Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[tggzzz]

There is no 'dark side of the moon'.

There is 'the side of the moon currently facing away from the sun', but I guess that's not a snappy enough title for an album

There was a "Dark side of the Moon", until October 1959 when Luna 3 took the first photos of the farside.

Africa used to be called "The Dark Continent", and that wasn't a reference to melanonin in skin In atlases, the dark parts were shown in white

[med6753]

All this moon talk is giving us Brain Damage

(Listen at the VERY end) 

[GreyWoolfe]

Budgetary constraints unfortunately. I’ll wait one year then upgrade.

Anyway I’m supposed to be taking the night off. Back to drinking like a fish.... 

Edit: can’t afford to get drunk these days. £5.75 a pint 

Haha, wait till next month, it might cost that much to get a sniff of of a pint let alone drink one 

I have paid $6.50 US for a good pint of local microbrew.  On those rare occasions that I do enjoy, due to type 2 diabetes, I only have one, and sip and savor instead of chug.

[worsthorse]

Just burned 64€ for nothing.   
I searched, found and ordered a Pretec 1MByte SRAM PCMCIA Card for my HP 8110A. HP has an option number for it...
Plugged it in and ...my two working 8110A say it's corrupted.   

Asked the seller if I could return the SRAM card if it is clearly defective.
Reply: What mode does my device work with; 8 Bit or 16 Bit?

Turns out that around 2017 the chipset in those cards that could switch between those modes got obsolete and newer cards only support one of 8 Bit or 16 Bit native mode. Should have known earlier.   

Question is: Will I be willing to potentially burn more n*60€ for probing through the different models of 1MByte SRAM cards that exist..?

I should have read this product change note before:
http://www.pretec.com/images/stories/news/PCN-SRAM-Linear-Flash-card-revised-2017-1013.pdf

If anyone has information about of what exact specification a SRAM PCMCIA Card for the HP/Agilent 8110A has to be I'd be very happy to hear/read about.

Ouch. 

[bd139]

Monitor arrived. New pc build worked. Phew. Back in a week when I’ve got it how I want it 

[worsthorse]

That said... I vaguely remember some discussion in one of my usenet groups ages ago suggesting that the location of those discs (how much of the fingers left exposed) was actually a micro-tuning mechanism for the capacitance of the circuit as a whole, and that it was a mechanism Tek had used in many designs of the space-race era.

For example, in the Tek 184 it is easy to see the tuned circuit, but note the easily tweakable transformer coupling coefficient.

That's true in the 184 but that's a trimmer.  I am skeptical that the caps on the peak detector are "tweakable". The dielectric disk is designed to snap into place. Plus there'd be no reason to tweak them as each of them is paralleled with a smaller capacitor. The smaller (high frequency) caps have a ferrite on one leg for damping. In pairs they provide a source for the detector output current. It is a neat design.

[URI]

Just burned 64€ for nothing.   
I searched, found and ordered a Pretec 1MByte SRAM PCMCIA Card for my HP 8110A. HP has an option number for it...
Plugged it in and ...my two working 8110A say it's corrupted.   

Asked the seller if I could return the SRAM card if it is clearly defective.
Reply: What mode does my device work with; 8 Bit or 16 Bit?

Turns out that around 2017 the chipset in those cards that could switch between those modes got obsolete and newer cards only support one of 8 Bit or 16 Bit native mode. Should have known earlier.   

Question is: Will I be willing to potentially burn more n*60€ for probing through the different models of 1MByte SRAM cards that exist..?

I should have read this product change note before:
http://www.pretec.com/images/stories/news/PCN-SRAM-Linear-Flash-card-revised-2017-1013.pdf

If anyone has information about of what exact specification a SRAM PCMCIA Card for the HP/Agilent 8110A has to be I'd be very happy to hear/read about.

Ouch. 

Thanks for your condolences. 

[mnementh]

.     New shelving unit completed and installed.

B&K corner looking good, buddy!  Thanks for giving them a loving home!

Monitor arrived. New pc build worked. Phew. Back in a week when I’ve got it how I want it 

I’m loving this uncharacteristic optimism on your part... Could it possibly become a regular thing...? 

That said... I vaguely remember some discussion in one of my usenet groups ages ago suggesting that the location of those discs (how much of the fingers left exposed) was actually a micro-tuning mechanism for the capacitance of the circuit as a whole, and that it was a mechanism Tek had used in many designs of the space-race era.

   For example, in the Tek 184 it is easy to see the tuned circuit, but note the easily tweakable transformer coupling coefficient.

That's true in the 184 but that's a trimmer.  I am skeptical that the caps on the peak detector are "tweakable". The dielectric disk is designed to snap into place. Plus there'd be no reason to tweak them as each of them is paralleled with a smaller capacitor. The smaller (high frequency) caps have a ferrite on one leg for damping. In pairs they provide a source for the detector output current. It is a neat design.

