These archive pages are provided in order to make it easier for you to find items
that you remember seeing on the RF Cafe homepage. Of course probably the easiest
way to find anything on the website is to use the "Search
RF Cafe" box at the top of every page.
About RF Cafe.
Please click here to view November 2014 homepage archive page 2.
Electronics-Themed Comics
Here is a batch of
electronics-themed
comics that appeared in the January 1945 edition of Radio News - a little light reading for you on a Friday
afternoon. The editors must have been frisky and into the holiday spirit(s) when choosing comics that month. You'll see
what I mean. There is a list of other comics at the bottom of the page.
Dan Bobyn Engineering
Dan Bobyn, of Calgary, Alberta, Canada, wrote asking to be listed on the "Technical Services & Consulting" page of
RF Cafe. Dan is an experienced engineer offering RF design consulting or contract expertise to small and large organizations
across North America. Clients range from companies who don't have a full time RF design engineer, those who simply
want an additional opinion on the RF design aspects of a particular project, to those who need additional hardware development
resources to complete RF based projects outside their usual design engineering capabilities. Please call him today at 403-819-8464
if you have the need.
Pasternack Intro New Digitally
Programmable Attenuators
Pasternack Enterprises
announces the release of their new 5 Bit, 8 Bit and 10 Bit broadband PIN diode digital step attenuators with performance
up to 40 GHz depending on the configuration. These programmable, variable step attenuators are commonly used in electronic
warfare, military and space communication systems, radar and test and measurement
Klystron: Tube of the Future
So much time has passed since an average home garage
mechanic could service his car or truck with standard tools - combination wrenches, screwdrivers, socket sets, timing light,
and a multimeter - that asking "remember when?" is passé. That era pretty much ended in the late 1980s as computerized cars
were becoming the industry norm. A good percentage of people nowadays have never and will never service their own vehicles.
In the mid 1940s, the electronics world was lamenting a similar situation with diminishing ability to build and modify
electronic components
like coils …
Rich vs. Poor
I've never considered
myself to be a class warfare guy, but facts are hard to ignore or deny when they are staring you in the face. Take this
recent headline, for instance: "The 85 Richest People on the Planet Now Have as
Much Money as the Poorest 3.5B." There are an estimated 7.2B people on Earth today, so that calculates to 0.0000012%
of the people have as much combined wealth as 49% of the rest of the people. In engineering terms, that's 12 picopopulations
vs. 490 millipopulations. We know the names of those top 85: Mexican communications magnate Carlos Slim Helu tops the list,
…
Perks That Work
Expectations and compliance willingness of employees and employers,
respectively, have changed a lot since I first entered the workforce in the 1970s. At the time, at least for the companies
I worked for as an electrician, the boss told you what to do and you did it. You showed up for work at a dictated time,
worked hard all day with strictly prescribed break and lunch times, and quit at the end of your shift. Production line and
office workers pretty much followed the same routine. I assumed everyone existed by the same rules. It wasn't until after
I got out of the U.S. Air Force in 1982 and went to work for Westinghouse as an electronics technician that I witnessed the difference between the way …
Introducing The Expert Institute
Joe O'Neill wrote to request a listing for
The Expert Institute on RF Cafe's "Expert Witnesses" services page. I agreed, and also,
after perusing his company's website, I asked for and received permission to reproduce some of the short articles they have
on topics relevant to RF Cafe visitors (that includes you). Stay tuned - the first of them
will appear very soon. As with the articles written by IMS ExpertServices, I find case studies very interesting and informative
since they represent real-world instances
New Magazine Articles
It's been almost two weeks since posting some
good RF & microwave engineering magazine article links. I've only include the ones that will be of interest to you ;-)
The History Channel Presents The Best of Modern Marvels.
These would make a good gift for your kids as inspiration to pursue careers in high tech - maybe even engineering. Did you
see my recent post on the survey done on lifetime
earnings expectations for various college degree majors? If the lad or lass doesn't plan to be a doctor or lawyer, engineering
is definitely a good choice. The videos make a good gift for yourself as well, so start dropping hints in time for the Christmas
shoppers.
