Unlike software programming, computer design has been very workable into parallel business practices since day one. This is because it's roots are in analog design, which is inherently parallel. You'd be surprised how good the tools and the business practices are for designing electronic devices. Oh, the engineers are good too.
On an entirely different note, does anyone have an AppleTV? It seems really cool, but in order for me to buy one, there needs to be more functionality than just streaming low-resolution videos from my computer to my TV screen. Sladduch's idea of making a video game console out of it is interesting: it has more in every way than the XBox 1, and probably the Wii too. I think it would be sweet if a company like Ambrosia took it upon themselves to release some of their library onto the AppleTV.
I have two of them, love em. Not sure why everyone always tout low res video when it's the farthest from the truth. I encode many wide screen vids at anaormorphic levels like 853x480. They look fantastic, handbrake does this as does the elgato Turbo 264 software. 4:3 vids at 640x480 ans she still looks great.
On an entirely different note, does anyone have an AppleTV? It seems really cool, but in order for me to buy one, there needs to be more functionality than just streaming low-resolution videos from my computer to my TV screen. Sladduch's idea of making a video game console out of it is interesting: it has more in every way than the XBox 1, and probably the Wii too. I think it would be sweet if a company like Ambrosia took it upon themselves to release some of their library onto the AppleTV.
I got one as well. I was one of those people who said I'd wait until version 2.0 too (especially after I saw the Apple Store demo units playing a very lo-res version of The Incredibles - but then I realized that was because of the iTunes store). I liked the device, but I care a lot about quality too.
I downloaded the latest version of handbrake, and ripped most of my movies (some of the newer movies in the past year or so have a "zero-cell" anti-piracy thing in them that HB can't bypass). The quality is great - I can keep the DVD chapters, and I can even encode the m4v movies with the original 6 channel discrete audio tracks for 5.1 surround. I don't regret that I bought it at all. Steve said that the ?Tv would get software updates in June, so that is nice too - it's functionality will only get better. I'd say if you're on the fence because of the iTS quality issue - forget that and rip the movies yourself. It will take some time but it's worth it.
Hmmm. @tv is not only a mediocre (at best) product, it also has mediocre (at best) margins.
Good thing that Apple has other interesting stuff up its sleeve. O/w its stock would be tanking!
What exactly is the "Best in Class" product then? I have to agree with Melgross...those that don't want to buy love to slam the product but when confronted with an inquiry about what other options are better...crickets.
Would I love more HD content...yup.
Would I love higher bandwidth and resolution ...yup
Given today's component pricing and performance could Apple have done better for the price? That's debatable. I don't think so myself.
Very true. I can also tell you that de-soldering, and soldering such boards can be a bitch, even though my equipment is designed to do it.
If you have single-sided boards, a cheap hotplate and some solder paste work great. The guys at sparkfun.com, IIRC, can tell you all about it. This was literally a life-altering discovery for me.
On the AppleTV issue. . .
Thanks for the replies, guys. I still really like the idea of the AppleTV, but I'm going to wait for some further functionality. I get most of my movies from Netflix, so I can't rip them without violating my conscience or wasting a few hours that could have otherwise been spent simply playing the DVD. If it had some killer feature, like UWB or something, I'd be more compelled to buy one.
If you have single-sided boards, a cheap hotplate and some solder paste work great. The guys at sparkfun.com, IIRC, can tell you all about it. This was literally a life-altering discovery for me.
I eat single sided boards for lunch.
But, eight layer boards require a fairly high wattage controlled temp tip, which will have no more than about a 2 degree drop for the three seconds of dwell time it takes to be within specs for most devices. Some of those layers are ground, or shield layers, and suck up a lot of heat.
But, eight layer boards require a fairly high wattage controlled temp tip, which will have no more than about a 2 degree drop for the three seconds of dwell time it takes to be within specs for most devices. Some of those layers are ground, or shield layers, and suck up a lot of heat.
I stopped hand soldering boards a while ago. Now that solder is lead free, it's even more of a pain in the ass to hand solder more than about ten components. The toaster and skillet methods are just so much easier, especially for fine pitch ICs. four layers, eight layers, whatever. As long as there are only components on one side, the skillet can blast through boards in no time, with low stress. If you have components on both sides, you can use two solder pastes that melt at different temps, and use the toaster oven. For BGAs, I'm not sure how you would go about using an iron. You really should look into the amateur reflow techniques! Not only are they easier, but a cheap toaster oven or skillet costs less than a nice iron tip.
I stopped hand soldering boards a while ago. Now that solder is lead free, it's even more of a pain in the ass to hand solder more than about ten components. The toaster and skillet methods are just so much easier, especially for fine pitch ICs. four layers, eight layers, whatever. As long as there are only components on one side, the skillet can blast through boards in no time, with low stress. If you have components on both sides, you can use two solder pastes that melt at different temps, and use the toaster oven. For BGAs, I'm not sure how you would go about using an iron. You really should look into the amateur reflow techniques! Not only are they easier, but a cheap toaster oven or skillet costs less than a nice iron tip.
I have air flow for those pesky 0.050 surface mount thingies. I wouldn't try them with a tip.
Comments
Unlike software programming, computer design has been very workable into parallel business practices since day one. This is because it's roots are in analog design, which is inherently parallel. You'd be surprised how good the tools and the business practices are for designing electronic devices. Oh, the engineers are good too.