Fair enough. The fact you got yours working reasonably in spec is evidence it’s not a mission-critical thing. I was just passing on some “forgotten lore” I recalled from the dark ages of the internet, back when it was just nerds being nerdly.

mnem
*eating lunch off my welding bench because all the tables have been packed away*

[med6753]

Monitor arrived. New pc build worked. Phew. Back in a week when I’ve got it how I want it 

Win10 or a Linux Distro or (don't do it) dual boot?

[mansaxel]

Win10 or a Linux Distro or (don't do it) dual boot?

OpenBSD!

 

Naah, I don't think that'll fly with modern hardware and that graphics doodadlery.

Evening project: Open the box with a Märklin 60760 conversion kit, and start the rebuild of the Bayerische Staatsbahnen S 3/6 (albeit in Deutsche Reichsbahn livery) from relay control into digital. Me and child[2] are doing it together as a first foray into tinkering with model railway digital control.

(I have an array, awk-style numbered from 1 and up, of children. Middle one is 12 and has discovered railways, both real and model. )

[tggzzz]

That's true in the 184 but that's a trimmer.  I am skeptical that the caps on the peak detector are "tweakable". The dielectric disk is designed to snap into place. Plus there'd be no reason to tweak them as each of them is paralleled with a smaller capacitor. The smaller (high frequency) caps have a ferrite on one leg for damping. In pairs they provide a source for the detector output current. It is a neat design.

I wasn't intending to compare the 184 with the peak detector. I only intended it to be an example of a tweakable-in-production design. That transformer is very tweakable: just bend the n shaped wire behind the u shaped resonant circuit

[AVGresponding]

The far side of the moon has been illuminated monthly for many millions of years.

Just because humans weren't able to observe it, doesn't mean it didn't happen   

In past times they used to write "Here be Dragons" on map sections where the terrain was unknown. That doesn't mean that mnem was lurking there   

[Cubdriver]

The far side of the moon has been illuminated monthly for many millions of years.

Just because humans weren't able to observe it, doesn't mean it didn't happen   

In past times they used to write "Here be Dragons" on map sections where the terrain was unknown. That doesn't mean that mnem was lurking there   

How can you be so sure of that??   

-Pat

[tggzzz]

The far side of the moon has been illuminated monthly for many millions of years.

Just because humans weren't able to observe it, doesn't mean it didn't happen   

In past times they used to write "Here be Dragons" on map sections where the terrain was unknown. That doesn't mean that mnem was lurking there   

(I'm not sure what you are responding to)

"Dark" has multiple meanings.

In the case of the moon (and Africa), meaning 4 is key https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/dark "Hidden from knowledge; mysterious.", or "in the dark", or "a dark secret".

So yes, there was a "dark side of the moon".

[bd139]

Monitor arrived. New pc build worked. Phew. Back in a week when I’ve got it how I want it 

Win10 or a Linux Distro or (don't do it) dual boot?

Windows 10 with a hefty CentOS VM on it.

Win10 or a Linux Distro or (don't do it) dual boot?

OpenBSD!

 

Naah, I don't think that'll fly with modern hardware and that graphics doodadlery.

Evening project: Open the box with a Märklin 60760 conversion kit, and start the rebuild of the Bayerische Staatsbahnen S 3/6 (albeit in Deutsche Reichsbahn livery) from relay control into digital. Me and child[2] are doing it together as a first foray into tinkering with model railway digital control.

(I have an array, awk-style numbered from 1 and up, of children. Middle one is 12 and has discovered railways, both real and model. )

Yes that won't work. Not OpenBSD. I was a somewhat frequent user of that after a little disagreement with NetBSD on a SPARCstation 20. Until I discovered that the general IO performance was abysmal. Off to FreeBSD and PC it was.

My kids couldn't give a crap about trains. They are female though. I used to love playing with the things as a kid. Had a ton of Fleischmann HO stuff in the 1980s that was given to me. All gone now. Converted it into cash and then into pizzas, beer and floozies

[AVGresponding]

(I'm not sure what you are responding to)

"Dark" has multiple meanings.

In the case of the moon (and Africa), meaning 4 is key https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/dark "Hidden from knowledge; mysterious.", or "in the dark", or "a dark secret".

So yes, there was a "dark side of the moon".

I was referring to the literal meaning, not any of the metaphorical ones.

I'm an engineer; I like metaphors, but only when they are safely contained within works of fiction.

[med6753]

(I'm not sure what you are responding to)

"Dark" has multiple meanings.

In the case of the moon (and Africa), meaning 4 is key https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/dark "Hidden from knowledge; mysterious.", or "in the dark", or "a dark secret".

So yes, there was a "dark side of the moon".

I was referring to the literal meaning, not any of the metaphorical ones.

I'm an engineer; I like metaphors, but only when they are safely contained within works of fiction.

Engineers love cookies too. 

[Specmaster]

There is no 'dark side of the moon'.

There is 'the side of the moon currently facing away from the sun', but I guess that's not a snappy enough title for an album

When the moon is full (from our perspective) it actually is dark. However, the term was originally in use because no one had ever seen the far side of the moon before spacecraft capable of reaching were a thing.