Electronics at Redstone Arsenal
"The fact that every part of this ship was built
by the lowest bidder." That, according to Gene Kranz (NASA Flight Director during the Gemini and
Apollo missions), was Alan Shepard's reply when asked what he thought about as he sat atop the
Mercury Redstone
rocket, waiting for liftoff. That fact that the boost vehicle, the Redstone, was originally designed as an expendable ballistic
missile and not for safely launching humans into space might have had something to do with it, too. This 1957 vintage
article …
Skyworks Reports
Record Q4 FY14 Results
Skyworks Solutions today reported Q4 and year-end results
for the period ending October 3, 2014. Revenue for Q4 was $718.2 million, up 51% y-o-y and 22% sequentially, consistent
with the updated outlook provided on October 14, 2014 and exceeding the Company's original guidance midpoint of $680 million.
On a non-GAAP basis, operating income for Q4 FY2014 was up 81% from $130.3 million in Q4 FY2013. Non-GAAP diluted earnings
per share for Q4 FY2014 was $1.12, including a $0.03 fiscal year-end tax benefit, compared to $0.64 for the prior year Q4.
Microphones Explained
for Beginners
Carbon button microphones were used in Alexander
Graham Bell's first production model telephones. He bought the patent from inventor Emile Berliner because they were superior
to Bell's own liquid element microphones.
Condenser microphones followed, whose transducer element includes an integral variable capacitor. Interestingly, even
though we in the U.S don't refer to capacitors as 'condensers' anymore, the name has persisted. Ribbon microphones are inexpensive
…
Notable Quote
"Sometimes, only one person is missing, and the whole world seems depopulated."
- Alphonse de Lamartine,
L'Isolement(a translation of 7th stanza), Méditations Poétiques (1820) -- to the families of fallen service
members.
Veterans / Remembrance Day
11 month, 11th day, 11th hour
This Veterans Day(Remembrance Day
in Canada and
Australia) tribute is by Canadian
citizen Terry
Kelly. A Pittance of Time was written after an experience he had on Veterans Day in 1999.
Terry went blind at an early age, but has excelled as an athlete
and a musician. It is done in the finest Celtic tradition … and, of course, Lee Greenwood's- God Bless the USA , written 7 years before
9/11.
"Take two minutes, would you mind? It's a pittance of time, For the boys and
the girls who go over. In peacetime our best still don battle dress, And lay their lives on the line. It's a pittance of
time."
College Degree Lifetime
Earnings Report: 2014
Not many people would argue that earning a
college degree does not statistically portend
higher lifetime earnings, and that the more degrees you have, the higher your income is likely to be. Sure, lots of people
become very successful with little more than a high school diploma, but almost without exception they do it by starting
their own business and figure out how to exploit their natural talents in a big way. You don't need a college degree to
open a chain of auto lube stations, an electrical or plumbing contracting business, a lawn maintenance empire, or a few
pizza parlors. Some do …
Theory and Application of UHF
Not having a full collection of magazines is a real
disadvantage when multiple part stories are published and some editions are missing. Such is the case here with Milton Kiver's
series on electronics design. I do have other parts of the series, but they have not been posted on RF Cafe yet. However,
each installment is pretty much independent of the others. This month's topic is on the fundamental
theory of electrical
potential and force. The name 'Maxwell' is mentioned, but not in the way that strikes fear in the heart of engineering
students being introduced to the integral and differential forms of his eponymous equations (I know
first-hand), so it's safe to keep reading. First semester physics books cover the same
…
Orbel EMI/RFI Solutions Made
Possible by 3D CAD Systems
The arrival of 3D CAD programs has revolutionized
the way the electronics industry is able to detect areas that have static interference within product parts. Backed by today's
newest 3D software, advanced EMI/RFI shielding solutions by Orbel provide
the protection required to successfully operate a piece of electronic equipment to FCC regulations.
Funnies from The Good LifeOctober 2014
The Good Life is a free publication printed in northern Michigan.
Along with advertisements and stories from local interests, every edition is chock full of humorous quips and jokes. These (mostly) tech-related items are from the October 2014 edition. Sample: "There is a huge spider
in my kitchen so I will be tweeting from on top of this table for whatever the life span of this species is."
3 Adverts from the April 1945
Radio News
What more could
a company ask for than that someone would like his advertisements enough to reproduce them without collecting a fee and
even encourage others to look at them? It's too late for my promotions to do the companies any good since most have long
been out of business. World War II era ads stand out as a reflection on a largely unified country with a common goal
of preserving its history and continuing its traditions (rather than that of a foreign conqueror)
into the future. These ads from
Bliley,
Eastern
Amplifier, and United Electronics are great examples.
