LED Designs, Last Minute Designs and Board Designs

After an admittedly non-technical episode last week, we had an abundance of tech topics this week. So why keep writing when we can get to the links and you can get to listening! [display_podcast]

• Shoutouts
  • Troy Rank has a new show about e-bikes. Looking forward to hearing about the electronics in them!
  • The 555 timer is 40 years old! Talk about a solid design. Potential replacements can't touch all the sales the original still gets.
  • Google asks about the DEADBEEF register in interviews. Chris is glad they focus a little on memory knowledge (not just the abstract CS type stuff). Dave had no idea what DEADBEEF was, and likes CAFEBABE much better!
• Discussion Points
  • • Dave and Chris are both working on LED projects. Dave's is an RGB module for a tradeshow and looks great!
  • • Dave pointed out an useful app note from Agilent/Avago.
  about driving LED matrix displays.
  • The talk about hardware design from Amanda Wozniak (W0z) was called "crass" by some, but Dave and Chris love the tech content...so who cares?
  • New design contest  from Hackaday,  Adafruit and MAKE: Buy, Break, Build (using a Dancing Santa for parts)
• Rants
  • Why are software development packages so HUGE? (No link, just feel free to go to any chip maker and download their development package).
• Updates
  • Karl von Moller is continuing work on his documentary about the Australian electronics industry and it will now be in a 3 part series! We're looking forward to it.

Anything we missed? Are you a manager that wants to let us know (anonymously or otherwise) about the fact that your a manager AND you listen to the Amp Hour? Let us hear you in the comments!