On an entirely different note, does anyone have an AppleTV? It seems really cool, but in order for me to buy one, there needs to be more functionality than just streaming low-resolution videos from my computer to my TV screen. Sladduch's idea of making a video game console out of it is interesting: it has more in every way than the XBox 1, and probably the Wii too. I think it would be sweet if a company like Ambrosia took it upon themselves to release some of their library onto the AppleTV.
I have two of them, love em. Not sure why everyone always tout low res video when it's the farthest from the truth. I encode many wide screen vids at anaormorphic levels like 853x480. They look fantastic, handbrake does this as does the elgato Turbo 264 software. 4:3 vids at 640x480 ans she still looks great.
Good thing that Apple has other interesting stuff up its sleeve. O/w its stock would be tanking!
On an entirely different note, does anyone have an AppleTV? It seems really cool, but in order for me to buy one, there needs to be more functionality than just streaming low-resolution videos from my computer to my TV screen. Sladduch's idea of making a video game console out of it is interesting: it has more in every way than the XBox 1, and probably the Wii too. I think it would be sweet if a company like Ambrosia took it upon themselves to release some of their library onto the AppleTV.
I got one as well. I was one of those people who said I'd wait until version 2.0 too (especially after I saw the Apple Store demo units playing a very lo-res version of The Incredibles - but then I realized that was because of the iTunes store). I liked the device, but I care a lot about quality too.
I downloaded the latest version of handbrake, and ripped most of my movies (some of the newer movies in the past year or so have a "zero-cell" anti-piracy thing in them that HB can't bypass). The quality is great - I can keep the DVD chapters, and I can even encode the m4v movies with the original 6 channel discrete audio tracks for 5.1 surround. I don't regret that I bought it at all. Steve said that the ?Tv would get software updates in June, so that is nice too - it's functionality will only get better. I'd say if you're on the fence because of the iTS quality issue - forget that and rip the movies yourself. It will take some time but it's worth it.
Hmmm. @tv is not only a mediocre (at best) product, it also has mediocre (at best) margins.
Good thing that Apple has other interesting stuff up its sleeve. O/w its stock would be tanking!
It isn't a mediocre product. Ask those here who have bought one (or more) and like it a lot.
Those who don't find a need for it can't pretend that the product is bad because they are't interested.
Not every product needs to make an immediate profit. Apple may be laying the groundwork for future products.
The thing is that we don't know if the numbers are correct.
But yes, Apple is looking to the future.
Hmmm. @tv is not only a mediocre (at best) product, it also has mediocre (at best) margins.
Good thing that Apple has other interesting stuff up its sleeve. O/w its stock would be tanking!
What exactly is the "Best in Class" product then? I have to agree with Melgross...those that don't want to buy love to slam the product but when confronted with an inquiry about what other options are better...crickets.
Would I love more HD content...yup.
Would I love higher bandwidth and resolution ...yup
Given today's component pricing and performance could Apple have done better for the price? That's debatable. I don't think so myself.
Very true. I can also tell you that de-soldering, and soldering such boards can be a bitch, even though my equipment is designed to do it.
If you have single-sided boards, a cheap hotplate and some solder paste work great. The guys at sparkfun.com, IIRC, can tell you all about it. This was literally a life-altering discovery for me.
On the AppleTV issue. . .
Thanks for the replies, guys. I still really like the idea of the AppleTV, but I'm going to wait for some further functionality. I get most of my movies from Netflix, so I can't rip them without violating my conscience or wasting a few hours that could have otherwise been spent simply playing the DVD. If it had some killer feature, like UWB or something, I'd be more compelled to buy one.
If you have single-sided boards, a cheap hotplate and some solder paste work great. The guys at sparkfun.com, IIRC, can tell you all about it. This was literally a life-altering discovery for me.
I eat single sided boards for lunch.
But, eight layer boards require a fairly high wattage controlled temp tip, which will have no more than about a 2 degree drop for the three seconds of dwell time it takes to be within specs for most devices. Some of those layers are ground, or shield layers, and suck up a lot of heat.
I eat single sided boards for lunch.
But, eight layer boards require a fairly high wattage controlled temp tip, which will have no more than about a 2 degree drop for the three seconds of dwell time it takes to be within specs for most devices. Some of those layers are ground, or shield layers, and suck up a lot of heat.
I stopped hand soldering boards a while ago. Now that solder is lead free, it's even more of a pain in the ass to hand solder more than about ten components. The toaster and skillet methods are just so much easier, especially for fine pitch ICs. four layers, eight layers, whatever. As long as there are only components on one side, the skillet can blast through boards in no time, with low stress. If you have components on both sides, you can use two solder pastes that melt at different temps, and use the toaster oven. For BGAs, I'm not sure how you would go about using an iron. You really should look into the amateur reflow techniques! Not only are they easier, but a cheap toaster oven or skillet costs less than a nice iron tip.
I stopped hand soldering boards a while ago. Now that solder is lead free, it's even more of a pain in the ass to hand solder more than about ten components. The toaster and skillet methods are just so much easier, especially for fine pitch ICs. four layers, eight layers, whatever. As long as there are only components on one side, the skillet can blast through boards in no time, with low stress. If you have components on both sides, you can use two solder pastes that melt at different temps, and use the toaster oven. For BGAs, I'm not sure how you would go about using an iron. You really should look into the amateur reflow techniques! Not only are they easier, but a cheap toaster oven or skillet costs less than a nice iron tip.
I have air flow for those pesky 0.050 surface mount thingies. I wouldn't try them with a tip.