RF Engineering Crossword Puzzle
Take
a break and work this week's RF engineering
themed crossword puzzle. All the words are pulled from a hand-built list of terms, names, and abbreviations that have
only to do with science, mathematics, and engineering. If you want a crossword with names of movie stars and obscure countries,
try the local newspaper. If you want to exercise your nerd knowledge, this is the one for you.
Radio Service Data Sheets
This week's additions
to the collection of radio service data sheets are the
Arvin
Model 6 and the Emerson Model AZ-196(Chassis AZ). Both appeared in the August 1938 edition
of Radio Craft. As back in the era, similar schematic and service info was available for purchase from sources such as
SAMS Photofacts, but these printings were a no-cost bonus for
readers.
Television - As I See It
Now that the inestimable Bob Pease is no longer with us to
enlighten and entertain, is there a contemporary and immediately recognizable electronics technology name you see on a magazine
article, book, or presentation? Maybe my tech literary world is pretty small, but nobody come to mind as I write this
(apologies to the many great authors I am forgetting). In the early part of the last century,
you can be sure that when the names Edison,
de Forest,
Tesla, Marconi, Bell, and Morse were
…
Free Engineering Magazine
Subscriptions
Many of your favorite magazines offer
free subscriptions to qualified applicants.
Qualified usually means that you are currently employed in a field related to the primary theme of the magazine, and often
you also need to be a decision maker for buying products represented within the pages. Technical magazines, like RF
Cafe, get paid by advertisers and therefore need the public to support those companies by purchasing their products and/or
…
R&S Intros High Def O-Scopes
w/16-Bit Resolution
The high definition (HD) mode increases the vertical
resolution of the Rhode & Schwarz RTO and RTE oscilloscopes to up to 16 bits - a 256-fold improvement over 8-bit resolution.
Waveforms are sharper and show signal details that would otherwise be masked by noise. Input sensitivity of the oscilloscopes
has been increased to 500 µV/div. Users benefit from even more precise analysis results.
At the 1929 Radio World's Fair
You've heard of the World's Fairs, the most familiar
probably being the 1933 Chicago World's Fair where the theme was "A Century of Progress." World's Fairs have been held in
various cities worldwide since the late 1790s. In 1929, the World's Fair was held in the United Kingdom, but the "Radio World's
Fair," which began its annual run in 1924, was held in New York City. Surprisingly little exists on the Internet about
the events. It was more of a trade show to introduce new products than it was a fair, as can be seen
…
Radio Robot Plane
Radio-controlled flying
drones are commonplace
today - so much so that the FAA has enacted legislation to strictly limit who can fly them, where they can be flown, how
big they can be, what type of payloads can be carried, how far from the pilot they can be flown, etc. - the typical kind
of overreaching and overregulating that governments promulgate (especially in the last few years).
Sport model airplane flying has suffered loss of freedoms because of it by getting lumped in with
multirotor drones. The military, of course, has been
using …
Fairview Microwave's New eCommerce Website
Fairview
Microwave Inc., a supplier of on-demand microwave and RF components, has launched its all new
RF/Microwave eCommerce website featuring a powerful specification-based
navigation, enhanced site search capabilities and a newly designed user interface. Fairview's redesigned website allows
users to easily navigate through more than 30 RF product categories with its unique specification
Congrats to the October Book Drawing Winners!
Congratulations go out to Larry L. of Loogootee, IN, and Anthony P.
of Russellville, AR, for being winners in the October RF
Cafe Book Drawing. Not surprisingly, both guys chose to receive a free subscription to the
Conquer Radio Frequency online course, by Dr. Francesco
Fornetti. Graciously provided by Explore RF.
New Transmitter for Amateur Radio
Hams like members of the Mogollon Rim Collins Collectors
Club (K0CXX), play an important role in the preservation of vintage radio equipment. They
own a nice example of a
Collins
model 30K-5 medium power (250 W) AM transmitter that is the subject of this 1946
article in Radio News. At 5½ feet tall and weighing 350 pounds, the 30K is many times the volume and weight of
a modern solid state transmitter (transceiver + PA) having the same capability. Its advertised
price in 1946 was …
Electrocution: Placebos and Nocebos
Electrocution
is no laughing matter, but I have to chuckle every time I look at the picture on my page that lists the human body's response
to various levels of electrical current. The table shows that perceptible pain begins at around 10 mA and death can
occur at 100 mA, which came to mind while reading an article in the July/August edition of Discover magazine titled
"Why N0thing Works." Author Erik Vance reports on research
being done on the effects of placebos (Latin for "I shall please") and nocebos
("I shall harm") in healing and pain suppression. Typically
…
The Career Guide Book for Engineers
The Career Guide Book for Engineers, by John A. Hoschette. Currently, John
is a technical director with Lockheed Martin in Eagan, Minnesota working on mission computers. His work encompasses developing
the next generation mission computers for the F-35,P-3, F-16 and F-22 jet fighter aircraft. Building super computers that
fly. His area of technical expertise is optical data networking.