Here is the remix of the original Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd in full quadophonic 5.1 glory

[bd139]

Aaaaand I've lost my new PC. Middle child has stolen it and is playing Fortnite 

[Specmaster]

No heatsink for the NVMe drive. Should be fine. I'm really liking these modern ATX cases. I haven't built one for about 15 years now. They are so much better than the "bundle of shit in the middle" of yesteryear.

Yep cases these days are far better then they used to be...or are they?

Those old cases if I recall correctly were more then likely the very basic cases which you can still buy the modern equivalent of today, rough chassis tray, silver coloured and flimsy, almost razor sharp on the edges, cases came with a cheap PSU already fitted and zero facilities for cable management. Drive bays almost as bad and just as silver inside and the whole case was only supplied with a single fan plus one in the PSU.

If you move away from the bargain basement to a decent designed case, where cable management, expansion bays that don't require tools to used to fit drives etc, aesthetics and cooling arrangements have been thought about then you get something built to last and can cost as much and more than the motherboard, and it still requires the addition of the PSU.

[Specmaster]

Aaaaand I've lost my new PC. Middle child has stolen it and is playing Fortnite 

Haha, been there, ad to go and build more for them, had to build 3 more so I could get mine back. These days if they want an upgrade they go and buy the bits and I get the job of installing them.

[bd139]

No heatsink for the NVMe drive. Should be fine. I'm really liking these modern ATX cases. I haven't built one for about 15 years now. They are so much better than the "bundle of shit in the middle" of yesteryear.

Yep cases these days are far better then they used to be...or are they?

Those old cases if I recall correctly were more then likely the very basic cases which you can still buy the modern equivalent of today, rough chassis tray, silver coloured and flimsy, almost razor sharp on the edges, cases came with a cheap PSU already fitted and zero facilities for cable management. Drive bays almost as bad and just as silver inside and the whole case was only supplied with a single fan plus one in the PSU.

If you move away from the bargain basement to a decent designed case, where cable management, expansion bays that don't require tools to used to fit drives etc, aesthetics and cooling arrangements have been thought about then you get something built to last and can cost as much and more than the motherboard, and it still requires the addition of the PSU.

Yeah that's the ones. As my father used to say when he came out of one dripping with blood: "chinese finger fuckers"  .

Agree with the case. This case and PSU cost 2.5x the motherboard. I didn't want to go cheap because the cheap ones are rattly and nasty. The main aspect of this was it had to be a quiet PC. It paid off. It's not even audible when you're sitting next to it with the CPU cranking.

Aaaaand I've lost my new PC. Middle child has stolen it and is playing Fortnite 

Haha, been there, ad to go and build more for them, had to build 3 more so I could get mine back. These days if they want an upgrade they go and buy the bits and I get the job of installing them.

I'm slightly tempted. It was fun building a PC for a change. As I mentioned before, last one I did was about 15 years ago.

[tautech]

Aaaaand I've lost my new PC. Middle child has stolen it and is playing Fortnite 

Haha, been there, ad to go and build more for them, had to build 3 more so I could get mine back. These days if they want an upgrade they go and buy the bits and I get the job of installing them.

I'm slightly tempted. It was fun building a PC for a change. As I mentioned before, last one I did was about 15 years ago.

Hah, you guys have it easy, once I felt like an IT manager with 5 PC's, one for each of us and all hobbled together and administered by yours truly and hard wired to our growing LAN. Those days we only had dialer modems and ~40kbs peak speeds so if anyone needed to go on the 'net they had to take turns or it ground to a crawl.
A network printer was a thing of dreams and the only switch we had back then was a 4 port PC card but at least it allowed printer access for all through the parallel port of the office PC that was always ON.
Used to take most of my spare time keeping everything in some sort of running order.

Thank gawd all the youngsters have flown the nest and there's only 2 PC's left to keep sorted of which W10 has drastically reduced admin workload. 

[Specmaster]

@bd139 My own case is a Corsair Obsidian 750D case and I have a water cooled AMD FX 8350 4GHz 8 core CPU with 5 x 140mm fans in the case, 2 at the front, 2 on the top with a double radiator and 1 at the rear. There is another built into the Corsair RM850W modular PSU and the case sits under my bench/desk and I have to say that even with all of those fans it is whisper quiet. The graphics card (Nvidia Geforce GTX960 2GB) also has 2 built in fans. I have had this now for 5 years and the same case will be used again when I upgrade the MB and CPU. Mind you it is far cheaper then when I brought it, as it always when your on the cutting edge. 

https://www.ebuyer.com/579787-corsair-obsidian-series-750d-full-tower-atx-case-cc-9011035-ww

[nfmax]

I used to have a mighty twin processor Xeon Dell tower as an office PC. The cooling fans were so noisy I hid it round the corner of the partition with just the front face peeping out. Except in the winter. In this position, the exhaust from the fans blew directly onto the TRV which controlled the heating in my corner of the office, thus freezing me by means of hot air. For several years the PC made a sort of seasonal migration, like an Alpine herdsman.