uploads/media/ITEM_01.pdf

]]> Comment on Engineering Mindset Affects View of Precision by Melinda Gustafson Gervasi http://cgervasi.com/blog/?p=34&cpage=1#comment-45 Melinda Gustafson Gervasi Thu, 20 Jan 2011 03:31:52 +0000 http://cgervasi.com/blog/?p=34#comment-45 Thanks for inspiring me to post on my blog, Illness, Death, and Taxes. I'd like to add to your post that you are trained as a scientist. I am trained as a lawyer. In my field, standards tend to be followed to the "letter of the law". Different schools of thought -- your point is interesting. But when it's my turn to administer the meds, I'll always wait until the precise time. My type A personality has a hard time doing anything else. Thankfully, we balance each other in the parenting arena. Thanks for inspiring me to post on my blog, Illness, Death, and Taxes. I’d like to add to your post that you are trained as a scientist. I am trained as a lawyer. In my field, standards tend to be followed to the “letter of the law”. Different schools of thought — your point is interesting. But when it’s my turn to administer the meds, I’ll always wait until the precise time. My type A personality has a hard time doing anything else. Thankfully, we balance each other in the parenting arena.

]]> Comment on Engineering Mindset Affects View of Precision by Cherish http://cgervasi.com/blog/?p=34&cpage=1#comment-44 Cherish Thu, 20 Jan 2011 03:22:30 +0000 http://cgervasi.com/blog/?p=34#comment-44 I don't know about other fields, but I know exactly where you're coming from. :-D I don’t know about other fields, but I know exactly where you’re coming from. :-D

]]> Comment on Engineers Need to Save the World, But It’s Hard to Sell by Cherish http://cgervasi.com/blog/?p=12&cpage=1#comment-20 Cherish Tue, 28 Dec 2010 02:58:02 +0000 http://cgervasi.com/blog/?p=12#comment-20 I somewhat agree with your premise, but the real problem is that we're past the point of compromise. Natural warming is not happening at nearly the rate of anthropogenic warming (actually, aren't we on the downhill side of that curve?), and the warming that has occurred already, in combination with other issues like deforestation and habitat encroachment, have already obliterated huge chunks of most ecosystems. We can't go back to a world without anthropogenic effects, but we need to minimize any future impacts because we've already made such a mess of things. I somewhat agree with your premise, but the real problem is that we’re past the point of compromise. Natural warming is not happening at nearly the rate of anthropogenic warming (actually, aren’t we on the downhill side of that curve?), and the warming that has occurred already, in combination with other issues like deforestation and habitat encroachment, have already obliterated huge chunks of most ecosystems. We can’t go back to a world without anthropogenic effects, but we need to minimize any future impacts because we’ve already made such a mess of things.

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