Career and Job Hunting Advice - November 5, 2014
This week's collection of employment and career related stories
is a real mixed bag. Topics range from whether getting a Bachelor's degree is worth the time and expanse to when might be
the best time in her career for a woman to have a baby. That just goes to show that there is an 'expert' on everything who
is ready to give advice. My standard caveat stands: Just because someone managed to get an article published doesn't mean
the advice is applicable you or anyone other than the writer.
The Kilocycle Kops
Except under special circumstances, the FCC does not conduct
much frequency monitoring activity. I know first-hand that even when a report of
radio
frequency interference is made to them, you will be told to figure out the source on your own and then get back to them.
There have been a lot of news items lately where the FCC has levied heavy fines on Ham operators found to be in violation
of the regs, and usually not because of independent complaints. This article from a 1956 edition of Popular Electronics
relates some of the cases experienced by guys
…
Anatech Intros 3 New Duplexer Filter Designs
Anatech Electronics has released three new duplexer
filter designs, one is a SAW duplexer covering the 1850.5-1909.5 MHz / 1930.5-1989.5 MHz bands, another is a cavity duplexer
covering the 1164-1301 MHz / 1525-1612 MHz bands, and the last is a ceramic duplexer covering the 1190-1270 MHz
/ 1545-1625 MHz bands. All can be ordered directly through their AMCrf
web store.
Notable Quote re Stupid People
"The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent full
of doubt." - Bertrand Russell, in his autobiography, c1969
Carl and Jerry: The Crazy Clock Caper
Before there were clocks that synchronized
themselves to a wireless low frequency (LF) time standard emanating from one of NIST's broadcast
towers, a different method was used to keep all the clocks in a building reading the same time. Many of the AC-powered mechanical
master-slave clock systems are still in use today. This episode of
Carl and Jerry has them teaming with a contract repairman to figure out why seemingly random clocks in
their high school failed to synch with the master overnight. Author John T. Frye provides a pretty thorough overview
of how the system operates using a
power line carrier scheme. Of course the boys' keen
…
FADA Radio and Electric Company Ad
FADA Radio and Electric Company, of Long Island,
New York, had a unique message for veterans returning from the throes of World War II. Rather than focus on the potential
loss of 'innocence' caused by exposure both to the horrors of war and the excitement and splendor of foreign cities, it
appealed to a desire to forget about the glitz and glitter and come back home to help America convert its amazing technical
and manufacturing base, borne out of desperate wartime need, into a thriving postwar, commercial economy. Many
…
Edwin H. Armstrong: The Rest of the Story
One of my favorite old-time radio personalities, Paul Harvey, had
a trademarked feature titled The Rest of the Story.
For those of you not familiar with the format, Mr. Harvey would begin his story talking about particular life aspects of
a person that, while remarkable, usually had no connection with the person's eventual claim to fame. The listener's challenge
was to guess who the person was before it was revealed at the very end, followed by, "... now you know --- the rest
of the story." As far as I know the story of FM radio inventor
Edwin H. Armstrong was never a subject, although it certainly met the criterion. I've already let
the figurative cat out of the bag, so...
Relating Some High Points in Photocell Progress
Edward Weston was a pioneer in the photoelectric cell field.
His 'photronic'
cell was one of the first successful devices for commercial use. Just like with early battery cells, photoelectric cells
of the era required a liquid medium to facilitate electron transfer and thereby generate electric current. The lead nitrate
compound used by Weston is now considered a possible human carcinogen. Mr. Brooke Clark has a web page with extensive data
on the history of Weston's photoelectric sensors, meters, test data, patents, and history of his
…
Engineering Book Authors Crossword Puzzle
As promised last week, this crossword puzzle's theme is
engineering book authors.
If you follow contemporary technical books on amplifier and filter design, radar systems and component design, then there's
a good chance you will recognize these guys. There are no gals in the list; however, there is one very famous lady who is
credited with giving birth to the concept of broadband frequency hopping spread spectrum communications. Ooooh
(smacks own forehead) ... will the phrasing of that last sentence have me sleeping on the
couch tonight, figuratively? (doh!, did it again)